Ramadan’s Indispensable Blessings

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Is fasting obligatory for a child?

Fasting is not obligatory for a child until they reach puberty. Puberty is determined by well-known signs, the most common of which are: nocturnal emission (for both males and females), menstruation (for females), or reaching the age of fifteen lunar years.

A guardian must instruct their children to fast once they reach the age of discernment, which is around seven years old, if they are capable of fasting.

I`m in love with a certain man, and want to marry him in particular, but my family refused that, what should I do?

The father should know what is in the best interest of his daughter and consider her situation. On her part, the daughter should trust her father`s view point as far as suitors are concerned. Moreover, it is prohibited for any woman, or girl to get involved in a relation with a non-Mahram (Marriageable man).

What is the ruling on someone who intends to travel to Jeddah for two days — must he enter iḥrām from his place of residence [i.e., before passing the mīqāt]?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

Whoever is firmly resolved in his intention to perform ‘Umrah before setting out on his journey, it is unlawful for him to pass beyond his country's mīqāt (the designated boundary point for entering the state of iḥrām) without entering iḥrām. If he does so, he must return to the mīqāt to enter iḥrām from there, provided he has not yet begun performing the rites of the pilgrimage — in which case nothing further is required of him. However, if he does not return, he must offer a sacrifice (sheep/goat), to be distributed among the poor of the Ḥaram.

It is stated in at-Tanbīh fī al-Fiqh ash-Shāfi‘ī (p. 71): "Whoever, intending to perform the rites [of ‘Umrah or Ḥajj], passes beyond the mīqāt and enters iḥrām only after it, must offer a sacrifice. However, if he returns to the mīqāt before beginning any of the rites, the sacrifice is waived from him."

Accordingly: whoever is firmly resolved in his intention to perform ‘Umrah before setting out on his journey must enter iḥrām at the mīqāt of his country through which he passes. Whoever fails to do so, passing beyond the mīqāt without entering iḥrām, and does not return, has sinned, and must repent to Allah, the Exalted; and he must offer a sacrifice, to be distributed among the poor of the Ḥaram. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on someone who possesses gold with the intention of saving/hoarding it, and owns nothing else — is he obligated to sell a portion of it in order to pay the zakāh due on it?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

Zakāh becomes immediately obligatory on cash, and likewise on gold — that which is not designated for a woman's personal adornment— once both reach the niṣāb (minimum threshold liable for zakah) and a full ḥawl (lunar year) has passed over them. It is not permissible to delay payment when it is genuinely possible to pay — meaning, when the wealth and the eligible recipients are both available. It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vol.2/p.129): "Zakāh is obligatory immediately once it becomes feasible to pay it, meaning when the wealth and the eligible recipients are both present."

The one paying zakāh must discharge the obligatory zakāh due on saved (hoarded) gold either from the gold itself, or from its equivalent monetary value, in the event that no other funds are available — since paying from the gold itself is the original default (al-aṣl). It becomes permissible to pay from other funds instead only because zakāh is built upon the principle of ease and leniency, as stated in Asnā al-Maṭālib (Vol.1/p.366): "When a full ḥawl has elapsed on wealth other than trade goods... zakāh attaches to the actual asset itself (al-‘ayn), and the poor effectively become partners in it — even, for example, [becoming partners] in camels through the value of a sheep [owed as zakāh on them]... Paying from other wealth is permitted only because zakāh is built upon the principle of ease and leniency."

Accordingly: the one paying zakāh must discharge it either from the actual saved gold itself, or by selling a portion of the gold equal to the amount of zakāh owed. He may also borrow money to pay the zakāh, or pay the zakāh in installments before the ḥawl is complete [as an advance payment]. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

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Ramadan’s Indispensable Blessings

Author : Dr. Abdallah Rabab'ah

Date Added : 09-11-2026

Ramadan’s Indispensable Blessings

Every year Ramadan arrives, and the sincere believer and the devoted Muslim greet it with high resolve and overflowing joy. In the hearts of the righteous, it holds a special place and a distinguished rank. It is the most blessed of months, the richest in goodness, the widest in benefit, and the highest in station. Allah honored it with the goodness He placed in it, and His Messenger magnified and blessed it, calling it “the month of Allah.” It is the month of obedience and worship, of goodness and blessing, the month in which Allah revealed the Qur’an as guidance for mankind and as clear proofs of guidance and criterion. If only Muslims would give it its due, honor its rank, and seize its hours and moments.

-The believer welcomes it with sincere repentance, by which Allah erases sins, raises ranks, and turns evil deeds into good ones: “O you who believe, turn to Allah in sincere repentance” [al-Taḥrīm/8].

-The believer welcomes Ramadan by guarding the prayers and their times and keeping up the congregation. One prayer to the next is an expiation for what lies between them, and whoever guards the prayer will find in it light, deliverance, and proof on the Day of Resurrection.

-The Muslim welcomes Ramadan with the resolve to fast. Fasting purifies souls of their wrongdoing, frees them from sins, and trains them in patience, which is half of faith, the secret of a person’s happiness, and the believer’s provision when trials grow severe and distress deepens.

-The believer welcomes Ramadan with the resolve to recite the Qur’an, to reflect on its verses, and to learn its rulings on the lawful and the unlawful. The Qur’an is what sets right people’s beliefs, straightens their character, purifies their souls, and refines their minds, as Allah says {what means}: “There has come to you from Allah a light and a clear Book” [al-Māʾidah/15].

-The Muslim welcomes Ramadan with the resolve to keep up the Tarāwīḥ prayer and the night prayer, for this is the habit of the righteous and the way of the God-conscious. Allah says {what means}: “They used to sleep but little of the night, and before dawn they would seek forgiveness” [al-Dhāriyāt/17-18]. He also says of the believers {what means}: “Their sides forsake their beds, calling upon their Lord in fear and hope” [al-Sajdah/16]. The commentators said this refers to the night prayer, in which the worshipper leaves his bed and his family, forgoes sleep and comfort, and turns to Allah the Exalted in fear and hope, out of faith and seeking reward. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever stands in prayer during Ramadan out of faith and seeking reward will have his previous sins forgiven.” {Related by Bukhari & Muslim}. The Muslim should therefore prepare himself to receive this noble guest and great month.

-Allah made the fast of this noble month obligatory upon Muslims, made it a pillar of the religion, and recorded its obligation in several verses of the Qur’an, so that its ruling would endure as long as the Qur’an endures. Allah the Exalted says {what means}: “O you who believe, fasting has been prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may attain God-consciousness” [al-Baqarah/183]. In addition, He says {what means}: “The month of Ramadan is that in which the Qur’an was revealed as guidance for mankind and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever witnesses the month, let him fast it” [al-Baqarah/185]. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) counted the fast of Ramadan as a pillar of Islam, a foundation of the religion, and one of the greatest means of drawing near to the Lord of the worlds. He said: “Islam is built upon five: the testimony that there is no god but Allah, establishing the prayer, giving zakāh, Ḥajj to the House, and fasting Ramadan.” In another ḥadīth: “The bonds of Islam and the foundations of the religion are three, upon which Islam is established. Whoever abandons one of them is a disbeliever on that account, his blood lawful: the testimony that there is no god but Allah, the obligatory prayer, and the fast of Ramadan.” [Musnad Abī Yaʿlā al-Mawṣilī]

-The Muslims are unanimously agreed on the obligation of fasting Ramadan and regard it as known from the religion by necessity (Basics of the religion of Islam known to everyone). The worker in his factory, the merchant in his shop, and the soldier in his barracks all know it, and its obligation is known to everyone.

-Allah gathered a great deal of goodness in the month of Ramadan. It is reported of its virtue: “Whoever fasts Ramadan out of faith and seeking reward will have his previous sins forgiven, and whoever stands in prayer during Ramadan out of faith and seeking reward will have his previous sins forgiven.” It is a month whose beginning is mercy, whose middle is forgiveness, and whose end is emancipation from the Fire. It is reported that Allah the Exalted frees a number of people from the Fire every night at the time of breaking the fast, and on the last night He frees as many as He freed on all the other nights. We ask Allah the Exalted to let us reach Ramadan, to grant us success in making the most of it, and to free our necks from the Fire.

-Ramadan in the minds of Muslims is not Ramadan in the lives of Muslims. In the lives of Muslims it is bloated stomachs and endless TV serials. In their minds, it is bound to momentous events that changed the course of history and left the deepest mark on the history of humanity. The greatest of these Ramadan events is the descent of revelation upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). While he was worshipping in the cave of Ḥirāʾ, the trustworthy Jibrīl came down to him with the first verses of the Noble Qur’an: “Read in the name of your Lord who created. He created man from a clinging clot” [al-ʿAlaq/1-2]. The days passed until Ramadan of the second year after the Hijrah arrived, and in it occurred the Great Battle of Badr, the first battle in which Allah gave Islam honor and the Muslims victory, and defeated the disbelievers and polytheists. He reminded the believers of this favor, saying: “And Allah had already given you victory at Badr while you were weak, so fear Allah that you may be grateful” [Āl ʿImrān/123]. The days passed again until Ramadan of the eighth year after the Hijrah arrived, when Allah gave the believers a far greater victory and defeated idolatry and the idolaters.

-Every Ramadan, Muslims enter the school of fasting, where they learn the foundations of noble character, refined manners, and honorable conduct. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Ramadan, a month of blessing, has come to you. In it, there is goodness with which Allah envelops you: He sends down mercy, wipes away sins, and answers prayers. Allah looks upon your striving with one another and boasts of you before His angels. So show Allah good from yourselves, for the wretched one is he who is deprived of Allah’s mercy in it.” Narrated by al-Ṭabarānī.

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Summarized Fatawaa

Is Zakah (obligatory charity) obligatory on indebted merchant?

Debt doesn`t abrogate the dueness of Zakah, thus a debtor who has money, articles of merchandise, or other Zakah funds at his disposal should pay their Zakah.

Is prayer nullified by nose bleed?

All praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds. Blood coming out of the nose, or a wound doesn`t nullify prayer regardless of its quantity. And Allah Knows Best.

Is it permissible to eat from an Udhiyah slaughtered on behalf of a deceased person?

Praise be to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon our Master the Messenger of Allah.

It is permissible to eat from the sacrifice (uḍḥiyyah) that is offered on behalf of a deceased person. This is the madhhab (school of thought) of the Hanbalis. In this case, the heirs take the place of the deceased as if he were alive, with the same rights to eat from it, give it in charity, and offer it as a gift.

It is stated in Maṭālib Uli al-Nuhā (Vol.2/P.472): "Offering a sacrifice on behalf of a deceased person is better than offering one on behalf of a living person, because the deceased is unable (to perform deeds) and is in need of reward. It is to be treated like a sacrifice on behalf of a living person in terms of eating, giving charity, and giving gifts." And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law regarding one who purchases a sacrificial animal (uḍḥiyah) and it then develops a defect before slaughter?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.

If a defect that invalidates the sacrifice (uḍḥiyah) arises after its purchase — for example, if one purchased a sound, defect-free animal, and it then developed a limp, blindness in one eye, or a similar defect before slaughter — it does not fulfill the requirement of a valid uḍḥiyah, according to the Shāfi'ī school.

It is stated in Asnā al-Maṭālib fī Sharḥ Rawḍ al-Ṭālib (Vol.1/P.535): "Even if the limp develops [in the animal] while the knife is upon it, it still does not fulfill the requirement, because it is lame at the moment of slaughter — this is analogous to a case where a sheep's leg breaks and one hastens to slaughter it [in that condition]."

The Ḥanbalī school, however, held that if the one offering the sacrifice purchased the animal while it was sound and defect-free, and a defect then befell it afterward, the sacrifice remains valid and there is no obligation to replace it.

It is stated in Masā'il al-Imām Aḥmad, one of the Ḥanbalī reference works (Vol.8/P.4021): "I said: If a person purchases the sacrificial animal while it is sound, and it is then afflicted with illness, blindness in one eye, or a broken limb [before slaughter]? He [Imam Aḥmad] said: It is said that it still fulfills the requirement. Isḥāq said likewise, because he purchased it while sound, and the defect befell it only afterward, so it remains sufficient on his behalf." [End of quote]

Accordingly, a sheep afflicted with a defect that invalidates the sacrifice does not fulfill the requirement of a valid uḍḥiyah — whether the defect arose after purchase or during the slaughter itself — according to the Shāfi'ī school. However, there is no objection to following the Ḥanbalī position on this matter [as a valid alternative]. And Allah, the Most High, knows best.