Sūrah Aṭ-Ṭūr The Mount

الطور

Al-Qurṭubī derives rulings on kafārat al-yamīn (oath expiation) from this surah's discussion of divine accountability, examining the takhyīr (choice) principle in the three expiation options.

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance

SurahAṭ-ṬūrMeccanDivine oaths and accountability for deeds

Key Fiqh IssueKafārat al-yamīn oath expiation options when oath is brokenWājib when oath is brokenThree options with takhyīr (free choice) between them

School ComparisonḤanafī: any of three options (feed, clothe, free slave); order not required; Mālikī: same takhyīr among three; Shāfiʿī: same three; fasting only when unable; Ḥanbalī: same three; strict on intent at oath timeWājib when triggeredTakhyīr (choice) is core to this expiation

Uṣūl PrincipleAl-takhyīr giving the mukallaf a lawful choice between equally valid optionsRecognized legal mechanismFlexibility within a fixed expiation framework

Al-Qurṭubī derives from verse 21 "every person will be held responsible for what he earned" the accountability principle underlying oath expiation. Kafārat al-yamīn becomes wājib when a person breaks a deliberate oath (yamīn) they could have kept. The three options (Qurʾān 5:89): feeding ten poor persons, clothing ten poor persons, or freeing a slave with fasting three days as a fallback when none of the three is possible.

The uṣūl principle of takhyīr (lawful choice) means the mukallaf may freely choose any of the three without needing to prefer one order. The Ḥanafī school emphasizes this: any of the three suffices regardless of the person's wealth. The Shāfiʿī school adds that fasting (the fallback) becomes obligatory only when the person is genuinely unable to feed, clothe, or free it is not an equal alternative for the wealthy. Al-Qurṭubī also derives that breaking a habit-oath (e.g., "I always do X") does not require expiation only deliberate oaths with the formula of the yamīn (billāh or similar) trigger kaffārah.

وَأَن لَّيْسَ لِلْإِنسَانِ إِلَّا مَا سَعَىٰ Wa-an laysa li-l-insāni illā mā saʿā Meaning: "And that there is not for man except that for which he strives" Al-Qurṭubī: this verse (from An-Najm 39, referenced here thematically) grounds the accountability principle: oaths that are made are the speaker's deeds; breaking them requires expiation precisely because they were the speaker's freely chosen acts.

كُلُّ امْرِئٍ بِمَا كَسَبَ رَهِينٌ Kullu mriʾin bi-mā kasaba rahīn Meaning: "Every person is held in pledge for what he has earned" Al-Qurṭubī: "rahīn" (held in pledge) the oath creates a legal obligation; breaking it without expiation leaves the person "in pledge" to that obligation; kaffārah releases the pledge.

Kafārat al-yamīn is wājib when a deliberate oath is broken feeding ten poor, clothing ten poor, or freeing a slave (any of the three, freely chosen).
Fasting three days is the fallback for those unable to do any of the three primary options it is not an equal alternative for the capable.
Takhyīr (free choice) among the three primary options is the established uṣūl mechanism the mukallaf is not required to prefer one over the other based on wealth.
Habit-oaths (lahw al-yamīn oaths not intended as binding commitments) do not require expiation when "broken" only deliberate, binding yamīn triggers kaffārah.
Kaffārah must be performed before the sin of oath-breaking accumulates further; al-Qurṭubī recommends prompt expiation to discharge the obligation.

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