Is expiation incumbent upon a woman after she said to her husband, "You and I are like brothers," and then retracted this statement three weeks later?

Divorce (Talaq) and Zihar (a pre-Islamic form of divorce where a husband declares his wife to be like his mother's back, making her unlawful to him) can only be initiated by the husband. If a wife says to her husband, "You and I are like siblings," intending to make him unlawful to herself, this does not constitute zihar. However, she must offer an expiation for breaking an oath (kaffarat yamin) if she returns to him and allows him to have intercourse with her.

A woman's statement to her husband, "You are my husband, and you are my brother, and you are my father," does not make him unlawful to her, because she intends to honor and appreciate him by such words. Even if she intends prohibition, it does not constitute zihar, because zihar is specific to men.

If a woman performs zihar against her husband by saying, "You are to me like the back of my father," this is not considered zihar. Rather, its ruling is that of an oath, and she must offer an expiation for breaking an oath (kaffarat yamin), which is feeding ten needy persons, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. If she cannot find these, then she must fast for three days. It is not permissible for her to allow him to have intercourse with her until after she has paid the expiation.

Both spouses should offer each other sincere advice and resolve their problems without resorting to the words of divorce or zihar.