Whoever eats the pre-dawn meal has intended to fast
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
This questioner says: If I want to fast, whether it is obligatory or voluntary, I make sure to get up to eat the pre-dawn meal. But, Shaykh, I often fail to bring to mind the intention when eating it, so my only concern is not to be hungry during the day. Will I be rewarded for my effort to eat it?
Answer:
My brother, if you get up intending to fast and eat the pre-dawn meal, that is the intention to fast. Praise be to Allah, and you are rewarded for this. Fasting, like all other acts, is established by the intention. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih al-Bukhari 1
So if you intend to fast at the break of dawn, whether you ate or not, your fast begins. This applies to both obligatory and voluntary fasting. If you did not get up, or did not intend to fast until the daytime, and you did not eat or drink after the dawn, your fast is valid. However, for the obligatory fast, you must intend it from the night, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sunan an-Nasa'i 2336Sahih (Darussalam) Yes.
This questioner says: If I want to fast, whether it is obligatory or voluntary, I make sure to get up to eat the pre-dawn meal. But, Shaykh, I often fail to bring to mind the intention when eating it, so my only concern is not to be hungry during the day. Will I be rewarded for my effort to eat it?
Answer:
My brother, if you get up intending to fast and eat the pre-dawn meal, that is the intention to fast. Praise be to Allah, and you are rewarded for this. Fasting, like all other acts, is established by the intention. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended.
إنما الأعمال بالنيات وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوى.So if you intend to fast at the break of dawn, whether you ate or not, your fast begins. This applies to both obligatory and voluntary fasting. If you did not get up, or did not intend to fast until the daytime, and you did not eat or drink after the dawn, your fast is valid. However, for the obligatory fast, you must intend it from the night, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
There is no fast for the one who does not intend (to fast) before dawn
لا صيام لمن لم يجمع النية من الليل.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 2062 - من تسحر فقد نوى الصيام - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.