The New Nation - Internet Edition

"Allah desires ease for you, and desires not hardship for you, so that you should complete the number (of days decreed), and exalt Allah for His guiding you, so that you might be thankful." (2: 183-185)

Islam is based on reason. It has no hard and fast ritual for all age groups. It has exempted the minors (for prepuberty years), insane (period of insanity), unconscious, and non-Muslims (years before conversion) from fasting.

Fasting is obligatory and compulsory for all able adult Muslims provided that a person is/not suffering from illness/not unconscious/and a woman not in her monthly period or not at home i.e., on travels.

The holy verse is : "(Fasting) for a fixed number of days ; but if any of you is ill, or on a journey, the preserved number (should be made up) from days later t. " (2: 184)

A. Yusuf Ali comments : "Illness and journey must not be interpreted in an elastic sense. They must be such as to cause real pain or suffering if the fast were observed. For journeys, a minimum standard of three marches is prescribed by some commentators: others make it more precise by naming a distance of 16 farsakhs equivalent to 48 miles." He adds, "In my opinion the standard must depend on the means of locomotion and on the relative resources of the traveller. It is better to determine it in each case according to circumstances." The holy verse, mentioned before, adds in the last. "And it is better for you that ye fast, if ye only knew." (2: 184)

-Abdul Muqit Chowdhury