as well as from both of them. This is also the view of 'Ata', al-Qasim, 'Ikrimah, al-Sha'bi, and al-Shafi'i, because it was narrated from 'Ata' that he said: 'A'ishah said—meaning regarding the vain oath (laghw al-yamin)—: "It is a man's speech in his house: 'No, by Allah,' and 'Yes, by Allah' (1)." Narrated by Abu Dawud (2). He said: It was also narrated by al-Zuhri, 'Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Sulayman, and Malik ibn Mighwal, from 'Ata', from 'A'ishah, as a mawquf (attributed to the Companion) narration. Al-Zuhri also narrated that 'Urwah told him, from 'A'ishah, who said: "Vain oaths are those made during argument, joking, levity, and conversation upon which the heart is not bound. Oaths of atonement are every oath one swears regarding a matter—whether in anger or otherwise—to perform it or abstain from it; that is the binding of oaths in which Allah the Almighty has obligated atonement (3)." Moreover, "vain" (al-laghw) in the language of the Arabs refers to speech that is not intended. This is similar. Among those who said that there is no atonement for this are Ibn 'Abbas, Abu Hurayrah, Abu Malik, Zurarah ibn Awfa (4), al-Hasan, al-Nakha'i, and Malik. This is the opinion of those who said it is among the vain oaths, and we know of no disagreement in this regard. The basis for this is the saying of Allah the Almighty: {Allah will not impose blame upon you for what is unintentional in your oaths, but He will impose blame upon you for what you have intended of oaths. So its expiation is the feeding of ten needy people} (5). Thus, He assigned atonement to the oath for which one is held accountable and negated accountability for the vain oath, therefore it follows (6) that there is no atonement. Furthermore, "accountability" (al-mu'akhadhah) may mean the obligation of atonement, evidenced by the fact that it is obligatory for oaths in which there is no sin. If accountability is the obligation of atonement, then He has negated it for the vain oath, so it is not obligatory. Additionally, the statement of those we named from the Companions, for whom we know of no opponent in their era, constitutes an ijma' (consensus). Also, 'A'ishah's statement regarding the interpretation of the vain oath and the explanation of the oaths for which there is atonement came as an interpretation of the speech of Allah the Almighty, and the interpretation of a Companion is acceptable.