The Obligation
Fasting is one of the five pillars
of Islam. It is an act of obedience
and submission to Allah ’s
commands through the highest
degree of commitment, sincerity
and faithfulness to seek Allah ’s
mercy, to atone for sins, errors,
and mistakes and to avoid
condemnation to Hell.
It is done out of deep love for
God, with a genuine virtue of
devotion, honest dedication and
closeness to Allah, for Fasting is
for Allah and Him alone.
The fasting during Ramadan is
obligatory on every adult, sane,
and able Muslim.
Denial of the obligatory nature of
fasting in the month of Ramadan
amounts to disbelief.
One who avoids fasting without
genuine reasons is a sinner and
transgressor according to Islamic
Shariah (Law).
Time: When to fast
Fasting in Islam involves
abstinence from three primal
physical needs of human beings-
food, drink, and sexual
intercourse from dawn
(approximately one and a half
hours before sunrise) to sunset
during the entire month of
Ramadan.
Who is exempted from fasting
1. Children under the age of
puberty and discretion;
2. The insane people who are
unaccountable for their deeds.
People of these two categories
are exempted from the duty of
fasting and no compensation or
any other substitute is enjoined
on them;
3. Men and women who are too
old and feeble to undertake the
obligation of fasting and bear its
hardships. Such people are
exempted from this duty, but
they must offer at least one
needy poor Muslim an average
full meal or its value per person
day.
4. Sick people whose health is
likely to be severely affected by
fasting. They may postpone the
fast, as long as they are sick, to a
later date and makeup for it, a
day for a day;
5. People expecting hardship.
Such people may break the fast
temporarily during their travel
only and make up for it in later
days, a day for a day. But it is
better for them, the Quran says,
to keep the fast if they can
without causing extraordinary
hardships;
6. Expectant women and women
nursing their children may also
break the fast, if its observance is
likely to endanger their own
health or that of their infants.
But they must make up for the
fast at a delayed time, a day for a
day;
7. Women in periods of
menstruation (of a maximum of
ten days). They must postpone
the fast till recovery and then
make up for it, a day for day.
Reference from Hadith and
Quran:
It is not allowed for the woman
who has just had a baby and is
impure from that nor the woman
during her monthly period to
fast until they become clean
from that and then they are
obliged to make up the fasts
they missed.
The duty of fasting is not
compulsory for those who are
not mature. Ibn Abbas narrated,
“ Whoever becomes old and is not
able to fast in Ramadan should
donate for every day missed one
mudd (which is 544 grams) of
grain. ” Ibn Umar said “If I
become too weak to fast I feed
(someone) one mudd for every
day missed. ” Anas narrated that
he became weak one year before
he died so he gave away one
mudd every day.
If someone is not able to fast
because he is sick and it can lead
him to more sickness from which
he cannot not recover, at that
time he is allowed to miss his
fast because that is a hardship.
“He has chosen you and has not
laid upon you in the deen any
hardship. ” (22:78)
When he has recovered he is
obliged to make up for those
days missed
“And if any of you is ill or has an
ailment in his scalp (he should) in
compensation either fast or feed
the poor, or offer sacr-
ifice. ” (2:196)
“But if any of you is ill, or on a
journey, the prescribed number
(should be made up) from days
later. For those who can do it
(with hardship), is ransom the
feeding of one that is
indigent. ” (2:184)
The How To’s of Fasting
Niyyah or Intention of Fast
To observe the fast, the intention
of fasting is essential (Wajib).
The intention should be made
daily, preferably before dawn of
each day of fasting (in
Ramadan).
Provision is made if someone has
forgotten to express his
intention before dawn. In such a
case one is allowed to express
intention of fasting before noon
to avoid the invalidation of the
fast.
The wording of Niyyah may be as
follows:
“ I intend to observe fast for
today.”
Suhoor
Suhoor is a light, predawn meal,
recommended before actually
fasting. It is a blessing and hence
recommended but not essential.
Any consumption of food or
drink should cease at least five to
ten minutes before the onset of
dawn.
Iftar
Iftar is an Arabic term meaning
breaking the fast immediately
after the sunset. Iftar is a light
snack consisting of dates or
desserts, along with liquids, such
as water, juice or milk.
This is eaten after making the
following Dua (supplication) for
breaking the fast:
“ Oh Allah! I fasted for your sake
and I am breaking my fast from
the sustenance You blessed me
with, accept it from me. ”
What breaks the fast
1. Intentional consumption of
food, drink, medicine, or
smoking during the fasting.
2. Any injection which has some
nutritional value.
3. Beginning of menstruation or
post natal birth bleeding (even in
the last moment of sunset).
The conditions mentioned above
invalidate fasting and require
“ Qada” (making up only the
missed day or days). However,
intentional intercourse during
the hours of fasting invalidates
fasting and not only requires
“ Qada” but also additional
penalty (Kaffara-see the
explanation of this below).
Reference from Hadiths:
• If anyone vomits deliberately
then his fast is broken because it
is narrated by Abu Hurairah that
Muhammad (Pbuh) said,
“Whoever vomits deliberately
has to make up for fast. And
whoever vomits naturally does
not have to make it up. ” The
scholars understood from this
hadith that whoever vomits
intentionally should make up one
day but whoever did so
involuntarily should continue his
fast so long as he did not
swallow back any of the vomit.
• If anyone eats intentionally,
forgetting it is a day of Ramadan,
he need not make up his day nor
need he pay atonement
(Kaffara). (This is the opinion of
the Hanbali and Shafi schools. For
the Maliki and Hanafi schools,
whoever eats intentionally
during Ramadan should make up
the fast and pay kaffara). Abu
Hurairah narrated that
Muhammad (Pbuh) said,
“Whoever forgets and eats
during the month of Ramadan,
he does neither need to make up
his fast nor is he required to pay
kaffarah (atonement). ”
• (This is the opinion of the
Hanbali and Shafi’i schools.)
Whoever eats intentionally
during Ramadan should make up
the fast and pay kaffara). Bukhari
also recorded “Whoever forgets
any fast and eats or drinks
should continue his fast because
Allah is the one who feeds him. ”
If a fasting man eats or did
intercourse and thinks the dawn
has not risen or he thinks the
sunset is upon him when it was
not, his fasting would not be
counted and he would have to
make it up.
What does not break the fast
1. Eating or drinking by mistake,
unmindful of the fast.
2. Unintentional vomiting.
3. Swallowing things which are
not possible to avoid, such as
one ’s own saliva, street dust,
smoke, etc.
4. Brushing the teeth.
5. Bathing: if water is swallowed
unintentionally, it does not
invalidate the fast. However,
while fasting gargling should be
avoided.
6. Injection or I/V (Intravenous)
which is solely medicinal and not
nutritional.
7. In some special circumstances
if the food or drink is just tasted
and immediately removed out of
the mouth without allowing it to
enter into the throat.
Kaffara
During the fasting period, if one
deliberately breaks his or her
fast, s/he must free one slave, or
fast for sixty continuous days, or
feed sixty needy persons, or
spend in charity an amount equal
to feeding sixty persons.
If one chooses to fast sixty days
and the continuity is interrupted
for any reason, except
menstruation, one has to start
the sixty day cycle all over again.
Breaking of the fast under
exceptional conditions
Muslims are permitted to break
their fast of Ramadan when
there is a danger to their health.
In this situation a Muslim should
make up his/her fast later. The
missed fast(s) can be made up at
any other time of the year, either
continuously or intermittently,
except on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr
and the day of Eid-ul-Adha
Tarawih
These are special Sunnah prayers
in the month of Ramadan. They
follow the Isha prayers. A
minimum of eight and a
maximum of twenty Rakat are
offered in pairs of two.
Lailat al-Qadr
Amongst the nights of Ramadan,
there is one special night of
Power (Qadr) which is
highlighted in Surah al-Qadr
(Surah 97 in the Quran).
It has the significance of being
better than a thousand months
(Quran 97:3).
This was the night when Quran
was revealed to mankind.
Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him)
recommended Muslims search
for this night of Power (Qadr) in
the odd nights of the last ten
nights in Ramadan.
One should spend the night in
Ibadah (worship), asking
forgiveness of their sins and
reciting the Quran
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