Yahya related to me from Malik that he heard Ibn Shihab say that if a man said to his wife, "You are free of me, and I am free of you, " it counted as three pronouncements of divorce as if it were an 'irrevocable' divorce. Malik said that if a man made any strong statement such as these to his wife, it counted as three pronouncements of divorce for a woman whose marriage had been consummated, or it was written as one of three for a woman whose marriage had not been consummated, whichever the man wished. If he said he intended only one divorce he swore to it and he became one of the suitors because, whereas a woman whose marriage had been consummated was made inaccessible by three pronouncements of divorce, the woman whose marriage had not been consummated was made inaccessible by only one pronouncement. Malik said, "That is the best of what I have heard".
This hadith teaches us about how important words can be when discussing matters such as marriages and divorces since they can have serious implications on people’s lives even though they may seem insignificant at first glance. It also shows us how important communication between couples should be so that misunderstandings do not occur due to lack thereof.
