Oaths and Vows (Kitab Al-Aiman Wa Al-Nudhur)

Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab said: There were two brothers among the Ansar who shared an inheritance. When one of them asked the other for the portion due to him, he replied: If you ask me again for the portion due to you, all my property will be devoted to the decoration of the Ka'bah. Umar said to him: The Ka'bah does not need your property. Make atonement for your oath and speak to your brother. I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: An oath or vow to disobey the Lord, or to break ties of relationship or about something over which one has no control is not binding on you.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: A vow is binding in those things by which the pleasure of Allah is sought, and an oath to break ties of relationship is not binding.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: An oath or a vow about something over which a human being has no control, and to disobey Allah, and to break ties of relationship is not binding. If anyone takes an oath and then considers something else better than it, he should give it up, and do what is better, for leaving it is its atonement.Abu Dawud said: All sound traditions from the Prophet (ﷺ) say: "He should make atonement for his oath," except those versions which are not reliable.Abu Dawud said: I said to Ahmad: Yahya b. Sa'id (al-Qattan) has transmitted this tradition from Yahya b. 'Ubaid Allah. He (Ahmad b. Hanbal) said: But he gave it up after that, and he was competent for doing it. Ahmad said: His (Yahya b. 'Ubaid Allah's) tradition are munkar (rejected) and his father is not known.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas: Two men brought their dispute to the Prophet (ﷺ). The Prophet (ﷺ) asked the plaintiff to produce evidence, but he had no evidence. So he asked the defendant to swear. He swore by Allah "There is no god but He." The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Yes, you have done it, but you have been forgiven for the sincerity of the statement: "There is no god but Allah."Abu Dawud said: This tradition means that he did not command him to make atonement

Narrated Abu Burdah: On the authority of his father that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: I swear by Allah that if Allah wills I shall swear on an oath and then consider something else to be better than it without making atonement for my oath and doing the thing that is better. Or he said (according to another version): But doing the thing that is better and making atonement for my oath.

Narrated 'Abd al-Rahman b. Samurah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said to me: 'Abd al-Rahman b. Samurah, when you swear an oath and consider something else to be better than it, do the thing that is beter and make atonement for your oath.Abu Dawud said: I heard Ahmad (b. Hanbal) permitting to make atonement before breaking the oath.

A similar tradition has been transmitted by 'Abd al-Rahman b. Samurah through a different chain if narrators. This version has: "Make atonement for your oath and then do the thing that is better." Abu Dawud said: The version of this tradition transmitted by Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, 'Adi b. Hatim and Abu Hurairah are variant. Some of them indicate breaking the oath before making atonement, and other making atonement before breaking the oath.

Narrated Safiyyah bint Huyayy: Ibn Harmalah said: Umm Habib gave us a sa' and told us narration from the nephew of Safiyyah on the authority of Safiyyah that it was the sa' of the Prophet (ﷺ). Anas ibn Ayyad said: I tested it and found its capacity two and half mudd according to the mudd of Hisham.

Narrated Muhammad b. Muhmmad b. Khattab Abu 'Umar : We had a makkuk which was called Makkuk Khalid. Its capacity was two measurements according to the measurements of Harun. The narrator said: The sa' of Khalid was the sa' of Hisham b. 'Abd al-Malik.

Narrated Umayyah b. Khalid: When Khalid al-Qasri was made ruler (of Hijaz and Kufah), he doubled the measure of sa'. The sa' then measured sixteen rotls.Abu Dawud said: Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Khattab was slain by Negroes in confinement. He said while signing with his hand: "in this way". Abu Dawud extended his hand and turned his palms towards earth and said: I saw him in the dream and asked him: How did Allah deal with you ? He replied: He admitted to Paradise. I said: Your detention did not harm you.

Narrated Mu'awiyah b. al-Hakam al-Sulami: I said: Messenger of Allah, I have a slave girl whom I slapped. This grieved the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). I said to him: Should I not emancipate her? He said: Bring her to me. He said: Then I brought her. He asked: Where is Allah ? She replied: In the heaven. He said: Who am I ? She replied: You are the Messenger of Allah. He said: Emancipate her, she is a believer.

Narrated Ash-Sharid ibn Suwayd ath-Thaqafi: Sharid's mother left a will to emancipate a believing slave on her behalf. So he came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: Messenger of Allah, my mother left a will that I should emancipate a believing slave for her, and I have a black Nubian slave-girl. He mentioned a tradition about the test of the girl.Abu Dawud said: Khalid b. 'Abd Allah narrated this tradition direct from the Prophet (ﷺ). He did not mention the name of al-Sharid.

Narrated Abu Hurairah: A man brought the Prophet (ﷺ) a black slave girl. He said: Messenger of Allah, emancipation of believing slave is due to me. He asked her: Where is Allah ? She pointed to the heaven with her finger. He then asked her: Who am I ? She pointed to the Prophet (ﷺ) and to the heaven, that is to say: You are the Messenger of Allah. He then said: Set her free, she is a believer.

Narrated Ikrimah ibn AbuJahl: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh; I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh; I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraysh. He then said: "If Allah wills."Abu Dawud said: A number of persons have narrated this tradition from Sharik, from Simak, from 'Ikrimah, from Ibn 'Abbas who reported from the Prophet (ﷺ): "But he did not fight against them."

Narrated 'Ikrimah: The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish. The then said: If Allah wills. He again said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish if Allah wills. He again said: I swear by Allah, I shall fight against the Quraish. He then kept silence. Then he said: If Allah wills.Abu Dawud said: Al-Walid b. Muslim said on the authority of Sharik: He then said: But he did not fight against them.

Narrated 'Abd Allah b. 'Umar: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade to make a vow. He said: It has not effect against fate, it is only from the miserly that it is means by which something is extracted.Musaddad said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: A vow does not avert anything (i.e. has no effect against fate).

Narrated Abu Hurairah: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: A vow does not provide for the son of Adam anything which I did not decree for him, but a vow draws it. A Divine decree is one which I have destined, it is extracted from a miser. He is given what he was not given before.

Narrated 'Aishah: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: If anyone vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him, but if anyone vows to disobey Him, let him not disobey Him.

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin: The Prophet (ﷺ) as saying: No vow must be taken to do an act of disobedience, and the atonement for it is the same as for an oath.

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by al-Zuhri through a different chain of narrators to the same effect.Abu Dawud said: I heard Ahmad b. Shabbuyah say: Ibn al-Mubarak said about this tradition that Abu Salamah had transmitted it. This indicates that al-Zuhri did not hear it from Abu Salamah. Ahmad b. Muhammad said: This is verified by what Ayyub b. Sulaiman narrated to us.Abu Dawud said: I heard Ahmad b. Hanbal say: I have corrupted this tradition for us. He was asked: Do you think that it is correct that this tradition has been corrupted? Has any person other than Ibn Abi Uwais transmitted it ? He replied: Ayyub was similar to him in respect of reliability, and Ayyub transmitted it.

Narrated Uqbah ibn Amir: Uqbah consulted the Prophet (ﷺ) about his sister who took a vow to perform hajj barefooted and bareheaded. So he said: Command her to cover her head and to ride, and to fast three days.

The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Abu Sa'id al-Ru'aini with the same chain as narrated by Yahya (b. Sa'id) and to the same effect.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas: A man came to Prophet (ﷺ) and said: Messenger of Allah, my sister has taken a vow to perform hajj on foot. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah gets no good from the affliction your sister imposed on herself, so let her perform hajj riding and make atonement for her oath.

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: That the sister of 'Uqbah b. 'Amir took vow to walk on foot to the Ka'bah. Thereupon the Prophet (ﷺ) ordered her to ride and slaughter a sacrificial animal.

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: That when the Prophet (ﷺ) was informed that the sister of 'Uqbah b. 'Amir had taken a vow to perform Hajj on foot, he said: Allah is not in need of her vow. So ask her to ride.Abu Dawud said: Sa'ib b. 'Arubah has transmitted a similar tradition. Khalid has also transmitted a similar tradition on the authority of 'Ikrimah from the Prophet (ﷺ).

Narrated 'Ikrimah: The tradition about the sister of 'Uqbah b. 'Amir as narrated by Hisham, but he made no mention of the sacrificial animal. In his version he said: Ask your sister to ride.Abu Dawud said: Khalid narrated it from 'Ikrimah to the same effect as narrated by Hisham.

Narrated 'Uqbah bin 'Amir al-Juhani: My sister took a vow to walk on foot to the House of Allah (i.e. Ka'bah). She asked me to consult the Prophet (ﷺ) about her. So I consulted the Prophet (ﷺ). He said: Let her walk and ride.

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: While the Prophet (ﷺ) was preaching a man was standing in the sun. He asked about him. They said: He is Abu Isra'il who has taken a vow to stand and not to sit, or go into shade, or speak, but to fast. Thereupon he said: Command him to speak, to go into the shade, sit and complete his fast.

Narrated Anas b. Malik : The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saw a man that he was supported between his sons. He asked about him, and (the people) said: He has taken a vow to walk (on foot). Thereupon he said: Allah has no need that this man should punish himself, and he ordered him to ride.Abu Dawud said: 'Amr b. Abi 'Amir has also narrated a similar tradition from al-A'raj on the authority of Abu Hurairah from the Prophet (ﷺ).

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: The Prophet (ﷺ) while going round the Ka'bah passed a man who was led with a ring of bridle in his nose. The Prophet (ﷺ) cut it off with his hand and ordered to lead him by catching his hand.