Does a divorce take place if a father says to his son, "Your mother is divorced from me if you insult her," and then the son insults his mother, knowing that the father is Hanafi and the wife is Shafi'i?

The son's cursing of his mother is a major sin, and he must repent and hasten to appease his mother. If the son cursed his mother after the pronouncement of divorce, the divorce takes effect according to the majority of scholars. However, Ibn Taymiyyah holds that an expiation for an oath is required if the father did not intend divorce. Based on the view that the divorce takes effect, the husband can reconcile with his wife before the end of her waiting period (iddah (definition)) if this divorce does not complete the three divorces.