Lessons Derived from the Ḥadith
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The prohibition of fasting the “day of doubt” in relation to Ramadan. This doubtful day is the one that falls at the beginning of the month without certainty; no one knows whether it belongs to Ramadan or not—that is, the thirtieth night of Shaʿbān when something blocks the sighting of the new crescent.
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Fasting on that day is forbidden, for doing so constitutes disobedience to the Prophet ﷺ. Allah the Exalted says, “Whatever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatever he forbids you, refrain from it” (al-Hashr 59:7).
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The ḥadith illustrates the legal maxim: “The original ruling remains in force until evidence proves otherwise.” In this issue the maxim means that the default assumption is that Shaʿbān is still in progress and that Ramadan has not yet begun so long as we remain uncertain. Only when we are certain that the first month has ended and the next has begun do the rulings of Ramadan take effect.
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Abū al-Qāsim is the kunyah of the Prophet ﷺ, derived from his son al-Qāsim, borne by the Messenger of Allah with Khadījah. Some said the boy died before prophethood, others said after. When he passed away, certain idolaters mocked, “Muhammad has become cut-off,” whereupon Allah revealed Sūrat al-Kawthar. ʿAmmār used the Prophet’s kunyah here as an expression of honor and reverence; this is not included in the divine admonition, “Do not make the Messenger’s summons among you like the summons of one of you to another” (al-Nūr 24:63).
Among the Prophet’s descriptions is also al-Qāsim. He ﷺ said, “I am only the distributor; Allah is the Giver.” It is therefore permissible to mention the Prophet ﷺ with names other than “Messenger” or “Prophet” in statements of information, although when directly addressing him one should use a title that reflects his prophethood or messengership.
Scholarly Disagreement
The jurists disagreed about how precisely to define the day of doubt. The Hanbalī school holds that the day of doubt in Ramadan is the thirtieth of Shaʿbān when no cloud, haze, smoke, or similar obstruction veils the horizon where the crescent appears. This, they say, is the day of doubt that