Verse: "Divorce is twice — then either retain in kindness or release with excellence." (2:229)
Meaning: The lawful divorce permitting reconciliation is only twice — after the third she is not lawful to him until she marries another husband.
The triple divorce in one pronouncement:
- Majority (Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali): If he says "you are triply divorced," three divorces take effect — the view of many Companions.
- Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn al-Qayyim, and others: Only one divorce takes effect — citing Ibn Abbas's hadith "During the Prophet's time, Abu Bakr's, and the first two years of Umar's, triple divorce was one." (Muslim 1472)
- Contemporary fatwa bodies: The Islamic Fiqh Academy (Muslim World League) holds it is one revocable divorce — protecting family interests.
"Retain in kindness or release with excellence": In a revocable divorce, the choice is between reconciliation with good treatment or releasing her graciously — no harm and no using divorce as a weapon.
Question: What is the ruling on triple divorce in one pronouncement? What is the evidence for those who say it counts as one?
Answer: Majority: three take effect. Ibn Taymiyya: one — from Ibn Abbas's hadith (Muslim 1472) that triple divorce was counted as one during the Prophet's era.