By Mufti Abdul Malik
Misbahi, New Age Islam
Translated into English by Ghulam
Ghaus Siddiqi, New Age Islam
4 April 2023
If Kaffarah becomes mandatory for someone and he is
unable to perform it until the time when another Kaffarah becomes
obligatory, then only one Kaffarah will be obligatory for both
of them, even if these two Kaffarahs are for two
separate Ramadans. Even though the first Kaffarah was
not performed, the two Kaffarahs of the broken fasts must be
performed separately if the reason for breaking the fast is a sexual act.
It is a condition for the
sixty needy people to be adolescents [Baligh] when they are fed under
the process of Kaffarah. If small children are fed, it is still vital to
feed the adolescent needy [Baligh Miskeen] instead.
While feeding the needy,
one should maintain their standard level of living; nevertheless, this does not
entail raising it excessively or providing them with dry bread.
There is no harm and the Kaffarah
will be correct if the needy people are not consistently fed.
Switching from feeding to
supplying grain or paying the price is also acceptable. The amount of grain
must match the amount of Fitrah.
Kaffarah will be considered
correct even if one needy person is given two meals a day for sixty days, but
this circumstance is not regarded favourably; hence it is preferable to feed
sixty needy individuals simultaneously.
Rulings of Fidyah
Islamic Shari'ah has
made a concession for people who lack the strength to fast, requiring them to
pay Fidyah in exchange for fasting. It becomes challenging to fast
as a result of the human body becoming weaker in old age. Moreover, the body
may not always have the strength to fast owing to illness, in which case they
must pay fidyah. Fidyah implies giving two daily meals to a
person in need for each fast. Grain or its price can also be given as Fidyah.
Fidyah must be the same quantity of grains as Sadaq-e-Fitr.
Someone was required to
keep some Qazaa fasts but he could not. At the time of death, he left a
will specifying that his assets should be used to pay his Fidyah for the
missed fasts. It is required to pay the Fidyah if the total Fidyah
of these fasts equals one-third of the remaining assets. Also, if the cost of
the Fidyah exceeds the value of one-third of the property, then paying
for more than one-third of the property in Fidyah is only permitted when
the heir willingly consents to it. But, even in this scenario, the consent of
the minor heirs will not be recognised.
It is believed that Allah
Almighty will accept the Fidyah and release the deceased from liability
for his missed fasts even if the deceased did not leave a will and the heir
wilfully pays Fidyah for the missing fasts of the deceased.
It is not valid if the heir
keeps fasts or performs the Qazaa prayers on behalf of the deceased.
It is improper to break the
fast of Ramadan due to a minor illness and assume he would make up for it later
or to pay fidyah and think that the right to fast has been satisfied.
Only if it is truly impossible to fast can one choose to forgo the Ramadan
fast.
In the Fatawa Razaviyyah,
it is stated:
[Translation] Lack of
strength is one thing, but a lack of courage is another. Lack of courage is not
credible [under the subject in question]. The devil frequently instils in our
minds that we will never be able to complete this labour and that if we do, we
will die or become ill. When it is done with faith and trust in Allah, He
Almighty aids in the action and no damage occurs. At the age of 75, many people
fast.
Yes! There may be such
feeble persons who are unable to keep fast, even at the age of seventy.
Thus, they should stay away from the whispers of the devil and thoroughly
verify them. This is just one factor.
Another factor is that some
of them do not really have the strength to fast in the summer, but they can
fast in the winter. They are also not required to perform Kaffarah. But
by making the summertime fasts the Qazaa, they are obligated to keep the
fast in the winter.
The third factor is that,
while some of these persons cannot regularly fast for a full month [during the
summer], they can fast intermittently for one or two days. Thus, it is
obligatory to keep as many [Adaa Fasts] as possible [during the summer]
and any fasts that turn into Qazaa must be kept during the winters.
The fourth factor is that
the young or elderly who is too weak to fast due to an illness is also not
permitted to perform Kaffarah; instead, they must wait for the illness
to go away. Only if the time of death occurs before recovery will he be
required to leave a will for Kaffarah.
In short, the Kaffarah
will be carried out when it is impossible to keep the fast in hot weather or in
the winter, either continuously or intermittently, and when there is no hope
that the Uzr [valid Shari' reason] that forbids the fasting will end.
For instance, since old age
is a never-ending condition, an elderly person who has grown too weak from old
age to keep fasts separately even in the winter has the right to perform Kaffarah.
He has the option of paying
Fidyah or performing Kaffarah daily for each fast, doing so for
the entire month in advance, paying it to several fakirs when the month is
over, or paying the entire Fidayah or Kaffarah to just one fakir.
He is eligible for all of these forms.
(Fatawa Razaviyya, Vol. 4,
p. 612)
In the same book, it is
also mentioned:
Only Sheikh-e-Faani
is permitted to pay Fidyah because of his advanced age, which makes him
unable to keep fast and increases his weakness as he gets older. Fidyah
has so been ordered exclusively for him. (Fatawa Razaviyya, Vol. 4, p.
206)
(Continued)
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Mufti Abdul
Malik Misbahi is the author of multiple books. He has also lectured and held
positions such as Mufti, Shaykhul Hadith, president, founder, and
director at a number of institutions, including Darul Uloom
Ghousia in Hubli, Karnataka, and Darul Uoom Solemaniya Rahmaniya in
Bikaner Darul Uloom Reza-e-Mustafa, Bihar, Madrasa Shah
Khalid, Vanwa Libo Muslim League, Fiji (near Australia), Madina
Educational Society, Rajasthan. He currently holds the positions of Mufti
in the Sunni Darul Ifta in the Madina Masjid, General Secretary of
the Raza Foundation, Director of the Darain Academy, Founder
of the Afkar-e- Raza Institution, and Chief Editor of the Do-Maahi
Raza-e-Madina (Urdu, Hindi) in Azadnagar, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.
Previous Articles:
Thirty Lessons of Ramadan:
Welcome to Ramadan and First Lesson on the Virtues of Ramadan
Thirty Lessons of Ramadan: Second
Lesson on the Respect of Ramadan – Part 2
Thirty Lessons Of Ramadan:
Third Lesson On The Horrific Consequences Of Desecrating Ramadan – Part 3
Thirty Lessons of Ramadan:
Fourth Lesson on the Fasting Of Ramadan and its Intention – Part 4
Thirty Lessons Of Ramadan:
Seventh Lesson On Sehri [Pre-Dawn Meal] Part 7
Thirty Lessons of Ramadan:
Eighth Lesson on Iftar – Part 8
Thirty
Lessons of Ramadan: Ninth Lesson on Rulings and Laws Related to Fasting – Part
9
Thirty
Lessons Of Ramadan: Tenth Lesson On Rulings And Laws Related To Fasting – Part
10
Thirty
Lessons of Ramadan: Twelfth Lesson on Rulings Related to Qazaa, Kaffarah and
Fidyah – Part 12
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/ramadan-rulings-kaffarah-fidyah-part-13/d/129484
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