What does "All the deeds of the son of Adam are for him, except fasting" mean?
The Prophet ﷺ said: "Allah, the Almighty, said: 'Every deed of the son of Adam is for him, except for fasting; it is for Me, and I shall reward for it." [Agreed upon]
This means:
● Every deed of the son of Adam may be affected by showing off (riyaa’), except fasting, because only Allah knows whether a person is truly fasting or not.
● The reward for all deeds is known—one good deed is multiplied tenfold—except fasting, as only Allah knows its true reward.
If someone fasts on the White Days with the intention of making up for missed fasts (qada), will they receive the reward for both voluntary and obligatory fasting?
Making up missed obligatory fasts (qada) is mandatory, and the intention for qada must be specified.
If a person makes up their missed Ramadan fasts on the White Days, they must intend qada, but they may also intend to fast the White Days, and Allah willing, they will receive the reward for both.
This is similar to entering a mosque and praying an obligatory prayer, where the person also earns the reward of Tahiyyat al-Masjid (greeting the mosque) if they intend both.
● If the person missed their fasts due to a valid excuse, they may wait and fast on the White Days.
● However, if they missed the fasts without a valid excuse, they must make up the fasts immediately and should not delay them until the White Days.
Does vomiting during the day in Ramadan break the fast?
Intentional vomiting is one of the nullifiers of fasting; whoever vomits deliberately breaks their fast.
However, if vomiting occurs involuntarily, the fast remains valid as long as nothing returns to the body cavity (jauf). If anything is swallowed back, the fast is invalidated.
The Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever is overcome by vomiting does not have to make up the fast, but whoever induces vomiting deliberately must make it up." [Narrated by Abu Dawood and At-Tirmidhi]
What are the pillars of fasting?
The pillars of fasting are intention and abstaining from all nullifiers of fasting from dawn to sunset.