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Summarized Fatwas on Fasting (Siyyam)



Iftaa' Department


Summarized Fatwas on Fasting (Siyyam)

 

Question: Is the Saum (Fasting) of someone who ate and drank forgetfully while offering fasting of oath expiation invalidated?
Answer: Whosoever eats, or drinks forgetfully is exempted by Allah; therefore, he/she shouldn`t break their fast whether it was obligatory, non-obligatory, or expiatory.

Question: What is the ruling on having slight discharges of menstrual blood during a day of Ramadan, and before Maghreb time?
Answer: A woman who is certain that her menses have started during a daytime of Ramadan is in a state of menstruation, and her fasting is considered broken at first sight of blood. However, she is rewarded for not breaking fast at the beginning of daytime.

Question: What should a woman, who has given several births during different  months of Ramadan, and didn`t make up for them in addition to forgetting the exact number of the days and years  in which she  had missed fasting, do?
Answer: She should make up the days of Ramadan that she missed after estimating their number, and paying the ransom (in food) due on each day that she had delayed. She should also repay the ransom according to the number of years if she was able to fast before that time, but didn`t.

Question: Is it permissible for a woman who broke fasting due to delivery to pay a ransom?
Answer: She should make up for the missed fasting days once she becomes ritually pure, but it is impermissible for her to pay a ransom while being able to fast.

Question: Is it permissible for a person who broke fasting in Ramadan because of being sick to pay a ransom?
Answer: If there is hope for him/her to be cured, then he would be required to make up for the missed fasting days when he/she recovers, and no ransom is due on him/her. If his/her disease is incurable, then he/she would be required to pay a ransom for each missed fasting day, which is (600) grams of wheat, or rice.
Question: Should a woman who broke her fast because of delivery make up for missed fasting days before the next Ramadan, and what is the expiation due on her in case she delayed making up for them?
Answer: She should make up for missed fasting days before the start of next Ramadan if possible, but  if she didn`t while being able to, then she is obliged to make up for them along with feeding a needy person for each delayed day of the missed fasting days. However, if she wasn`t able to make up for the missed fasting days before the start of next Ramadan, she has to fast a day for every day that she missed, and no ransom is due on her.

Question: What should one who made an intention, at night, to make up for a missed fasting day, but broke his fast on the next day?
Answer: One who started making up a missed fasting day, then broke his/her fast without a legitimate reason is considered sinful, and is only  obliged to make up for the missed fasting days.

Question: Should a pregnant woman who broke fast because of pregnancy make it up, and is a ransom due on her?
Answer: The pregnant and the suckling, if they fear for their health, may break their fast and make up for it, and no ransom is due on them. However, if they broke fast in fear for the fetus and the baby, then they are obliged to make up for it, and pay the ransom that is feeding a needy person for each of the missed fasting days.


Question: What should a sick person, who is incapable of fasting, and who didn`t make up for missed fasting days, do?
Answer: One who has missed fasting days is obliged to make up for them, but if he/she wasn`t able to because of an incurable disease, or old age, then he/she has to pay a ransom which is feeding a needy person for each of the missed fasting days.

Question: Is it permissible to fast on behalf of the dead who died owing missed fast to make up?
Answer: His relative should fast on his behalf, and it is permissible for the guardians to give permission to non-relatives of the dead to fast on his behalf as well.

Question: What should a person, who delayed making up missed fasts of last Ramadan due to the continuance of the same excuse, do?
Answer: It is permissible for one, whose excuse for not making up missed fasts of last Ramadan has continued, to delay fasting until the excuse ceases to exist, and he is considered neither sinful, nor obligated to pay a ransom.

Question: Is it permissible for a person who has to make up for missed fasts to fast six days of Shawal (the month directly after Ramadan) before making up for the missed fasts?
Answer: Yes, it is permissible for him/her to do so, but it is better that they make up for missed fasts first.

Question: Is it permissible for me to make up for my late father`s missed fasts, and should I make an intention to this end by saying: “I intend to make up for my late father`s missed fasts.”
Answer: It is permissible to fast on behalf of the deceased father in order to make up for his missed fasts, and you should make the intention for offering fast from night time, but uttering the intention isn`t a condition.

Question: Is it permissible to make up for the missed fasts of the deceased?
Answer:  A deceased`s missed fasts should be made up for by his/her guardian. It is also permissible to make up for the missed fasts of a deceased relative, and to pay a ransom in expiation for the latter`s missed fasts, which is feeding a needy person for every missed day. However, the guardian`s permission need to be sought by the non-relatives of the dead to fast on his behalf.

Question: What is the expiation for breaking fast due to being on a journey, or being sick, or being in a state of menstruation?
Answer: No expiation is due on the previously mentioned categories, but they are obliged to make up for the missed fast. However, if any of them failed to do so while being able to, and the next Ramadan has come, then making up for those days is incumbent on him/her, and paying the ransom as well.

Question: Is it permissible to make up for missed fast after the beginning of the second half of the month of Sha`ban (the month before Ramadan)?
Answer: Yes, it is permissible, but one who had missed fasts should hasten to make up for them. As for the Hadith mentioned in this regard, the prohibition is for offering  absolute voluntary fasting.

Question: What should a woman who delayed making up for missed fast, due to menstruation, until the start of the next Ramadan?
Answer: Whosoever broke fasting in Ramadan, and was able to make up for it, but didn`t until the next Ramadan started, is obliged to make up for the missed days, and to pay the ransom as well. However, if he/she wasn`t able to before next Ramadan due to an excuse, then he/she should only make up for the missed days.

Question: What is the ruling on a person who isn`t able to fast due to old age, or an incurable disease?
Answer: Paying the ransom is due on such a person, and that is giving a Mod (600 grams) of wheat, or rice, or the price of that amount to a needy Muslim for each missed fasting day.

Question: What is the ruling on a person who broke the fast of one day in Ramadan because of hardship?
Answer: He/she should make up for that day.

Question: Is it permissible to single out Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays to make up for missed fasting without fasting a day before, or after each?
Answer: Yes, it is permissible to make up for missed fasting during the previously mentioned days, and it is valid to offer non-obligatory and vowed fasting as well. However, fasting a day before or after each isn`t obligatory.


Question: Is it permissible to delay menses by using medication in order to fast Ramadan?
Answer: It is permissible for a woman to use medication in order to delay her menses so that it becomes lawful for her to fast Ramadan, but it is better that she doesn`t do so, and taking the medication is prohibited if she, or her doctors know that it involves a risk on her health.

Question: Are minors (persons under the age of puberty) obliged to fast?
Answer: A male under the age of puberty isn`t required to fast, but his guardian should order him to fast if he was able to endure the hardship until he gets used to it.

Question: Who is required to fast?
Answer: Any adult, sane, and hardship enduring Muslim person is required to fast unless there were prohibiting conditions such as menstruation and confinement.

Question: What should a woman who is in a state of menstruation, or confinement do if she became ritually pure during the day of Ramadan?
Answer: If she became pure during the daytime of Ramadan, it is desirable for her to fast the rest of that day, and to make up for it along with the days that she had missed due to menstruation.

Question: Is it permissible for a woman who is in her confinement to fast upon seeing blood signs that are neither black, nor red?
Answer: Brownish, reddish, and yellowish discharges are all considered confinement until there is no colored discharge, which marks the end of confinement. Moreover, the previously mentioned woman is prohibited from fasting until she attains ritual purity.

Question: A woman used contraceptive pills, and her menses exceeded (15) days, is it permissible for her to fast?
Answer: The maximum of menstrual blood is (15) days, but if it exceeded that due to a medication, or the like, then it is Istihadah (bleeding outside the monthly period), and in this case she should perform Ghusl (ritual bath), pray, and fast. Moreover, she is obliged to make up for the missed fasting days, which exceeded her regular menses.

Question: What is the ruling on making up for missed fasting after the second half of Sha`ban (the month before Ramadan)?
Answer: One is obliged to make up for missed fasting before the start of next Ramadan, and regardless of offering it during the first, or the second half of Shab`an. This is because the prohibition mentioned in the Hadith is for offering absolute voluntary fasting in the second half of Sha`ban.

 

 

Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on compensating the patient in case of medical error on the part of the treating physician?

 
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
The foundational principle is that every mistake issued by a physician that causes harm to another due to his negligence or lack of expertise obligates him to guarantee liability and compensate the harmed party. The Sharia maxim, in this regard, states: "The direct actor is liable."
 
Ibn Qudamah (may Allah have mercy on him) says: "As for if he was skilled but his hand committed an error—such as exceeding the proper limit of incision, cutting in an incorrect site, cutting with an instrument that inflicts excessive pain, or cutting at an unsuitable time—he is liable, because it is destruction (Itlaf) whose liability does not differ between intent and mistake, thus resembling the destruction of property; and because it is a prohibited act, so he guarantees liability for its secondary effects." [Al-Mughni].
 
However, if the physician performed what was necessary in the most complete manner and took all measures of care and caution, but complications occurred that could not be avoided according to specialists, then no liability rests upon him.
 
Shaykh al-Islam Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) says: "The cupper and the circumciser bear no liability if they have not been negligent, and likewise the veterinarian if he bleeds an animal and it perishes." [Rawdat al-Talibin].
 
Al-Khattabi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "I know of no disagreement that if the practitioner transgresses and the patient perishes, he is liable. Anyone who undertakes knowledge or practice he does not know is a transgressor; so if perishing arises from his action, he is liable for the blood-money (Diyah) while capital retaliation (Qisas) is dropped from him, because he did not act independently without the patient's permission. And the physician’s offense in the view of the generality of jurists is borne by his agnates ('Aqilah*)."* [Ma'alim al-Sunan].
 
If negligence or transgression is established against the physician, it is necessary to compensate the patient or seek forgiveness from him. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on giving Zakah (obligatory charity) to one`s relatives?

It is impermissible to pay Zakah to one`s origins (parents and grandparents) because providing for them is an obligation on their branches (sons and daughters) if they were poor, but it is permissible to give some of the Zakah money to relatives whose provision isn`t due on the giver of the Zakah.

What is considered a woman`s Awrah (parts of the body that must be concealed during prayer) while offering prayer, and is her foot part of it?

A woman`s whole body is considered an Awrah while offering prayer except the hands and the face. Thus, her foot is an Awrah as well. And Allah Knows Best.

I bought an apartment, and I am saving money to pay the remaining balance of its price — is zakāh obligatory on this money?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Zakāh is obligatory on all saved/hoarded wealth. Once the total wealth reaches the niṣāb (minimum threshold liable for zakah— equivalent to the value of 85 grams of pure 24-karat gold) and a full ḥawl (lunar year) has elapsed over it, zakāh becomes obligatory at a rate of (2.5%) — even if the wealth is earmarked for basic future needs, and even if the wealth's owner is in debt. Debt does not prevent the obligation of zakāh, nor is it deducted when calculating the zakāh due, based on the general and unrestricted wording of all the Qur'anic verses commanding zakāh, which draw no distinction between someone in debt and anyone else.
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik, from the books of the Shāfi‘ī school: "If someone possesses exactly the niṣāb, and owes an equivalent amount in debt, zakāh remains obligatory on what is in his possession, and the debt does not prevent this obligation" — meaning, the obligation of zakāh on what is presently in his possession.
The ḥawl (annual cycle) recognized for zakāh, as well as for the other sharī‘ah obligations that Allah, the Exalted, has imposed upon Muslims, is the Hijrī (lunar) year. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

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