Lesson 4: Question and Answer on the Fiqh of Fasting
- Inhaling of smoke that is not deliberate is excused.
- When one is conscious they are fasting, yet they deliberately inhale the steam of the pot of ‘biryani’, it breaks your fast. However if you were not aware, you are excused.
- Smelling the food is not an issue. The issue is deliberately inhaling the steam itself.
- Smelling ‘itr is fine.
- Calendar timings: Hold yourself to a reliable calendar and be consistent with it.
- Ramada fast: Can make the intention until the midday.
- Taraweeh: Perform taraweeh after praying the isha prayer. If you haven’t prayed Isha and taraweeh has begin, you pray isha first and then taraweeh prayer.
- Don’t distract others and Imam in the masjid by forming your own congregation. Pray on your own on the side and then go and pray taraweeh. It’s a different story if you can find a place where you won’t disturb anyone. i.e. masjid has a basement etc.
- Anytime your fast is broken whether accidently or deliberately – Repent and you have to have an expiation. The rest of the day you have to refrain unless you broke it for an excuse.
- If you are a traveler and you become residence – The rest of the day you have to refrain.
- Similarly if a child attains puberty they have to refrain.
- As well as converts, if they convert, they have to refrain. However you don’t talk to them beyond their understanding. (Be easy on them etc)
- Eid ul Adha has three days: In terms of fasting, you don’t fast the two days of eid and with eid ul adha, the three days after that, you don’t fast as well. So Five days in total where you don’t fast.
- Eid ul Fitr- Eid is just the one day. The second day you can fast.
- Its sunnah after Ramadan to start the six days of Shawwal.
- No preference of fasting later or immediately rightly after Ramadan.
- (Kaffarah is a punishment) Expiation: Fasting 60 consecutive days. If you fall from day 59th day, you have to start all over again. It’s difficult. (This is when you break a fast deliberately without any invalidation) (You ate, drank, intercourse)
- Lesser invalidation: swallow the glue, toothpaste. Those kinds of things don’t require expiation if they are out of reminisce, you have to repent and make it up.