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Ibn Uthaymin

Nubadh fi al-Siyam

Author died
1421 AH
Editions
Nubadh fi al-Siyam

Nubadh fi al-Siyam (Brief Excerpts on Fasting) is a concise legal treatise on the rulings, categories, invalidators, and etiquettes of fasting written by the Saudi jurist Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymin (d. 1421 AH / 2001 CE).

Composition and Purpose

The treatise was completed by Ibn Uthaymin on 16 Sha'ban 1401 AH (1981 CE) in Unayzah in the Al-Qassim Province of Saudi Arabia. The author designed it as an accessible summary addressing the fundamental definition and obligation of fasting, the legal status of different categories of people in Ramadan, the acts that break the fast, and miscellaneous practical benefits. It defines fasting (al-siyam) as worshipping God by abstaining from invalidators from the break of dawn until sunset, noting that fasting Ramadan is one of the pillars of Islam based on the agreed-upon prophetic tradition.

Content

The booklet is organized into three main thematic sections:

Categories of People Regarding Fasting

The treatise divides people into ten legal classifications regarding their obligation to fast:

  1. The adult, sane, capable, resident Muslim, upon whom fasting is obligatory.
  2. The non-Muslim, who does not fast and is not required to make up missed fasts upon conversion.
  3. The child who has not reached puberty, who is not obligated to fast but is instructed to do so to build the habit.
  4. The insane, the feebleminded lacking discernment, and the senile elderly who lack discernment, who are neither obligated to fast nor required to feed the poor in compensation.
  5. The permanently incapacitated, such as the elderly or those with chronic, incurable illnesses, who must feed one poor person for each day missed.
  6. The temporarily ill, who may break the fast if it poses hardship and make up the missed days upon recovery.
  7. Pregnant and breastfeeding women, who may break their fast if fasting causes hardship or if they fear for their child, making up the days when able.
  8. Women experiencing menstruation or postnatal bleeding, who are prohibited from fasting and must make up the missed days.
  9. Those compelled to break their fast to rescue a protected person from drowning or fire, who must make up the day.
  10. Travelers, whether on occasional travel (such as for Umrah) or regular travel (such as taxi drivers), who are permitted to choose between fasting or breaking the fast and making it up later, as long as they are outside their hometown.

Invalidators of Fasting

The author specifies that consuming an invalidator out of forgetfulness, ignorance, or coercion does not break the fast, citing Quranic verses such as رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِنْ نَسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا ("Our Lord, do not take us to task if we forget or err" [Al-Baqarah: 286]). He then outlines eight specific nullifiers of the fast:

  • Sexual intercourse, which invalidates the fast and obligates both making up the day and performing the severe expiation (kaffarah mughallazah: emancipating a slave, or fasting two consecutive months, or feeding sixty poor people).
  • Intentional ejaculation while awake via masturbation, physical intimacy, kissing, or embracing.
  • Eating or drinking, whether beneficial substances or harmful ones such as smoking.
  • Nutritive injections that substitute for food and drink; non-nutritive injections (intramuscular or intravenous) do not break the fast even if tasted in the throat.
  • Blood transfusions.
  • Menstruation and postnatal bleeding.
  • Deliberate bloodletting through cupping (hijamah) or equivalent methods, whereas involuntary blood loss (such as nosebleeds or tooth extraction) does not break the fast.
  • Deliberate vomiting, whereas involuntary vomiting does not nullify the fast.

Practical Rulings and Etiquettes

The treatise concludes with ten points of legal guidance and recommended practice:

  • A person may begin fasting in a state of major ritual impurity (janabah) and perform the purifying bath (ghusl) after dawn.
  • A woman whose bleeding stops before dawn is obligated to fast even if her bath occurs after dawn.
  • Tooth extractions, wound treatment, and eye or ear drops do not invalidate the fast, even if the taste is detected in the throat.
  • Using the tooth-stick (siwak) is permissible and sunnah throughout the entire day.
  • Methods to relieve heat and thirst, such as water cooling and air conditioning, are permitted.
  • Inhaling oral sprays for breathing difficulties is permitted.
  • Wetting dry lips and rinsing a dry mouth without gargling are permissible.
  • Delaying the pre-dawn meal (suhur) and expediting breaking the fast (iftar) upon sunset are recommended, preferring fresh dates (rutab), dried dates (tamr), water, or any permissible food.
  • Increasing righteous deeds and avoiding prohibitions are encouraged.
  • The fasting person is obligated to maintain religious duties—such as the five daily prayers on time in congregation—and abandon sins such as lying, backbiting, cheating, and usury, citing the hadith recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari: من لم يدع قول الزور والعمل به والجهل فليس لله حاجة في أن يدع طعامه وشرابه ("Whoever does not leave false speech, acting upon it, and foolishness, God has no need of his leaving his food and drink").

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