Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 774
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!
After examining the Qur’an and its interpretations, we now turn to the aḥādīth (Prophetic narrations) that are often cited to argue in favor of the validity of issuing three divorces in one sitting (ṭalāq thalāthah jamʿan). Below is a critical analysis of the main narrations cited for this purpose.
Text of the narration:
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar divorced his wife once while she was menstruating. He then intended to pronounce two more divorces during her remaining periods. When the Prophet ﷺ was informed, he said:
“O Ibn ʿUmar, this is not how Allah commanded you! You have acted against the Sunnah. You should wait for her to become pure, then pronounce one divorce during each period of purity.”
Ibn ʿUmar said: “O Messenger of Allah! If I had pronounced three divorces, could I have taken her back?”
The Prophet ﷺ said: “No. She would have become separated from you, and that would have been a sin.”
(As-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī, Vol. 7, p. 334)
Claimed inference:
From the words “If I had divorced her three times…” it is argued that three divorces in one sitting cause irrevocable separation (ṭalāq mughallaẓah).
Response:
① This inference is incorrect because the phrase “ṭallaqtuhā thalāthan” does not clearly indicate that the three divorces were issued together; it may also refer to three separate occasions.
② Furthermore, the additional wording in this narration is not authentic. Imām al-Bayhaqī stated that it is only reported through Shuʿayb, who is weak. Imām al-Shawkānī wrote: “In its chain is Shuʿayb ibn Ruzayq al-Shāmī, who is weak.” ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī, also in the chain, was declared weak and unreliable by al-Bukhārī, Shuʿbah, and Ibn Ḥibbān.
In Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim (Vol. 1, p. 476), a more reliable narration exists but does not prove three divorces in one sitting—it simply discusses multiple divorces given over time.
Text:
When ʿUwaymir and his wife completed the process of liʿān (mutual cursing), he said:
“If I were to keep her, O Messenger of Allah, I would be lying about her!” Then he pronounced three divorces before the Prophet ﷺ gave any order.
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb aṭ-Ṭalāq, Vol. 2, p. 791)
Claimed inference:
Since the Prophet ﷺ did not object, issuing three divorces in one sitting is valid.
Response:
This argument is invalid because liʿān itself causes permanent separation; reconciliation is not allowed afterward.
Thus, ʿUwaymir’s triple pronouncement was redundant and served merely as an emphasis.
Imām Ibn Qudāmah said:
“This narration is not evidence because separation already occurs through liʿān, not by the divorce itself.”
(Al-Mughnī, Vol. 7, p. 103)
Moreover, as Shams al-Aʾimmah al-Sarakhsī noted, the Prophet ﷺ delayed correction out of compassion, fearing that rebuke might provoke anger or disbelief.
Text:
“The Prophet ﷺ was informed about a man who had divorced his wife three times together. The Prophet ﷺ stood up angrily and said:
‘Is the Book of Allah being played with while I am among you?’”
(An-Nasā’ī)
Response:
This narration is disconnected (munqaṭiʿ) — Ibn Kathīr said: “It contains an interruption in the chain.”
Moreover, the Prophet’s anger does not prove validity, but rather his disapproval of combining three divorces in one sitting.
Text:
“My grandfather divorced his wife a thousand times. My father went to the Prophet ﷺ who said: ‘Your grandfather has not feared Allah! Three divorces count; the remaining nine hundred and ninety-seven are transgression and injustice.’”
(Musannaf ʿAbd ar-Razzāq)
Response:
This narration is extremely weak.
The chain contains Yaḥyā ibn al-ʿAlāʾ (weak), ʿAbdullāh ibn al-Walīd (abandoned), and Ibrāhīm ibn ʿUbādah (unknown).
Moreover, ʿUbādah’s father was not a Muslim, making the narration historically implausible.
Text:
Fāṭimah said: “My husband divorced me three times, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not assign me maintenance or housing.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)
Claimed inference:
It is argued that since no maintenance was assigned, the three divorces occurred in one sitting, making it irrevocable.
Response:
Incorrect — because other authentic narrations clarify that this was her final (third) divorce after two previous ones:
“He divorced her the last of his three divorces.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Vol. 1, p. 484)
Thus, this ḥadīth refers to the completion of three separate divorces, not their combination in one session.
Text:
A woman came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “Rifāʿah divorced me, making my separation final. I then married ʿAbdur-Raḥmān ibn az-Zubayr, but he is impotent.” The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Do you wish to return to Rifāʿah? You cannot until you consummate marriage with the other man.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
Response:
The word “batt ṭalāqī” means complete separation, not necessarily three divorces at once.
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar explained in Fatḥ al-Bārī (Vol. 9, p. 468):
“Al-batta means finality—whether through three separate divorces or by the third one in sequence. Hence, it does not prove triple divorce in one sitting.”
Text:
Rukānah divorced his wife with al-battah. The Prophet ﷺ asked, “What did you intend?” He replied, “One divorce.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Then it is as you intended.”
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd)
Response:
This narration itself is weak.
Imām Abū Dāwūd’s preference for this version over Ibn Jurayj’s report (which mentioned “three divorces”) is questionable, as both contain defective chains.
The report involves Zubayr ibn Saʿīd, whom al-Tirmidhī said: “We only know his narration through this route.” Imām Aḥmad found both chains weak and inconsistent.
Moreover, scholars such as Ibn al-Qayyim clarified that these are two different incidents — one concerning Rukānah’s father, and the other Rukānah himself.
Text:
ʿAlī رضي الله عنه said:
The Prophet ﷺ heard a man pronounce al-battah divorce and said angrily:
“Do you mock the verses of Allah? Whoever pronounces al-battah, we count it as three; she is not lawful to him until she marries another.”
(Dāraqutnī, Vol. 4, p. 20)
Response:
This narration is very weak.
Its chain includes Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Umayyah al-Qurashī (abandoned), ʿUthmān ibn Qaṭar (unreliable), and ʿAbd al-Ghafūr (fabricator).
Ibn Taymiyyah and others stated: “Its isnād contains weak and unknown narrators.”
Thus, it cannot be used as valid proof.
Text:
When ʿAlī رضي الله عنه was martyred, ʿĀʾishah al-Khathʿamiyyah, the wife of al-Ḥasan, congratulated him on the caliphate. Al-Ḥasan, displeased by her words, said: “You gloat over the killing of ʿAlī? Go, you are divorced—three times!” … He later regretted it and said: “Had I not heard my grandfather or my father saying that whoever divorces thrice, whether separately or together, she is not lawful until she marries another, I would have taken her back.”
(As-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī, Vol. 7, p. 23)
Response:
This report is severely weak.
Imām al-Bayhaqī transmitted it through two very weak chains:
These narrations are the primary sources used by those who argue that three divorces in one sitting constitute an irrevocable separation (ṭalāq mughallaẓah).
However, upon careful scrutiny:
✿ None of these aḥādīth provide a sound, explicit, and unambiguous basis for that claim.
✿ Those with authentic chains do not explicitly refer to triple divorce in one sitting, and those that do are weak or fabricated.
Hence, the Qur’ānic directive — “Divorce may be pronounced twice…” (Al-Baqarah 2:229) — remains the final and balanced principle: divorces are to be given separately and thoughtfully, not hastily combined in one session.
هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
(This is what I understand; Allah knows best what is correct.)
✦ The Concept of Divorce (Ṭalāq) in the Light of Prophetic Traditions ✦
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!
After examining the Qur’an and its interpretations, we now turn to the aḥādīth (Prophetic narrations) that are often cited to argue in favor of the validity of issuing three divorces in one sitting (ṭalāq thalāthah jamʿan). Below is a critical analysis of the main narrations cited for this purpose.
① ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنه’s Incident
Text of the narration:
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar divorced his wife once while she was menstruating. He then intended to pronounce two more divorces during her remaining periods. When the Prophet ﷺ was informed, he said:
“O Ibn ʿUmar, this is not how Allah commanded you! You have acted against the Sunnah. You should wait for her to become pure, then pronounce one divorce during each period of purity.”
Ibn ʿUmar said: “O Messenger of Allah! If I had pronounced three divorces, could I have taken her back?”
The Prophet ﷺ said: “No. She would have become separated from you, and that would have been a sin.”
(As-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī, Vol. 7, p. 334)
Claimed inference:
From the words “If I had divorced her three times…” it is argued that three divorces in one sitting cause irrevocable separation (ṭalāq mughallaẓah).
Response:
① This inference is incorrect because the phrase “ṭallaqtuhā thalāthan” does not clearly indicate that the three divorces were issued together; it may also refer to three separate occasions.
② Furthermore, the additional wording in this narration is not authentic. Imām al-Bayhaqī stated that it is only reported through Shuʿayb, who is weak. Imām al-Shawkānī wrote: “In its chain is Shuʿayb ibn Ruzayq al-Shāmī, who is weak.” ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī, also in the chain, was declared weak and unreliable by al-Bukhārī, Shuʿbah, and Ibn Ḥibbān.
In Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim (Vol. 1, p. 476), a more reliable narration exists but does not prove three divorces in one sitting—it simply discusses multiple divorces given over time.
② The Incident of ʿUwaymir al-ʿAjlānī رضي الله عنه (Case of
Text:
When ʿUwaymir and his wife completed the process of liʿān (mutual cursing), he said:
“If I were to keep her, O Messenger of Allah, I would be lying about her!” Then he pronounced three divorces before the Prophet ﷺ gave any order.
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb aṭ-Ṭalāq, Vol. 2, p. 791)
Claimed inference:
Since the Prophet ﷺ did not object, issuing three divorces in one sitting is valid.
Response:
This argument is invalid because liʿān itself causes permanent separation; reconciliation is not allowed afterward.
Thus, ʿUwaymir’s triple pronouncement was redundant and served merely as an emphasis.
Imām Ibn Qudāmah said:
“This narration is not evidence because separation already occurs through liʿān, not by the divorce itself.”
(Al-Mughnī, Vol. 7, p. 103)
Moreover, as Shams al-Aʾimmah al-Sarakhsī noted, the Prophet ﷺ delayed correction out of compassion, fearing that rebuke might provoke anger or disbelief.
③ The Ḥadīth of Maḥmūd ibn Labīd رضي الله عنه
Text:
“The Prophet ﷺ was informed about a man who had divorced his wife three times together. The Prophet ﷺ stood up angrily and said:
‘Is the Book of Allah being played with while I am among you?’”
(An-Nasā’ī)
Response:
This narration is disconnected (munqaṭiʿ) — Ibn Kathīr said: “It contains an interruption in the chain.”
Moreover, the Prophet’s anger does not prove validity, but rather his disapproval of combining three divorces in one sitting.
④ The Case of the Grandfather of ʿUbādah ibn aṣ-Ṣāmit رضي الله عنه
Text:
“My grandfather divorced his wife a thousand times. My father went to the Prophet ﷺ who said: ‘Your grandfather has not feared Allah! Three divorces count; the remaining nine hundred and ninety-seven are transgression and injustice.’”
(Musannaf ʿAbd ar-Razzāq)
Response:
This narration is extremely weak.
The chain contains Yaḥyā ibn al-ʿAlāʾ (weak), ʿAbdullāh ibn al-Walīd (abandoned), and Ibrāhīm ibn ʿUbādah (unknown).
Moreover, ʿUbādah’s father was not a Muslim, making the narration historically implausible.
⑤ The Ḥadīth of Fāṭimah bint Qays رضي الله عنها
Text:
Fāṭimah said: “My husband divorced me three times, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not assign me maintenance or housing.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)
Claimed inference:
It is argued that since no maintenance was assigned, the three divorces occurred in one sitting, making it irrevocable.
Response:
Incorrect — because other authentic narrations clarify that this was her final (third) divorce after two previous ones:
“He divorced her the last of his three divorces.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Vol. 1, p. 484)
Thus, this ḥadīth refers to the completion of three separate divorces, not their combination in one session.
⑥ The Case of the Wife of Rifāʿah al-Quraẓī رضي الله عنه
Text:
A woman came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “Rifāʿah divorced me, making my separation final. I then married ʿAbdur-Raḥmān ibn az-Zubayr, but he is impotent.” The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Do you wish to return to Rifāʿah? You cannot until you consummate marriage with the other man.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
Response:
The word “batt ṭalāqī” means complete separation, not necessarily three divorces at once.
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar explained in Fatḥ al-Bārī (Vol. 9, p. 468):
“Al-batta means finality—whether through three separate divorces or by the third one in sequence. Hence, it does not prove triple divorce in one sitting.”
⑦ The Ḥadīth of Rukānah رضي الله عنه (Ṭalāq al-Battah)
Text:
Rukānah divorced his wife with al-battah. The Prophet ﷺ asked, “What did you intend?” He replied, “One divorce.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Then it is as you intended.”
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd)
Response:
This narration itself is weak.
Imām Abū Dāwūd’s preference for this version over Ibn Jurayj’s report (which mentioned “three divorces”) is questionable, as both contain defective chains.
The report involves Zubayr ibn Saʿīd, whom al-Tirmidhī said: “We only know his narration through this route.” Imām Aḥmad found both chains weak and inconsistent.
Moreover, scholars such as Ibn al-Qayyim clarified that these are two different incidents — one concerning Rukānah’s father, and the other Rukānah himself.
⑧ The Ḥadīth: “Whoever Pronounces al-Battah, We Count It as Three”
Text:
ʿAlī رضي الله عنه said:
The Prophet ﷺ heard a man pronounce al-battah divorce and said angrily:
“Do you mock the verses of Allah? Whoever pronounces al-battah, we count it as three; she is not lawful to him until she marries another.”
(Dāraqutnī, Vol. 4, p. 20)
Response:
This narration is very weak.
Its chain includes Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Umayyah al-Qurashī (abandoned), ʿUthmān ibn Qaṭar (unreliable), and ʿAbd al-Ghafūr (fabricator).
Ibn Taymiyyah and others stated: “Its isnād contains weak and unknown narrators.”
Thus, it cannot be used as valid proof.
⑨ The Incident of al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī رضي الله عنه and ʿĀʾishah al-Khathʿamiyyah
Text:
When ʿAlī رضي الله عنه was martyred, ʿĀʾishah al-Khathʿamiyyah, the wife of al-Ḥasan, congratulated him on the caliphate. Al-Ḥasan, displeased by her words, said: “You gloat over the killing of ʿAlī? Go, you are divorced—three times!” … He later regretted it and said: “Had I not heard my grandfather or my father saying that whoever divorces thrice, whether separately or together, she is not lawful until she marries another, I would have taken her back.”
(As-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī, Vol. 7, p. 23)
Response:
This report is severely weak.
Imām al-Bayhaqī transmitted it through two very weak chains:
- Muḥammad ibn Ḥumayd ar-Rāzī — declared a liar by al-Bukhārī and others.
- Sallamah ibn Faḍl al-Qurashī — munkar al-ḥadīth (rejected).
- The second chain includes ʿImrān ibn Muslim, a known Rāfiḍī (extremist Shīʿī).
Hence, it is unacceptable as evidence.
❖ Comprehensive Conclusion
These narrations are the primary sources used by those who argue that three divorces in one sitting constitute an irrevocable separation (ṭalāq mughallaẓah).
However, upon careful scrutiny:
✿ None of these aḥādīth provide a sound, explicit, and unambiguous basis for that claim.
✿ Those with authentic chains do not explicitly refer to triple divorce in one sitting, and those that do are weak or fabricated.
Hence, the Qur’ānic directive — “Divorce may be pronounced twice…” (Al-Baqarah 2:229) — remains the final and balanced principle: divorces are to be given separately and thoughtfully, not hastily combined in one session.
هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
(This is what I understand; Allah knows best what is correct.)
