A Ramadan Reader: A Comprehensive Answers Guide to Getting the Most Out of Ramadan

There is no obligation upon you to give expiatory payments (fidya) on behalf of family members from your own money, and not should such payments be viewed as necessarily lifting the sin of falling short in one’s obligations.

In the case of deceased family members, expiatory payments (fidya) are to be given for missed prayers and fasts if the deceased has stipulated so in his/her will. These expiatory payments can be taken from up to 1/3rd of the wealth the deceased has left behind. If the deceased has no inheritors or if the inheritors agree to it, it can be taken from more than 1/3rd.

The same ruling applies to other missed financial obligations, such as zakat, sadaqa al-fitr, and the like, for which the actual amount due must be given. Similarly, one can direct in his/her will that Hajj be performed on their behalf.

If the deceased has not stipulated anything of the above in his/her will, or if 1/3rd does not cover the expiatory payments or expenses for his/her missed acts of worship, there is no obligation upon you or any other individual to cover these payments.

However, in the case of close family members, such as parents, it would be recommended for you to do so to the extent that you are able. This would simply be in keeping with the general recommendation the religion has laid down for conduct towards one’s parents and family. It is not uncommon, for example, for an individual to perform a Hajj on behalf of their deceased siblings or parents who were unable to do so despite their not having stipulated so in their will. Rather, such acts are done out of love for one’s family and a hope that God will accept this on their behalf.

[Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar (2:72-73)]

[Ustadh] Salman Younas

Checked and approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Salman Younas graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Political Science and Religious Studies. After studying the Islamic sciences online and with local scholars in New York, Ustadh Salman moved to Amman. There he studies Islamic law, legal methodology, belief, hadith methodology, logic, Arabic, and tafsir.

Can I Give Expiatory Payments Instead of Making up Fasts?

/in ANS Fast, ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I have been suffering from depression. I am seeing my doctor regularly. I missed many fasts last year and a few fasts a year before. I am worried of days piling. Am I allowed to feed poor people as fidya for my missed fasts instead of waiting to get healthy?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

If your prescribed medication doesn’t allow you to fast, and its daily timings cannot be changed, you have a reasonable excuse to miss the fast and make it up later.

However, you cannot give expiatory payments (fidya) unless you are [normally] both elderly and chronically unable to fast. Thus, all you need to do is make up the fasts. I’d suggest doing so when the days are shorter and it is easier to manage your medication.

Ask Allah Most High for well-being, and to facilitate worship for you in every state.

Please also see: The Complete Guide to Fasting

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,
[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

What Should Do About Missed Days of Fast Due to Dialysis?

/in ANS Fast, ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I have been diagnosed with ESRD. I was extremely sick last year and did not fast. I paid the fidyah for all my missed fasts of the past. This year I feel much better. I can only fast on my off days from dialysis. After Ramadan do I have to make up all fasts that I will miss because of dialysis? Will I have to make up all of last years fast for which I paid the fidyah?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

I pray that this message finds you well, insha’Allah. May Allah Most High grant you a complete recovery by His Infinite Grace.

According to the Hanafi School, expiatory payments (fidya) are not due nor valid except in the case of established chronic inability to fast that will last until death.

Further, if you made the payments after validly meeting the criteria, yet subsequently gained the ability and strength to fast, you would need to make those missed fasts up (qada’).

However, this wouldn’t negate the reward of having made the payments out of worship and sincerity. Allah Most High says that He “never wastes the reward of those who do good.” [9:120]

As for intravenous medication (IV), it doesn’t affect the validity of the fast as the skin pores aren’t a legally valid point of entry. Hence, you you can fast on your dialysis days too.

[ShaykhiZada, Majma‘ al-Anhur Sharh Multaqa al-Abhur]

Please also see: Brief Overview of Expiatory Payments (fidya) and: Making Up for Fasts Missed Due to Illness and Menstruation and: Too Sick to Fast in Ramadan, Too Poor to Pay the Expiatory Payment (Fidya)

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,
[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.

Can I Delay Making up Fasts After This Ramadan? [Shafi’i]

/in ANS Fast (Shafi-Fiqh), ANS Shafi'i Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Shaykh Shuaib Ally

Question: I have been trying to make up fasts for some years now. I wanted to make all of them up this year, but I feel this is becoming difficult as I have to also dedicate myself to my family and my job. Is it okay to do what I can and make up the remaining days and pay the fidya after this Ramadan?

Answer: Assalamu ‘alaykum,

I pray that you are well. May Allah reward you for attempting to make up your missed fasts, and may He facilitate this for you.

When can one Make Up Missed Fasts?

In terms of permissibility, one can delay the fasts they must make up, but must be performed at any time before the next Ramadan.

As a practical matter, one should strive to make them up as soon as possible, such that they do not run out of time or end up struggling to complete them.

Not doing so before the following Ramadan

If one does not do so before the next Ramadan, barring a reason that would have prevented the fast in the first place, one must pay an expiation (fidya) for each day of missed fast. This fidya would recur every Ramadan that the fast is delayed beyond.

By default, one is sinful for not making up the fasts if one is able to do so. However, whether or not God considers a specific person’s actions blameworthy is something left up to His grace, as He is in a better position to assess a given person’s life circumstances.

God knows best.

Shuaib Ally

Photo: sriram bala

How Can Someone Too Old to Fast Can Make up Deliberately Missed Fasts During Ramadan?

/in ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: As salam alaykum,

A lady who is old now and can’t fast anymore had not fasted for years when she was young. Also, when she started fasting, she didn’t make up for the days she couldn’t fast due to menstruation and now wants to make up for all those missed fasts.

How should she make up for those fasts given that she can’t fast anymore?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I pray that this message finds you well, insha’Allah.

If she is unable to fast, and this inability is chronic such that she is not expected to recover from it, she would need to pay the expiation (fidya).

The expiation is the monetary equivalent of approximately 2.2kg of wheat, the price of which you should confirm with your local mosque or Islamic centre, or a reliable scholar.

Further, she would need to repent for deliberately missing fasts during Ramadan. [see: A Reader on Tawba (Repentance)]

Please also see: Brief Overview of Expiatory Payments (fidya) and: Too Sick to Fast in Ramadan, Too Poor to Pay the Expiatory Payment (Fidya)

And Allah alone knows best.

wassalam,

Tabraze Azam

Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Can I Pay Money to Make Up for My Fasts?

/in ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

I would like to know the amount per day to be paid for missed obligatory fasts that I have not made up.

If there is no stipulated amount is there a way to calculate this rate per fasts missed?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.

If you have missed fasts in your dues, you need to make these up. There is no expiation for delaying them until the following Ramadan.

Please also see: The Complete Guide to Fasting

And Allah alone gives success.

wassalam,

Tabraze Azam

Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

What Can We Do about Missed Prayers of a Deceased?

/in ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalamu’alaykum,

What is the expiation for missed obligatory prayers

If someone passes away and couldn’t make up the missed prayers – can his family members expiate for it? Who is responsible and how can one do it?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.

The expiation (fidya) is the monetary equivalent of approximately 2kg of wheat, per prayer.

There are six prayers to expiate for, and this includes the Witr which is operationally obligatory.

You should pay the total amount to a needy Muslim.

If a bequest was made by the deceased, the money should be deducted from a third of his estate. Otherwise, anybody can make the payment on his behalf.

Please also see: How To Make Expiatory Payments (Fidya) To Compensate For the Missed Fasts and Prayers of a Deceased?

And Allah alone gives success.

wassalam,
Tabraze Azam

Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

How To Make Expiatory Payments To Compensate for Missed Obligatory Fasts or Prayers of a Deceased Muslim?

/in ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question:Assalamu aleikum,

Can you please explain in detail how to make expiatory payments (fidya) to compensate for missed obligatory fasts or prayers of a deceased muslim?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.

The expiatory payment (fidya) is the equivalent of 2.2kg of wheat. For the exact amount in your locality, please consult your local mosque or scholars.

This amount should be paid in lieu of all missed religious obligations– prayers [= this is six payments for one days’ worth of prayers], fasts, zakat, udhiya, sadaqat al-fitr, prostrations of recital, and so on.

Considering the severity of the matter, it would be wise to perform the calculations with a local, knowledgeable scholar to ensure that you cover everything soundly.

And Allah alone gives success.

wassalam,

Tabraze Azam

Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Paying Expiation and Not Fasting Due to a Chronic Illness

/in ANS Hanafi Fiqh /by sufyan

Answered by Ustadh Salman Younas

Question: I have a long term stomach ailment which prevents me from eating properly, the result of which is that I have a very low BMI (approximately 15.9). Also I am currently unemployed and have not been able to find a stable job for the last 5 years and I am in a very weak state financially. Also I owe money as a result of student loans.

1. Do I need to fast? – I fasted last year, and lost approximately 4lb in weight, which to the best of my knowledge I have not put back on again.

2. If I don’t fast what are my options? – I don’t feel that I have enough money to pay the expiation i.e. to feed a poor person by current standards of my location for every fast missed, as I myself am not able to eat to that standard as a norm.

3. I did not fast in 2011 and paid expiation, but in 2012 by the mercy of Allah I managed to make up for 10 of those fasts. Alhamdulillah! I’m considering fasting this year and making up for another 10 fasts, but would such an action be permissible if it could cause me harm? I keep on thinking to myself that I should have Imaan in Allah and fulfil my obligation and If I do this i.e. have Imaan then no harm will come to me and Inshallah I will earn the good pleasure of Allah — are these the thoughts of a sound rational mind? — or should I follow the advice of my doctor and not fast?

Answer: assalamu `alaykum

May Allah give you health and well-being.

In answer to your questions:

1. The default is that one is obliged to fast. However, if one is unable to do so due to an illness then there are two possible scenarios:

a. the illness is not chronic, namely it is likely that one will recover from it, or

b. the illness is chronic, namely it it highly unlikely that one will recover from it.

In the first case, one can miss fasts while they are in the state of illness but will have to make such missed fasts up later. No expiation (fidya) is due in this scenario.

In the second case, one can miss fasts and will pay expiation (fidya) for each missed fast. In other words, fidya is due only for those that have chronic illnesses that are not likely to be cured.

In order to determine whether you are suffering from a chronic illness, a reliable doctor needs to be consulted regarding the specifics of your health situation. Even if the illness is not deemed chronic, in which case you would have to make up the fasts rather than pay the expiatory payment (fidya), you should still consult a reliable doctor on what your body can reasonably handle, when the appropriate time is to undertake such make-ups, and how often it can be done (a schedule). To force yourself to make-up fasts when there are clear signs and warnings of bodily harm is to ignore the dispensation that Allah has blessed us with.

2. The expiatory payment (fidya) for missed fasts during Ramadan only applies to someone who has an illness that prevents him from fasting and he does not have any hope of recovering from it. The expiatory payment is the monetary equivalent of 2.2 kg of wheat per fast. One should consult a reliable local scholar to determine how much the monetary value of this would be.

A condition for this is that one possess sufficient wealth to actually pay these expiatory payments. If one is considered poor and unable to pay the expiatory payment then he should seek Allah’s forgiveness and have remorse for the non-fulfillment of such an obligation. [Haskafi, Durr al-Mukhtar; Ibn `Abidin, Hashiya]

However, it should be noted here that the expiatory payment is a very meager sum. One should take all means to try and pay it or some of it, even if it means spreading out such payments or attempting to save some wealth over a duration of time. Resorting to the ruling mentioned previously should only be done as a last resort when one is certain that one simply does not have the means to fulfill such payments or if such payments would lead to hardship in one’s life.

I hope this answers your questions, and we ask Allah to grant you a speedy recovery.

Salman

Must I Fast 180 Days as Expiation for 3 Broken Fasts?

A Ramadan Reader: A Comprehensive Answers Guide to Getting the Most Out of Ramadan

Preparing for Ramadan

Tarawih

Expiatory Payment (Fidya) for Missed Ramadan Fasts

Things that Break the Fast

Fasting and Illness

Laylat al-Qadr

Making Up Missed Fasts

Breaking One’s Fast/Not Fasting Due to Hardship

Fasting and Pregnancy

The Spiritual Retreat (I`tikaf)

Ramadan Advice, Benefits and Inspiration

General Ramadan Answers

Do I Have to Give Expiatory Payments for the Missed Prayers of a Family Member?

Can I Give Expiatory Payments Instead of Making up Fasts?

What Should Do About Missed Days of Fast Due to Dialysis?

Can I Delay Making up Fasts After This Ramadan? [Shafi’i]

Photo: sriram bala

How Can Someone Too Old to Fast Can Make up Deliberately Missed Fasts During Ramadan?

Can I Pay Money to Make Up for My Fasts?

What Can We Do about Missed Prayers of a Deceased?

How To Make Expiatory Payments To Compensate for Missed Obligatory Fasts or Prayers of a Deceased Muslim?

Paying Expiation and Not Fasting Due to a Chronic Illness

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Preparing for Ramadan

Tarawih

Expiatory Payment (Fidya) for Missed Ramadan Fasts

Things that Break the Fast

Fasting and Illness

Laylat al-Qadr

Making Up Missed Fasts

Breaking One’s Fast/Not Fasting Due to Hardship

Fasting and Pregnancy

The Spiritual Retreat (I`tikaf)

Ramadan Advice, Benefits and Inspiration

General Ramadan Answers

Photo: sriram bala

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