Religious ruling on repetitively swearing by Allaah
16-1-2014 | IslamWeb
Question:
Is it permissible for a person to swear by Allaah The Exalted repetitively, saying, “I swear by Allaah thrice”?
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
It is not appropriate for a Muslim to swear oaths frequently without a reason that necessitates doing so because this may lead him to commit sins. It may also lead to belittling the sacredness of the Names and Attributes of Allaah The Exalted Who Says (what means): {…But guard your oaths (i.e. do not swear much)} [Quran 5:89]
Moreover, when one takes an oath, he should not swear except by Allaah The Exalted. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Whoever has to take an oath, he should swear by Allaah or remain silent (i.e. He should not swear by other than Allaah).” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
As for the wording of the oath that is mentioned in the question, if your intention was merely to repeat the oath for the purpose of confirmation like the wording that was mentioned in the question, then there is nothing wrong in that. There are some Hadeeths in which the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, repetitively swore by Allaah, one of which was reported by Al-Bukhari. It is the one where the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “By Allaah, he does not believe! By Allaah, he does not believe! By Allaah, he does not believe!” It was said, “Who is that, O Messenger of Allaah?” He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “The person whose neighbor does not feel safe from his evil.” [Al-Bukhari]
Whoever repetitively swore an oath by Allaah The Exalted concerning the same thing and broke his oath, only one expiation is due on him. It was mentioned in Mawaahib Al-Jaleel fi Sharh Mukhtasar Khaleel, that: “Whoever swears repetitively by Allaah or by one of His Names and Attributes and he repeats the oath concerning the very thing or act, he should only pay one expiation, (should he break his oath).”
If the questioner means something else by swearing in such a way, let him explain it for us so that we can answer him.
Allaah Knows best.