Question: I am a religiously committed woman; I observe Sawm (Fast) in Ramadan, the six days of Shawwal, the White Days (13th, 14th, and 15th of every Hijri month), in addition to Mondays and Thursdays. When I intend to observe Sawm during such days, I ask for my husband’s permission first. At the beginning he agrees, but after a while he gets angry about that and exclaims, “Every day Sawm, Sawm!” In this case, is it permissible for me to observe Sawm or not?
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen was asked: what is better for a woman, to come out to the Eid prayer or to stay at home?
He replied:
It is better for them to go out to Eid prayer, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) enjoined that the women go out to the Eid prayer, even the adolescent girls and virgins – i.e., women who do not ordinarily go out.
He commanded them to go out, and he told the menstruating women to go out but to keep away from the prayer-place. So menstruating women should go out with other women for Eid, but they should not enter the place where the Eid prayer is offered, because the Eid prayer-place is a mosque and it is not permissible for a menstruating woman to stay there, but it is permissible for her to pass through or to take something she needs from it, without staying there. Based on this we say: women are commanded to go out to the Eid prayer and join the men in this prayer, because of the goodness, dhikr and du’aa’ they may experience there.
Majmoo’ Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, 16/210.
He also said:
But they must go out looking decent, not wearing adornment, makeup or perfume, so that they may combine following the Sunnah with avoiding fitnah.
What some women do of wearing adornment, makeup and perfume is because of their ignorance and negligence on the part of their guardians. This does not cancel out the general shar’i ruling, which is that women are commanded to go out to the Eid prayer.
Question: The month of Ramadan has come and it is time to offer Tarawih (special supererogatory night Prayer in Ramadan), is it better to go and attend it in the Masjid (Mosque) or offer it at home? I am not an Imam (the one who leads congregational Prayer), but a Ma’mum (person being led by an Imam in Prayer). I love to recite the Qur’an and prefer reciting to listening. Is there any sin if I pray Tarawih at home?
Answer: There is no sin on you if you offer Tarawih at home, because it is a Nafilah (supererogatory prayer). However, it is better to pray it with the Imam in the Masjid following the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them). When the Prophet (peace be upon him) led his Sahabah in Tarawih on some nights until the end of the first third of the night, one of them said to him: We wish that you would lead us in Nafilah Prayer for the rest of the night. He (peace be upon him) replied: Anyone who prays Qiyam (optional Night Prayer) with the Imam until he finishes, it will be recorded for him as spending the whole night in prayer. (Related by Ahmad and the Compilers of the Sunan through a good Isnad [chain of narrators] from the Hadith of Abu Dhar)
May Allah grant us success! May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions!
Source: al Ifta.net
A: There is no sin on you if you offer Tarawih at home, because it is a Nafilah (supererogatory prayer). However, it is better to pray it with the Imam in the Masjid following the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them). When the Prophet (peace be upon him) led his Sahabah in Tarawih on some nights until the end of the first third of the night, one of them said to him: We wish that you would lead us in Nafilah Prayer for the rest of the night. He (peace be upon him) replied: 
Anyone who prays Qiyam (optional Night Prayer) with the Imam until he finishes, it will be recorded for him as spending the whole night in prayer.
(Related by Ahmad and the Compilers of the Sunan through a good Isnad [chain of narrators] from the Hadith of Abu Dhar)
May Allah grant us success! May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions!
Question:
What is the ruling on a fasting person cooling himself down?
Answer:
It is permissible for a fasting person to cool himself down, and there is no objection to it, for the Messenger sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam used to pour water over his head due to heat or thirst and he was fasting [1], and Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with them, used to wet his garment when he was fasting in order to alleviate the excessive heat and thirst. And the wetness has no effect, because in such cases water does not reach the stomach.
——————————
[1] Reported by Abu Dawud in the Book of Fasting, in the Chapter: The Fasting Person May Pour Water Over Himself Due to Thirst (2365).
Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaymeen
Fatawa Arkaanul-Islaam, DARUSSALAM, Vol.2, p.663
FatwaIslam:http://fatwaislam.com/fis/index.cfm?scn=fd&ID=707
Question: Some people seek Laylatul-Qadar so they active by offering their prayers and other forms of worship whilst they do not do likewise on other nights in Ramadhaan, so is this in accordance with that which is correct?
Response: No! It is not in accordance with that which is correct, for certainly Laylatul-Qadar changes. So it could be on the night of the twenty seventh, and it could be on any other night as has been indicated in many ahaadeeth.
It has been confirmed that the Prophet (sal-Allaahu `alayhe wa sallam) said: «In that particular year Laylatul-Qadar was revealed on the night of the twenty first».
Therefore it is not befitting for a person to specify his stand (in prayer) on a particular night or distinguish a night which he yearns to be Laylatul-Qadar (likewise). (Rather) striving in all of the last ten nights is from the guidance of the Prophet (sal-Allaahu `alayhe wa sallam), since when the last ten nights arrived he would tighten his waist belt and awaken his family and used to spend them all awake (in worship).
So that which is befitting for the prudent believer is to strive in all of the last ten nights such that the reward does not pass him by.
Shaykh Ibn al-Uthaymeen
Fataawa Ramadhaan – Volume 2, Page 855, Fatwa No.844;
Fiqh al-Ibaadaat libni ‘Uthaymeen – Page 207
Published: 6 January 2000
Source: AbdurRahman.org
[Clipart Image by Islamic Vector Art]
Question: Are Ramadhaan competitions permissible?
Question–
Does every day on which the fast is performed in Ramadan require an intention, or is it sufficient to make one intention for the whole month?
Answer–
It is sufficient in Ramadan to make one intention at the beginning of it, because even if the fasting person did not make an intention for every day the night before, that was has intention at the start of the month.
But if the fasting is broken during the month due to a journey, or illness or the like, he must make the fresh intention, because he has broken it by abandoning the fast due to travel, illness or the like.
| Shaykh Muhammad bin Saalih al-`Uthaymeen |
| Islamic Verdicts on The Pillars of Islaam, vol.2, page.644 |
Source: al-ifta
Question: If it is cloudy or overcast, is it obligatory or prescribed to observe Sawm (Fasting) on the Day of Doubt (the 30th of Sha‘ban) as a precaution, in case the month has begun?
Answer: It is not permissible to perform Sawm on the Day of Doubt (so called because there is doubt concerning it – is it the last day of Sha’ban or the first day of Ramadan), even if the sky is cloudy, because the Messenger (peace be upon him) said: Start Sawm (Fast) when you see it (the new moon of Ramadan) and stop Sawm when you see it (the new moon of Shawwal); but if the sky is overcast (and you cannot see it), complete the number of days (of Sha‘ban to thirty days). He (peace be upon him) also said: Do not observe Sawm for a day or two days ahead of Ramadan except a person who is in the habit of observing a particular Sawm; they may fast on that day.
As for what is narrated about Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), that he used to observe Sawm on the 30th of Sha‘ban if it was cloudy, this was his Ijtihad (juristic effort to infer expert legal rulings), but the correct opinion is the opposite of this; it is obligatory not to observe Sawm on that day. Ibn ‘Umar practiced Ijtihad in this case, but his Ijtihad opposed the Sunnah (whatever is reported from the Prophet), may Allah forgive him!
The correct opinion is that the Muslims must not observe Sawm on the 30th of Sha‘ban, if the new moon of Ramadan is not sighted. If it is cloudy, it is obligatory not to observe Sawm. It is not permissible to start observing Sawm until the sighting of the new moon is confirmed or Sha‘ban is completed with thirty days. This is what is obligatory on Muslims, and it is not permissible to oppose the Nas (Islamic text from the Qur’an or the Sunnah) for the personal opinion of an individual, whether he is Ibn ‘Umar or anyone else, because the Nas takes precedence over all opinions, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: And whatsoever the Messenger (Muhammad peace be upon him) gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it). He (Glorified and Exalted be He) also says: And let those who oppose the Messenger’s (Muhammad peace be upon him) commandment (i.e. his Sunnah – legal ways – orders, acts of worship, statements, etc.) (among the sects) beware, lest some Fitnah (disbelief, trials, afflictions, earthquakes, killing, overpowered by a tyrant) should befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.
Source: Fatwas of Ibn Baz
Question:
May Allah reward you for these blessed instructions, the questioner says, during the month
of Ramadan there is a difference of opinion between the Imams of the Masjids concerning the beginning of the time for Fajr; keeping in mind that the masjid has in it calendars for the
athan that are produced by the Scholars of astronomy and relied upon by the Ministry of Endowments and Guidance. But some of the Imams don’t follow these calendars especially when it comes to the Fajr prayer; rather they delay the athan for Fajr by an average of more than fifteen minutes after the time that appears on the calendar. Keeping in mind that the Fajr is not seen due to the following reason, which is the electric lights; so what is your advice for those people?
Answer:
No doubt the Scholars of astronomy have knowledge of astronomy, but Allah the Mighty and Majestic says, “eat and drink until the white thread (light) of dawn appears to you distinct from the black thread” (Chapter 2 verse 187) So as long as Fajr is not clear, the person can eat and drink, but the problem now is for the one who is in the city or a village that has electricity, he will not be able to determine the Fajr when it first enters due to these
lights. Therefore the person should use caution, if the time for Fajr is in according to the calendar then they should stop eating and drinking and as for the prayer then they should use caution, meaning they should not rush to make the prayer (when it first comes in according to the calendar) rather they should wait. And all praises belong to Allah; his waiting for the prayer to be certain that it has entered does not equate to delaying the prayer from its early time. Therefore there should be caution, in relation to fasting we say use caution and start fasting according to the calendar and in relation to the prayer we say use caution and delay the prayer until you are sure the Fajr is in.
Fatwa by Shiek Ibn Othaimeen
Translated by Rasheed Barbee
