Narrated from Sayyiduna Abdur Rahman bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him), he says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: O Abdur Rahman bin Samurah! When you swear an oath about something and then consider something else to be better, then choose the better thing and offer expiation for your oath.

Narrated by Sayyiduna ‘Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever swears an oath about something, but then considers something else to be better, let him choose the better thing and offer expiation for his oath.

(Second chain) There is a similar narration, except that in it: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Whoever takes an oath, but then sees something better, let him choose the better thing and leave his oath.

It is narrated from Tamim bin Tarfa, he says: I saw that a man came to Sayyiduna Adi bin Hatim (may Allah be pleased with him) and asked him for one hundred dirhams. He said: You ask me for one hundred dirhams, while I am the son of Hatim. By Allah! I will not give you. But then he said: If I had not heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say that whoever takes an oath, but then sees something better, he should choose the better thing. (Then I would not have given you anything, but then he gave him four hundred dirhams.)

Zahdam Jarami says: We were sitting with Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him), and he presented chicken meat. A man from the Banu Taym Allah tribe was also present there; his complexion was red and it seemed as if he was a slave. He did not come near the food. Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: Come closer, I have seen the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) eating this meat. He said: I saw him eating something because of which I felt disgusted and I swore that I would never eat it. He (Abu Musa) said: Come closer, I will also inform you about that. I came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with a group of Ash'aris; we had come to ask him for mounts, and at that time the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was distributing the camels of zakat. Ayub, the narrator, says: I think that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was angry, and he said: No, by Allah! I will not give you mounts, nor do I have any mounts left. So we went back. Then, when the camels of war booty were brought to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he asked: Where are those Ash'ari people? So we reached the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he ordered for us five white-humped camels. We took them and went back. I (Abu Musa) said to my companions: When we went to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to ask for mounts, he swore that he would not give us mounts, but then he sent for us and gave us mounts. I said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) has forgotten about his oath. By Allah! If we have made the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forget his oath, we will never succeed. Take us to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so that we may remind him of his oath. So we returned and said: O Messenger of Allah! We came to you to ask for mounts, but you swore that you would not give us mounts, then you gave us mounts. Now we thought that perhaps you had forgotten about your oath. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Go, Allah Almighty has given you mounts. As for me, by Allah, whenever I swear an oath and then see something else better, I choose that and offer expiation for my oath.

. (Second chain) There is a similar narration, except that in it: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: But I choose that which is better and offer expiation for my oath. Or he said: Indeed, I offer expiation for my oath and choose that which is better.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for a mount, but he found the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) busy, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: By Allah! I will not give you mounts. When he was about to leave, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called him back and gave him a mount. He said: O Messenger of Allah! You had sworn that you would not give me a mount? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Then I swear that I will certainly, certainly give you a mount.

Narrated by Sayyiduna Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever swears an oath about something, but later sees something else better, he should offer expiation for his oath and do what is better.

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When a man swears an oath regarding his family and pretends to be truthful (in his own view), then he will be a severe sinner in the sight of Allah Almighty, due to the expiation which Allah Almighty has commanded him.

(Second chain) The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: By Allah! When a man swears an oath regarding his family’s matter and (persists in using that oath as an excuse), then he is more sinful in the sight of Allah Almighty than if he were to fulfill the expiation (kaffarah) made obligatory by Allah Almighty.