Can I Give an Expiation for My Oath Not to Marry, Now That I Will Get Married Soon?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I have broken an oath which essentially entailed “I cannot do certain sin for 40 days or I cannot or will not marry” along those lines. However, I have broken the oath and am due to get married in 30 days; thus, will my Nikah be valid? Finally, for expiation could I give money which will subsequently reach ten poor people or should I fast for three days? Would my nikah be valid if I expiate after the nikah?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question. Allah (Most High) bless your marriage, and may it be a means of evergrowing happiness, harmony, and righteous healthy children. Amin.
Yes, you have taken an oath. Give one expiation by feeding ten poor people for all your oaths you have taken, from not committing a certain sin and not marrying, etc. Do not worry. Your marriage contract (nikah) will be valid.
Expiation for a Broken Oath
The expiation for a broken oath is:
(b) to feed ten adult poor people two meals a day for ten days or
(c) cloth ten adult poor people with an average quality garment which will cover most of their body.
If these are not possible, then (d) one must fast three days in a row.
The Concession
One of the leading authorities of the Hanafi School, Muhammad Amin Ibn ‘Abidin, narrates from al-Maqdisi (Allah have mercy on them both) that when oaths become abundant, they are combined, and one expiation suffices them all. This was the opinion of Imam Muhammad and the chosen position.
[Ibn ’Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.
Related
- The Elements of Meaningful Marriage Contracts – SeekersGuidance
- What Are the Words That Make an Oath Binding?
- A Reader on OCD and Waswasa (Baseless Misgivings) (seekersguidance.org)
- Devil’s Tricks – The Path of Muhammad: Birgivi’s Manual of Taqwa Explained – Sh Faraz Rabbani – YouTube
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersAcademy (seekersguidance.org), like from the Islamic Studies Curriculum (seekersguidance.org) or Youth Islamic Studies Curriculum (seekersguidance.org), building your way up doing each course?
I pray this helps answer your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
وفي البغية: كفارات الايمان إذا كثرت تداخلت، ويخرج بالكفارة الواحدة عن عهدة الجميع، وقال شهاب الأئمة: هذا قول محمد. قال صاحب الأصل: هو المختار عندي اه مقدسي. ومثله في القهستاني عن المنية
حاشية رد المحتار – ابن عابدين – ج ٤ – الصفحة ١٥
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
