Abstain from swearing frequently,
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Assalamo alykum wa Rehmatullahe wa Barakaatuh
Abstain from swearing frequently, even if you are truthful – Imam Ibn Baz
Q 7: I have a relative who frequently swears by Allah whether he is truthful or not. What is the religious ruling on such an act?
Ans by Imam Ibn Baz (rahimahullaah):
He should be advised and told to abstain from swearing frequently, even if he is truthful, for Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: “. And protect your oaths (i.e. do not swear much)“.
Moreover the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“Three persons whom Allah shall neither speak to on the Day of Resurrection, nor look at, nor purify, and they shall have a painful torment: a white-haired adulterer, an arrogant poor person, and a man who made Allah as his merchandise: he does not buy except by swearing (by Allah) and he does not sell except by swearing.” –
The Arabs used to be praised for taking oaths rarely. A poet said about them:
Whoever does not swear so much, can keep his oath
If he takes an oath he will fulfills it
Aliyah in Arabic means oath.
It is prescribed for a Mu’min (believer) to swear rarely even if they are truthful. Swearing frequently may lead them to tell lies. It is well known that telling lies is Haram (prohibited); but it is much more prohibited when it is combined with swearing oaths.
Nevertheless, if there is a demanding situation or a probable benefit calling a Muslim to swear untruthfully, it will be permissible.
It has been authentically reported from the Hadith of Umm Kulthum bint Uqbah ibn Abu Mu’it (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“Not a liar the one who tries to reconcile between people and so narrates something good or says something good.”
Umm Kulthum bint‘ Uqbah (may Allah be pleased with her) also said:
“I have never heard him (the Prophet, peace be upon him) permit anything of what people call ‘lying’, except in three cases: war, reconciliation between people, and man’s talk to his wife and woman’s talk to her husband.”
(Related by Muslim in the Sahih [Authentic Hadith Book])
If a Muslim, in an attempt to reconcile between people, says, “I swear by Allah that your companions desire reconciliation with you, they like to be on good terms with you and want such and such”, then he goes to the other party and tells them the same words, intending good and hoping to achieve reconciliation, this is permissible according to the above-mentioned Hadith. The same is when a Muslim sees that a person wants to kill another one unjustly or wants to commit an unjust act against him. So, he says: “By Allah, he is my brother” in order to save him from such an oppressor who wants to kill him or beat him without any right, and he is sure that by saying: “this is my brother” the oppressor will leave the other person out of respect for him. In such a case, a Muslim should do this for the sake of saving his brother from oppression.
The basic ruling concerning false oaths is that they are forbidden and prohibited, unless they are meant for a serious benefit graver than lying, such as the three examples mentioned in the previous Hadith.
( Part No: 1, Page No: 54-55)
English Translations of Majmoo’al-Fatawa of late Scholar Ibn Bazz (Rahimahullah) Second Edition.
By: Sheikh `Abdul `Aziz Bin `Abdullah ibn `AbdulRahman ibn Bazz (May Allah forgive and reward al-Firdouse to him and his parents) He was The Mufti of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Chairman of the Council of Senior Scholars, and Chairman of Department of Scholarly Research and Ifta’
The English Translations are collected from http://www.alifta.com
Portal of the General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta’
This post is from volume No.01 of 30
Related Links:
Oaths & Vows : https://abdurrahman.org/category/islam/oaths-vows/
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Compiled edited and adapted by Khalid Latif.