Breaking Fast: To eat Dinner first or Pray Maghrib?

Sheikh ‘Abdul ‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy upon him)

Question: Is it from the sunnah when breaking the fast to eat some dates & drink water then pray maghrib  & afterwards eat & drink whatever he wishes?

 Answer: “Yes, (it is from the sunnah), because this is what empowers (one with) a type of advantage. He rushes to break the fast with what Allaah has made easy from dates & water, then goes to pray maghrib along with the congregation so that he does not miss it, then returns & eats whatever he wishes to eat & like this.

The Best Act of Worship: Humility

Translated by Abu Aaliyah Abdullah ibn Dwight Battle

Doha, Qatar.

 

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، قَالَتْ: " يَغْفُلُونَ عَنْ أَفْضَلِ الْعِبَادَةِ: التَّوَاضُعِ "

Aisha (Radi Allaahu anhaa) said: 

" People are paying no attention to the BEST act of worship: Humility."

Collected by Ibn Abee Shaybah (13/360) Ibn Hajr graded this Athar as being Saheeh.

Benefits for this subject:

At-Tabari (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: "Allaah tests His believing servants with humility to see how they obey Him and follow His commands." [ Saheeh Bukhari Ibn Battal ]

Shaykh Abdur Rahman As-Sa'dee (May Allaah rest him in Jannah) said, "Humility and Humbleness are among the foundations of the religion and its core whereas, pride contradicts Islaam.”

The origin of humility is found in the verse: (سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا) (We hear and obey) [Al-Baqarah 285]. 

20 Special Characteristics of Ramadhan

                  Translated by Abu Aaliyah Abdullah ibn Dwight Battle

Doha, Qatar.

1. Its name: Ramadhan, The Month of Ramadhan, The Month of Patience, The Month of Siyaam.
2. Look for the Hilaal: Moon
3. The doors of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are locked.
4. The Shayateen are locked up.
5. During every night Allaah frees someone from Hell.
6. During Ramadhan a servant’s provisions are increased.

Which of the favours of Thy Lord do you deny? (2)

by Imâm Ibnul Qayyim al-Jawziyyah

(Reminder 2)

 

Layth ibn Abî Burdah said:

“When Allâh gathers people on the Day of Judgement, He will remind them of His blessings. One of His slaves will say: “Remind me of something,” & Allâh will say:

  “Remember when you faced such-and-such adversity, & you prayed to Me, so I relieved you of it. Remember when you were travelling in such and-such a place, & you asked Me to give you a travelling companion, & I did so... Remember when you asked for the hand of so-and-so the daughter of so-and-so, & others also asked for her hand, so I gave her to you to marry & kept the others away.” His slave will be...

Perfect my intention so that I can worship Allaah

It is of Shirk to perform a (righteous) deed for worldly reasons

 

Allaah (سُبحانه وتعالى) said:

مَن كَانَ يُرِيدُ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا وَزِينَتَهَا نُوَفِّ إِلَيْهِمْ أَعْمَالَهُمْ فِيهَا وَهُمْ فِيهَا لاَ يُبْخَسُونَ

"Whosoever desires the life of the world & its glitter; to them We shall pay in full (the wages of) their deeds therein & they will have no diminution therein."

(Hud 11:15)

أُوْلَـئِكَ الَّذِينَ لَيْسَ لَهُمْ فِي الآخِرَةِ إِلاَّ النَّارُ وَحَبِطَ مَا صَنَعُواْ فِيهَا وَبَاطِلٌ مَّا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ

They are those for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter but Fire; & vain are the deeds they did therein. And of no effect is that which they used to do.

(Hud 11:16)

Depending Upon Astronomical Calculations

Which of the favours of Thy Lord do you deny? (1)

by Imâm Ibnul Qayyim al-Jawziyyah

(Reminder 1)

 

 

Salmân al-Fârsî (radhiyAllaahu anhu) said:

“There was a man who was given many of the luxuries of this world, & then they were taken away from him. But he continued to praise & thank Allâh until everything had been taken from him, even his bed. And then he still praised & thanked Allâh. Another man, who had also been given many of the luxuries of this world asked him, ‘What are you praising & thanking Allâh for?’ The man said, ‘I am praising & thanking Him for blessings which, if others asked me to give them in return for all that they have, I would never give them up.’ ‘What can they be?’ asked the second man. ‘Can’t you see?’ asked the first man. ‘I have my eyesight, my tongue, my hands, my feet...’”

 Taken from “Uddat as-Sâbireen wa Dhâkirat ash-Shâkireen”

Permissible Excuses for Breaking the Fast

Sheikh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaimeen

Islaamic Verdicts on The Pillars of Islaam, vol.2, page.632

 

Question: What are the permissible excuses for breaking the fast?

 

Answer: The permissible excuses for breaking the fast are: illness & travel, as mentioned in the Qur’aan. Among other excuses is that a women is pregnant and she fears for herself or her child. Another excuse is that a woman is breast-feeding and she fears for herself or her breast-fed child if she fasts. Another excuse is that a person needs to break his fast in order to save the life of someone. For example, he finds a drowning person in the sea, or someone who is surrounded on all sides by fire, and he needs to break his fast in order to save him – in that case, he may break his fast and save him. Another such case would be if a person needed to break his fast in order to strengthen himself for jihad in Allaah’s Cause, that would also be a permissible cause for him to break his fast, because the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said to his Companions, may Allaah be pleased with them: 

Questions & Answers on Fasting

Selected excerpts from Al-Ibaanah Book publication "Lessons on Fasting, Taraaweeh & Zakaat + 48 Questions & Answers on Fasting"

 

Question 1: For many people in Ramadhan, their main focus is only that of basking in food & sleep. So Ramadhan becomes a month of laziness & inactivity. Likewise, some people play all night & then sleep during day. What is your advice to these kinds of people?

Question 2: What is the ruling on fasting in Ramadhan when one does not pray?

Question 3: Should children below the age of fifteen be ordered to fast as in the case with prayer?

Question 4: What is your opinion concerning people who sleep throughout the day in Ramadaan? Some of them pray in congregation while others do not. Is their fast valid? 

Read the answers...

The Five Categories of People in Relation to the Suhoor & Time of Fajr

 

Al-Imaam Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaimeen (may Allaah have mercy upon him) stated:

"In this matter there are five categories: 

1. The person is sure that Fajr hasn't appeared. As an example: The appearance of Fajr is at five o'clock and the person ate and drank at four thirty. His fast is sound.

2. The person is sure that Fajr has appeared. As an example the person ate at five thirty (although Fajr appeared at five). This person's fast is invalid.

3. The person eats but he's not sure whether or not Fajr has appeared. However it overwhelms his belief that Fajr hasn't appeared. His fast is sound.

4. He eats and drinks and it overwhelms his belief that Fajr has appeared. His fast is not sound.

5. He eats and drinks wavering back and forth (as to whether Fajr has appeared or not) and there's nothing overwhelming with him in this matter. His fast is sound." 

The Shaykh went on to say: "Even if it becomes clear to him that Fajr had appeared already, his fast is sound based upon (the principle in Islaam of) being excused due to ignorance in this situation."

Taken from: "ad-Durur al-Manthoor fee Ahkaam al-Iftaar was-Suhoor" pg. 76 Quoting from Imaam al-'Uthaymeen's explanation of Zaad al-Mustaqnaa (6/408-409)

Translated by Abu Yusuf Khaleefah Masjid Nur Allaah

2nd Night of Ramadaan/ 21st of July 2012