Category: Q n A

Messenger of Allah, I am a person devoted much to fasting. Should I fast during the journey? He (the Holy Prophet) said: Fast if you like and break it if you like.

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Hisham with the same chain of transmitters.

I am a person much used to fasting. Should I fast during the journey? (The rest of the hadith is the same.)

Messenger of Allah, I find strength in me for fasting on a journey; is there any sin upon me (in doing it)? Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: It is a concession from Allah. He who took advantage of it, it is good for him, and he who preferred to observe fast, there is no sin upon him. Harun (one of the narrators) in his narration said: ‘lt is a concession, and he made no mention of” from Allah”.

We set out during the month of Ramadan with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) in such an intense heat that one of us would place his hand over his head (in order to protect himself) against the excessive heat, and none among us was observing the fast, except the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and ‘Abdullah b. Rawaha.

Today the breakers of the fast have gone with the reward.

I came to Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him) and he was surrounded (by people), and when they dispersed I said to him: I am not going to ask you about what these people were asking. I ask you about fasting on a journey. Upon this he said: We travelled with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) towards Mecca and we had been observing fast. We halted at a place. There the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: You are nearing your enemy and breaking of fast would give you greater strength, and that was a concession (given to us). But some of us continued to observe the fast and some of us broke it. We then got down at another place and he (the Holy Prophet) said: You are going to encounter the enemy in the morning and breaking of the fast would give you strength, so break the fast. As it was a point of stress, so we broke the fast. But subsequently we saw ourselves observing the fast with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on a journey.

Fast if you like and break it if you like.

I went out and was fasting; they said to me: Break (lit. go back, repeat). He said that Anas reported that the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to set out on a journey and neither the observer of the fast found fault with the breaker of the fast, nor the breaker of the fast found fault with the observer of the fast. (One of the narrators Humaid said): I met Ibn Abi Mulaika who informed me the same thing on the authority of ‘A’isha.

We were with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on a journey. Some of us had been observing the fast and some of us had not been fasting. We got down at a place on a hot day. Most of us had the cloth for shelter. There were also those amongst us who sheltered (themselves against the rays of the) sun with the help of their hands. The observers of the fast fell down (on account of weakness). Those who had not observed it got up and pitched tents and watered the mounts. Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: The breakers of the fast have taken away the reward today.