If one leaves off fasting out of negligence and ignorance, is there anything required of him?
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The questioner : May Allah preserve you, Shaykh. This is a young man who has reached the age of twenty and has not fasted except this year. He reached the age of puberty at twelve years old and was living in the desert, where ignorance was prevalent among them. What should he do?
The Shaykh : He owes nothing, but it is recommended that he fast anew. As long as in the first case he did not know that it was obligatory, and it is far-fetched that he did not know, or he knew that it was obligatory but left it off out of negligence. As for the first case, he does not make up the fasts because he is excused by ignorance. As for the second case, he does not make up the fasts because it would not be accepted from him even if he did make them up. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih Muslim 1718b. And take this rule: every act of worship that is time-bound, if a person delays it beyond its time without a valid legal excuse and then performs it, it is not accepted from him, even if he performs it a thousand times. For this reason, Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "If a person leaves off Hajj despite having the ability to perform it, merely out of negligence, until he dies, then Hajj is not performed on his behalf. He said: Because if Hajj were performed on his behalf, it would not absolve his conscience, since the man did not intend to absolve his conscience in the first place; otherwise, he would have performed Hajj." This opinion is strong, and I lean toward it.
He also said, even regarding zakah: "If a person was stingy and did not pay zakah, and when he died his heirs said: We will pay the zakah on his behalf, then that is not accepted from him. And his side, forehead, and back will be branded with it on the Day of Resurrection, even if his family pays it." Ibn al-Qayyim says: Zakah is not paid at all, because when he died, the wealth became the property of the heirs, so zakah is not paid on his behalf. But I see that the more cautious view is to pay the zakah on his behalf, because the right of the poor is attached to it. His negligence in paying it does not drop the right of the poor. So zakah is paid to the poor, but it does not absolve his conscience; he will be punished for it. How can years pass without him paying zakah, and then when he dies, we pay it on his behalf? It is not possible. And his words (may Allah have mercy on him) are very, very strong, and people lean toward them.
The Shaykh : He owes nothing, but it is recommended that he fast anew. As long as in the first case he did not know that it was obligatory, and it is far-fetched that he did not know, or he knew that it was obligatory but left it off out of negligence. As for the first case, he does not make up the fasts because he is excused by ignorance. As for the second case, he does not make up the fasts because it would not be accepted from him even if he did make them up. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
He who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.
من عمل عملا ليس عليه أمرنا فهو ردHe also said, even regarding zakah: "If a person was stingy and did not pay zakah, and when he died his heirs said: We will pay the zakah on his behalf, then that is not accepted from him. And his side, forehead, and back will be branded with it on the Day of Resurrection, even if his family pays it." Ibn al-Qayyim says: Zakah is not paid at all, because when he died, the wealth became the property of the heirs, so zakah is not paid on his behalf. But I see that the more cautious view is to pay the zakah on his behalf, because the right of the poor is attached to it. His negligence in paying it does not drop the right of the poor. So zakah is paid to the poor, but it does not absolve his conscience; he will be punished for it. How can years pass without him paying zakah, and then when he dies, we pay it on his behalf? It is not possible. And his words (may Allah have mercy on him) are very, very strong, and people lean toward them.