When is an oath to kill someone on a specific day (Friday) fulfilled if death occurs after the specified day?
Chapter on Explicit Divorce and Others
Al-Mughni
Book of Divorce
Primary text
If an oath is sworn to kill someone on Friday, and the person is wounded on Thursday and dies on Friday, the oath is not broken, according to Al-Qadi. Furthermore, if the person is wounded on Friday and dies on Saturday, the oath is considered broken because the act of killing is not complete until death occurs; thus, the day of death, not the day of wounding, is considered.
Supporting text
It is arguable that the ruling should be reversed in both scenarios, holding that the day of wounding should be considered, not the day of death. This is because killing is an act of the killer, which is subject to command and prohibition, as indicated by Quranic verses such as Quran 9:5 and Quran 6:151. The command and prohibition apply to an act that is possible for a human to perform or refrain from, such as wounding. Death (Al-Zuhouq) is an act of Allah, which humans are neither commanded nor prohibited from doing, and humans only have the means to cause the requisite cause (the wound), which is a condition for killing. Therefore, when death occurs, it is confirmed that the preceding act was the cause leading to killing.