Does Smoking After Fajr During a Kaffara Fast Break the Entire Sequence?

Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick

Question

I smoked after Fajr during a kaffara fast out of ignorance. Does this break the entire sequence, or only that day?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

This question requires careful attention because the claim of ignorance in this matter is difficult to comprehend. Smoking during fasting is generally not something Muslims are unaware of, unless a person has only recently embraced Islam.

The Issue of Ignorance

To say that one smoked after Fajr during a kaffara fast “out of ignorance” raises concern, because fasting is a well-known obligation, and smoking is understood to invalidate it.

If the person is truly a recent convert, they should seek the direct advice of a qualified scholar to clarify what must be done in their specific case.

No assumptions can be made without knowing whether the person recently embraced Islam.

Breaking the Sequence of Consecutive Days

If the fast was broken, then regardless of the claim of ignorance, the sequence of 60 consecutive days has been interrupted.

In that case:

• The consecutive requirement is no longer fulfilled
• The person would have to start the 60-day sequence over
• Whatever was fasted before would not count, because the kaffara requires 60 consecutive days

When Kaffara Applies in the Shafi‘i School

It is important to note that in the Shafi‘i madhhab, a kaffara fast is only required in a very specific situation:

When a person breaks an obligatory fast in Ramadan through sexual intercourse specifically

If someone broke their fast by drinking water and then later had intimacy, they would not owe a kaffara. They would only have to make up for that one day.

The kaffara applies only to that restricted circumstance, and it is therefore rare.

If a person does owe kaffara, then it must be fulfilled with 60 consecutive days.

And Allah knows best.
[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick

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 (Allah have mercy on him), where he taught.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Shaykh Muhammad Awama, Shaykh Muhammad Hasan Hitu, 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 been the Director of the Discover Islam Centre, and for six years, he has been the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

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