al-'Ajlani: "I have lied against her if I keep her." The second issue is that she becomes prohibited to him by virtue of the li'an with an eternal prohibition, such that she is not lawful for him even if he proves himself a liar, according to the apparent [view of the] school. There is no disagreement among the scholars that if he does not prove himself a liar, she is not lawful for him, unless it were an odd view. As for when he does prove himself a liar, the view narrated by the group from Ahmad is that she is also not lawful for him. News came from Umar ibn al-Khattab, Ali ibn Abi Talib, and Ibn Mas'ud - may Allah be pleased with them - that the two who performed li'an shall never be reunited. This was also the view of al-Hasan, 'Ata', Jabir ibn Zayd, al-Nakha'i, al-Zuhri, al-Hakam, Malik, al-Thawri, al-Awza'i, al-Shafi'i, Abu 'Ubayd, Abu Thawr, and Abu Yusuf. From Ahmad, there is another narration: if he proves himself a liar, she becomes lawful for him and his marital bed returns to its state. This is an odd narration; Hanbal was unique in reporting it from his companions. Abu Bakr said: "We know of no one who narrated it other than him." It is appropriate that this narration be interpreted as referring to a case where the judge did not separate them; for when the judge has separated them, there is no basis for the marriage to remain as it was. We have previously mentioned that the school of al-Batti is that no separation is attached to li'an. According to Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib: if he proves himself a liar, he is [merely] one of the suitors. This was also the view of Abu Hanifa and Muhammad ibn al-Hasan, because the separation of li'an is a divorce (talaq) according to them. Sa'id ibn Jubayr said: if he proves himself a liar, she is returned to him as long as she is in the waiting period ('idda). Our evidence is what Sahl ibn Sa'd narrated, saying: "The Sunnah has passed regarding the two who performed li'an that they are to be separated, and then they shall never be reunited." Reported by al-Juzajani in his book with his chain of narration. Something similar is narrated from al-Zuhri and Malik. Furthermore, it is a prohibition that is not lifted before the hadd punishment and declaring oneself a liar, so it is not lifted by them [alone], like the prohibition of breastfeeding.

Section: If she is a slave woman and her li'an-performing husband buys her, she does not become lawful for him, because it is an eternal prohibition, so she became prohibited to her purchaser by virtue of it, like breastfeeding. Also, because if one who has divorced [a wife] three times buys his divorced wife, she is not lawful for him before [she marries] a husband and has intercourse, so this is more appropriate here; because this prohibition is eternal, whereas the prohibition of divorce...