What is the fasting that is made up on behalf of a deceased person?

The questioner : If a person dies and he has fasting remaining, is it obligatory for his guardian to feed a poor person on his behalf for each day? If this is correct, what is the evidence? And does the guardian sin if he does not do so?

The Shaykh : As for the fasting of Ramadan, no one fasts it on behalf of another. The hadith that came from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in his saying: , is only for the fasting of a vow, meaning: fasting that was not originally obligatory upon him from Allah (Mighty and Majestic), such as Ramadan. Rather, it is from the category of drawing near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). He vowed upon himself to fast one day or more, then he died and was unable to perform and fulfill his vow. Here, his guardian fasts on his behalf. If he does not do so, he sins, because his saying (may the prayer and peace of Allah be upon him): , is in the ruling of a command, as in many texts, such as His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): , meaning: it is not permissible. And "his guardian fasted on his behalf," meaning he is commanded to do this fasting. The phrase "his guardian fasted on his behalf" is a declarative sentence; "fasted" means the fasting occurred, its meaning being that he has not yet fasted. So this is an affirmation of the obligation of the fasting, as if it were a realized fact. Therefore, he said "his guardian fasted on his behalf." It appears to me that this expression, in terms of Arabic style, is more eloquent than if he had said: "Let his guardian fast on his behalf." reports about a command that will occur, stating that it is in the ruling of having occurred. This is like His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): , "has come" means it will certainly come, and therefore He expressed it with the past tense verb "has come." Similarly, , and similar verses. So this is an affirmation that this fasting is upon the guardian of the deceased, and it is obligatory for him to fast the vow on his behalf. Yes.