By Nairaland Forum A man swore an oath that he would not do such and such, but he wants to recant; what should he do? Should he offer expiation?
Ruling on recanting an oath
If a person swears an oath and wants to recant, that is permissible if recanting does not involve doing something that is prohibited, but he must offer expiation for breaking an oath (kaffaarat yameen).Al-Bukhaari (6718) and Muslim (1649) narrated that Abu Moosa al-Ash‘ari said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “By Allah, if Allah wills, I do not swear an oath then see something better than that, but I expiate my oath and do that which is better.”
Al-Bukhaari (6622) and Muslim (1652) narrated that ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan ibn Samurah said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “O ‘Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Samurah, do not seek authority, for if you are given it when you ask for it, you will be left to your own devices [without the support of Allah], but if you are given it without asking for it, you will be helped [by Allah]. If you swear to do something then see that something else is better than it, then offer expiation for your oath and do that which is better.”
Muslim (1650) narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever swears an oath then sees that something else is better than it, let him do that which is better, and offer expiation for his oath.”
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said in Sharh Muslim (11/108): These hadiths indicate that if someone swears an oath to do something or refrain from doing something, and breaking the oath is better than going along with it, it is recommended for him to break the oath, but he must offer expiation. There is consensus on this.
Then he mentioned the difference of scholarly opinion regarding offering expiation before breaking the oath, then he said:
They are unanimously agreed that he does not have to offer expiation before breaking the oath, and that it is permissible to delay offering expiation until after breaking the oath, and that it is not permissible to offer expiation before swearing the oath.
They differed as to whether it is permissible to do it after swearing the oath and before breaking the oath. Maalik, al-Awzaa‘i, ath-Thawri, ash-Shaafa‘i and fourteen of Read More
Source:: Nigerian Chatter
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