| To
eat or drink forgetfully
If a person forgets that he is fasting and eats, drinks or
has sexual intercourse, then the fast will not break whether
the fast is fardh (compulsory) and wajib or nafl (optional).
If a person was reminded that he was fasting but even then
he did not remember and kept on eating and drinking then his
fast will break. In this case only Qadha is due not Kaffarah.
The ruling about reminding a fasting person is that if the
fasting person is quite strong then it is wajib to remind
him that he is fasting, but if he is a weak person and is
greatly affected by fasting, then it is better not to remind
him at all.
(Fathul Qadeer Pg254 Vol.2, Raddul Muhtar Pg49, Vol.2)
Fragrance and smoke
By inhaling a fragrance of any type and however strong, the
fast will not break. Similarly if dust, a fly or some smoke
goes down the throat unintentionally then the fast will not
break. However, if one did this intentionally then the fast
will break. For example incense sticks are being burnt and
a person goes and sits near them and inhales the smoke, the
fast will break.
(Raddul Muhtar P395, Vol. 2 and the other books)
Antimony and oil etc.
It is permissible to apply surmah (antimony) in one's eyes
or put eye drops when one is fasting. Oil can also be put
on the beard. Even if after applying surmah the colour of
the surmah appears in one's saliva or the taste is felt in
the throat, the fast will not be broken. The only condition
is that those things are used in need and the object is not
to look beautiful and show off. If the purpose to use these
things is show then it will be makruh to use them.
Miswaak
Just as to cleansing the teeth with miswaak is sunnat while
performing the wudhu for a non-fasting person, it is also
sunnat for a fasting person, whether it is used during the
day or night, or whether it is wet or dry. If the thread of
the miswaak went down the throat unintentionally then the
fast will not break either.
(Ahsan-ul-Fatawa P445, Vol.4)
Rinse the mouth etc.
If a fasting person, already in a state of wudhu, rinses his
mouth, takes a bath, or ties a wet cloth around his body with
only the intention of keeping cool then his fast will not
break. If he does so just to show his impatience and intolerance
then it will be makruh for him to do so.
(Maraq-il-Falah with Al-Tahtavie Pg372 and other common books)
Fast is not breached in all these cases:
A herbal medicine was grounded and its taste was felt in the
throat; or a cotton bud or something else was used to clean
the ear and it became stained with wax and it was put inside
the ear again; or something smaller in size than a chickpea
was lodged in the teeth and was swallowed; or blood came out
of the teeth, reached the throat but did not go into the stomach,
or if it did reach the stomach but was lesser in quantity
than the salvia; or if one cleared his nose and the phlegm
or thick mucus went into the throat and then into the stomach;
or if one cleared his throat and swallowed the phlegm, whether
it was inside the nose or throat or it had come out and was
swallowed before the flow had broken; or if while speaking
saliva came out outs the lips and the fasting person licked
it; or if something as tiny as a sesame seed was put in the
mouth and chewed and it went down the throat but its taste
was not felt, then in all these cases the fast is not broken.
(Maraq-il-Falah with Al-Tahtavie Pg362, Radd-ul-Muhtar Pg397,
Vol.2)
If a betel-leaf was chewed before subh-e-sadiq and the mouth
was cleansed thoroughly but later in the day, the reddish
colour can still be seen in the saliva then the fast will
not be breached by swallowing that saliva.
(Ma`alim-ul-tanzeel, pg.139, Vol.4)
If a person vomited involuntarily then the fast is not lost
whether it be small or large in quantity. But if one vomited
intentionally and it was a mouthful then the fast is lost.
If it was less then a mouthful, the fast is not breached.
If a bit of vomit came and returned to the throat of its own,
then the fast is not broken. But it will be broken if returned
intentionally by the fasting person
If someone burnt incense near him and smelled it purposely
then the fast is broken. Similarly smoking a huqqa, cigarette
or tobacco breaks a fast. It is permissible to smell perfume
of a rose etc. in which there is no smoke.
If a person put some smelling powder in his nose or oil in
his ear or used something in the back hole to facilitate motion,
though he did not drink any medicine, then the fast is broken.
But only compensatory fast and no recompense (fidyah) is due.
The fast is not broken by pouring water in the ear.
Misconceptions about fast
By Mufti Muhammad
Like
other Ibadaat, or forms of worship there are many misconceptions
concerning fasts that need to be corrected. Some of the misconceptions
are pointed out here.
Giving
up fast without reason
For an incapable person, it is permissible not to keep fast
or to break fast in some conditions, but everyone cannot decide
who is incapable in the sight of Shariah. Some indolent people
do not keep fasts on the assumption that they are not able
to keep them. In fact, if they try to keep fasts, they can
do it easily. But they call their indolence and laziness 'incapability'.
Some people have self-made incapability. For example, it is
allowed in Shariah to give up fasting during a journey. Some
people leave home without any aim or reason and go on a journey.
It is not permissible to decide one's incapability without
consulting a mufti.
Paying
Fidya without being permanently incapable
Some careless people miss fasts thinking that they will pay
Fidya, whereas Fidya can only be paid by a person who is incapable
of fasting and there is no hope of his recovery. If such a
person becomes capable of fasting at any time before death,
the Fidya he has given will no longer be valid.
Forbidding
an adolescent to keep fast
Even some religious people do not make their children keep
fasts though the children's age, health and body strength
is such that they can easily do so. Fasting is not compulsory
upon children before they attain adulthood, but it is incumbent
upon the guardians to make the children keep fasts if they
are near adulthood and can sustain it. If the child is fond
of worship at an early age, he will face no difficulty in
discharging religious duties after becoming an adult.
Incapable
person not benefitting from remission
Some people are on the other hand go to the other extreme
and do not benefit from the remission given by Shariah. Some
people for example do not give up fasting even during a hard
journey or illness. Some pregnant women or those having a
suckling baby do keep fasts at the cost of their own health
and that of their child. Some misguided people make their
minor children keep fasts even though they cannot sustain
it. All these things are the result of staying away from Ulama's
company and not understanding the philosophy of Shariah.
Haste
or delay in 'sehri'
Some people take 'sehri' at midnight. Though such haste is
allowed, but it is against the actual philosophy of 'sehri'.
The meal is meant to prevent weakness and retain strength
during the fast. Some people mistakenly think that after taking
sehri, one cannot eat or drink anything though it is still
night and there is still time left. It is necessary to abandon
this misconception.
On the other hand, some people make so much delay in taking
sehri that it puts their fast in doubt. They keep looking
at their watches and charts to see how many minutes are left,
whereas there is a chance of mistake in both of them. Thus,
prudence demands that one should stop taking sehri a few minutes
before the time on watch and chart. Sometime people call azaan
for Fajr prayer a few minutes before the due time thinking
that people will stop taking sahri in this way. There are
many wrongs in doing so. Therefore, azaan must be called at
its due time.
Haste
or delay in 'iftar'
Some people show too much haste in iftar thus putting their
fast in doubt. There are discrepancies in charts. Times of
sehri and iftar given on charts are not definite though they
are very close mathematically. Some unwise people start iftar
on hearing azaan on radio (though the azaan maybe of some
other city). Usually, the sirens and azaan on radio are according
to charts and cannot therefore be trusted fully. There have
been occasions when the sun was still visible at the time
azaan was called. On 13th Ramadan, 1397 A.H, Radio Pakistan
broadcast azaan four or five minutes before the due time and
replayed azaan from the beginning before the first one could
end. Millions of people marred their fast by starting iftar
at the first azaan. Therefore, it is vital to keep watches
set at the standard time and start iftar three minutes after
the time given on a chart. For a person who has shown patience
for several hours, is it difficult to wait for two or three
more minutes ? Some habitually doubtful people do not start
iftar even after the time of sunset. Such a delay is prohibited
in Hadith. Some people make so much delay in iftar that they
miss the congregational prayer of Maghrib or miss one or two
rakaat of it. Sometimes, such people offer congregational
prayer at home. Though it is b etter than praying alone, it
is not in any way the substitute of congregational prayer
a mosque.
|
