Does Texting “Wallahi I Won’t Do This” Count as an Oath?

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

Does texting “Wallahi I won’t do this” count as an oath, and do I need to pay kaffara if I broke it?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

Yes. This does count as an oath and is obligatory to fulfill the oath (unless it is sinful) or perform the expiation, if the oath was unfulfilled. [Maydani, al-Lubab fi Sharh al-Kitab]

See this link for details on the expiation.

Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Shaykh Yusuf Weltch teaches Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he completed four years at the Darul Uloom Seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences.

He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he studied for three years in Dar al-Mustafa under some of the most outstanding scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib.

In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Quran and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Quranic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.