Do I Need to Pay Kaffara for Each Broken Oath?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

I repeatedly broke oaths related to two sins I struggle with, making multiple oaths to stop but failing. Do I need to pay kaffara for each broken oath or just for the first one? I have not paid kaffara yet.

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.

You will need to give an expiation (kaffara) for each of your oaths.

The Expiation (Kaffara) for Breaking an Oath Is:

1. Free a slave (not applicable in these times) or
2. Feed ten poor people (Muslim)  an average of two meals, or
3. Clothe ten poor people ( Muslim) enough clothes to cover most of their bodies.

Since feeding the poor is the most viable option today, if you choose to feed the poor, you may either provide ten people with an average of two meals or feed one person twice a day for the next ten days.

If, for some reason, one cannot feed the poor, nor can one clothe them, then one should fast for three consecutive days.

[ʿAla’uddin Ibn ʿAbidin, al-Hadiyya al-‘Ala’iyya]

You can search for answers related to this topic on SeekersGuidance.com.

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.

Related 

• Oaths Archives – SeekersGuidance
• Expiation for a Broken Oath – SeekersGuidance
• What Are the Words That Make an Oath Binding? – SeekersGuidance
• Vows and Oaths: Keep Repeating the Mistake. Do I have to keep repeating – IslamQA
• Can I Only Feed One Meal As Expiation for Breaking an Oath? – SeekersGuidance
• How Do I Repent from Intentionally Broken Oaths? – SeekersGuidance
• What Is the Expiation (Kaffara) of Breaking an Oath? – SeekersGuidance
• Oaths Archives – SeekersGuidance

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I pray this helps with your question.

Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat 

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.