The Kaffarah (expiation) for a broken oath includes feeding ten needy persons, is it permissible to feed one needy person now and another after a week and so on? There may not be ten needy persons available at the same time. If I feed one needy person ten times, will this be equivalent to feeding ten needy persons?
A: The ten needy persons should be sought, as feeding one person multiple times will not suffice. They must be ten persons as Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says in the Qur'an in Surah AlMa'idah:
Allâh will not punish you for what is unintentional in your oaths, but He will punish you for your deliberate oaths; for its expiation feed ten Masâkîn (poor persons), on a scale of the average of that with which you feed your own families, or clothe them or manumit a slave.
Therefore, you should seek to feed ten people even if it takes several days to find them. Moreover, you have to be keen to achieve the feeding as much as possible even if it took place in separate days. Additionally, you can provide them with clothes suitable for performing the Salah (prayer) in or provide them with a lunch or dinner meal. This will suffice as mentioned in the previous Ayah.