In many parts of his sublime speeches...

In many parts of his sublime speeches, ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib ( ‘a ) swear by his life when he says: "ولعمري ليضعفن لكم التّيه من بعدي أضعافأً." “By my life!

After me your wandering about shall be multiplied.”[^10] In another place, he ( ‘a ) says: "ولعمري لإن لم تنزع غيّك وشقاقك لتعرفنّهم عن قليل يطلبونك." “By my life, if you do not refrain from hypocrisy, avarice and your rebellious activities, they will soon be known to you.”[^11] All these traditions and reports show clearly that no ijtihad or exigency can be valid, and no other argument can denigrate the position of God in the Glorious Qur’an, the conduct of the Holy Prophet (S) or the conduct his close companions like the Commander of the Faithful (‘Ali) ( ‘a ) if it accuses them of polytheism and associating partners with God.

Conclusion From the aggregate of the stated proofs, it is evident that from the perspective of the Book of God, the Sunnah of the Prophet ( ‘a ) and conduct of the believers the legitimacy of swearing by other than God is an indisputable principle, and it has no contradiction with monotheism and the unity of God.

Therefore, if the outward meaning of the traditions opposes that which has been confirmed by decisive proofs, it must be justified and interpreted according to this indisputable principle which is derived from the Qur’an and traditions. Some people cite an ambiguous tradition which is as follows: إن رسول الله سمع عمر وهو يقول: وأبي فقال إن الله ينهاكم أن تحلفنا بأبائكم ومن كان حالفاً فليحلف بالله أو يسكت. Verily, the Messenger of Allah (S) heard ‘Umar swearing by his father.

Upon hearing this he said: “Verily, God has prohibited you from swearing by your father, and when one wants to swear one should either swear to God or keep silent.”[^12] Although this hadith cannot challenge the Qur’anic verses and explicit traditions that consider swearing by other than God as permissible, it must, for the sake of reconciling it and the mentioned verses and tradition, be said that the Prophet’s prohibition of ‘Umar’s swearing by his father and forbidding similar people from swearing by their fathers is attributed to the fact that their fathers were idolaters and polytheists.

And an infidel or idol-worshipping person is too unworthy to be an object of swearing. [^1]: Surah al-Hijr 15:72. [^2]: Surah ash-Shams 91:1-8. [^3]: Surah an-Najm 53:1. [^4]: Surah al-Qalam 68:1. [^5]: Surah al-‘Asr 103:1-2. [^6]: Surah al-Fajr 89:1-2. [^7]: Surah at-Tur 52:1-6.