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Does a triple divorce take effect if a husband swears not to eat his wife's food with the intention of disciplining her, and his intention is to refrain from eating for an unspecified short period?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The majority of scholars hold that swearing an oath by divorce results in the divorce taking effect upon breaking the oath, and that pronouncing divorce three times counts as three divorces. In contrast, Ibn Taymiyyah is of the view that if the intention behind the divorce was not to make it conditional, but rather to threaten or emphasize, then its ruling is that of an oath by Allah, requiring an expiation for an oath (kaffarat yameen), and divorce does not occur. He also believes that pronouncing divorce three times counts as one divorce. The determination of what is sworn upon depends on the swearer's intention and purpose. So, if he intends a specific meaning by a general term, or dedicates the oath to a specific time, the oath is restricted accordingly. If the swearer's intention was to limit his oath to a specific period, he breaks it if he eats during that period, and divorce occurs according to the majority opinion; otherwise, it does not. An intention that arises after the oath has no weight. The questioner is advised to present his problem orally to scholars.

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

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