What are the valid excuses for abstaining from congregational prayer in the mosque?
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
Concessions (Rukhsah) are granted to abstain from congregational prayer in the mosque due to general excuses, such as: rain that causes hardship in going out, strong winds at night, heavy mud that cannot be traversed without the risk of soiling oneself, hot winds, and extreme heat or cold. There are also specific individual excuses, such as: illness that makes walking as difficult as walking in the rain, severe drowsiness, evident hunger or thirst, the suppression of bodily wastes (urine, stool, or gas), and fear for one's life, limb, physical faculty, wealth, or honor, among other valid excuses. And Allah the Exalted knows best.
Is fidyah required for someone who breaks their fast due to a valid excuse?
● If the excuse is permanent, such as a chronic illness with no hope of recovery or old age, then fidyah is required. This means feeding one needy person for each missed fasting day.
● However, if the excuse is temporary, such as menstruation, postnatal bleeding, or a temporary illness, then only making up the missed fasts (qada) is required, and fidyah does not apply.
What should a person do if they suffer from an incurable illness that prevents them from fasting?
A person who has an illness that is not expected to be cured and prevents them from fasting must feed a needy person one mudd (600 grams) of food (such as wheat or rice) for each missed day instead of fasting.
Allah Almighty says {what means}: "and [in such cases] it is incumbent upon those who can afford it to make sacrifice by feeding a needy person." [Al-Baqarah/184].
What is the ruling on deliberately breaking the fast while being capable of fasting?
Whoever intentionally breaks their fast in Ramadan without a valid excuse has committed a major sin and bears great guilt. They must repent, seek forgiveness, refrain from eating and drinking for the rest of the day, and make up for that day after Ramadan.
They have lost an immense reward, which cannot be compensated even by fasting an entire lifetime as a voluntary act, because an obligatory fast cannot be equaled by voluntary fasting.
If the fast was broken through sexual intercourse, the person must:
● Make up for the missed fast (qada), and
● Perform kaffarah by fasting two consecutive months.
● If they are unable to do so, they must feed sixty needy people.
