During prophet SWS life the procedure of divorce was different than that of Umar RTA.

 During prophet SWS life the procedure of divorce was different than that of Umar RTA

Yes, there is an important historical and legal distinction between the practice of divorce during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the ruling enforced by Caliph ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه concerning the pronouncement of three divorces at once.

The central issue is whether three pronouncements of ṭalāq in one sitting counted as one divorce or three divorces.

1. During the Prophet’s ﷺ lifetime

A well-known hadith reports that three divorces pronounced together were treated as one divorce during the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ, during the caliphate of Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, and during the early period of ʿUmar's caliphate.

The report is narrated by Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما.

The report is recorded in Sahih Muslim, hadith 1472a–c.

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2. What did ʿUmar رضي الله عنه change?

According to the report in Sahih Muslim 1472a, ʿUmar said that people had begun to hasten in a matter in which they should have taken their time. He then enforced the three pronouncements upon them as three divorces.

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The distinction is:

Period	Three divorces pronounced together
Prophet Muhammad ﷺ	Counted as one, according to Ibn ʿAbbās's report
Caliphate of Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه	Counted as one
Early caliphate of ʿUmar رضي الله عنه	Counted as one
Later caliphate of ʿUmar رضي الله عنه	Enforced as three

3. Did ʿUmar change the Prophet's ﷺ ruling?

Scholars have differed over the legal interpretation.

• One-divorce position: Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim, among other scholars, held that three divorces pronounced together count as one. They cite the report in Sahih Muslim as evidence.

  

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• Three-divorce position: The majority of classical Sunni jurists held that three pronouncements together count as three, although pronouncing divorce this way is considered blameworthy or contrary to the proper procedure by many scholars. They also discuss how ʿUmar's decision should be understood legally.

  

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A crucial distinction is that the hadith reports a change in how the pronouncements were enforced; it does not, by itself, settle every scholarly question about whether ʿUmar changed a legal rule or enforced an existing consequence to deter misuse.

4. What does the Qur'an say?

Qur'an 2:229 says:

“Divorce is twice; then either retention in a reasonable manner or release with good treatment.”

Qur'an 2:230 then discusses a subsequent divorce after the preceding divorces.

These verses are central to the debate over whether divorce is intended to occur in stages, allowing opportunities for reconciliation, rather than through three pronouncements in one sitting.

Conclusion: Your historical observation has a basis in an explicit report in Sahih Muslim. During the Prophet's ﷺ lifetime, three divorces pronounced together were reported as counting as one; ʿUmar رضي الله عنه later enforced them as three. The disagreement concerns the legal significance and continuing applicability of that earlier practice.

The report is narrated by Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما.

The report is narrated by ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما, a Companion of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It is recorded in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, in the Book of Divorce (Kitāb al-Ṭalāq), hadith 1472.

The essential Arabic wording is:

كَانَ الطَّلَاقُ عَلَى عَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَأَبِي بَكْرٍ وَسَنَتَيْنِ مِنْ خِلَافَةِ عُمَرَ طَلَاقُ الثَّلَاثِ وَاحِدَةً

Meaning:

“Threefold divorce during the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Abu Bakr, and two years of ʿUmar's caliphate was counted as one divorce.”

The source confirms the wording and attribution: Sahih Muslim 1472a.

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An important qualification: The report describes the practice as understood and reported by Ibn ʿAbbās. The legal interpretation of this report—particularly whether three simultaneous pronouncements must count as one in all cases—remains disputed among Muslim jurists.

So Umar change the rule which is illegal

From the report in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1472, your question is understandable: if three pronouncements of divorce were treated as one during the Prophet's ﷺ lifetime and the caliphate of Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, why did ʿUmar رضي الله عنه later enforce them as three?

The key distinction is between changing a divine rule and changing the legal enforcement of an existing rule.

The hadith explicitly reports that ʿUmar changed how three simultaneous pronouncements were treated. However, whether that action was legally impermissible is a further question that requires examining the Qur'an, the hadith, and the jurists' interpretations.

1. Evidence supporting your concern

In Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1472a, ʿUmar رضي الله عنه is reported to have said:

“People have begun to hasten in a matter in which they were given time for deliberation; so if we were to enforce it upon them …”

The report says that he then enforced it upon them.

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This supports the historical conclusion that his policy differed from the earlier practice described by Ibn ʿAbbās.

2. Was it illegal under Islamic law?

There are two principal interpretations:

• The one-divorce interpretation: The Prophet's ﷺ practice is the governing rule, so three pronouncements in one sitting count as one. Under this interpretation, ʿUmar's enforcement is understood as a disciplinary or judicial measure, not a replacement of the Prophet's ﷺ rule.

• The three-divorce interpretation: The majority of classical Sunni jurists accepted three as legally effective. They understood ʿUmar's decision as a legitimate enforcement of the legal consequences of those pronouncements, rather than an unlawful alteration of revelation.

  

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3. The most careful conclusion

We can establish from the hadith that the practice changed. However, the hadith alone does not establish that ʿUmar committed an illegal act; that conclusion depends on which legal interpretation of the evidence is accepted.

If we follow the interpretation that three pronouncements counted as one under the Prophet ﷺ, then the earlier practice is the basis for arguing that the same rule should continue to apply.

The key question is whether ʿUmar was changing the underlying religious rule or imposing a stricter legal consequence to prevent people from treating divorce lightly. That is the central dispute among scholars.