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Is the word "divorce" considered a divorce if it was intended to suspend divorce on the renewal of ablution, or if it was said with the intention of a conditional divorce, and is the wife divorced if the husband does not remember whether or not he said the word "divorce"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Obsessive whispering (waswas) is a great evil. Its cure lies in ignoring it and turning away from it, not by making the wife's divorce contingent. The word "divorce" when not attributed to the wife is a matter of scholarly disagreement, and divorce, in the context of oaths, refers back to intention.

The majority of scholars hold that a contingent divorce takes effect upon the fulfillment of the condition. However, Ibn Taymiyyah is of the view that if one did not intend divorce but rather to prevent or encourage something, then an expiation for an oath becomes binding upon him.

The divorce pronounced by one afflicted with waswas while under its influence does not take effect. He is permitted to adopt the easiest of opinions.

If you do not remember whether you pronounced the divorce or not, then your wife is not divorced, because the original state is the continuation of the marital bond.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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