Does divorce occur for one who says to his wife, "By divorce" in jest and not intending to swear an oath?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
If you did not intend to utter a divorce and the words came out involuntarily, then the divorce does not take effect, based on the words of Allah Almighty: "And there is no blame upon you for that in which you have erred, but [there is blame for] what your hearts intended." And idle talk (laghw) applies to an oath of divorce just as it does to other oaths. So, whoever swears an oath regarding something he believes to be true, then it turns out to be mistaken, his divorce does not take effect.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/165566
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- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 165566
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy