The summary of this matter is that if a woman says to her husband, "You are to me as the back of my father," [or she says, "If I marry so-and-so, he is to me as the back of my father"] (1), this is not Zihar. The Qadi said: She is not considered a female who has performed Zihar, according to a single narration. This is the opinion of the majority of the scholars, including Malik, al-Shafi'i, Ishaq, Abu Thawr, and the People of Opinion (Ashab al-Ra'y). Al-Zuhri and al-Awza'i said: It is Zihar. It is also narrated from al-Hasan and al-Nakha'i, except that al-Nakha'i said: If she says that after she is married, it is nothing. Perhaps they argue that she is one of the two spouses who performed Zihar against the other, so she is a person who has performed Zihar just like a man. As for our evidence, it is the saying of Allah the Almighty: {Those who pronounce Zihar from their wives} (2). He specified them with that. Furthermore, it is a statement that necessitates a prohibition upon the wife, which the husband has the authority to remove, so it is exclusive to the man, like divorce. Also, because the permissibility (al-hill) of the wife is a right of the husband (3), so the woman does not possess the authority to remove it, like his other rights. When this is established, there is a difference (4) regarding Ahmad concerning the expiation; a group reported from him: She incurs the expiation of Zihar. This is because al-Athram narrated with his chain of transmission from Ibrahim that 'A'ishah bint Talhah said: "If I marry Mus'ab ibn al-Zubayr, he is to me as the back of my father." She asked the people of Medina, and they were of the view that she must perform the expiation. 'Ali (5) ibn Mushir narrated from al-Shaybani, who said: I was sitting in the mosque, I and 'Abd Allah ibn Mughaffal al-Muzani, when a man came and sat with us. I asked him, "Who are you?" He said: "I am a freed slave of 'A'ishah bint Talhah, the one (6) who freed me for her Zihar. Mus'ab ibn al-Zubayr proposed to her, and she said: 'He is to me as the back of my father if I marry him.' Then she later desired him (7), so she asked the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) for a legal opinion, and they were many at that time, and they ordered her to free a slave and marry him (8),"