Fasting (Kitab Al-Siyam)

Ubayd ibn Jubayr reported: I was with Abu Basrah al-Ghifari, a Companion of the Prophet, on a ship traveling from al-Fustat during Ramadan. Food was brought to him. In Jaafars version, they had not yet passed beyond the houses when he called for the tablecloth and said, "Come closer." I said, "Do you not see the houses?" Abu Basrah asked, "Are you turning away from the practice of the Messenger of Allah?" Jaafar version says that he then ate.

Mansur al-Kalbi reported: Dihyah ibn Khalifah once traveled from a village near Damascus to a village about as far from al-Fustat as Aqabah, a distance of three miles, during Ramadan. He broke his fast, and some people broke theirs with him, while others disliked doing so. When he returned to his village, he said to those who had fasted, "By Allah, today I saw something I never thought I would see: people turning away from the guidance of the Messenger of Allah and his Companions." Then he said, "O Allah, take me to You."

Nafi reported that Ibn Umar would go out to al-Ghabah but would neither break his fast nor shorten his prayer.

Abu Bakrah reported that the Messenger of Allah said, "None of you should say, I fasted all of Ramadan and prayed throughout all of it." The narrator said: I do not know whether he disliked self-praise, or whether he said, "A person must have some sleep or rest."

Abu Ubayd reported: I attended the Eid prayer with Umar. He performed the prayer before the sermon, then said, "The Messenger of Allah forbade fasting on these two days. On Eid al-Adha, you eat from the meat of your sacrifice; on Eid al-Fitr, you end your fast."

Abu Said al-Khudri reported that the Messenger of Allah forbade fasting on two days, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha; wearing two types of restrictive clothing; a man sitting with his knees drawn up and wrapped in a single garment; and praying at two times, after Fajr and after Asr.

Abu Murrah, the client of Umm Hani, entered with Abdullah ibn Amr to visit his father, Amr ibn al-As, who brought them food and said, "Eat." Abdullah said, "I am fasting." Amr said, "Eat. These are the days on which the Messenger of Allah used to command us to break our fast and forbid us to fast." Malik said: These are the Days of Tashriq.

Uqbah ibn Amir reported that the Messenger of Allah said, "The Day of Arafah, the Day of Sacrifice, and the Days of Tashriq are our festival, people of Islam. They are days for eating and drinking."

Abu Hurayrah reported that the Messenger of Allah said, "None of you should fast on Friday unless he also fasts a day before it or a day after it."

Abdullah ibn Busr reported from his sister al-Samma that the Prophet said, "Do not fast on Saturday except for a fast that has been prescribed for you. If one of you can find nothing but grape skin or a twig, let him chew it." Abu Dawud said: This report has been abrogated.

Juwayriyah bint al-Harith reported: The Prophet came to me on Friday while I was fasting. He asked, "Did you fast yesterday?" I said, "No." He asked, "Do you intend to fast tomorrow?" I said, "No." He said, "Then break your fast."

Al-Layth reported that when al-Zuhri was told that fasting on Saturday had been prohibited, he would say, "This is a report from Hims."

Al-Awzai said: I kept this report hidden for a long time, until I saw that it had become widespread. He meant the report of Abdullah ibn Busr about fasting on Saturday. Abu Dawud said: Malik called it false.

Abdullah ibn Mabad al-Zimmani reported from Abu Qatadah: A man came to the Prophet and asked, "Messenger of Allah, how do you fast?" The Messenger of Allah became angry at the question. When Umar saw this, he said, "We are pleased with Allah as our Lord, Islam as our religion, and Muhammad as our Prophet. We seek refuge in Allah from Allahs anger and from the anger of His Messenger." Umar kept repeating this until the Messenger of Allahs anger subsided. The man then asked, "Messenger of Allah, what about someone who fasts every day?" He replied, "He has neither fasted nor broken his fast." Musaddad wording is, "He neither fasted nor broke his fast"; Ghaylan was unsure of the exact wording. The man asked, "What about someone who fasts two days and breaks one?" He replied, "Who could manage that?" He asked, "What about someone who fasts one day and breaks the next?" He replied, "That is the fast of David." He asked, "What about someone who fasts one day and breaks for two?" He replied, "I wish I had the strength for that." Then the Messenger of Allah said, "Fasting three days each month and from one Ramadan to the next is like fasting for a lifetime. I hope with Allah that fasting on the Day of Arafah will atone for the preceding year and the following year, and that fasting on the Day of Ashura will atone for the preceding year."

Abu Qatadah reported in another version of the preceding report: The man asked, "Messenger of Allah, tell me about fasting on Mondays and Thursdays." He replied, "On Monday I was born, and on it the Quran was first revealed to me."

Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As reported: The Messenger of Allah met me and said, "Have I not been told that you said, I will pray all night and fast every day?" I think I replied, "Yes, Messenger of Allah; I did say that." He said, "Pray at night and sleep too; fast some days and break your fast on others. Fast three days each month; that is like fasting for a lifetime." I said, "Messenger of Allah, I can do more." He said, "Then fast one day and break your fast for two." I said, "I can do more." He said, "Then fast one day and break your fast the next. That is the most balanced fast, the fast of David." I said, "I can do more." The Messenger of Allah said, "There is no fast better than that."

Mujibah al-Bahiliyyah reported from her father, or her uncle: He came to the Messenger of Allah, then left and returned a year later. His condition and appearance had changed. He said, "Messenger of Allah, do you not recognize me?" The Prophet asked, "Who are you?" He replied, "I am the Bahili who came to you last year." The Prophet asked, "What has changed you? You looked well before." He said, "Since I left you, I have eaten only at night." The Messenger of Allah said, "Why have you tormented yourself? Fast the month of patience and one day each month." The man said, "Give me more, for I am strong." He said, "Fast two days." The man asked for more, and he said, "Fast three days." The man again asked for more. He said, "Fast during the sacred months and then stop; fast during the sacred months and then stop; fast during the sacred months and then stop." He indicated three with his fingers, closing them and then opening them.

Abu Hurayrah reported that the Messenger of Allah said, "The best fasting after Ramadan is in Allahs month, al-Muharram, and the best prayer after the obligatory prayer is prayer at night." Qutaybah did not say "month" before "Ramadan."

Uthman ibn Hakim said: I asked Said ibn Jubayr about fasting in Rajab. He said that Ibn Abbas told him the Messenger of Allah would fast so much that we thought he would never stop fasting, and then refrain from fasting so much that we thought he would never fast again.

Aishah reported that the month the Messenger of Allah most liked to fast was Shaaban, which he would join to Ramadan.