Darda reported from the Prophet ﷺ that Allah granted His Messenger some camels as spoils, which he distributed.Abu Musa said, "Messenger of Allah, give me a mount."He replied, "No." Abu Musa repeated his request three times.The Prophet ﷺ then said, "By Allah, I will not do it."Then four camels with white humps were brought, and he said, "Abu Musa, take them."Abu Musa said, "Messenger of Allah, I asked you for a mount and you refused, and you swore an oath. I feared that some displeasure had entered the Messenger of Allah ﷺ against me."He answered, "When I swear an oath and then see that something else is better, I make expiation for my oath and do what is better."
الدرداء، عن النبي ﷺ قال: أفاء الله على رسوله إبلا. ففرقها. فقال أبو موسى: يا رسول الله احملني. فقال: لا فقاله ثلاثا. فقال النبي ﷺ: والله لا أفعل وبقي أربع غر الذرى. فقال: يا أبا موسى خذهن فقال: يا رسول الله إني استحملتك فمنعتني وحلفت. فأشفقت أن يكون دخل على رسول الله ﷺ وهم. فقال: إني إذا حلفت فرأيت أن غير ذلك أفضل كفرت عن يميني، وأتيت الذي هو خير.
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Abu Awana narrated it (4/40) from Abu Umaya and Saghani, who both said, Hakam bin Musa narrated to us, Haytham bin Humayd narrated to us, from Zayd bin Waqid, from Busr bin Ubaydullah, from Ibn Aaidh, from Abu Darda, and he related it. Its chain is sahih.Ibn Aaidh is Abdul-Rahman bin Aaidh Shimali Kindi Himsi.This hadith is among those Daraqutni recorded in al-Afrad, as mentioned in Atraf al-Gharaib wal-Afrad (2/198), where he said, It is gharib as a hadith of Abdul-Rahman bin Aaidh from Abu Darda. Zayd bin Waqid narrated it alone from Busr bin Ubaydullah, and no one narrated from him except Haytham bin Humayd.I say, all of these narrators are trustworthy.Abu Awana said, Saghani, this one is not from Sham.Most of the scholars among the Prophet's ﷺ companions and others held that it is permissible to give the expiation before breaking the oath. Among them were Ayesha and Ibn Umar, and this was also the view of Malik, Shafii, Ahmad, and Ishaq. Except that Shafii said, If one expiates by fasting before breaking the oath, it is not permissible. Rather, it is only permissible to bring forward manumission, feeding, or clothing, just as it is permissible to pay zakat before the year is complete, but it is not permissible to hasten the fast of Ramadan before its time.As for what is narrated from Abu Saeed Khudri, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Whoever swears an oath and then sees something better than it, its expiation is to abandon it," this is munkar.Ahmad narrated it (11727) from Hasan, Ibn Lahia narrated to us, Darraj narrated to us, from Abu Haytham, from Abu Saeed Khudri, and he related it. Its chain is daif because of Ibn Lahia and his teacher Darraj, who is Ibn Saman Abu Samh, and moreover it contradicts the sahih hadiths on this subject which require the expiation from one who breaks his oath.