for which he is liable, as Anas ibn Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, used to do when he grew old.

The second is to give them uncooked food. They said that one should give each of them a mudd of wheat, or half a sa‘ of something other than wheat. A mudd of wheat is one quarter of the Prophetic sa‘, for the Prophetic sa‘ is four mudds, and it equals four-fifths of our sa‘. Accordingly, our sa‘ equals five mudds. Thus, five mudds of wheat suffice for five days—that is, for five poor people. In this case, however, he should include something to eat with it, such as meat or the like, so that the words of Allah, Most High, are fully realized: “And upon those who are able to fast is a ransom: feeding a poor person.”

As for the time of feeding, he has a choice: if he wishes, he may offer the ransom for each day on that day; or, if he wishes, he may delay it until the final day, as Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, did.

May he give the food in advance?

The answer is: he may not, because offering the ransom in advance is like fasting in advance. Would it be valid to fast in Sha‘ban in advance of Ramadan?

The answer is: it would not be valid.

The fourth condition is that one be resident. The author, may Allah have mercy on him, did not mention this, relying on what he will later mention concerning the ruling on fasting while travelling. If one is travelling, fasting is not obligatory upon him, due to the words of Allah, Most High: “And whoever is ill or on a journey, then let him fast an equal number of other days.” [al-Baqarah 2:185] The scholars are unanimously agreed that a traveller may break his fast. They differed, however, regarding whether his fast is valid if he does fast. The Zahiris and some of those who uphold analogical reasoning held that a traveller’s fast is invalid, and that if he fasts, he has observed the fast before its proper time, like one who fasts Ramadan in Sha‘ban.