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Among the Distinguishing Characteristics of Fasting
Author : Dr. Mufti Sa`eid Farhan
Date Added : 04-06-2025

 

Allah The Almighty created humankind and made them His vicegerents on Earth. He was Pleased with the status of servitude for them, and what an honored status it is! To perfect this status, He, Glorified be He, Ordained acts of worship upon them. Moreover, His Infinite Wisdom, Almighty and Majestic, necessitated that these acts of worship be diverse: some are spiritual (of the heart), some are physical, and some are financial.

Among what Allah The Almighty has Made obligatory is fasting. This great act of worship is distinguished from other acts of worship by many unique characteristics. I will summarize some of these features in the following aspects:

Firstly: Elevated Status Directly Attributed to Allah

Allah, The Exalted and Glorified, elevated the status of fasting by attributing it directly to Himself. Al-Bukhari and others narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) Said (What means): Relating from his Lord, the Exalted and Glorified: "Every deed of the son of Adam is for him, except fasting. It is for Me, and I shall Reward for it." This unique distinction was granted only to fasting, even while all other acts of worship are also revered. Due to this, a fasting person possesses a noble soul, high aspirations, and strong resolve in their fast. They know that this fast is for Allah the Almighty, and thus endure every hardship and difficulty to complete their fast in the manner that Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, approves.

Secondly: Regarding the Reward

Allah, The Exalted and Glorified, has also Designated a distinct reward and Reckoning for fasting, different from other acts of worship. Just as Allah, The Exalted and Glorified, Singled out fasting and attributed it to Himself, He likewise Designated an immense reward for it, stating in the Hadith Qudsi (What means): "And I shall Reward for it." The reward is commensurate with The Giver of the reward, Who is Allah, The Exalted and Glorified.

Fasting is also half of patience, as reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the hadith narrated by Ibn Majah and others. Since, Allah, The Exalted and Glorified, Said (What means): "Indeed, the patient will be given their reward without account." [Az-Zumar/10]. Thus,  fasting person will receive their reward without account. As Al-Imam Al-Ghazali mentioned in "Ihya' 'Ulum al-Din" about fasting: "Its reward has surpassed the law of estimation and calculation." Furthermore, Allah, The Most Glorified, has Designated a special gate in Paradise for those who fast, known as the gate of Ar-Rayyan.

Thirdly: A Worship Hidden from Others

Fasting is a form of worship that only Allah The Almighty is Aware of, making it the furthest removed from Riya' (showing off) and hypocrisy. Just as Allah's Wisdom necessitated that fasting be for Him, The Exalted and Glorified, it also necessitated that the fasting person's own self be with Allah, The Exalted and Glorified, connected to Him in an act of worship that no one else can observe. Allah has Honored fasting by keeping it far from anything that might compromise it, such as Riya', hypocrisy, or seeking reputation. He did this by Making it a hidden act of worship, unseen by people, and its immediate effects unnoticeable to them.

Fourthly: Regarding Sharia Rulings

Fasting differs from other acts of worship in certain Sharia rulings. For instance, the intention (Niyyah) for fasting must precede the act itself, meaning the intention must be made a period of time—even if brief—before the fast begins. In contrast, for most other acts of worship, the intention must be concurrent with the act, and it is not valid if the intention precedes the action.

Fifthly: A Worship of Abstinence and Concurrence with Other Acts

Despite its high rank and immense reward, fasting is primarily an act of abstinence (Tark) rather than an active deed (Fi'l). This grants fasting an additional advantage: the ability to combine it with other acts of worship. A fasting person can pray, recite the Quran, and engage in other good deeds simultaneously. By doing so, they perform multiple acts of worship at once, all of which contribute to their benefit, elevating their reward and status.

We ask Allah, The Magnificent, Lord of the Noble Throne, to Bless us in Ramadan and to Help us increase in reward and recompense therein. Indeed, He is The Guardian of that and The One Capable of it. And all Perfect praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.

The published article reflects the opinion of its author

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on performing the night prayer (*qiyām al-layl*) between the first and second adhān of Fajr? And which is better: delaying the prayer until shortly before the Fajr adhān, or performing it earlier than that?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The time for night prayer (qiyām al-layl) begins after the Maghrib prayer and lasts until the second adhān of Fajr. The best time for it is the last third of the night, and best of all are the fourth and fifth sixths of the night. If the night is divided into two halves, the latter half is better.
Whoever intends to pray at night is encouraged to delay the Witr until he has prayed the night prayer. If he knows that he will not wake up, it is better for him to pray and perform Witr before sleeping, so that he does not miss both the night prayer and the Witr.
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vpl.1/p.462): “I say: The voluntary prayer of the night, that is, the absolute voluntary prayer (al-nafl al-muṭlaq), is better than the absolute voluntary prayer of the day, because of the report in Muslim: ‘The best prayer after the obligatory prayer is the night prayer.’ In another narration of his: ‘In the night there is an hour that no Muslim man meets while asking Allah for any good of this world and the next except that He gives it to him, and that is every night.’ It is also because the night is a time of heedlessness. I restricted the voluntary prayer to the absolute kind following the commentator, although what the ḥadīth and the underlying meaning require is that the night rawātib be preferred over the day rawātib, since the jurists preferred the two rakʿahs of Fajr over everything except Witr. The middle of the night is better than its two ends if it is divided into thirds, because heedlessness is greatest then and worship is hardest. If he wishes to pray during some third, the best is the fourth and fifth sixths, based on the ḥadīth in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: ‘The most beloved prayer to Allah the Exalted is the prayer of Dāwūd: he would sleep half the night, stand for a third of it, and sleep for a sixth.’ Then the latter part is better than the first if he divides it into two halves, because of the saying of Allah the Exalted: ‘And in the hours before dawn they would ask forgiveness’ [al-Dhāriyāt: 18], and the report of the two Shaykhs: ‘Our Lord, Blessed and Exalted, descends,’ meaning His command descends, ‘to the lowest heaven when the last third of the night remains, and says: Who calls upon Me, that I may answer him? Who asks of Me, that I may give him? Who seeks My forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’”
It is also stated in ʿUmdat al-Sālik (p. 60): “It is better to perform it [the Witr] immediately after the sunnah of ʿIshāʾ, unless he has tahajjud, in which case it is better to delay it so that he performs Witr after it. If he performs Witr and then wishes to pray tahajjud, he prays two rakʿahs at a time and does not repeat the Witr, nor does he need to cancel it with a single rakʿah before the tahajjud. It is recommended that he not deliberately pray after it.”
Qiyām al-layl is a term applied to any prayer performed at night. Tahajjud, on the other hand, refers to the night prayer that follows sleep, whether it is prayed after Maghrib or after ʿIshāʾ, or the prayer performed after ʿIshāʾ without sleep. On this basis, the Witr is also called tahajjud, since it is only prayed after ʿIshāʾ.
It is stated in al-Majmūʿ (Vol.4/p.84): “The sound position, as stated in al-Umm and al-Mukhtaṣar, is that the Witr is called tahajjud.”
It is stated in Nihāyat al-Zayn (Vol.1/p.114): “Among the absolute voluntary prayers is qiyām al-layl. If it is performed after sleep, even during the time of Maghrib and after having prayed ʿIshāʾ early (taqdīman), it is called tahajjud.”
And it is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī ʿalā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.1/p.418): “His statement: ‘(the night prayer)’: the genitive construction (iḍāfah) carries the sense of fī, meaning a prayer in the night. His statement: ‘(it would be more fitting)’: the reason it is more fitting is that the night prayer includes both tahajjud and other prayers.” And Allah Almighty knows best.

Who is required to give fidyah for fasting?

Fidyah—feeding one needy person for each missed fasting day—is required for:
1. Those who are permanently unable to fast, such as:
○ Elderly men and women who are too weak to fast.
○ People with chronic illnesses that have no hope of recovery.
2. Pregnant or breastfeeding women who break their fast out of fear for their child (fetus or infant).
3. A person who delays making up Ramadan fasts (qada) until the next Ramadan begins, without a valid excuse.
4. The estate of a deceased person who had missed obligatory fasts and had the ability to make them up but did not do so.

What is the ruling on someone who fasts but does not pray?

A Muslim must be diligent in fulfilling all obligations, and after the Shahadah, prayer is the most important duty.
● If someone abandons prayer out of disregard, they are considered a disbeliever, and their fasting is not accepted.
● If they abandon prayer out of laziness, they are still a Muslim, and their fasting remains valid, but they have committed a grave sin by neglecting prayer.

Is it required for a discerning child to make the intention at night if they wish to fast?

If a discerning child wishes to fast during Ramadan, they must make the intention at night because intention is one of the pillars of fasting, even though fasting is not obligatory for them.

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