Do not swear by Tawāghi (idols) nor by your fathers

Hadith narrated by Narrated by Muslim

Authenticity grade : Authentic

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Hadith text
Explanation of the hadith
Lessons of the hadith

Updated on 24 September 2026 at 12:34 AM

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Hadith text: Do not swear by Tawāghi (idols) nor by your fathers

عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ سَمُرَةَ رضي الله عنه قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «لَا تَحْلِفُوا بِالطَّوَاغِي، وَلَا بِآبَائِكُمْ».

‘Abdur-Rahmān ibn Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not swear by Tawāghi (idols) nor by your fathers."

Explanation of the hadith: Do not swear by Tawāghi (idols) nor by your fathers

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) forbids us from swearing by Tawāghi, the plural of Tāghiyah, and these are the idols that the polytheists used to worship apart from Allah and they were the cause of their wrongdoing and Kufr (disbelief). He (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) also forbids us from swearing by our fathers. It was a common practice among the Arabs in Jāhiliyyah to swear by their fathers out of pride and exaltation.

Lessons: Do not swear by Tawāghi (idols) nor by your fathers

It is only permissible to swear by Allah and His names and attributes.
It is prohibited to swear by false deities, fathers, leaders, and idols, as well as all invalid things.
Swearing by other than Allah is a form of minor Shirk, and it may be a major Shirk if he has in his heart a sense of reverence for the thing sworn by and that he reveres it as he reveres Allah, or that he believes it to be part of worship.

Categories : Oneness of Allah's Worship

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