Oaths in Quran — Study Session 2
Overview
The main topics covered in this session are:
- Definition and anatomy of al-qasam (grammar perspective)
- The three particles of qasam: waw, ba, ta — rules and differences
- The affirmative particle E (إِ) and its modern dialect descendant
- Verbs used to construct oaths: aksama, qasama, taqasama, halapha, kattaba
- Nouns used for oaths: umar, al-haqq
- Comprehensive rules for jawab al-qasam — a complete classification chart
- Lam al-muzahlaka and levels of emphasis in Arabic
Primary source: Dr. Abdul Raheem's book Aksam al-Qur'an fī al-Qur'an al-Karīm.
1. Definition and Anatomy of al-Qasam
Al-qasam is a joomla (sentence) whose purpose is tauki al-kalam — to emphasise the speech.
A qasam is always a sentence
Whether the particle, verb, or noun form is used, a qasam always constitutes a sentence (joomla). It is never a single word in isolation.
1.1 Two-Part Structure
Every qasam in the Quran (and in classical Arabic) consists of exactly two parts:
| Part | Term (grammar books) | Term (tafsir books) | Example from Surah al-Najm (53:1–2) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The oath construct | القَسَم (al-qasam) | المُقسَم به (al-muksambi) | وَالنَّجمِ إِذَا هَوَى — By the star when it sets |
| The response | جَوَاب القَسَم (jawab al-qasam) | المُقسَم عليه (al-muksam alayhi) | مَا ضَلَّ صَاحِبُكُم — Your companion has not gone astray |
2. The Three Particles of Qasam (Hurūf al-Qasam)
A sentence is identified as a qasam when it contains one of three particles, three categories of verbs, or certain nouns. The particles are:
| Particle | Arabic | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Waw | وَ | Most common in Quran |
| Ba | بِ | Most versatile/generic |
| Ta | تَ | Most restricted |
2.1 Waw (وَ)
Grammatically, waw al-qasam is a harf jarr (preposition), just like other harf jarr. The noun after it is therefore majrur.
Three rules of waw:
- Cannot be used with a verb — you cannot say waqsamu billahi. Waw must stand alone. For verb + qasam, use ba.
- Cannot be used with a talab sentence — if the jawab is an amir (command) or nahi (prohibition), use ba, not waw. Wrong: wallahi akhbirni. Correct: billahi akhbirni.
- Cannot be used with a pronoun — the noun after waw must be a proper noun or regular noun, not a pronoun. Wrong: wahum (by them). Correct: bihim.
2.2 Ta (تَ)
Rule: Ta can only be used with the name of Allah or His attributes (e.g., Rabb al-Ka'ba). It cannot be used for anything or anyone else — not even for the sake of grammar exercises.
Quranic Example
تَاللهِ لَأَكِيدَنَّ أَصنَامَكُم (Surah al-Anbiya 21:57) By Allah, I will definitely plan against your idols. — Ibrahim ﷺ speaking.
The ta is used because the oath is by Allah. If Ibrahim ﷺ had sworn by anything else, ta would be grammatically impermissible.
2.3 Ba (بِ)
Ba is the most generic particle of qasam. It can be used: - With any noun, pronoun, or proper name as the muksambi - With or without an explicit verb of qasam - With a talabiya sentence (command or prohibition) as the jawab - With a pronoun after it
Ba with or without a verb
- With verb: Aqsamu billahi (I swear by Allah)
- Without verb: Billahi (By Allah) — the verb is implied
Quranic Example: Ba with a pronoun
فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغوِيَنَّهُم أَجمَعِينَ (Surah Sād 38:82) "By Your honour, I will definitely lead them all astray" — Shaytan speaking to Allah. The kaf (كَ) is a pronoun → only ba could be used here, not waw.
2.4 The Particle E (إِ) — "Yes, by..."
E is a particle that appears before the qasam and means naam (yes) — it is an affirmative response particle.
Usage
Q: Usafiru al-qudatu? — "Are the judges traveling?" A: E wallahi, innahum la-musafirūn — "Yes by Allah, they are indeed traveling!"
Origin of the Dialect Word 'Eeh/Iiwa'
According to Dr. Abdul Raheem, the modern colloquial affirmative "eeeh" (used widely across Arabic dialects for "yes") derives from E + wallahi → contracted to eywa/eeh as the name of Allah was dropped out of respect. It is a linguistic fossil of this classical construction.
3. Verbs Used for Oaths
3.1 Aksama / Yaqsimu (أَقسَمَ يُقسِمُ) — Form IV
The primary verb for taking an oath in the Quran.
Quranic Usage
يَوم يَقسِمُ الجَاحِدُون — The day when the deniers will swear (Surah al-Rum 30:55)
3.2 Forms III and VI — Reciprocal Meaning
| Form | Verb | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Form I | قَسَمَ | To divide/separate |
| Form IV | أَقسَمَ | To take an oath (individual) |
| Form III | قَاسَمَ | Reciprocal oath (two parties swearing to each other) |
| Form VI | تَقَاسَمَ | Group oath (multiple parties together) |
Form VI in Quran
قَالُوا تَقَاسَمُوا بِاللهِ لَنُبَيِّتَنَّه (Surah al-Naml 27:49) They said: "Swear to each other by Allah that we will attack him [Salih ﷺ] by night." The group of conspirators are swearing a collective oath.
3.3 The La Before Uqsimu — Fala Uqsimu
The construction فَلَا أُقسِمُ appears several times in the Quran. Scholars differ on what this la means:
Opinion 1 (preferred): La is negating what the disbelievers were saying — i.e., "No! [Everything you say is false.] I swear by the Day of Resurrection..." — analogous to how in Urdu one says "Nahi! Wallahi, yeh sach hai" and in colloquial Arabic "La wallahi, jameel" (No, by Allah, it's beautiful).
Opinion 2: La is a particle of tauki (emphasis) meaning "I am not even needing to swear because this is so obvious, yet I swear anyway."
3.4 Other Verbs Carrying the Meaning of Oath in Quran
| Verb | Meaning in context |
|---|---|
| حَلَفَ (halafa) | To make a pact/oath; root of حِلف (hilf) = alliance (e.g., NATO = حِلف الناتو) |
| كَتَبَ (kataba) | Normally "to write"; can mean "to ordain as a covenant" |
| أَذَّنَ (adhdhana) | Normally "to announce"; used for a solemn divine declaration |
| شَهِدَ (shahida) | To witness/testify — carries oath-like solemnity |
| عَلِمَ (alima) | To know — sometimes used in contexts of solemn affirmation |
4. Nouns Used for Oaths
4.1 Hayy / Umar — Life/Age
When the word حَيّ (life) or عُمَر (age/lifetime) is used as the muksambi, it must always appear in the rafa' state (marfu') — not majrur like after a regular harf jarr.
Rule: La-'umruka always takes rafa'
لَعَمرُكَ إِنَّهُم لَفِي سَكرَتِهِم يَعمَهُون (Surah al-Hijr 15:72) "By your life [O Prophet], indeed they wander blindly in their intoxication." Note: لَعَمرُكَ — the 'amr is marfu' (dhamma). This is obligatory; you cannot say لَعَمرِكَ (majrur) when using it as a qasam.
4.2 Al-Haqq
Also used as a noun of qasam with its own grammatical conditions.
5. Jawab al-Qasam — The Complete Classification
The jawab al-qasam is always a sentence (joomla). The following chart classifies all possible types and their required emphasis markers:
Jawab al-Qasam
│
├── Joomla ISMIA (Nominal Sentence)
│ ├── Affirmative (musbata)
│ │ └── Must use: inna + lam (musahilaka) [Case 1]
│ │ — or: just inna
│ │ — or: just lam
│ └── Negative (manfiya)
│ └── No emphasis [Case 4]
│
└── Joomla FA'LIYA (Verbal Sentence)
├── Fail MADI (past tense)
│ ├── Affirmative → lam + qad [Case 2]
│ │ — or (rarely): just qad
│ │ — or (with jammed verbs: ni'ma, bi'sa): just lam
│ └── Negative → no emphasis [Case 4]
└── Fail MUDARI (present/future)
├── Affirmative
│ ├── Meaning = FUTURE → lam + nunu sakhila [Case 3a]
│ │ (conditions: see §5.3)
│ └── Meaning = PRESENT → just lam, no nunu [Case 3b]
└── Negative → no emphasis [Case 4]
5.1 Case 1 — Joomla Ismia, Affirmative
Required: inna + lam al-muzahlaka (or one of the two alone).
Levels of Emphasis
A sentence like al-baytu jamilun (the house is beautiful) can be progressively emphasised: - Level 0: البَيتُ جَمِيلٌ — no emphasis - Level 1: لَالبَيتُ جَمِيلٌ — lam al-ibtida (lam at the beginning) - Level 2: إِنَّ البَيتَ جَمِيلٌ — inna (note: al-baytu → al-bayta, majrur becomes mansub as ismu inna) - Level 3: إِنَّ البَيتَ لَجَمِيلٌ — inna + lam (the lam could not stay at the beginning after inna entered, so it "slid" to the khabar — this is lam al-muzahlaka) - Level 4: وَاللهِ إِنَّ البَيتَ لَجَمِيلٌ — qasam + inna + lam (maximum emphasis)
The lam is called لَام المُزَاحَلَقَة (lam al-muzahlaka) — the "skidding lam" — because it slips from the front of the sentence and attaches itself to the khabar of inna.
Quranic Examples
- With inna + lam: وَرَبِّي إِنَّهُ لَحَقٌّ — By my Lord, it is indeed the truth. (Qasam + inna + lam on single-word khabar)
- With inna alone: إِنَّا أَنزَلنَاهُ فِي لَيلَةٍ مُبَارَكَةٍ — Indeed We sent it down on a blessed night. (Surah al-Dukhan — context of implied qasam)
- With lam alone: وَلَسَوفَ يُعطِيكَ رَبُّكَ — And your Lord will surely give you. (Surah al-Duha — lam on a joomla fa'liya, but cited here as example of lam alone)
5.2 Case 2 — Joomla Fa'liya, Fail Madi, Affirmative
Required: lam + qad.
Quranic Example
تَاللهِ لَقَد آثَرَكَ اللهُ عَلَينَا (Surah Yusuf 12:91) By Allah, Allah has indeed favoured you over us! — Yusuf's brothers, upon recognising him. لَقَد = lam + qad emphasising the fail madi آثَرَكَ.
Exception: Jammed Verbs (Af'al Jamida)
Verbs that are "frozen" in the madi — like نِعمَ and بِئسَ — cannot take qad. With these, use lam alone.
5.3 Case 3a — Joomla Fa'liya, Fail Mudari, Future, Affirmative
Required: lam + nunu sakhila (نُونُ التَّوكِيد الثَّقِيلَة — the heavy noon of emphasis).
Three conditions for nunu sakhila to be permissible: 1. The meaning of the mudari must be future (mustaqbal), not present (hal). 2. The verb must be directly attached to the lam — not separated by a particle of futurity (sayin / saufa) or a shibe jumla. 3. No other element separates the lam from its verb.
How to form nunu sakhila
Take the mudari verb → change final dhamma to fatha → add nunu sakhila (which pairs with the now-fatha'd final letter to form a shadda): - yadhhabu → yadhhabanna (يَذهَبُ → يَذهَبَنَّ) - ushribu (I drink) → la-ashrabanna (by Allah, I will definitely drink)
Quranic Example
تَاللهِ لَأَكِيدَنَّ أَصنَامَكُم (Surah al-Anbiya 21:57) By Allah, I will definitely plan against your idols. — Ibrahim ﷺ. Lam + nunu sakhila on the mudari أَكِيدَ (future meaning confirmed).
5.4 Case 3b — Joomla Fa'liya, Fail Mudari, Present Tense, Affirmative
Required: lam only (no nunu sakhila, because the action is present, not future).
Example
Wallahi la-uhibbuka (By Allah, I love you — present tense) → just lam, no nunu.
5.5 Case 4 — All Negative Sentences
Rule: Never add any emphasis markers (no inna, no lam, no nunu). The negation itself marks the response.
Permissible negation particles in jawab al-qasam: only مَا (ma) and لَا (la). You cannot use لَم or لَن.
Quranic Examples
- وَرَبِّكَ مَا أَنتَ بِنِعمَةِ رَبِّكَ بِمَجنُونٍ — By your Lord, you are not, by the grace of your Lord, a madman. (Surah al-Qalam 68:2) — No emphasis; ma + anta.
- وَالضُّحَى... مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ وَمَا قَلَى — By the morning brightness... your Lord has not forsaken you nor despised you. (Surah al-Duha 93:1–3) — Negative madi; no emphasis.
How to read Surah al-Duha holistically
Surah al-Duha contains three different jawab al-qasam constructions in sequence — a beautiful example to study the chart in practice: 1. مَا وَدَّعَكَ — negative madi → no emphasis 2. وَلَلآخِرَةُ خَيرٌ — affirmative ismia → inna implied; lam on khabar 3. وَلَسَوفَ يُعطِيكَ — affirmative mudari (future) + saufa → lam only (saufa separates lam from verb, so nunu cannot apply)
6. When the Qasam Itself Is Omitted
Sometimes the qasam instrument (waw/ba/ta/verb/noun) is entirely dropped, leaving only the jawab. The clue that a qasam was present is the lam al-tauki at the beginning of the jawab.
Quranic Example
لَتُسأَلُنَّ عَمَّا كُنتُم تَعمَلُونَ — You will surely be asked about what you used to do. (Surah al-Nahl 16:93) The lam before تُسأَلُنَّ signals an implied qasam even though no "wallahi" or particle of oath is visible.
7. Vocabulary Summary
| Arabic | Transliteration | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| أَقسَمَ يُقسِمُ | aqsama / yaqsimu | Form IV | To take an oath (individual) |
| قَاسَمَ | qasama | Form III | Reciprocal oath (two parties) |
| تَقَاسَمَ | taqasama | Form VI | Group oath |
| حَلَفَ | halafa | Form I | To swear/make alliance |
| كَتَبَ | kataba | Form I | To write; to ordain (as covenant) |
| نُونُ التَّوكِيد الثَّقِيلَة | nunu al-tawkid al-thaqila | — | Heavy noon of emphasis |
| نُونُ التَّوكِيد الخَفِيفَة | nunu al-tawkid al-khafifa | — | Light noon of emphasis (single nun sakin) |
| لَامُ الاِبتِدَاء | lam al-ibtida | — | Lam at the beginning (first level of emphasis) |
| لَامُ المُزَاحَلَقَة | lam al-muzahlaka | — | Skidding lam (moved from beginning to khabar of inna) |
| التَّوكِيد | al-tawkid | — | Emphasis, reinforcement |
| المُثبَتَة / المَنفِيَّة | al-musbata / al-manfiya | — | Affirmative / Negative |
8. Key Lessons from This Session
Summary of Lessons
- Ba is the most versatile particle of qasam — it can accompany verbs, pronouns, commands, and prohibitions. Waw (most common) and ta (most restricted) have significant limitations.
- The jawab al-qasam chart is the key to understanding how oaths are emphasised. Negative sentences are never emphasised; affirmative sentences use inna, lam, lam+qad, lam+nunu according to the sentence type.
- Nunu sakhila only appears when the mudari jawab is future in meaning AND directly attached to the lam.
- When you see only lam in a sentence but no explicit qasam, a qasam has been omitted. The lam is your clue.
- Surah al-Duha is an ideal single-surah exercise: it contains three different jawab constructions, all after the same qasam (Wal-Duha, Wal-Layl).
Next session (Session 3) will cover conditional sentences (al-shart) and how they combine with oaths — including the famous and very frequent la-in (لَئِن) construction that appears more than 60 times in the Quran.