* Should a person have a strong inkling that they made a certain vow...

* Should a person have a strong inkling that they made a certain vow, is it compulsory on them to fulfil it? - Yes, if they were absolutely sure. If someone made a pledge to Allah Almighty to do something or refrain from committing a certain action, he must fulfil that pledge. * Does this mean that a pledge is like a vow, in that it shall not be in order, unless it caters for a particular wording that includes the Name of Allah?

●Yes, and furthermore the commission or omission of the action should be acceptable, from a personal standpoint, and lawful from a religious perspective. It is worth noting, though, that the same conditions, I explained earlier, which apply in the case of a vow, apply in the case of a pledge. * Should the person who made the pledge deliberately choose not to fulfil it, what shall be the ruling? - He must make up for flouting the pledge by paying a kaffarah (expiation).

In this case, it is either setting a slave free, feeding sixty poor people, or observing fasting for two consecutive months. Insofar as oath is concerned, it should be fulfilled. If it was intentionally broken, the kaffarah shall be either emancipating one slave, or feeding or clothing ten poor people. In the event of inability to come up with any of these, fasting three days in a row should suffice. Central to the oath is the wording, i.e.

it should be linked to the Name of Allah, such as “By Allah, or I swear by the Almighty, I shall do this or that”. The action, or otherwise, resulting from fulfilling the oath ought to be acceptable and affordable; it should also be lawful from a religious standpoint. It should still be sound, if he swore for a worldly gain. The person making the oath should be adult, sane, exercising free will, and clear in his mind as to the consequences of the action.

* If someone said to another, “By God, you have to do this or that”, would this be deemed as oath? - An oath does not extend to include asking, or ordering, other people to carry out certain actions. Also, it does not cover the past. Thus, such oaths have no consequence, An Oath shall not become binding on the son, if his father banned him from doing certain things. Neither shall it become binding on the wife, if she flagrantly disobeyed the orders of her husband.

If either makes an oath without the permission of either the father or the husband, they can undo the oath. * A person could make an oath on the veracity of his honesty, for example. Is it all right?

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