It was said that phlegm is a fast-breaker in Ramadan, so is prayer also analogized to this, such that it is said to invalidate it?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you, O Shaykh: Regarding the issue of fasting, the jurists mentioned that phlegm breaks the fast. So, is it possible to analogize prayer to this, O Shaykh? I mean, does swallowing phlegm during prayer invalidate the prayer, considering that...?
The Shaykh : First, may Allah bless you, the jurists did not reach consensus on this. In fact, the school of Imam Ahmad has two opinions: does it break the fast or not?
Second, the phlegm that breaks the fast is the kind that reaches the mouth. As for the phlegm in the throat that descends to the chest, it does not break the fast. I do not think anyone has phlegm reach their mouth and then swallow it. I do not think anyone swallows it, because it is repulsive.
But in any case, the jurists say, and most of the Hanbali jurists say: if the phlegm reaches the mouth and then he swallows it, his fast is invalid.
The analogy to this is: if that happens during prayer, the prayer is invalid if we say that this is equivalent to eating. However, it has not come to my attention that they mentioned this regarding prayer. Moreover, the opinion that it breaks the fast if it reaches the mouth and is swallowed is questionable, because this is not called eating or drinking, and it did not enter his stomach; rather, it did not leave his stomach, even though the mouth is considered part of the exterior, not the interior.
The Shaykh : First, may Allah bless you, the jurists did not reach consensus on this. In fact, the school of Imam Ahmad has two opinions: does it break the fast or not?
Second, the phlegm that breaks the fast is the kind that reaches the mouth. As for the phlegm in the throat that descends to the chest, it does not break the fast. I do not think anyone has phlegm reach their mouth and then swallow it. I do not think anyone swallows it, because it is repulsive.
But in any case, the jurists say, and most of the Hanbali jurists say: if the phlegm reaches the mouth and then he swallows it, his fast is invalid.
The analogy to this is: if that happens during prayer, the prayer is invalid if we say that this is equivalent to eating. However, it has not come to my attention that they mentioned this regarding prayer. Moreover, the opinion that it breaks the fast if it reaches the mouth and is swallowed is questionable, because this is not called eating or drinking, and it did not enter his stomach; rather, it did not leave his stomach, even though the mouth is considered part of the exterior, not the interior.