What is the standing of the divorce here, and what is the validity of the oaths sworn by the father concerning my mother, given that he once swore an oath of divorce saying, "Upon me be divorce, this boy will not go to school," and indeed the boy did not go on that same day but went the next day? On another occasion, he said, "Upon me be divorce, Shafi'i and Maliki and Abu Hanifa," when he was extremely angry. And on a third occasion, he said to my mother, in my presence, "You are divorced," when he was in extreme distress and illness?

Scholars have differed regarding the ruling on swearing an oath by divorce and making it conditional. The majority of them hold that divorce occurs absolutely upon breaking such an oath, and this is the prevailing fatwa. Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah is of the opinion that if swearing an oath by divorce is intended for emphasis, prohibition, or encouragement, then divorce does not occur. Instead, the one who swore the oath must pay an expiation for breaking an oath if he breaks it.

If the father swore an oath to his son that he would not go to school, and he intended to prevent him only on that specific day, then he did not break his oath, and no expiation for an oath is required of him. However, if he intended to prevent him from going to school absolutely, then he has broken his oath. According to the majority, his divorce has occurred, and according to Ibn Taymiyyah, he must pay an expiation for an oath. The ruling for the second divorce oath is similar.

As for the third explicit divorce, if he uttered it while in a state of extreme anger that rendered him unconscious, then it is void (laghw) and no divorce takes place. But if he uttered it while conscious and not overwhelmed in his mind, then his divorce is effective. It is advisable to present the matter to trustworthy scholars in the questioner's country.