Fasting,
According to Five Islamic Schools
of Law
Part I
Fasting in the month of Ramadan
is one of the 'pillars' of the Islamic faith. No proof is required to establish its being
obligatory (wajib) and one denying it goes out of the fold of Islam, because it
is
obvious like salat, and in respect of anything so evidently established both the learned
and the unlettered, the elderly and the young, all stand on an equal footing.
It was declared an obligatory
duty (fard) in the second year of the Hijrah upon each and every mukallaf (one
capable of carrying out religious duties, i.e. a sane adult) and breaking it (iftar)
is not
permissible except for any of the following reasons:
1. Hayd and nifas: The schools
concur that fasting is not valid for women during menstruation and puerperal bleeding.
2. Illness: The schools differ
here.
The Imamis observe: Fasting is
not valid if it would cause illness or aggravate it, or intensify the pain, or delay
recovery, because illness entails harm (darar) and causing harm is prohibited (muharram).
Moreover, a prohibition concerning an 'ibadah (a rite of worship) invalidates it.
Hence if a person fasts in such a condition, his fast is not valid (sahih).
A predominant likelihood of its
resulting in illness or its aggravation is sufficient for refraining from fasting. As to
excessive weakness, it is not a justification for iftar as long as it is generally
bearable. Hence the extenuating cause is illness, not weakness, emaciation or strain,
because every duty involves hardship and discomfort.
The four Sunni schools state: If
one who is fasting (sa'im) falls ill, or fears the aggravation of his illness, or
delay in recovery, he has the option to fast or refrain. Iftar is not incumbent upon him;
it is a relaxation and not an obligation in this situation. But where there is likelihood
of death or loss of any of the senses, iftar is obligatory for him and his fasting is not
valid.
3. A woman in the final stage of
pregnancy and nursing mothers.
The four schools say: If a
pregnant or nursing woman fears harm for her own health or that of her child, her fasting
is valid though it is permissible for her to refrain from fasting. If she opts for iftar,
the schools concur that she is bound to perform its qada' later. They differ
regarding its substitute (fidyah) and atonement (kaffarah). In this
regard the Hanafis observe: It is not at all wajib. The Malikis are of the
opinion that it is wajib for a nursing woman, not for a pregnant one. The
Hanbalis and the Shafi'is say: Fidyah is wajib upon a pregnant and a nursing woman only if
they fear danger for the child; but if they fear harm for their own health as well as that
of the child, they are bound to
perform the qada' only without being required to give fidyah. The fidyah
for each day is one mudd, which amounts to feeding one needy person (miskeen).
The Imamis state: If a pregnant
woman nearing childbirth or the child of a nursing mother may suffer harm, both of them
ought to break their fast and it is not valid for them to continue fasting due to the
impermissibility of harm. They concur that both are to perform the qada' as well
as give fidyah, equaling one mudd, if the harm is feared for the child. But if
the harm is feared only for her own person, some among them observe: She is bound to
perform qada' but not to give fidyah, others say: She is bound to
perform qada' and give fidyah as well.
4. Travel, provided the
conditions necessary for salat al-qasr, as mentioned earlier, are fulfilled as
per the opinion of each school. The four Sunni schools add a further condition to these,
which is that the journey should commence before dawn and the traveler should have reached
the point from where salat becomes qasr before dawn. Hence if he
commences the journey after the setting in of dawn, it is haram for him to break
the fast, and if he breaks it, its qada' will be wajib upon him without
a kaffarah. The Shafi'is add another condition, which is that the traveler should
not be one who generally travels continuously, such as a driver.
Thus if he travels habitually, he
is not entitled to break the fast. In the opinion of the four Sunni schools, breaking the
fast is optional and not compulsory. Therefore, a traveler who fulfills all the conditions
has the option of fasting or iftar. This is despite the observation of the
Hanafis that performing salat as qasr during journey is compulsory and
not Optional.
The Imamis say: If the conditions
required for praying qasr are fulfilled for a traveler, his fast is not
acceptable. Therefore, if he fasts, he will have to perform the qada' without
being liable to kaffarah.
This is if he starts his journey
before midday, but if he starts it at midday or later, he will keep his fast and in the
event of his breaking it will be liable to the kaffarah of one who deliberately
breaks his fast.
And if a traveler reaches his
hometown, or a place where he intends to stay for at least ten days, before midday without
performing any act that breaks the fast, it is wajib upon him to continue
fasting, and in the event of his breaking it he will be like one who deliberately breaks
his fast.
5. There is consensus among all
the schools that one suffering from a malady of acute thirst can break his fast, and if he
can carry out its qada' later, it will be wajib upon him without any kaffarah,
in the opinion of the four schools.
In the opinion of the Imamis, he
should give a mudd by way of kaffarah. The schools differ in regard to acute
hunger, as to whether it is one of the causes permitting iftar, like thirst. The
four schools say: Hunger and thirst are similar and both make iftar permissible.
The Imamis state: Hunger is not a cause permitting iftar except where it is
expected to cause illness.
6. Old people, men and women, in
late years of life for whom fasting is harmful and difficult, can break their fast, but
are required to give fidyah by feeding a miskeen for each fast day omitted:
similarly a sick person who does not hope to recover during the whole year. The schools
concur upon this rule except the Hanbalis, who say: Fidyah is mustahabb
and not wajib.
7. The Imamis state: Fasting is
not wajib upon one in a swoon, even if it occurs only for a part of the day,
unless where he has formed the niyyah of fasting before it and recovers
subsequently, whereat he will continue his fast.
Disappearance of the Excuse:
If the excuse permitting iftar
ceases such as on recovery of a sick person, maturing of a child, homecoming of a
traveler, or termination of the menses -it is mustahabb in the view of the Imamis
and the Shafi'is to refrain (imsak) from things that break the fast (muftirat)
as a token
of respect. The Hanbalis and the Hanafis consider imsak as wajib, but
Malikis consider it neither wajib nor mustahabb.
Conditions (Shurut) of Fasting:
As mentioned earlier, fasting in
the month of Ramadan is wajib for each and every mukallaf. Every sane
adult (al-baligh al-'aqil) is considered mukallaf. Hence fasting is
neither wajib upon an insane person in the state of insanity nor is it valid if
he observes it. As to a child, it is not wajib upon him, though valid if observed
by a mumayyiz. Also essential for the validity of the fast are Islam and niyyah
(intention).
Therefore, as per consensus,
neither the fast of a non-Muslim nor the imsak of one who has not formed the niyyah
is acceptable. This is apart from the afore-mentioned conditions of freedom from menses,
puerperal bleeding, illness and travel.
As to a person in an intoxicated
or unconscious state, the Shafi'is observe: His fast is not valid if he is not in his
senses for the whole period of the fast. But if he is in his senses for a part of this
period, his fast is valid, although the unconscious person is liable to its qada',
whatever the circumstances, irrespective of whether his unconsciousness is self-induced or
forced upon him. But the qada' is not
wajib upon an intoxicated person unless he is personally responsible for his
state.
The Malikis state: The fast is
not valid if the state of unconsciousness or intoxication persists for the whole or most
of the day from dawn to sunset. But if it covers a half of the day or less and he was in
possession of his senses at the time of making niyyah and did make it, becoming
unconscious or intoxicated later, qada' is not wajib upon him.
The time of making niyyah
for the fast in their opinion extends from sunset to dawn.
According to the Hanafis, an
unconscious person is exactly like an insane one in this respect, and their opinion
regarding the latter is that if the insanity lasts through the whole month of Ramadan, qada'
is not wajib upon him, and if it coves half of the month, he will fast for the
remaining half and perform the qada' of the fasts missed due to insanity.
The Hanbalis observe: Qada'
is wajib upon a person in a state of unconsciousness as well as one in a state of
intoxication, irrespective of whether these states are self-induced or forced upon them.
In the opinion of the Imamis, qada' is only wajib upon a person in an
intoxicated state, irrespective of its being self-induced or otherwise; it is not wajib
upon an unconscious person even if his loss of consciousness is brief.
Muftirat:
The muftirat are those
things from which it is obligatory to refrain during the fast, from dawn to sunset. They
are:
1. Eating and drinking (shurb)
deliberately. Both invalidate the fast and necessitate qada' in the opinion of
all the schools, though they differ as to whether kaffarah is also wajib.
The Hanafis and the Imamis require it, but not the Shafi'is and the Hanbalis. A person who
eats and drinks by an oversight is neither liable to qada' nor kaffarah,
except in the opinion of the Malikis, who only require its qada'. Included in shurb
(drinking) is inhaling tobacco (smoking).
2. Sexual intercourse, when
deliberate, invalidates the fast and makes one liable to qada' and kaffarah,
in the opinion of all the schools.
The kaffarah is the
manumission of a slave, and if that is not possible, fasting for two consecutive months;
if even that is not possible, feeding sixty poor persons. The Imamis and the Malikis allow
an option between any one of these; i.e. a mukallaf may choose between freeing a
slave, fasting
or feeding the poor. The Shafi'is, Hanbalis and Hanafis impose kaffarah in the
above-mentioned order; i.e. releasing a slave is specifically wajib, and in the
event of incapacity fasting becomes wajib. If that too is not possible, giving
food to the poor becomes wajib.
The Imamis state: All the three kaffarahs
become wajib together if the act breaking the fast (muftir) is itself haram,
such as eating anything usurped (maghsub), drinking wine, or fornicating. As to
sexual intercourse by oversight, it does not invalidate the fast in the opinion of the
Hanafis, Shafi's and Imamis, but it does according to the Hanbalis and the Malikis.
3. Seminal emission
(masturbation; al-'istimna'): There is consensus that it invalidates the fast if
caused deliberately. The Hanbalis say: If madhy is discharged due to repeated
sensual glances and the like the fast will become invalid. The four schools say: Seminal
emission will necessitate qada' without kaffarah. The Imamis observe: It
requires both qada' and kaffarah.
4. Vomiting: It invalidates the
fast if deliberate, and in the opinion of the Imamis, Shafi'is and Malikis, also
necessitates qada'.
The Hanafis state: Deliberate
vomiting does not break the fast unless the quantity vomited fills the mouth. Two views
have been narrated from Imam Ahmad. The schools concur that involuntary vomiting does not
invalidate the fast.
5. Cupping (hijamah) is muftir
only in the opinion of the Hanbalis, who observe: The cupper and his patient both break
the fast.
6. Injection (of vitamines or
other nutritions) invalidates the fast and requires qada' in the opinion of all
the schools. Imami legists observe: It also requires kaffarah if taken without an
emergency.
7. Inhaling a dense cloud of
suspended dust invalidates the fast only in the opinion of the Imamis. They say: If a
dense suspended dust, such as flour or something of the kind, enters the body the fast is
rendered invalid, because it is something more substantial than an injection or tobacco
smoke which are also invalidating.
8. Application of kohl
invalidates the fast only in the opinion of the Malikis, provided it is applied during the
day and its taste is felt in the throat.
9. The intention to discontinue
the fast: If a person intends to discontinue his fast and then refrains from doing so, his
fast is considered invalid in the opinion of the Imamis and Hanbalis; not so in
the opinion of the other schools.
10. Most Imamis state: Fully
submerging the head, alone or together with other parts of the body, under water
invalidates the fast and necessitates both qada' and kaffarah. The other
schools consider it inconsequential.
11. The Imamis observe: A person
who deliberately remains in the state of janabah after the dawn during the month
of Ramadan, his fast will be invalid and its qada' as well as kaffarah
will be wajib upon him. The remaining schools state- His fast remains valid and
he is not liable to
anything.
12. The Imamis observe: A person
who deliberately ascribes something falsely to God or the Messenger (S) (i.e. if he speaks
or writes that God or the Messenger said so and so or ordered such and such a thing while
he is aware that it is not true), his fast will be invalid and he will be liable to its qada'
as well as a kaffarah. A group of Imami legists go further by requiring of such a
fabricator the kaffarah of freeing a slave, fasting for two months, and feeding
sixty poor persons.
This shows the ignorance or
malice of those who say that the Imamis consider it permissible to forge lies against God
and His Messenger (S).
References:
Fasting, According to Five Islamic Schools of Law Part I & II
By: 'Allamah Muhammad Jawad Maghniyyah
Translated from the Arabic by Mujahid Husayn |
