Obligatory Qadha Fast and Kaffarah

1667. * In the following situations, both qadha and Kaffarah become obligatory, provided these acts are committed intentionally, voluntarily and without any force or pressure, during the fasts of Ramadhan:

(i) Eating

(ii) Drinking

(iii) Sexual Intercourse

(iv) Masturbation

(v) Staying in the state of Janabat till the time of Fajr prayers

And as a recommended precaution, invalidating the fast due to reasons other than those mentioned above, should also be recompensed with Kaffarah, besides the obligatory qadha.

1668. * If a person commits any of the foregoing acts with an absolute certitude that it does not invalidate fast, Kaffarah will not be obligatory on him.

Kaffarah for Fast

1669. * The Kaffarah of leaving out a fast of Ramadhan is to:

(a) free a slave, or (b) fast for two months or (c) feed sixty poor to their fill or give one mudd (= 3/4 kg.) of food-stuff, like, wheat or barley or bread etc. to each of them. And if it is not possible for him to fulfil any of these, he should give Sadaqa according to his means and seek Divine forgiveness. And the obligatory precaution is that he should give Kaffarah as and when he is capable to do so.

1670. A person who intends fasting for two months as a Kaffarah for a fast of Ramadhan, should fast continuously for one month and one day, and it would not matter if he did not maintain continuity for completion of the remaining fasts.

1671. * A person who intends fasting for two months as a Kaffarah for a fast of Ramadhan, should not commence fasting at such time when he knows that within a month and one day, days like Eid-ul-Azha will fall when it would be haraam to fast.

1672. If a person who must fast continuously, fails to fast on any day in the period without any just excuse, he should commence fasting all over again.

1673. * If a person who must fast continuously, is unable to maintain the continuity due to an excuse beyond control, like, Haidh or Nifas or a journey, which one is obliged to undertake, it will not be obligatory on him/her after the excuse is removed, to commence fasting again from the beginning. He/she should proceed to observe the remaining fasts.

1674. * If a person breaks his fast with something haraam, whether it is haraam in itself, like, wine or adultery or has become haraam due to some reason like, any food which is normally permissible but it is injurious to his health, or if he has sexual intercourse with his wife during Haidth, he will have to observe all the three Kaffarah, as a recommended precaution. It means that he should set free a slave, fast for two months and also feed sixty poor to their fill, or give one mudd of wheat, barley, bread etc. to each of them. If it is not possible for him to give all the three Kaffarah, he should perform any one Kaffarah which he can possibly give.

1675. * If a fasting person intentionally imputes lies to Allah or the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.), the recommended precaution is that he should give all the three Kaffarah as detailed above.

1676. * If a fasting person engages in sexual intercourse several times a day during Ramadhan or commits masturbation, one Kaffarah becomes obligatory on him. But, as a recommended precaution, he should give a Kaffarah each time he engages in sexual intercourse.

1677. * If a fasting person repeats an act which invalidates fast of Ramadhan other than sexual intercourse and masturbation, one Kaffarah will be sufficient for all.

1678. * If a fasting person commits an act which invalidates a fast other than sexual intercourse, and then has sexual intercourse with his wife, one Kaffarah will suffice for both the acts.

1679. * If a fasting person commits a halal act to invalidate a fast, like, if he drinks water and thereafter commits another act which is haraam and invalidates a fast, like, if he eats haraam food, one Kaffarah will suffice.

1680. * If a fasting person belches and swallows intentionally that which comes in his mouth, his fast becomes void, and he should give its qadha and Kaffarah also. And if the thing which comes to his mouth is haraam to consume, like, blood or some food which no more looks like food, and he swallows it intentionally, he will give the qadha of that fast, and as a recommended precaution, give all the three Kaffarah.

1681. If a person takes a vow that he would fast on a particular day, and if he invalidates his fast intentionally on that day, he should give Kaffarah, the one for which one becomes liable upon breaking a vow. The details will come in the relevant Chapter.

1682. If a fasting person breaks his fast when someone unreliable informs him that Maghrib has set in, and he later learns that Maghrib had not set in, or doubts whether it had set in or not, it is obligatory on him to give qadha and Kaffarah.

1683. If a person who has intentionally invalidated his fast travels after Zuhr or before Zuhr to escape the Kaffarah, he will not be exempted from the Kaffarah. In fact, if he has to proceed unexpectedly on a journey before Zuhr, even then it is obligatory for him to give Kaffarah.

1684. If a person invalidates the fast intentionally and then an excuse like Haidth, Nifas or sickness arises, the recommended precaution is that he/she should give a Kaffarah.

1685. If a person was certain that it was the first day of Ramadhan and invalidated his fast intentionally, and it transpired later that it was the last day of Sha"ban it would not be obligatory on him to give Kaffarah.

1686. If a person doubts whether it is the last day of Ramadhan or the first day of Shawwal and invalidates his fast intentionally, and it transpires later that it is the first day of Shawwal, it will not be obligatory on him to give Kaffarah.

1687. * If a man who is fasting in the month of Ramadhan has sexual intercourse with his wife who is also fasting and if he has compelled her for that, he should give Kaffarah for his own fast and as a precaution, also for his wife"s. And if she had wilfully consented to the sexual intercourse, a Kaffarah becomes obligatory on each of them.

1688. If a woman compels her fasting husband to have sexual intercourse with her, it is not obligatory on her to give Kaffarah for her husband"s fast.

1689. If a man who is fasting in Ramadhan compels his wife for sexual intercourse, and if the woman expresses her agreement during the intercourse, the man should, on the basis of obligatory precaution, give two Kaffarah and the woman should give one Kaffarah.

1690. If a man who is observing fast in Ramadhan has sexual intercourse with his fasting wife who is asleep, one Kaffarah becomes obligatory on him. But the wife"s fast is in order and she will not give any Kaffarah.

1691. If a man compels his wife or a woman compels her husband to commit an act which makes the fast void, other than the sexual intercourse, it will not be obligatory upon any of them to give any Kaffarah.

1692. A man who does not observe fast due to travelling or illness, cannot compel his fasting wife to have sexual intercourse. But, if he compels her, Kaffarah will not be obligatory on him either.

1693. One should not be negligent about giving Kaffarah. But, it is not necessary to give it immediately.

1694. If Kaffarah has become obligatory on a person and if he fails to fulfil it for some years, no increase in the Kaffarah takes place.

1695. * When a person is required to feed sixty poor by way of Kaffarah for one fast, and if he has access to all of them, he cannot give to any one of them more than one mudd of food, or feed a poor man more than once, calculating it as feeding more than one person. However, he can give to a poor person one mudd of food for each member of his family, even if they may be minors.

1696. * If a person offering qadha of a fast of Ramadhan intentionally breaks his fast after Zuhr, he should give food to ten poor persons, one mudd to each, and if he cannot do this, he should observe fast for three days.