Saḥūr is the pre-dawn meal that is consumed in the blessed month of Ramaḍān prior to fasting, and it is called that because the meal is consumed at the time of saḥār which is shortly before dawn. Allāh said:
كَانُوا قَلِيلًا مِّنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا يَهْجَعُونَ ﴿١٧﴾ وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ ﴿١٨﴾
“They would only sleep a small part of the night, and at the time of saḥar [i.e. the time just before dawn], they would seek forgiveness.”
[Al-Dhāriyāt, 51:17-18]
Ibn Ḥajr (رحمه الله) said: “Saḥar is the last part of the night [i.e. the time just before dawn], and saḥūr is …
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah [d. 728 AH] said: “There can be no doubt that having an intention for fasting is obligatory, for if one fasted without an intention, he could not expect to be rewarded. This is because reward only follows [the actions] we intend. Similarly, we will be rewarded for the [ḥarām] actions we choose to leave for Allāh. However, if it had not even occurred to an individual to actively and with pre-emptive thought, abandon an action, he would not be punished or rewarded. Just as if he intends to leave something for Allāh but engages in it due to forgetfulness; this for…
There can be no doubt that Ramaḍān is a month of great happiness and glad tidings. It is therefore inappropriate for any individual to contaminate this month for himself through spending above and beyond his need. Outside of Ramaḍān, a person would normally consume three meals, but during Ramaḍān he only consumes two. Despite this, he spends [on food] during Ramaḍān what he would spend for the entire year. This is an erroneous outlook regarding the type of preparation one should be engaging in for Ramaḍān.
It has become the practice of some people that they become very religious during thi…
We need to have an aspiration to seek out and learn the rulings of fasting. In the ḥadith: ‘Whomsoever Allāh intends good to come from, He allows him to be well-versed in the rulings of this dīn,’ there should be no doubt that knowledge [of this dīn] is from among the greatest ways a servant [of Allāh] is able to increase his closeness to his Lord, just as it is from among the most magnanimous acts of obedience.
[Remember] that you currently face a season of greatness, so learn the rulings regarding fasting:
its prerequisites,
its recommended aspects,
the mannerisms and behaviou…
Ramaḍān is an opportunity for change: for the ones who desire to increase their īmān and improve their behaviour. [A chance for] the ones weighed down by the stresses of this dunyā, who have allowed it to busy them for prolonged periods, distancing them from their Lord and Master. The ones who [the stresses of the dunyā] have taken away from their implementation of [what they know from] the sunnah of the Messenger [may the peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him].
Thus, they live in this dunyā purposeless, far away from obedience to Allāh the Exalted, the Most High. This month is an oppo…
Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-Uthaymīn [d. 1421 AH] said:
We say that if fasting causes harm to a sick person, then it would be ḥarām for that sick person to fast.
If someone was to say: ‘What is the measure of [this] harm?’
We say [in answer]: Harm [referred to here] is conceptualised with the senses and with that which has been related to us. As for the senses: It is for the sick person to recognise that fasting is causing him harm, [or] the causative factor of the pains he experiences, [or] obligates a delay in his recovery or anything that holds similarity [to these factors]. As for t…
Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn [d. 1421] said:
[Q]: Is it better for a traveller or a sick person to fast or not?
[A]: We say: It is best for them both to do what is easiest for them. For if there is some harm that comes to either of these categories of people due to fasting, fasting then becomes impermissible, for the saying of the Most High:
وَلَا تَقْتُلُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُمْ رَحِيمًا ﴿٢٩﴾
‘And do not kill yourselves [or one another]. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful.’
[Al-Nisāʾ, 4:29]
This āyah proves that whatever causes harm to a person is forbid…
