Vows and Promises Under the Influence of Whispers
Fatwa No: 393280

Question

Asalam alikum I hope you will be able to help me. A couple years back I had very extreme waswasa and I thought that multiple things that I was doing was a sin. So For example I would say Im gonna do this to my friends or family and when I didnt do it,, I would repent to Allah for not keeping my word and vow not to break my word again. Another example is when a man would greet me and I would greet him back I thoufht it was haramn due to waswasa so I repented and vowed to Allah that I wouldnt talk to non mahram men unless obligatory. Ive made many vows due to ocd and my life is so hard now because up keeping these vows is difficult in reality and I feel stressed that I will die without being able to makeup these vows, what shall I do?

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

You are not required to do anything about the vows or promises that you made under the influence of whispers.

A person who suffers from whispers takes the same ruling as that of a compelled person. Indeed, a person who is forced to do something will not be held accountable for them.

Therefore, you should ignore these whispers and repel them and do not give in to them because giving in to them leads you to a great evil.

We ask Allah to cure you from this.

However, if it was only an intention or a thought in your mind, then you are not required to do anything even if you do not suffer from whispers.

For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 23184, 91107, 375157 and 154575.

Allah knows best.

Related Fatwa