The Practising Muslim · Fiqh of Fasting

Rulings and Practices of Fasting

Learn about fasting rules including breaking fasts, intentions, and permissible actions.

8 questions · Medium · about 5 minutes

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8 questions, about 5 minutes.

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1. Why do powdered asthma capsules break the fast?

  • Some powder mixes with saliva and goes down into the stomach. (correct answer)
  • Breathing air itself breaks the fast.
  • Any medicine always breaks the fast.
  • Oxygen reaches the stomach like food.

Why

Ordinary puffers and oxygen do not break the fast because they are not food or drink. But powdered capsules break the fast because some of the powder can mix with saliva and reach the stomach.

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2. What is the basic principle for whether a medical substance breaks the fast?

  • It breaks the fast if it is food, drink, or like food or drink. (correct answer)
  • It breaks the fast if it has any taste.
  • It breaks the fast if it has any smell.
  • It breaks the fast if it is used in a hospital.

Why

The basic rule is that something does not break the fast unless it is food or drink, or something that takes the place of food or drink. Merely noticing a taste in the mouth or throat does not count by itself.

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3. When may a fasting person break the fast because of severe thirst or exhaustion?

  • When they fear real harm or death. (correct answer)
  • Whenever fasting feels slightly uncomfortable.
  • Only if a public official tells them to.
  • Never, even if life is at risk.

Why

It is not allowed to break an obligatory fast without a valid excuse. But if thirst or exhaustion becomes so severe that a person fears harm or death, then breaking the fast is allowed, and they should make up the day later.

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4. When must the intention be formed for an obligatory fast?

  • Before true dawn breaks. (correct answer)
  • Whenever the person wakes up.
  • After sunrise.
  • At any time before Dhuhr.

Why

For an obligatory fast, such as a Ramadan fast or a makeup fast, the intention must be formed before true dawn. What matters is the actual break of dawn, not merely the adhan.

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5. If a sick person recovers during the day after not fasting for a valid excuse, must they avoid eating for the rest of that day?

  • No, but they must make up that day later. (correct answer)
  • Yes, and that day counts as a valid fast.
  • No, and they never have to make it up.
  • Yes, and they must also offer expiation.

Why

A sick person who was not fasting due to a valid excuse and then recovers during the day does not benefit from refraining for the rest of that day. They may eat and drink, but they still must make up the day after Ramadan.

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6. Which of the following invalidates the fast?

  • Eating or drinking deliberately. (correct answer)
  • Using oxygen that does not nourish the body.
  • Applying cream to the skin.
  • Having a nosebleed unintentionally.

Why

Eating and drinking are among the main things that invalidate the fast. Other matters, such as oxygen that does not nourish the body, skin creams, and involuntary nosebleeds, do not invalidate the fast based on the listed rulings.

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7. What is the ruling on swallowing one's own saliva while fasting?

  • It is permissible because it is difficult to avoid. (correct answer)
  • It breaks the fast if done more than once.
  • It is forbidden after making wudu.
  • It requires making up the fast.

Why

Swallowing one's own saliva does not break the fast because it is something normally unavoidable. Going to extremes in spitting is not required and may make fasting unnecessarily difficult.

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8. What is the ruling on swallowing saliva after using siwak while fasting?

  • It is permissible. (correct answer)
  • It is forbidden in every case.
  • It always breaks the fast.
  • It is allowed only after sunset.

Why

Using siwak is Sunnah for the fasting person. After using it, swallowing saliva is permissible, as long as the person does not deliberately swallow anything that breaks off from the siwak.

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A note on these answers

These questions are for learning and self-testing. Explanations are drawn from the sources linked on each question and are not a fatwa. For a ruling on your own circumstances, please consult a qualified scholar.

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