Back to search

Does every instance of a smoker smoking cigarettes count as a new "divorce pronouncement," considering that a divorce oath was made to abstain from them?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Scholars have differed concerning the ruling on a conditional divorce oath. The majority of them hold that the divorce takes effect unconditionally upon the breach of the oath, and this is the relied-upon fatwa. Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, however, is of the view that the divorce does not take effect if the intention behind the oath was to emphasize, prevent, or encourage, and in such a case, the swearer must pay expiation for breaking an oath (kaffarat yamin).

If the breach occurred once, then the oath is dissolved, and the divorce does not repeat with the repetition of the action sworn upon, unless the wording implies repetition, such as "every time."

However, if the divorce was absolute (i.e., it occurred in effect) and then the sworn-upon action was done during the waiting period (iddah), the majority of scholars hold that the divorce of a woman in her iddah from a revocable divorce is valid.

Based on this, two divorces have occurred (an absolute divorce and a conditional divorce), and you have the right to take your wife back as long as she is within her iddah. It should be noted that smoking is forbidden, and the lawful oath is by Allah Almighty, not by divorce.

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

Read the full answer on Ftawy