Rulings on fasting for women (62) A woman who has reached the age of puberty, but is too shy to tell anyone, so she does not fast, has to repent and make up the days she has missed, as well as feeding a poor person for each day, as an act of expiation for delaying her fast, if the following Ramadaan comes and she has not yet made up those days. Her case is like that of a woman who fasts the days of her period out of shyness, and does not make them up later.
If a woman does not know exactly how many days she has missed, she
should fast
until she is fairly certain that she has made up the days she had missed
and not
made up from previous Ramadaans, and offer the expiation for delaying
for each
day. She can do this at the same time as fasting or separately,
depending on what
she is able to do
(63) A woman should not fast � except during Ramadaan � if her husband
is
present without his permission, but if he is travelling then it does not
matter.
(64) When a menstruating woman sees the white substance � which is
discharged
by the uterus when the period is finished � by which a woman knows that
she has
now become taahir (pure), she should have the intention to fast from the
night
before and should fast. If she does not have a time when she knows she
is taahir,
she should insert a piece of cotton or something similar, and if it
comes out clean,
she should fast, and if she starts to bleed again, she should stop
fasting, whether the
blood is a flow or just spotting, because it breaks the fast as long as
it comes at the
time of the period. (Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa�imah, 10/154).
If the cessation of bleeding continues until Maghrib, and she has fasted
with the
intention from the night before, then her fast is valid. If a woman
feels the
movement of menstrual blood inside her, but is does not come out until
after the
sun has set, her fast is valid and she does not have to make the day up
later.
If a woman�s period or post-natal bleeding ceases during the night, and
she makes
the intention to fast, but dawn comes before she is able to do ghusl,
according to all
the scholars her fast is valid. (al-Fath, 4/148)
(65) If a woman knows that her period will come tomorrow, she should
still
continue her intention and keep fasting; she should not break her fast
until she
actually sees the blood.
(66) It is better for a menstruating woman to remain natural and accept
what Allaah
has decreed for her by not taking any medication to prevent her from
bleeding. She
should be content with what Allaah accepts from her of breaking her fast
during her
period and making those days up later. This is how the Mothers of the
Believers
and the women of the salaf were. (Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa�imah,
10/151). Moreover,
there is medical evidence to prove that many of the things used to
prevent bleeding
are in fact harmful, and many women have suffered from irregular periods
as a
result of taking them. However, if a woman does that and takes something
to stop
the bleeding, then fasts, this is OK.
(67) Istihaadah (non-menstrual vaginal bleeding) does not have any
effect on the
validity of the fast.
(68) If a pregnant woman miscarries and the foetus is formed or has a
discernible
outline of any part of the body, such as a head or hand, then her blood
is nifaas; if,
however, she passes something that looks like a blood clot (�alaq) or a
chewed
piece of meat that has no discernible human features, her bleeding is
istihaadah and
she has to fast, if she is able, otherwise she can break her fast and
make it up later
on. (Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa�imah, 10/224). Once she becomes clean
after having an
operation to clean the womb (D&C), she should fast. The scholars stated
that the
embryo is considered to start taking shape after 80 days of pregnancy.
If a woman becomes clean from nifaas before forty days, she should fast
and do
ghusl so that she can pray. (al-Mughni ma�a al-Sharh al-Kabeer, 1/360).
If the bleeding
resumes within forty days after the birth, she should stop fasting,
because this is still
nifaas. If the bleeding continues after the fortieth day, she should
make the
intention to fast and do ghusl (according to the majority of scholars),
and any
bleeding beyond the fortieth day is considered to be istihaadah
(non-menstrual
bleeding) � unless it coincides with the usual time of her period, in
which case it is
hayd (menstrual blood).
If a breastfeeding woman fasts during the day and sees a spot of blood
during the
night, although she was clean during the day, her fast is still valid.
(Fataawa
al-Lajnah al-Daa�imah, 10/150)
(69) According to the most correct opinion, a woman who is pregnant or
breastfeeding is regarded as being like one who is ill, so she is
permitted not to fast,
and she only has to make up the days that she missed, whether she fears
for herself
or for her child. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said:
�Allaah has lifted the obligation of fasting and part of the prayer from
the traveller,
and He has lifted the obligation of fasting from the pregnant and
breastfeeding
woman.� (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 3/85; he said (it is a) hasan
hadeeth). If a pregnant
woman fasts and experiences some bleeding, her fast is still valid; this
does not
affect her fast at all. (Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa�imah, 10/225).
(70) In the case of a woman who is obliged to fast, if her husband has
intercourse
with her during the day in Ramadaan with her consent, then the ruling
that applies
to him also applies to her. If, however, he forces her to do that, she
should do her
best to resist him, and she does not have to offer expiation. Ibn �Aqeel
(may Allaah
have mercy on him) said: �In the case of a man who has intercourse with
his wife
during the day in Ramadaan whilst she is sleeping, she does not have to
offer
expiation.� But to be on the safe side, she should make up that fast
later on. (Shaykh
al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) was of the opinion
that this did not invalidate
her fast at all).
A woman who knows that her husband cannot control himself should keep
away
from him and not adorn herself during the day in Ramadaan.
Women have to make up the fasts that they miss during Ramadaan, even
without
their husbands� knowledge. It is not a condition for an obligatory fast
for a woman
to have the permission of her husband. If a woman starts to observe an
obligatory
fast, she is not allowed to break it except for a legitimate reason. Her
husband is not
permitted to order her to break her fast when she is making up a day
that she has
missed; he is not allowed to have intercourse with her when she is
making up a
missed fast, and she is not allowed to obey him in that regard. (Fataawa
al-Lajnah
al-Daa�imah, 10/353).
In the case of voluntary fasts, a woman is not permitted to start a
non-obligatory
fast when her husband is present without his permission, because of the
hadeeth
narrated by Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him), according to
which
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: �No woman
should
fast when her husband is present except with his permission.� (Reported
by
al-Bukhaari, 4793).
[ Table of Contents ]
In conclusion, this is what I was able to write about issues concerning
fasting. I ask
Allaah to help us to remember Him, thank Him and worship Him properly,
and to
end our Ramadaan with forgiveness, and to save us from the Fire.
May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad, and his family and companions,
and
grant them peace.
smime.p7s
Description: S/MIME Cryptographic Signature
