My sister has been married for some time and has not borne children, and she vowed that if Allah grants her children, she will fast a full month every year, and approximately
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The questioner : I have a sister who was married some time ago and did not bear children for a period. Then she vowed that if Allah granted her children, she would fast a full month every year. Approximately thirteen years have passed, during which she has fasted a month every year. She is now the mother of several children, and in the year she does not give birth, she is breastfeeding. Does the fast drop off for her after this period, or does she owe an expiation, even though she is able to fulfill it? Please guide us in this question.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. As for what follows:
Before I answer this question, I would like to alert our brother listeners that a vow is disliked. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prohibited it and said: and he clarified that: Sunan Abi Dawud 3287Sahih (Al-Albani).
Accordingly, we prohibit our Muslim brothers from making vows, due to the prohibition of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) of that. Indeed, some scholars have forbidden vows, because the original ruling of prohibition is prohibition, especially since the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) denied that there is any benefit in it, and clarified that it only extracts from the miser. If Allah wills something for you, it will come to you whether you vowed or not. If Allah does not will the matter for you, it will not come to you whether you vowed or not. So there is no benefit in a vow except obliging a person with what is not obligatory upon him in the sight of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And how many are those who vow and then find fulfilling the vow difficult, so you find them devising ways to drop this obligation, or going to the door of every scholar asking them, hoping to find a way out, but they do not find one.
If a person makes a vow regarding a blessing that Allah gives him and then breaks it, he is in great danger. Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said:[At-Tawbah 9:75-77] And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that whoever vows to obey Allah, it is obligatory upon him to obey Allah.
At that point, we move to the answer to this questioner’s question, and we say: This questioner vowed an act of obedience, which is fasting. She attached this vow to a condition, and that condition was realized. She fasted as long as Allah willed for her to fast, for thirteen years. Now she asks: Is it possible for her to be released from this vow or not?
She clarified that she is able to fulfill the vow. So I say to her: There is no release from this vow, and it is obligatory upon her to fast a month every year. But from the mercy of Allah (the Exalted) upon her is that she did not specify on her tongue that she would fast a specific month. Accordingly, she may fast from the days of the year those that are shortest and coldest, meaning she may fast in the days of winter, the cold days and the short days, until Allah permits her transition from this world to the Hereafter.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. As for what follows:
Before I answer this question, I would like to alert our brother listeners that a vow is disliked. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prohibited it and said:
It does not bring good, nor does it avert a decree
إنه لا يأتي بخير، ولا يرد قضاءit is only from the miserly that it is means by which something is extracted
إنما يستخرج به من البخيلAccordingly, we prohibit our Muslim brothers from making vows, due to the prohibition of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) of that. Indeed, some scholars have forbidden vows, because the original ruling of prohibition is prohibition, especially since the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) denied that there is any benefit in it, and clarified that it only extracts from the miser. If Allah wills something for you, it will come to you whether you vowed or not. If Allah does not will the matter for you, it will not come to you whether you vowed or not. So there is no benefit in a vow except obliging a person with what is not obligatory upon him in the sight of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And how many are those who vow and then find fulfilling the vow difficult, so you find them devising ways to drop this obligation, or going to the door of every scholar asking them, hoping to find a way out, but they do not find one.
If a person makes a vow regarding a blessing that Allah gives him and then breaks it, he is in great danger. Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said:
(75) And among them are those who made a covenant with Allah, [saying], "If He should give us from His bounty, we will surely spend in charity, and we will surely be among the righteous." (76) But when he gave them from His bounty, they were stingy with it and turned away while they refused. (77) So He penalized them with hypocrisy in their hearts until the Day they will meet Him - because they failed Allah in what they promised Him and because they [habitually] used to lie.
وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ عَاهَدَ اللَّهَ لَئِنْ آتَانَا مِنْ فَضْلِهِ لَنَصَّدَّقَنَّ وَلَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ * فَلَمَّا آتَاهُمْ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ بَخِلُوا بِهِ وَتَوَلَّوا وَهُمْ مُعْرِضُونَ * فَأَعْقَبَهُمْ نِفَاقًا فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ إِلَى يَوْمِ يَلْقَوْنَهُ بِمَا أَخْلَفُوا اللَّهَ مَا وَعَدُوهُ وَبِمَا كَانُوا يَكْذِبُونَAt that point, we move to the answer to this questioner’s question, and we say: This questioner vowed an act of obedience, which is fasting. She attached this vow to a condition, and that condition was realized. She fasted as long as Allah willed for her to fast, for thirteen years. Now she asks: Is it possible for her to be released from this vow or not?
She clarified that she is able to fulfill the vow. So I say to her: There is no release from this vow, and it is obligatory upon her to fast a month every year. But from the mercy of Allah (the Exalted) upon her is that she did not specify on her tongue that she would fast a specific month. Accordingly, she may fast from the days of the year those that are shortest and coldest, meaning she may fast in the days of winter, the cold days and the short days, until Allah permits her transition from this world to the Hereafter.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.