Book of Fasting

Fasting the month of Ramadan becomes obligatory once the new crescent is sighted. If the moon is not seen on the night of the thirtieth while the sky is clear, the next morning is begun without fasting. However, if clouds or haze prevent sighting, the predominant view of the school is that fasting is still required. Should the crescent be sighted during the daytime, it counts for the coming night, and once one locality has seen it, fasting is incumbent on all Muslims.

A single upright witness—even a woman—suffices to establish the sighting. If the community fasts on the basis of one person’s testimony, they must complete thirty days, and if they commenced fasting because the crescent was obscured by cloud, they do not break the fast thereafter. Anyone who alone sees the crescent of Ramadan and whose testimony is rejected, or who alone sees the crescent of Shawwal, must fast.

Fasting is obligatory for every Muslim who is legally accountable and able. If reliable testimony is confirmed during the day, everyone must withhold from eating and drinking for the rest of that day, and those who only then become liable for the fast—such as a woman who becomes pure from menses or post-natal bleeding, or a traveler who returns home having been non-fasting1—must both refrain and make up the day.

A person who breaks the fast because of old age, or an illness from which recovery is not expected, must feed one needy person for every missed day. It is recommended for someone whose illness would be harmed by fasting, and for a traveler who is shortening the prayer, to break the fast. If a resident begins the day fasting and then sets out on a journey, he is permitted to break his fast.

If a pregnant or nursing woman breaks the fast out of fear for her own health, she only has to make up the missed days. If she feared for her child, she must both make up the days and feed one needy person for each day.

Whoever intended to fast and then became insane, or remained unconscious for the entire daylight hours without regaining consciousness even briefly, his fast is invalid—unlike someone who merely sleeps all day—and the unconscious person is required