How Should I Break My Fast While Travelling? – Shaykh Irshaad Sedick

Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick

Question

I want to fast on Arafat day even though I’ll be travelling that day. Although I’m not obligated to fast while travelling 500 km, I still want to do it because it will be easy, and I hope to attain more Baraka in sha Allah. My question is regarding the time to break my fast.

Should I check the prayer times for the nearest town I am in, or should I just eat when the sun sets?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate. May Allah alleviate our difficulties and guide us to what pleases Him. Amin.

Fasting is from Fajr till Maghrib. Maghrib begins when the disk of the Sun completely sinks beneath the horizon (sunset). If you can observe this natural phenomenon, you should follow it accordingly. All calculations and calendars are subject to the natural observable phenomenon in the sky, and Allah knows best. [Nawawi, al-Majmu‘]

If you can’t observe the natural phenomenon, you may check the prayer times for the locations where you find yourself and follow the local times accordingly, and Allah knows best.

I pray this is of benefit and that Allah guides us all.

[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Muhammad Abu Bakr Ba-Dhib

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar, Shaykh Taha Karaan.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and pursuing his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.