A false oath is described by Rasulullah sallallahu `alayhi wasallam as one of the greatest sins.
The expiation for an oath is set out in the 89th ayah of Surah al-Ma’idah: “Its expiation is to feed ten poor persons on a scale of the average of that with which you feed your families; or clothe them; or to set free a slave.”
The Shafi’i madhhab equates a past-related oath to a future-related one. Thus, if someone should swear falsely in the name of Allah about something that he claims has or has not happened in the past, he will be required to atone for it by any of the three methods described in the ayah: feed ten persons; or clothe ten persons; or set free a slave.
and Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Shaykh Taha Karaan
MADRASAH AL-ARABIYYAH AL-ISLAAMIYYAH, Western Cape
CHECKED AND APPROVED: Mufti Ebrahim Desai