Oaths & Vows

Q: If a person says,"La ilaha il lallaho Muhammadur Rasulullah I will do something (or not do something)", will it be a vow(qasam)?

Q: Years ago, I broke an oath (I vowed to give up a sin then later committed it again) and then came to find out expiation is due upon me. When I found out expiation was due, I looked at the options I had. First, feeding 10 poor people. At the time I intended to offer expiation, I had a debt to pay off, so I could not afford to pay to feed ten poor people. My next option, clothing 10 poor people, is where I fell into doubt. I own more than 10 abayas -roughly 15 - and most of them are brand new and very sentimental to me as they were recently gifted to me by my parents. I also own roughly 11 scarves, and my mother owns many more and I know if I were to ask her for more she'd happily give me some of her's. I have relatives in Pakistan who I know could distribute my clothes. However, I didn't consider this option because most of the clothes I own, I wouldn't really consider them my own since my parents gifted them to me using their money. If they were to look in my closet and see them gone, they'd be flabbergasted as they recently spent a good deal of money buying me these new clothes. Also, if I were to use 10 of them for expiation, nearly 2/3s of the clothes I wear on a week to week basis would be gone. As such, I went on to fast 3 days of oath expiation. Was what I did correct?

Q: In my past I have made vows to Allah saying that I would not do a "sin". For example if I stole something and felt really bad I would repent and say I promise I won’t ever steal again to Allah. The reason I emphasized "sin" is because some of the promises were just misconceptions meaning the "sin" is not really a sin I just promised not to do something thinking it was sinful but in truth it was not a sin. For example if I felt bad that I would delay my prayers I would promise to Allah that I would not delay the prayer ever again. Delaying prayers is not a sin but I made the promise thinking it was a sin. these misconception promises are really hard to keep and I am having a hard time living with them. So, I need to make these promises I made to Allah void or make the promises not count anymore. Is that even possible? How can I do it?

Q: I have intended that I would give sadqah everyday if this happens. Now if I don't have money always how do I give sadqah?

Q: I have two questions on oath. 

1. What are the words which makes an oath binding?

2. Is verbal utterance necessary for an oath to be valid or will an oath be formed if a firm intention is made in the heart without saying it loudly with the mouth and tongue?

Q: I have made many oaths to Allah. These oaths will be effective my whole life meaning that for example I promised that I would never lie again and that promise would be there my whole life with me and Allah. The problem is I made an oath saying that if I saw a bad thing in a film I would never watch it or anything like it but I cannot keep this promise up and promises similar. One promise said I would never tell any special dreams because I was told that telling your dreams will reduce the special dreams you get but you’re supposed to tell your dreams that are good. So what I need to do is get rid of the promises I made with Allah I need to make them void how can I do that

Q: If a person says to Allah,’I will do this’ or ‘I will do that’. But the person did not use the word ‘promise’ ‘oath’ or ‘vow’. That means he/she did not promise that to Allah. Now if he/she does not do that action, will he/she be sinning?

Q: Can I eat meat of my own intended qurbani that was performed after a request made to Allah came true?

Q: I had no children, and then my wife got pregnant. My father had brain hemorrhage and was in a coma. When he was still little conscious, he said that he will sacrify a cow. After that he died. Do we need to sacrifice a cow from his side or not? If not, will he get in trouble or not? We do not know whether he promised Allah or not, but we were present when he said that he had 20000 rupess to buy and sacrifice a cow when the baby is born.

Q: Is verbal utterance necessary for an oath to be valid or will an oath be formed if a firm intention is made in the heart without saying it loudly with the mouth and tongue?