1 أَبِي عبداللَّه قال: إِذَا قَال الرَّجُلُ عَلَيَّ الْمَشْيُ إِلَى بَيْت اللَّه و هُو مُحْرِمٌ بِحَجَّة أَوْ عَلَيَّ هَدْيٌ كذاوكذا فَلَيْس بِشَيْءٍ حَتَّى يَقُولَ لِلَّهِ عَلَيَّ الْمَشْيُ إِلَى بَيْتِهِ أَوْ يَقُول لِلَّهِ عَلَيَّ أَنْ أُحْرِمَ بِحَجَّةٍ أَوْ يَقُول لِلَّهِ عَلَيَّ هَدْيٌ كذاوكذا إِنْ لَمْ أَفْعَلْ كذاوكذا

📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 7, p. 454

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: When a person says: 'I am obligated to walk to the House of Allah and to be in a state of ihram for a pilgrimage,' or 'I am obligated to give such-and-such as a hady (sacrificial animal),' these are nothing (they are not valid) unless he says: 'For Allah is upon me to go to the House of Allah,' or he says: 'For Allah is upon me to be in a state of ihram for a pilgrimage,' or he says: 'For Allah is upon me to give such-and-such as a hady if I do not do such-and-such.'

2 ابي الصباح الكناني قال: سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عَبْداللَّهِ عن رجل قال عَلَيَّ نَذْرٌ قال لَيْس النَّذْرُ بِشَيْءٍ حَتَّى يُسَمِّيَ شيئا لِلَّهِ صِيَاماً أَوْ صَدَقَةً أَوْ هَدْياً أَوْ حَجّاً

📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 7, p. 455

Kinani said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a person who says: 'A vow is upon me'; the Imam said: A vow is nothing unless he names something (like) fasting or charity or hady or pilgrimage for Allah (by saying 'lillahi 'alayya' and mentioning the vowed thing).

Valid Vow

3 أَبي بصيرقال:سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عبد اللَّه عَنِ الرَّجُلِ يَقُول عَلَيَّ نَذْرٌ قَالَ لَيْس بِشَيْ ءٍ حَتَّى يُسَمِّيَ النذر و يَقُولَ عَلَيَّ صَوْمٌ لِلَّهِ أَوْ يَتَصَّدَّقَ أَوْ يُعْتِقَ أَوْ يُهْدِي هَدْياً

📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 7, p. 455

Abu Basir said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a person who says: 'A vow is upon me'; he said: It is nothing unless he names the vow and says: 'Fasting is upon me for Allah' or 'to give charity' or 'to free a slave' or 'to perform a hady'.

4 مسعدة بْن صدقة قال:سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ و سُئِلَ عَنِ الرَّجُلِ يَحْلِفُ بِالنَّذْرِ وَ نِيَّتُهُ فِي يَمِينِهِ الَّتِي حَلَفَ عَلَيْهَا دِرْهَمٌ أَوْ أَقَلُّ قَال إِذَا لَمْ يَجْعَلْ لِلَّهِ فَلَيْسَ بِشَيْ ءٍ

📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 7, p. 458

Mas'adah said: I heard Imam Sadiq being asked about a person who swears by a vow, and his intention in this oath is a dirham or less than that. The Imam said: When he does not make it for Allah (does not say 'lillahi 'alayya'), it is nothing and has no validity.

5 سُئِل أَبو عَبْد اللَّه عَنْ رَجُلٍ غَضِبَ فَقَالَ عَلَيَّ الْمَشْيُ إِلَى بَيْت اللَّه الْحرام فَقَالَ إِذَا لَمْ يَقُلْ لِلَّهِ عَلَيَّ فَلَيْسَ بِشَيْءٍ

📚 Faqih Vol. 3, p. 361

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) was asked about a person who gets angry and says: 'Walking to the House of Allah is upon me'; the Imam said: When he does not say: 'For Allah is upon me,' then it is nothing and has no validity.

6 عن أبي عبد اللَّه في رَجُل قَالَ هُوَ مُحْرِمٌ بِحَجَّةٍ إِنْ لَمْ يَفْعَلْ كذاوكذا فَلَمْ يَفْعَلْهُ قَالَ لَيْسَ بِشَيْءٍ

📚 Tahdhib Vol. 8, p. 288

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said about a person who says: 'I am in a state of ihram for a pilgrimage if I do not do such-and-such' and he does not do that action: It is nothing.

✅ A vow in Shi'a jurisprudence has various conditions for the ruling of a vow to apply to it, and one of these conditions is stating its specific formula, which in Arabic is 'lillahi 'alayya' and in Persian 'for Allah is upon me.' For example, a person says: 'For Allah is upon me that if my son recovers from his illness, I will fast for three days,' or the like.

Now, if he does not state these words in Arabic or any other language and does not obligate something upon himself for Allah, then according to the above narrations, this is not considered a vow, and the rulings of a vow do not apply to it. The second condition is naming the vowed thing: 👇

7 أَبي عبد اللَّه قَال:سَأَلْتُه عن الرَّجُل يَجْعَل عَلَيْه نَذْراً و لا يُسَمِّيهِ قال إِنْ سَمَّيْتَهُ فَهُو ما سَمَّيْتَ و إِنْ لَمْ تُسَمِّ شَيْئاً فَلَيْس بِشَيْءٍ

📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 3, p. 364

Halabi said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a person who makes a vow upon himself but does not name anything; he said: If he names it, then it is what he has named, and if he does not name it, it is nothing.

✅ There are two general conditions for a vow in the narrations: one is to obligate it for Allah (saying 'lillahi 'alayya'), and the other is to name the vowed thing, and otherwise, the vow is nothing. However, regarding a person who has made a vow but has not named anything, in hadith 📚 Al-Kafi Vol. 7, p. 463, Ali (peace be upon him) said: If he wishes, he can pray two rak'ahs, and if he wishes, he can fast for one day, and if he wishes, he can give a loaf of bread in charity.

However, with attention to other narrations, including hadith 7, this act is not obligatory.

Vow without formula