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Praise be to Allah.

Allah has prescribed fasting in accordance with the highest wisdom.

He has commanded the fasting person to fast in a moderate manner, so he should not harm himself by fasting or consume anything that will invalidate the fast.

Types of things that invalidate the fast
Hence the things that invalidate the fast are of two types:

1- Some of the things that invalidate the fast involve things coming out of the body, such as intercourse, deliberate vomiting, menstruation and cupping. These things that come out of the body weaken it. Hence Allah has described them as being things that invalidate the fast, so that the fasting person will not combine the weakness that results from fasting with the weakness that results from these things, and thus be harmed by his fast or his fast no longer be moderate.

2- And some of the things that invalidate the fast involve things entering the body, such as eating and drinking. If the fasting person eats or drinks, he does not achieve the purpose of fasting. (Majmu’ al-Fatawa, 25/248)

Allah has summed up the things that break the fast in the verse where He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“So now have sexual relations with them and seek that which Allah has ordained for you (offspring), and eat and drink until the white thread (light) of dawn appears to you distinct from the black thread (darkness of night), then complete your Sawm (fast) till the nightfall.” [al-Baqarah 2:187]

In this verse Allah mentions the main things that invalidate the fast, which are eating, drinking and intercourse. The other things that break the fast were mentioned by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in his Sunnah.


7 Things invalidate your fast
There are seven things that break the fast, as follows:

Intercourse
Masturbation
Eating and drinking
Anything that is regarded as coming under the same heading as eating and drinking
Letting blood by means of cupping and the like
Vomiting deliberately
Menstruation and nifaas

Praise be to Allah.

No good deeds will be accepted from one who does not pray – no zakaah, no fasting, no Hajj or anything else.

Al-Bukhaari (520) narrated that Buraydah said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever does not pray ‘Asr, his good deeds will be annulled.”

What is meant by “his good deeds will be annulled” is that they will be rendered invalid and will be of no benefit to him. This hadeeth indicates that Allaah will not accept any good deed from one who does not pray, so the one who does not pray will not benefit at all from his good deeds and no good deed of his will be taken up to Allaah.

It seems from the hadeeth that there are two types of those who do not pray: those who do not pray at all, which annuls all their good deeds, and those who do not offer a particular prayer on a particular day, which annuls the good deeds of that day. So annulment of all good deeds happens to those who forsake all the prayers, and annulment of the good deeds of a particular day happens to the one who omits a particular prayer.

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen was asked in Fataawa al-Siyaam (p. 87) about the ruling on the fasting of one who does not pray.

He replied:

The fast of one who does not pray is not valid and is not accepted, because the one who does not pray is a kaafir and an apostate, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“But if they repent [by rejecting Shirk (polytheism) and accept Islamic Monotheism], perform As-Salaah (Iqaamat-as-Salaah) and give Zakaah, then they are your brethren in religion”

[al-Tawbah 9:11]

And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Between a man and shirk and kufr stands his giving up prayer.” Narrated by Muslim, 82. And he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The covenant that separates us from them is prayer; whoever gives up prayer is a kaafir.” Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 2621; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi.

This is also the view of most of the Sahaabah, if not their consensus. ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Shaqeeq (may Allaah have mercy on him), who was one of the well-known Taabi’een, said: The companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not think that omitting any action made a person a kaafir, except for prayer. Based on this, if a person fasts but he does not pray, then his fast is rejected and not accepted, and it will not avail him anything before Allaah on the Day of Resurrection. We say to him: Pray then fast, because if you fast but do not pray, then your fast will be rejected, because acts of worship are not accepted from a kaafir.

The Standing Committee (10/140) was asked: if a person is keen to fast in Ramadaan and to pray in Ramadaan only, but he stops praying as soon as Ramadaan is over, does his fasting count?

They replied:

Prayer is one of the pillars of Islam, and it is the most important pillar after the Shahaadatayn. It is an individual obligation (fard ‘ayn), and whoever does not do it because he denies that it is obligatory, or he does not do it because he is careless and lazy, is a kaafir. With regard to those who fast Ramadaan and pray in Ramadaan only, this is trying to cheat Allaah, and unfortunate indeed are those who only acknowledge Allaah in Ramadaan. Their fasting is not valid if they do not pray at times other than Ramadaan, rather this makes them kaafirs in the sense of major kufr (kufr akbar), even if they do not deny that prayer is obligatory, according to the more sound of the two scholarly opinions.

Iyaebe:
Lukgaf please say something

1. The Quran is divided into 114 Chapters called Surahs.

The first Surah is called Fatiha (The Opening) and the final Surah is called Nas (Mankind).
The shortest Surah is Surah al Kawther (108) and the longest Surah is Surah Baqarah.
The other shortest Surahs are Al Asr (103) and An Nasr chapter 110.

The Surahs are known as Medina or Mecca Surahs due to the place where they were revealed.

2. A Juz, also known as Siparah in Urdu, is another part of the Quran.

There are 30 Juz in the Quran. This division is used for readers of the Quran to be able to complete a reading of the Quran in a certain period of time, like during Ramadhan or over 30 weeks. So a Juz can be completed in one day or in one week.

3. There is also a division based on finishing the Quran in 7 days called Manzil.
i. Al-Fatihah (chapter 1) through An-Nisa' (chapter 4) consisting of 4 surahs.
ii. Al-Ma'ida (chapter 5) through At-Tawba (chapter 9) consisting of 5 surahs.
iii. Yunus (chapter 10) through An-Nahl (chapter 16) consisting of 7 surahs.
iv. Al Isra' (chapter 17) through Al-Furqan (chapter 25) consisting of 9 surahs.
v. Ash-Shuara' (chapter 26) through Ya-Seen (chapter 36) consisting of 11 surahs.
vi. As-Saaffat (chapter 37) through Al-Hujurat (chapter 49) consisting of 13 surahs.
vii. Qaf (chapter 50) through An-Nas (chapter 114) consisting of 65 surahs.

It is recommended that a reading of the Quran should be done at least once in every year.

3. A Hizb is a part of the Quran which is half the length of a Juz.
Each Hizb is made up of four quarters, known as Rubu3. There are 60 Hizb in the Quran.

4. An Ayat is a verse or sign of the Quran.
There are some 6348 verses in the Quran (including Bismillah at the beginning of each Surah).

It has been recommended for one who wishes to Hafiz (memorise) the Quran that they should memorise 5 Ayats at a time. This would take just under 4 years to complete the memorisation of Quran.

The longest verse in the Quran is found in Surah Baqarah verse 282, which is a whole page long.

The shortest verse in the Quran in terms of words is found in Surah Rahman 55:64 which is one word.
The shortest verse in the Quran in terms of letters are found at the beginning of Surahs Ta Ha (20), Yaseen (36), and Ha Meem, they comprise of only two letters.

You can use any of these divisions not only to read the Quran but also to memorise the Quran. Depending on your age, schedule and how organised you are, memorisation of the Quran can take anything from 3 to 10 years.

And Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta'aala) Knows best.

Many people misunderstand the true nature of fasting, and they make it an occasion for eating and drinking, making special sweets and staying up late at night and watching shows on satellite TV.

They make preparations for that long before Ramadan, lest they miss out on some food or prices go up. They prepare by buying food, preparing drinks and looking at the satellite TV guide so they can choose which shows to follow and which to ignore. They are truly unaware of the real nature of fasting in Ramadan ; they take worship and piety out of the month and make it just for their bellies and their eyes.

Others are aware of the real nature of fasting in the month of Ramadan, so they start to prepare from Sha’ban, and some of them even start before that. Among the best ways of preparing for the month of Ramadan are:

1- Sincere repentance

This is obligatory at all times, but because of the approach of a great and blessed month, it is even more important to hasten to repent from sins between you and your Lord, and between you and other people by giving them their rights, so that when the blessed month begins you may busy yourself with acts of worship with a clean heart and peace of mind. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And all of you beg Allah to forgive you all, O believers, that you may be successful.” [al-Nur 24:31]

Al-Agharr ibn Yasar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “O people, repent to Allah for I repent to Him one hundred times each day.” Narrated by Muslim (2702)

2- Du’a (supplication)

Some of the salaf used to pray to Allah for six months that they would live until Ramadan, then they would pray for five months afterwards that He would accept it from them.

The Muslim should ask his Lord to let him live until Ramadan with a strong religious commitment and good physical health, and he should ask Him to help him obey Him during the month, and ask Him to accept his good deeds from him.

3- Rejoicing at the approach of the blessed month

The arrival of Ramadan is one of the great blessings that Allah bestows upon His Muslim slave, because Ramadan is one of the occasions of good in which the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are closed . It is the month of the Quran and of decisive battles in the history of our religion.

Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say: ‘In the Bounty of Allah, and in His Mercy (i.e. Islam and the Quran); —therein let them rejoice.’ That is better than what (the wealth) they amass.” [Yunus 10:58]

4- Discharging the duty of any outstanding obligatory fasts

Abu Salamah said: I heard ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) say: I would owe fasts from the previous Ramadan and I would not be able to make them up except in Sha’ban. Narrated by al-Bukhari (1849) and Muslim (1146).

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“From her keenness to do that in Sha’ban it may be understood that it is not permissible to delay making them up until another Ramadan begins.” Fath al-Bari (4/191)

5- Seeking knowledge in order to be able to follow the rulings on fasting and to understand the virtues of Ramadan.

6- Hastening to complete any tasks that may distract the Muslim from doing acts of worship.

7- Sitting with one’s family members – wife and children – to tell them of the rulings on fasting and encourage the young ones to fast.

8- Preparing some books which can be read at home or given to the imam of the mosque to read to the people during Ramadan.

9- Fasting some of the month of Sha’ban in preparation for fasting Ramadan.

‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to fast until we said: He will not break his fast, and he used not to fast until we said: He will not fast. And I never saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) complete a month of fasting except Ramadan, and I never saw him fast more in any month than in Sha’ban. Narrated by al-Bukhari (1868) and Muslim (1156).

Usamah ibn Zayd said: I said: O Messenger of Allah, I do not see you fasting in any month as you fast in Sha’ban? He said: “That is a month that people neglect between Rajab and Ramadan, but it is a month in which people’s deeds are taken up to the Lord of the Worlds and I would like my deeds to be taken up when I am fasting.” Narrated by al-Nasai (2357); classed as hasan by al-Albani in Sahih al-Nasai.

This hadith explains the wisdom behind fasting in Sha’ban, which is that it is a month in which deeds are taken up (to Allah). Some of the scholars mentioned another reason, which is that this fasting is like Sunnah prayers offered beforehand in relation to the obligatory prayer; they prepare the soul for performing the obligatory action, and the same may be said of fasting Sha’ban before Ramadan.

10- Reading Quran

Salamah ibn Kuhayl said: “It was said that Sha’ban was the month of the Quran readers.”

When Sha’ban began, ‘Amr ibn Qays would close his shop and free his time for reading Quran.

Abu Bakr al-Balkhi said: “The month of Rajab is the month for planting, the month of Sha’ban is the month of irrigating the crops, and the month of Ramadan is the month of harvesting the crops.”

He also said: “The likeness of the month of Rajab is that of the wind, the likeness of Sha’ban is that of the clouds and the likeness of Ramadan is that of the rain; whoever does not plant and sow in Rajab, and does not irrigate in Sha’ban, how can he reap in Ramadan? Now Rajab has passed, so what will you do in Sha’ban if you are seeking Ramadan? This is how your Prophet and the early generations of the ummah were in this blessed month, so what will you do?”

Best deeds in Ramadan

For more information on the deeds that the Muslim should do in Ramadan, please see these answers: 26869 and 12468 .

And Allah is the Source of strength.

Praise be to Allah.

The woman is obliged to cover her face and hands in front of non-mahram men, because there is a great deal of evidence to that effect, including the verse (interpretation of the meaning):

{O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful} [al-Ahzaab 33:59].

It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas and others that only a woman’s eyes, or one eye, is allowed to be visible.

It says in Nayl al-Ma’aarib Sharh Daleel at-Taalib (1/125): With regard to the adult, free woman, her entire body is ‘awrah in prayer, even her nails and her hair, except her face.

The face and hands of the adult, free woman are ‘awrah outside of prayer with regard to looking, as is the case with the rest of her body. End quote.

The mask is not sufficient to cover the face, even though it is better than leaving the face uncovered, and it may be a way out for one whose family do not let her wear niqab, or whose country does not allow her to wear niqab.

But in the case of one who is able to cover her face, the mask does not cover all of the face, so she is not doing what is required, and is sinning thereby.

And Allah knows best.

Praise be to Allah.

Offering prayers for rain (salaat al-istisqa’) is Sunnah, as confirmed by saheeh hadeeths and the practice of the early generations of Islam. Ibn Qudaamah said: Prayer for rain is a confirmed Sunnah, proven by the practice of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and of his successors (the caliphs – may Allah be pleased with them).

End quote from al-Mughni, 2/148

Abu Dawood (1165), at-Tirmidhi (558), an-Nasaa’i (1506) and Ibn Maajah (1266) narrated that Ishaaq ibn Abdillah ibn Kinaanah said: al-Waleed ibn ‘Uqbah, who was the governor of Madinah, sent me to ask Ibn ‘Abbaas about the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) for rain (istisqa’). He said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) went out wearing modest clothes, walking humbly and beseeching Allah, until he reached the prayer place, where he ascended the minbar, but he did not give a khutbah like this khutbah of yours; rather he continued to offer supplication (du‘aa’), beseech Allah and recite takbeer, then he prayed two rak‘ahs as he used to pray at Eid.

Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood, etc

DeepSight:
Thank you very much for fulfilling your promise.

Thus if I understand correctly:

If a woman commits adultery, for instance - and -

1. She is a Muslim
2. It is proven before the ruler

It is acceptable for the ruler to put her to death.
Is this correct?

Kazeem47:
Does it mean one can fast all the days of Sha'aban or only Mondays and Thursdays or 13th,14th and 15?

DeepSight:
Lukgaf I am still awaiting your thread on the scholarly treatment of honor killings.
Do not run away from it, you promised.

Praise be to Allah.

Killing a Muslim unlawfully is a serious matter and a grave crime. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell to abide therein; and the Wrath and the Curse of Allaah are upon him, and a great punishment is prepared for him”

[al-Nisa’ 4:93]

al-Bukhaari (6355) narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The believer will continue to be encompassed by the mercy of Allaah so long as he does not shed blood that it is forbidden to shed.”

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has explained to us the reasons for which it becomes permissible to shed this blood. He said: “It is not permissible to shed the blood of a Muslim who bears witness that there is no god but Allaah and that I am the Messenger of Allaah except in three cases: a life for a life (murder), zina of one of who is previously-married (adultery), and the one who changes his religion and forsakes the jamaa’ah.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6370) and Muslim (3175). From this it is clear that zina on the part of one who is married is one of the reasons that make it permissible to kill a person, but the zaani (adulterer) cannot be killed unless two conditions are met:

-1-

He should be previously-married. The scholars have explained what is meant by previously-married in this case. Zakariya al-Ansaari (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Asna’l-Mataalib (4/128): The previously-married person, whether male or female, is any adult of sound mind who has previously had intercourse within a valid marriage. End quote. Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Sharh al-Zaad (6/120): There are five conditions for (being described as) previously-married:

1-Intercourse

2-Within a valid marriage

3-Being an adult

4-Being of sound reason

5-Being free (i.e., not a slave).

End quote.

-2-

The second condition is that it should be proven that the hadd punishment is deserved, by the testimony of four male witnesses who saw the private parts meet, or the person should freely admit to having committed zina, without being forced to do so.

If it is proven that he deserves the hadd punishment, it is not permissible for individuals to carry out this punishment themselves. Rather the matter must be referred to the ruler or his deputy to prove the crime and carry out the punishment, because if individuals carry out hadd punishments, that will lead to a great deal of corruption and evil.

Ibn Muflih al-Hanbali (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Furoo’ (6/53): It is haraam for anyone to carry out a hadd punishment except the ruler or his deputy. This is something on which the fuqaha’ of Islam are unanimously agreed, as was stated in al-Mawsoo’ah al-Fiqhiyyah (5/280): The fuqaha’ are unanimously agreed that the one who should carry out hadd punishments is the ruler or his deputy, whether the punishment is transgressing one of the limits of Allaah, may He be exalted, such as zina, or a transgression against another person, such as slander. End quote.

Concealing one who has committed this evil deed so that he may repent and set his affairs straight before he dies is better than exposing him, let alone killing him. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) turned away from Maa’iz (may Allaah be pleased with him) after he admitted committing zina, and he ignored him until he had repeated his confession several times, then he carried out the hadd punishment on him.

Based on this, that which is called “honour killing” is a transgression and wrongdoing, because it is killing one who does not deserve to be killed, namely the virgin if she commits zina (fornication), but the shar’i punishment in her case is flogging and banishment for one year, not execution, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “(The punishment for zina) of a virgin with a virgin person is one hundred lashes and exile for one year.” Narrated by Muslim. The one who kills her has killed a believing soul whom Allaah has forbidden to be killed, and there is a stern warning concerning that, as Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And those who invoke not any other ilaah (god) along with Allaah, nor kill such person as Allaah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual intercourse ___ and whoever does this shall receive the punishment.

69. The torment will be doubled to him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein in disgrace”

[al-Furqaan 25:68-69]

Even if we assume that she deserves to be executed (if she was previously-married and committed zina), no one should do that but the ruler – as stated above. Moreover, in many cases killing is done on the basis of accusations and speculation, without proving whether the immoral action even took place.

And Allaah knows best.

There are a few things – certain types of water animals – which some scholars exclude from the permission outlined above. These are:

1- Crocodiles: The correct view is that eating these is not allowed, because they have fangs and live on land – even though they may spend a lot of time in the water – so precedence should be given to the reason for forbidding it (it is a land animal that has fangs).

2- Frogs: It is not permitted to eat them because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) forbade killing them, as is reported in the hadith of ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Uthman, who said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) forbade the killing of frogs. (Narrated by Imam Ahmad and Ibn Majah; see also Sahih al-Jami’, 6970).

The rule is that everything which we are forbidden to kill, we are not allowed to eat; if we are allowed to eat it we are allowed to kill it.

Some scholars exclude sea snakes, but the correct view is that as they live nowhere except in the water, we are permitted to eat them, because of the general nature of the ayah (interpretation of the meaning): “Lawful to you is (the pursuit of) water-game and its use for food – for the benefit of yourselves …” [al-Maidah 5:96]

3- Otters and turtles: The correct view is that to be on the safe side, it is permissible to eat them after slaughtering them properly, because they live both on land and in the sea.

Here the rule is that in the case of animals that live both on land and in the sea, the rules concerning land animals should be given precedence, to be on the safe side, so they must be slaughtered properly, except for crabs which do not need to be slaughtered, even though they live both on land and in the sea, because they do not have blood.

Everything that can cause harm is forbidden as food, even if it comes from the sea, because Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “… And do not kill yourselves (nor kill one another). Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you.” [al-Nisa 4:29] and: “… and do not throw yourselves into destruction…” [al-Baqarah 2:195]

(See al-Mughni, 11/83; Hashiyah al-Rawd, 7/430; Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 3/197; and Ahkam al-At’imah by al-Fawzan).