What is the ruling if the statement 'You are forbidden upon me' is made with the intent of three divorces?
Chapter on Explicit Divorce and Others
Al-Mughni
Book of Divorce
Primary text
If the husband says, 'You are forbidden upon me,' and intends by it three divorces, then three divorces fall. Ahmad explicitly stated this when the definite article ('al-') is used in the statement ('the forbidden'), as this implies comprehensiveness, encompassing the entirety of divorce. If he intended three, he intended what the wording permits regarding divorce through that comprehensive term, thus three occur, similar to stating, 'You are irrevocably separated (ba'in).'
Supporting text
There is a narration from Ahmad suggesting it does not count as three unless explicitly intended, regardless of whether the definite article is used or not, because the definite article often denotes a generic category rather than absolute totality in many nouns.