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TIMES WHEN IT IS OBLIGATORY (WĀJIB) TO ONLY MAKE UP (QAḌĀʾ) A FAST →
← TIMES WHEN IT IS OBLIGATORY (WĀJIB) TO BOTH MAKE UP (QAḌĀʾ) AND GIVE RECOMPENSE (KAFFĀRAH)
RECOMPENSE (KAFFĀRAH) OF A FAST
Ruling 1630. The kaffārah for breaking a fast (ifṭār) unlawfully in the month of Ramadan is that the person must free a slave, or fast for two months in accordance with the instructions that will be mentioned in the next ruling, or feed sixty poor people (fuqarāʾ) or give each of them a mudd – which is approximately 750 grams – of food, i.e. wheat, barley, bread, and suchlike. In the event that none of these is possible for the person, he must give charity to the extent that he can. If this is not possible either, he must seek forgiveness from Allah the Exalted; and the obligatory precaution is that he must give kaffārah whenever he can.
Ruling 1631. Someone who wants to fast for two months for the kaffārah of the month of Ramadan must fast one complete month and one day from the next month continuously. Similarly, based on obligatory precaution, he must fast the rest of that second month continuously. If an obstacle arises that would commonly be considered a legitimate excuse, he does not have to fast that particular day, but once his legitimate excuse expires, he must resume his fasts.
Ruling 1632. Someone who wants to fast for two consecutive months for the kaffārah of a fast of the month of Ramadan must not start at a time when he knows a day on which fasting is unlawful – such as Eid al-Aḍḥā[182] – will fall within the one month and one day period, nor must he fast at a time when he knows a day on which fasting is obligatory (such as a day of the month of Ramadan) will fall within that period.
Ruling 1633. If someone who must fast continuously does not fast one of the days without a legitimate excuse, he must start the kaffārah fasts all over again.
Ruling 1634. If during the days that someone must fast continuously a legitimate excuse arises – such as ḥayḍ, nifās, or a journey on which he has to go – then once the excuse expires, it is not obligatory for him to start the fasts all over again; rather, he will continue the rest of the fasts immediately after the excuse has expired.
Ruling 1635. If a person invalidates his fast by means of something unlawful – whether that thing is fundamentally unlawful, like wine or fornication, or something that has become unlawful due to a particular reason, like eating lawful food that is in a general sense harmful for him, or having intercourse with his wife when she is in the state of ḥayḍ – then in these cases, giving one kaffārah is sufficient. However, the recommended precaution is that he should give the ‘total kaffārah’, i.e. free one slave, fast for two months, and feed sixty poor people or give each of them one mudd of wheat, barley, bread, and suchlike. In the event that all three are not possible for him, he should do the ones that are possible for him.
Ruling 1636. If a fasting person intentionally attributes a lie to Allah the Exalted, the Most Noble Prophet (Ṣ), [or the Infallible Imams (ʿA)], it is not obligatory for him to give kaffārah. However, the recommended precaution is that he should give kaffārah.
Ruling 1637. If on several occasions on a day of the month of Ramadan a person eats, drinks, has sexual intercourse, or masturbates, then giving one kaffārah is sufficient for all of them.
Ruling 1638. If a fasting person does something that invalidates a fast – other than having sexual intercourse or masturbating – and afterwards he has sexual intercourse with his lawful partner, then giving one kaffārah is sufficient for both actions.
Ruling 1639. If a fasting person does something that is lawful but invalidates a fast – for example, he drinks water – and afterwards he does something else that is unlawful and invalidates a fast – for example, he eats unlawful food – then giving one kaffārah is sufficient.
Ruling 1640. If a fasting person burps and something comes up in his mouth, then based on obligatory precaution, if he intentionally swallows it, his fast is invalid and he must keep a qaḍāʾ fast and give kaffārah. If eating that thing is unlawful – for example, when burping, blood or some food-like substance that has lost the form of food reaches his mouth and he intentionally swallows it – then it is better that he give the ‘total kaffārah’ [as defined in Ruling 1635].
Ruling 1641. If someone keeps a vow that he will fast on an assigned day, in the event that he intentionally invalidates his fast on that day, he must give kaffārah. The kaffārah for this will be mentioned in the laws relating to vows.
Ruling 1642. If a fasting person breaks his fast based on the statement of someone who says it is maghrib, despite the fact that he was not confident in the statement being true, and afterwards he finds out that it was not maghrib, or if he doubts whether it is maghrib or not [but still breaks his fasts], then in these cases, qaḍāʾ and kaffārah become obligatory for him. If he was of the belief that the person’s statement was authoritative, then only qaḍāʾ is necessary.
Ruling 1643. If someone intentionally invalidates his fast and travels after ẓuhr, kaffārah is not waived. Similarly, if he intentionally invalidates his fast and then travels before ẓuhr to escape kaffārah [i.e. if he thinks that by being considered a traveller that day, he will have a legitimate excuse for not fasting and so he will not have to give kaffārah for intentionally invalidating his fast], again kaffārah is not waived. In fact, even if it becomes necessary for him to travel before ẓuhr, kaffārah remains obligatory for him.
Ruling 1644. If a person intentionally breaks his fast and afterwards a legitimate excuse arises – such as ḥayḍ, nifās, or an illness – the recommended precaution is that he should give kaffārah, especially if some medication or other such means brought about the ḥayḍ or illness.
Ruling 1645. If a person is certain that it is the first day of the month of Ramadan and he intentionally invalidates his fast, and afterwards it becomes known that it was actually the last day of Shaʿbān, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1646. If a person doubts whether it is the last day of the month of Ramadan or the first of Shawwāl and he intentionally invalidates his fast, and afterwards it becomes known that it was the first of Shawwāl, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1647. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan has sexual intercourse with his wife who is fasting, in the event that he had compelled his wife to do so, he must give kaffārah for invalidating his fast; and based on obligatory precaution, he must give kaffārah for invalidating his wife’s fast as well. If his wife consented to having sexual intercourse, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for each of them.
Ruling 1648. If a woman compels her fasting husband to have sexual intercourse with her, it is not obligatory for her to give kaffārah for invalidating her husband’s fast.
Ruling 1649. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan compels his wife to have sexual intercourse with him and during the intercourse his wife consents, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for each of them; and the recommended precaution is that the man should give two kaffārahs.
Ruling 1650. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan has sexual intercourse with his fasting wife while she is asleep, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for him. Furthermore, his wife's fast is valid and kaffārah is not obligatory for her.
Ruling 1651. If a man compels his wife or a wife compels her husband to do something that invalidates a fast – other than having sexual intercourse – kaffārah is not obligatory for either of them.
Ruling 1652. A man who does not fast due to travelling or illness cannot compel his fasting wife to have sexual intercourse with him; however, if he does compel her, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1653. One must not be negligent in giving kaffārah in the sense that him not giving it would be deemed to be carelessness in performing an obligatory act; however, it is not necessary to give it immediately.
Ruling 1654. If kaffārah becomes obligatory for someone and he does not give it for a few years, nothing is added to it.
Ruling 1655. If someone who must feed sixty poor people as the kaffārah for one day has access to all sixty people, he cannot reduce the number of poor people to feed even if he gives the same amount of kaffārah. For example, he cannot give two mudds to thirty people and suffice with that. He can, however, give a poor person (faqīr) one mudd of food for each of the poor person’s family members, even if they are minors (ṣaghīr) and the poor person accepts this by way of agency (wikālah) for his family, or by way of guardianship (wilāyah) if they are minors. If he cannot find sixty poor people but, for example, he finds thirty people, he can give two mudds of food to each of them. However, based on obligatory precaution, he must give one mudd of food to another thirty poor people whenever he can.
Ruling 1656. If after ẓuhr someone who is keeping a qaḍāʾ fast of the month of Ramadan intentionally does something that invalidates his fast, he must give one mudd of food to ten poor people, and if he cannot, he must fast for three days.
TIMES WHEN IT IS OBLIGATORY (WĀJIB) TO ONLY MAKE UP (QAḌĀʾ) A FAST →
← TIMES WHEN IT IS OBLIGATORY (WĀJIB) TO BOTH MAKE UP (QAḌĀʾ) AND GIVE RECOMPENSE (KAFFĀRAH)
Ruling 1631. Someone who wants to fast for two months for the kaffārah of the month of Ramadan must fast one complete month and one day from the next month continuously. Similarly, based on obligatory precaution, he must fast the rest of that second month continuously. If an obstacle arises that would commonly be considered a legitimate excuse, he does not have to fast that particular day, but once his legitimate excuse expires, he must resume his fasts.
Ruling 1632. Someone who wants to fast for two consecutive months for the kaffārah of a fast of the month of Ramadan must not start at a time when he knows a day on which fasting is unlawful – such as Eid al-Aḍḥā[182] – will fall within the one month and one day period, nor must he fast at a time when he knows a day on which fasting is obligatory (such as a day of the month of Ramadan) will fall within that period.
Ruling 1633. If someone who must fast continuously does not fast one of the days without a legitimate excuse, he must start the kaffārah fasts all over again.
Ruling 1634. If during the days that someone must fast continuously a legitimate excuse arises – such as ḥayḍ, nifās, or a journey on which he has to go – then once the excuse expires, it is not obligatory for him to start the fasts all over again; rather, he will continue the rest of the fasts immediately after the excuse has expired.
Ruling 1635. If a person invalidates his fast by means of something unlawful – whether that thing is fundamentally unlawful, like wine or fornication, or something that has become unlawful due to a particular reason, like eating lawful food that is in a general sense harmful for him, or having intercourse with his wife when she is in the state of ḥayḍ – then in these cases, giving one kaffārah is sufficient. However, the recommended precaution is that he should give the ‘total kaffārah’, i.e. free one slave, fast for two months, and feed sixty poor people or give each of them one mudd of wheat, barley, bread, and suchlike. In the event that all three are not possible for him, he should do the ones that are possible for him.
Ruling 1636. If a fasting person intentionally attributes a lie to Allah the Exalted, the Most Noble Prophet (Ṣ), [or the Infallible Imams (ʿA)], it is not obligatory for him to give kaffārah. However, the recommended precaution is that he should give kaffārah.
Ruling 1637. If on several occasions on a day of the month of Ramadan a person eats, drinks, has sexual intercourse, or masturbates, then giving one kaffārah is sufficient for all of them.
Ruling 1638. If a fasting person does something that invalidates a fast – other than having sexual intercourse or masturbating – and afterwards he has sexual intercourse with his lawful partner, then giving one kaffārah is sufficient for both actions.
Ruling 1639. If a fasting person does something that is lawful but invalidates a fast – for example, he drinks water – and afterwards he does something else that is unlawful and invalidates a fast – for example, he eats unlawful food – then giving one kaffārah is sufficient.
Ruling 1640. If a fasting person burps and something comes up in his mouth, then based on obligatory precaution, if he intentionally swallows it, his fast is invalid and he must keep a qaḍāʾ fast and give kaffārah. If eating that thing is unlawful – for example, when burping, blood or some food-like substance that has lost the form of food reaches his mouth and he intentionally swallows it – then it is better that he give the ‘total kaffārah’ [as defined in Ruling 1635].
Ruling 1641. If someone keeps a vow that he will fast on an assigned day, in the event that he intentionally invalidates his fast on that day, he must give kaffārah. The kaffārah for this will be mentioned in the laws relating to vows.
Ruling 1642. If a fasting person breaks his fast based on the statement of someone who says it is maghrib, despite the fact that he was not confident in the statement being true, and afterwards he finds out that it was not maghrib, or if he doubts whether it is maghrib or not [but still breaks his fasts], then in these cases, qaḍāʾ and kaffārah become obligatory for him. If he was of the belief that the person’s statement was authoritative, then only qaḍāʾ is necessary.
Ruling 1643. If someone intentionally invalidates his fast and travels after ẓuhr, kaffārah is not waived. Similarly, if he intentionally invalidates his fast and then travels before ẓuhr to escape kaffārah [i.e. if he thinks that by being considered a traveller that day, he will have a legitimate excuse for not fasting and so he will not have to give kaffārah for intentionally invalidating his fast], again kaffārah is not waived. In fact, even if it becomes necessary for him to travel before ẓuhr, kaffārah remains obligatory for him.
Ruling 1644. If a person intentionally breaks his fast and afterwards a legitimate excuse arises – such as ḥayḍ, nifās, or an illness – the recommended precaution is that he should give kaffārah, especially if some medication or other such means brought about the ḥayḍ or illness.
Ruling 1645. If a person is certain that it is the first day of the month of Ramadan and he intentionally invalidates his fast, and afterwards it becomes known that it was actually the last day of Shaʿbān, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1646. If a person doubts whether it is the last day of the month of Ramadan or the first of Shawwāl and he intentionally invalidates his fast, and afterwards it becomes known that it was the first of Shawwāl, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1647. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan has sexual intercourse with his wife who is fasting, in the event that he had compelled his wife to do so, he must give kaffārah for invalidating his fast; and based on obligatory precaution, he must give kaffārah for invalidating his wife’s fast as well. If his wife consented to having sexual intercourse, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for each of them.
Ruling 1648. If a woman compels her fasting husband to have sexual intercourse with her, it is not obligatory for her to give kaffārah for invalidating her husband’s fast.
Ruling 1649. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan compels his wife to have sexual intercourse with him and during the intercourse his wife consents, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for each of them; and the recommended precaution is that the man should give two kaffārahs.
Ruling 1650. If a fasting man in the month of Ramadan has sexual intercourse with his fasting wife while she is asleep, one kaffārah becomes obligatory for him. Furthermore, his wife's fast is valid and kaffārah is not obligatory for her.
Ruling 1651. If a man compels his wife or a wife compels her husband to do something that invalidates a fast – other than having sexual intercourse – kaffārah is not obligatory for either of them.
Ruling 1652. A man who does not fast due to travelling or illness cannot compel his fasting wife to have sexual intercourse with him; however, if he does compel her, kaffārah is not obligatory for him.
Ruling 1653. One must not be negligent in giving kaffārah in the sense that him not giving it would be deemed to be carelessness in performing an obligatory act; however, it is not necessary to give it immediately.
Ruling 1654. If kaffārah becomes obligatory for someone and he does not give it for a few years, nothing is added to it.
Ruling 1655. If someone who must feed sixty poor people as the kaffārah for one day has access to all sixty people, he cannot reduce the number of poor people to feed even if he gives the same amount of kaffārah. For example, he cannot give two mudds to thirty people and suffice with that. He can, however, give a poor person (faqīr) one mudd of food for each of the poor person’s family members, even if they are minors (ṣaghīr) and the poor person accepts this by way of agency (wikālah) for his family, or by way of guardianship (wilāyah) if they are minors. If he cannot find sixty poor people but, for example, he finds thirty people, he can give two mudds of food to each of them. However, based on obligatory precaution, he must give one mudd of food to another thirty poor people whenever he can.
Ruling 1656. If after ẓuhr someone who is keeping a qaḍāʾ fast of the month of Ramadan intentionally does something that invalidates his fast, he must give one mudd of food to ten poor people, and if he cannot, he must fast for three days.