Obligation of fasting
Allah, the Most High, says…
“O you who have faith! Fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you – so that hopefully you will have taqwa.”
al-Qur’ān, 2:183
…meaning that hopefully you can safeguard yourselves from the Fire through fasting; fasting is a means to the forgiveness of sins, and sins lead one to the Fire.
The Two Sahīhs record the hadīth in which the Prophet (ﷺ) said,
“Islam is built upon five: that you worship Allah and reject the worship of anything else, to establish the prayer, the giving of zakat, performing pilgrimage to the House, and fasting the month of Ramadan.”
This is a wording of Muslim; Bukhārī has the first sentence as “That you testify that none has the right to be worshipped, save Allah”.
Virtues of fasting
Fasting carries with it a number of benefits, amongst which are:
- the elevation of one’s rank;
- the expiation of sins;
- the breaking of one’s desires and lusts;
- the increase of charity;
- the multiplication of actions of obedience to Allah;
- giving thanks to the One who knows the hidden matters;
- and preventing oneself from even contemplating the committing of sin.
Elevation of rank
With regards to the elevation of rank, the Messenger (ﷺ) said,
“When Ramadan comes, the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hellfire are locked, and the devils are chained.”
Bukhārī
He (ﷺ) also said, relating from His Lord, Mighty and Magnificent,
“All of the actions of the son of Ādam are for him, except the fast, for that is for Me and I will reward it. Fasting is a protecting shield, so when it is the day when one of you are fasting, let him not behave or speak indecently; if someone tries to abuse or fight him, let him say, ‘I am fasting’.
“By the One in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, the smell emanating from the mouth of the one fasting is better to Allah than the smell of musk. The one fasting has two times of joy: when he breaks his fast, he is happy; and when He meets his Lord, he will rejoice at his fasting.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
He (ﷺ) also said,
“Every action that the son of Ādam does [its reward] will be multiplied, a good deed will be increased tenfold up to seven-hundred fold.
“Allah, Mighty and Magnificent, says,
‘Except for the fast, for that is for Me and I will reward it because he left his desires and food for My sake.'”
Muslim
He (ﷺ) said,
“In Paradise, there is a gate which is called al-Rayyān, through which the people who fasted will enter on the Day of Judgment, and no-one else shall enter alongside them. It will be asked, ‘Where are those who fasted?’ and they will walk through it, and upon the entry of the last of them, it will be locked, and no-one else will walk through it.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
In another version, the wording is,
“There is a gate in Paradise called al-Rayyān, those who fasted will be summoned to it, and whoever fasted will enter through it, and whoever enters it will never again experience thirst.”
Tirmidhī and Nasāʾī
He (ﷺ) said,
“When people eat in the presence of a fasting person, the angels invoke blessings upon him, until they finish.”
Aḥmad and Tirmidhī
- With regards the “opening of the gates of Paradise”, this is a phrase that points to the increase of actions of obedience that in turn lead to the opening of the gates of Paradise.
- “Locking the gates of the Fire” is a phrase that points to the decrease, and lack of sins, which in turn leads to the locking of the gates of the Fire.
- “The chaining of the devils” is a phrase that points to the termination of their whisperings and temptations to those who are fasting, because they give up hope of receiving a favourable response.
- His saying, “All of the actions of the son of Ādam are for him, except the fast, for that is for Me and I will reward it,” fasting has been specifically adjoined to Him in order to honour it, because the hidden nature of fasting prevents ostentation entering it. And moreover, hunger and thirst are not used as means to draw closer to any king of this world nor any idol.
- His saying, “…and I will reward it,” even though He rewards all actions of obedience, this phrase points to the greatness of the reward of fasting.
- His saying, “…fasting is a protecting shield” means that fasting serves as a barrier erected between the person and the punishment of Allah.
- His saying, “…let him say, ‘I am fasting’,” means let him remind himself that he is fasting so that this would serve to prevent him from repaying like with like.
- His saying, “…the smell emanating from the mouth of the one fasting is better to Allah than the smell of musk,” means that the reward for the smell emanating from the mouth of the fasting person is better to Allah than the smell of musk.
^ [This explanation is a point of some difference and was the cause of a famous debate between Ibn al-Salāḥ and the author, may Allah have mercy upon both.]
As for the two times of joy, the first is because the one fasting has been granted the divine accord to complete this act of worship, and the second is because of the reward he will attain when Allah rewards him.
His saying, “…he left his desires and food for My sake” means that he chose the obedience of his Lord over the obedience of the call of his soul. Whoever chooses Allah, Allah chooses him. This is why, when someone desires to commit a sin, then leaves committing it for fear of Allah, He says to the recording angels,
“Record it as a good deed, for he only left giving in to his lusts for My sake.”
With regards their being specified to enter Paradise through the gate of al-Rayyān, this specification is because of the greatness of this act of fasting and its unique character.
With regards the angels invoking blessings upon the one fasting, in whose presence food is eaten, this is because on such an occasion he has to exert himself more in fighting his desire to eat. Their invoking blessings upon him is a phrase denoting their asking for his forgiveness and mercy to be bestowed upon him.
Expiation of sins
With regards the expiation of sins, the Messenger (ﷺ) said,
“One Ramadan to the next serves as an expiation for what is done between them, so long as the major sins are avoided.”
Muslim
He (ﷺ) also said,
“Whoever fast the month of Ramadan, out of faith and expectant of reward, his previous sins will be forgiven for him.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
Breaking of one’s desires & lusts
Hunger and thirst break the desire to commit sin, it is authentically reported from him (ﷺ) that he said,
“O gathering of youth! Whoever can afford it, let him marry, for this is better in aiding one to lower his gaze and preserving the private parts. Whoever is not able, let him fast, for this will diminish his desire.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
It is mentioned in a hadīth,
“Satan flows through the son of Ādam as does his blood,” so constrain the passages of Satan through hunger.
Bukhārī and Muslim. The last sentence is the statement of one of the narrators of the hadīth mistakenly added into the main text.
Increase of charity
When the one fasting feels the pangs of hunger, he takes this as a reminder to feed others who are hungry, “for the only one who feels compassion towards the lovers is one who has loved”.
It has reached us that Suleymān or Yūsuf (‘alayhum al-Salam) would not eat until all his dependants had first eaten. And when asked why this was so, he said,
“I fear that I would become full, and so forget the hungry.”
Increase of actions of obedience
The one fasting will be reminded of the hunger and thirst that the denizens of Hell will experience.
And this will encourage him to obey Allah, so as to be saved from that fate.
Giving thanks to the One who knows the hidden matters
The one fasting comes to truly appreciate the favours of Allah.
It is only through knowing hunger and thirst, that one truly appreciates satiation and the quenching of that thirst; it is only when blessings are absent, that one appreciates them more.
Preventing oneself from contemplating sin
When one is full, the soul craves sin and looks longingly at all sorts of transgression, but when one is hungry, the soul craves food and drink, and this is the better of the two without doubt.
It is for this reason that one of the Salaf thought fasting to be the best of all actions of worship and when asked why, one of them replied,
“That Allah looks at me in a state where my soul is fighting me for food and drink is more beloved to me than Allah looking at me in a state where my soul is full and fighting me for sin.”
Fasting has many more benefits, such as refining the mind and strengthening the body.
It is mentioned in a hadīth,
“Fast, for you will become healthy.”
al-Ṭabarānī with a ḍaʿīf isnād
From the greatness of fasting is that whoever feeds a fasting person has the same reward as the one who fasted.
He (ﷺ) said,
“Whoever provides food for a person to open the fast, he will have the likes of his reward, without the reward of the fasting person decreasing in the slightest.”
Aḥmad and Tirmidhī
So, whoever provides food for thirty-six fasting people in one year, it will be as if he fasted for the whole year. And whoever provides food for many fasting people with this intention, Allah will record for him the fasting of many years [because a good deed is multiplied ten-fold].
Mannerisms of fasting
They are six:
1 | Restraining the tongue & limbs from all that opposes the Divine Law (Shariah)
He (ﷺ) said,
“Whoever does not leave false speech and acting upon it, Allah has no need of his leaving food and drink.”
Bukhārī
He (ﷺ) also said,
“It is possible that one standing [in prayer] only attains weariness from his standing, and the one fasting only attains hunger and thirst from his fasting.”
Aḥmad, al-ʿIrāqī said the isnād was hasan.
2 | If one is invited to eat while fasting, let him say, ‘I am fasting’
The Messenger (ﷺ) said,
“If one of you is invited to eat while fasting, let him say, ‘I am fasting’.”
Muslim
3 | What should be said when one breaks the fast
He (ﷺ) used to say upon breaking fast,
ذَهَبَ الظَّمَأُ وَابْتَلَّتْ الْعُرُوقُ وَثَبَتَ الْأَجْرُ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ
“The thirst has gone, the veins are moistened, and the reward is certain, if Allah wills.”
Abū Dāwūd and Dāruquṭnī said its isnād was hasan.
It is also reported that he (ﷺ) said,
“O Allah! It is for you that I have fasted, and it is with your provision that I have broken the fast.”
Abū Dāwūd with a ḍaʿīf isnād. However, A. al-Arnaʿūṭ, in Jamiʿ al-Usūl, said that it has witnesses that strengthen it.
In another hadīth, it is reported that he (ﷺ) said,
“All praise and thanks are due to Allah, who gave me the strength to fast and who gave me the provisions with which to break fast.”
Bayhaqī with a ḍaʿīf isnād, but it has witnesses that strengthen it.
4 | What the fast should be broken with
The fast should be broken with fresh dates, or slightly older, drier dates, or water.
It is reported that he (ﷺ) would break fast with:
“Fresh dates before praying; and if not, then with older, drier dates; and if not with dates, then with some mouthfuls of water.”
Abū Dawūd with a ḥasan isnād
He (ﷺ) said,
“If one of you is fasting, then let him break fast with dates. If he does not find any, then with water, for it is pure and purifying.”
Abū Dāwūd with a ṣaḥīḥ isnād
5 & 6 | Hastening iftar (breaking fast) and delaying suḥūr (pre-dawn meal)
The Messenger (ﷺ) said,
“Take the meal of suḥūr, for indeed, in the suḥūr lies blessings.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
He (ﷺ) said,
“The people will not cease to be upon good, so long as they hasten in breaking the fast.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
He (ﷺ) said,
“Allah, Mighty and Magnificent, says,
‘The most beloved of My servants are those who are quickest in breaking the fast’.”
Aḥmad with a ḍaʿīf isnād, but it has witnesses that strengthen it, cf. al-Arnaʿūṭ, Jamiʿ al-Usūl
He (ﷺ) said,
“This religion will remain good and pure, so long as the people hasten in breaking the fast, for the Jews and Christians would delay it.”
Abū Dāwūd with a ṣaḥīḥ isnād
ʿAmr ibn Maymūn said,
“The Companions of the Messenger (ﷺ) would be the quickest of people in breaking the fast, and the slowest of them in taking the pre-dawn meal.”
Bayhaqī
The suhūr is delayed so as to strengthen one more while he is fasting, and so that he can perform more actions of obedience.
The gap between the Messenger (ﷺ) taking the suḥūr and his prayer would be an interval allowing fifty verses of the Qurʾān to be recited.
Bukhārī and Muslim
The ifṭār was hastened because it is possible that some physical harm may arise from hunger and thirst. Hence, there is no need to put the soul through such difficulty in a time [after the time of breaking fast] in which hunger and thirst is no longer an action that would draw one closer to Allah.
One of the wealthier people amongst the Salaf was seen eating in the marketplace, and when asked why, he replied [by quoting the ḥadīth],
“The delay of the rich is oppression.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
What should be avoided while fasting
1 | Continuous fasting
Abū Hurayrah (radiy Allāhu ‘anhu) said,
“The Messenger (ﷺ) prohibited continuous fasting, whereupon one of the Muslims asked him, ‘But you do it, O Messenger of Allah!’ He replied, ‘Who amongst you is like me? I spend the night with my Lord, He gives me food and drink.’ But when the people persisted in fasting continuously, he fasted continuously with them for a day, followed by another, until they saw the new moon. Upon which, he said, ‘If the moon had delayed in appearing, I would have made you fast more.’ This was a punishment for them, because they refused to stop continuously fasting.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
Continuous fasting was prohibited, because it weakens the person and emaciates his body by reason of something other than worship.
As for the Messenger (ﷺ), then if it is literally true that his food and drink was with his Lord, he cannot be said to have fasted continuously; but if “food and drink” is a phrase used to denote the strength of his closeness and communion (uns) with his Lord, and the joy he felt at this closeness, then this takes the place of food and drink in revitalising his strength.
Indeed, this uns is better than food and drink in this respect.
“Indeed, I fasted from worldly pleasures my entire life // And the Day that I meet You will be its breaking // For surely, I find the delight of fasting for You within my soul // And not in the satisfaction of eating or drinking.”
2 | Kissing
ʿĀʾishah (radiy Allāhu ‘anha) said,
“The Messenger (ﷺ) would kiss and embrace while fasting, but he was more able than you in restraining his desires.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
Therefore, whoever is old, able to control his desires, and hence not ruin his fast, there is no harm in his kissing.
If one is young and not sure that he can control his desires, it is disliked for him to kiss, due to his subjecting his action of worship to the danger of something that could break it.
3 | Cupping
It is authentically reported that the Messenger (ﷺ) was cupped while fasting.
Bukhārī
Anas (radiy Allāhu ‘anhu) was asked, “Did you consider cupping to be disliked for the one fasting?” He replied, “No, [we only considered it disliked] if it caused weakness”.
Bukhārī
Hence, whoever is physically weakened by cupping, it is disliked for him to do so, because in his weakened state he is more likely to break fast or find the action of fasting extremely difficult for him and therefore become averse to it.
4 | Applying Kohl
Anas (radiy Allāhu ‘anhu) would apply Kohl while fasting.
Abū Dāwūd and Ibn Ḥajr said the isnād had no fault.
al-Aʿmash said,
“I never saw any of our Companions disliking the application of Kohl for the one fasting. Ibrāhīm [al-Nakhaʿī] would allow the one fasting to apply aloe to his eyes.”
Abū Dawūd
Having said this, it is safer not to apply it, so as to steer clear of the difference that the scholars have concerning this issue.
5 | Snuffing the nose during ablution
The Messenger (ﷺ) said to Laqīt ibn Sabrah,
“Perform the ablution well, wipe between the fingers, and exert yourself in snuffing the nose, unless you are fasting.”
Abū Dawūd
So, he prohibited from exertion when snuffing the nose while fasting, the reason for this is that through exertion one puts his fast at risk [because the water could reach the back of the throat].
Allah knows best.
^ [Actions which nullify the fast are eating and drinking deliberately; making oneself vomit; menstruation; post-natal bleeding; and sexual intercourse.]
Laylat ul-Qadr
Laylat ul-Qadr is a blessed night, Allah blessed it over one thousand months that do not contain it.
It is called Laylat ul-Qadr, either because of its excellence and great status, or because provisions and life-spans for the following year are decreed therein. The angels and the spirit descend in that night and greet those who pray by night with the salām; the scholars differ as to whether they extend the salām to them of their own accord, or if they convey the salām of their Lord.
A night in which the Lord of the worlds sends salām to His servants is a night that is indeed worthy of being better than a thousand months; it is a night worthy of being sought after and searched for. This is why the Messenger (ﷺ) would search for it, along with his Companions and the righteous who came after them.
This night occurs in the last ten days of Ramadan, and is most likely to occur in the odd nights, rather than the even nights. It seems clear that it occurs on the 21st night; this is because the Messenger (ﷺ) of Allah saw this night in a dream but was made to forget it. However, he remembered that in the morning following it, he would prostrate in mud and water. It is authentically reported that it rained on the night of the 21st and the Masjid leaked water, [when the Prophet (ﷺ)] prayed therein, traces of mud and water were seen on his forehead and nose. [Bukhārī]
Moreover he (ﷺ) informed us that on the night of Laylat ul-Qadr, the moon would look like half a plate, and the moon never looks like this unless it be in its 7th night or 21st night.
^ [Translation: this is the opinion of the author, may Allah have mercy upon him; other opinions have been mentioned, such as the opinion that Laylat ul-Qadr falls on different nights every year, an opinion that was preferred by a group of scholars, amongst whom was ibn Ḥajr.]
From the excellent qualities of this night is that whoever prays during it out of faith and seeking reward, will have his previous sins forgiven him.
The evidence for what we have mentioned lies in the his sayings (ﷺ),
“I was shown Laylat ul-Qadr, then one of my wives awoke me and I was made to forget it, so search for it in the last ten nights.”
Muslim
“Seek Laylat ul-Qadr in the odd nights of the last ten nights of Ramadan.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
Abū Hurayrah (radiy Allāhu ‘anhu) said,
“We were discussing Laylat ul-Qadr in the presence of the Messenger (ﷺ), and he said,
‘Which of you remembers the night when the moon arose and it was like half a plate?’”
Muslim
“Whoever prays the night of Laylat ul-Qadr, out of faith and seeking reward, will have his previous sins forgiven.”
Bukhārī
It is recommended for whoever finds it, to increase in praising Allah and invoking Him, and he should frequently supplicate with this supplication,
“O Allah! You are the One who pardons greatly, You Love to pardon, so pardon me.”
Tirmidhī
If a person was to suffice with praising Allah, this would be better due to the ḥadīth in which it is reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said,
“Whoever is diverted by making dhikr of Me from asking of Me, I would grant him the best of what I grant those asking.”
Tirmidhī #2,926 on the authority of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī with a ḍaʿīf isnād; cf. Albānī, al-Ḍaʾīfah #1,335. Aḥādīth with similar meaning have been reported on the authority of ʾUmar in Bayhaqī, Shuʿab al-Īmān #573 and Ibn Ḥajr declared it ḥasan; Jābir in Bayhaqī #574; Ḥudhayfah in Abū Nuʿāym 7:313 and indicated as ḥasan by Albānī; and Mālik ibn al-Ḥārithah in al-Bayhaqī #575.
Umayyah said,
“Should I mention my need or should your // Gifts suffice me, for sure giving gifts is part of your disposition // If a person was to praise you one day // The one who he is praising would suffice him.”
Dīwān Umayyah, p. 333 in praise ibn Judʿān. Sufyān ibn ʿUyaynah was asked about his (ﷺ) saying, “The most superior supplication on the Day of ʿArafah is, ‘None has the right to be worshipped save Allah, the One who has no partner, to Him belongs the dominion, to Him belongs all praise and He is Omnipotent over all things” and [in explanation to the fact that a direct request is not mentioned therein] he mentioned the previous ḥadīth and these verses and proceeded to say, ‘This is an object of creation saying of another that it is sufficient to praise him [to get what he desires] rather than directly ask him, what then of the Creator, Blessed and Most High?’ Recorded by Ibn ʿAbdu’l-Barr, al-Tamhīd 2:680 and Bayhaqī #575
Iʿtikāf, generosity, & reciting Qurʾān in Ramadan
Allah, Most High, says,
“Purify My House for those who perform tawāf, for those who stay there for worship and those who bow and prostrate [in prayer]”.
al-Qur’ān, 2:125
“…and do not have relations with them as long as you are staying for worship in the Mosques.”
al-Qur’ān, 2:187
Iʿtikāf is to visit Allah in one of His houses and to seclude oneself with Him, it is a duty upon the host to honour his guest.
It is mentioned in an authentic hadīth that the Prophet (ﷺ) said,
“Each time someone goes to, and comes from, a mosque, Allah prepares for him a feast in Paradise.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
It is recommended to perform Iʿtikāf in the last ten days of Ramadan, so that a person can seek Laylat ul-Qadr. This was when the Prophet (ﷺ) would perform Iʿtikāf towards the end of his life.
ʿĀʾishah (radiy Allāhu ‘anha) said,
“The Prophet (ﷺ) would perform Iʿtikāf in the last ten days of Ramadan, until Allah caused him to pass away. Then, his wives after him would similarly perform Iʿtikāf.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
She also said,
“When the last ten days came, he (ﷺ) would spend the night in worship, awake his family, exert himself in worship, and tighten his waist-wrapper.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
In another report,
“The Messenger (ﷺ) would exert himself in worship in the last ten nights in a way that he never did in any other night.”
Muslim
The meaning of “…tighten his waist-wrapper” is that he would not take pleasure with his wives, or that he would exert and devote himself to worship.
In this month, it is recommended to increase in the recitation of the Qurʾān and to be generous, for both the one performing Iʿtikāf and the one who is not.
Ibn ʿAbbās (radiy Allāhu ‘anhu) said,
“The Prophet (ﷺ) was the most generous of people, and he was most generous in Ramadan when Jibrīl met him. Jibrīl would meet him in every night of Ramadan until he passed away, and he (ﷺ) would recite the Qurʾān to him. When Jibrīl met him, he would be more generous than a strong wind.”
Bukhārī and Muslim
The meaning of “strong wind” here is a reference to its wide reach and its swiftness.
It is authentically reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) would recite the Qurʾān to Jibrīl once every Ramadan, but in the year in which he passed away, he recited the Qurʾān to him twice.
Bukhārī and Muslim
Fasting six days of Shawwāl
It is authentically reported that the Messenger (ﷺ) said,
“Whoever fasts the month of Ramadan and then follows this with six days of Shawwāl, it will be as if he fasted the whole year.”
Muslim
The reason for this is that a good deed is multiplied tenfold, hence every fast is like ten fasts [hence, a total of 36 fasts will be equivalent to 360 fasts].
Source: Islam21c
