Does the statement, "Your body is unlawful to me for three years," constitute ẓihār, thereby necessitating the expiation mentioned in the Book of Allah, considering that the phrases "like my mother's back" or "my sister's" were not uttered?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
The predominant view is that the ruling concerning this phrase depends on the intention of the speaker. If he intended ẓihār (a type of pre-Islamic divorce by likening one's wife to an unmarriageable female relative), then he must offer the expiation for ẓihār. If he intended it as an oath or did not intend anything specific by it, then it is an oath, and its expiation is feeding ten poor people or clothing them. If he cannot find them, then fasting for three days.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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