بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
وَلَا تَجۡعَلُواْ ٱللَّهَ عُرۡضَةً۬ لِّأَيۡمَـٰنِڪُمۡ أَن تَبَرُّواْ وَتَتَّقُواْ وَتُصۡلِحُواْ بَيۡنَ ٱلنَّاسِۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ۬ (٢٢٤) لَّا يُؤَاخِذُكُمُ ٱللَّهُ بِٱللَّغۡوِ فِىٓ أَيۡمَـٰنِكُمۡ وَلَـٰكِن يُؤَاخِذُكُم بِمَا كَسَبَتۡ قُلُوبُكُمۡۗ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ حَلِيمٌ۬ (٢٢٥)
“Do not make (the name of) Allah the subject of your oaths against your doing good, fearing Allah and setting things right between people. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (224) Allah does not hold you accountable for what is laghw (ineffectual) in your oaths, but He holds you accountable for what your hearts have produced. Allah is Forgiving, Forbearing. (225)”
Ruling: Verse 224 is saying that oaths should not be taken in the name of Allah in order to prevent oneself from doing some good thing or using his name as a barrier against doing good. If this is done, its culprit is using Allah’s name as a means to wrong. If someone makes an oath by Allah that he would not do some good deed like talking to his parents, it is necessary to break that oath and to compensate for breaking the oath. (Tafsir Uthmani V1 pg 235)
Ruling: The ineffectual oaths being referred to in this verse are those that are falsely sworn without intending to do such about a past event, or it was sworn intentionally and falsely about a past event, but the oath taker thought it be true. These scenarios carry nether sin nor compensation. This is known as yamin al laghw. (Maarif Al Quran V1 562)
Ruling: The oath where sin is involved, is that oath where one utters it intentionally knowing it to be false about a past event. However according to the hanafiyya, there is no kaffara for this oath. This oath is a major sin. Taubah and Istighfar are necessary for it. The fuqaha have called this yamin ghamus because the person drowns in sin. (Maarif Al Quran V3 pg 242)
Ruling: The third form of oath is that one declares an oath that he would or would not do something in the future. This is known as a yamin munaqidah. When an oath is broken of this type, kaffara becomes necessary and sometimes it brings sin where as in others it does not. The kaffara is as follows, three options have been given, (a) feed 10 poor persons two average meals, (b) clothe 10 poor persons (sufficient to give them proper cover, such as, a garment for the lower body and another for the upper), (c) free a slave (if in possession). If someone does not have the ability to bear the cost of this financial expiation, then the kaffara is to fast for three consecutive days. (Maarif Al Quran V3 pg 243-44)
