Missed Fasts AND 6 days of Shawwal...

 

Abû Ayyûb al-Ansârî relates that Allah's Messenger (saws) says: "Whoever Fasts the month of Ramadaan and then follows it with six days in Shawwâl, it will be as if he had Fasted the year through." [Sahîh Muslim] 

A Muslim has days of the previous Ramadaan Fast to make up. Maybe he had been sick for a few days or maybe he had to travel. A woman almost always has days to make up, since she cannot Fast when she is on her monthly period. A Muslims who has days like these to make up, is he allowed to observe voluntary Fasts before doing so?
This is a question that scholars have always disagreed about. They have expressed three opinions on this matter: 

1. It is forbidden to observe a voluntary Fast before making up all the days one has missed in Ramadaan. This is the ruling adopted by the Hanbalî school of law. 

2. It is disliked to do so, but not prohibited. This is the ruling adopted by the Mâlikî and Shâfi`î schools of law. 

3. It is permissible to do so. This is the view of the Hanafî school of law. It is also an alternative opinion expressed by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal that was favored by the Hanbalî jurist Ibn Qudâmah. 

What appears to me to be the most correct view is that it is best to make up the Ramadaan Fasts first if possible, but it is not necessary to miss these valuable Sunnah Fasts because one has yet had a chance to make up those missed Ramadaan Fasts, especially if one has many Ramadaab Fasts to make or for the one who is not well – For these as long as they have the intention to make the missed Ramadaan Fasts before the next Ramadaan, they may keep the six Fasts of Shawwâl first. And so in reality the matter is a flexible one, and the following evidence supports this flexibility:

1. The basic ruling for making up the missed Fasts of Ramadaan is that there is no fixed time for it. Allah says: "(Fast) for a certain number of other days." [2:184] This shows that the days for making up the missed Ramadaan Fasts is not specified. Moreover, this verse does not indicate that voluntary Fasts are prohibited until these missed days are made up. 

2. All the evidence that encourages voluntary Fasting is general and does not come with such a restriction. For example, when the Prophet (saws) instructed his Companions to observe the Fast of `Ashûrâ', he simply did so without qualifying it with any provisions or restrictions. 

3. `A'ishah relates: "I used to have days from Ramadaan which I never managed to make up before the following Sha`bân due to my being busy with Allah's Messenger (saws)." [Sahîh al-Bukhârî and Sahîh Muslim] 

If we allege that it is absolutely necessary for a Muslim to make up the missed days of Ramadan no matter what excuse or illness a person might have before offering any voluntary Fast, this means that `A'ishah must never have observed a voluntary Fast! She never would have been able to Fast `Ashûrâ' in the month of Muharram. She would never have been able to Fast the day of `Arafah in the month of Dhû al-Hijjah. She would never have observed six days of Fasting in the month of Shawwâl. This is because all of these Fasts take place before the following month of Sha`bân. It is inconceivable that a Companion of the stature of `A'ishah would neglect all of these Fasts. 

On the other hand, some scholars who strictly follow the opnion of not allowing to Fast any Shawwâl Fast unless the person completes his Ramadaan missed Fasts, have argued that as evidence that the special blessings mentioned in the hadîth of Abû Ayyûb al-Ansârî for Fasting six days in Shawwâl can only be realized by someone who has completed all of the Ramadaan Fasts. They point out that the hadîth states: "Whoever Fasts the month of Ramadaan and then follows it with six days in Shawwâl, it will be as if he had Fasted the year through." 

They argue that a person who still has days to make up from Ramadaan has not truly Fasted "the month or Ramadaan."
There are three ways to answer this argument: 

1. It can be said of whoever Fasts most of the month that he has "Fasted the month". The proof for this is that `A'ishah said: "The Prophet (saws) never used to Fast more than he did in the month of Sha`bân. He used to Fast all of Sha`bân." [Sahîh al-Bukharî and Sahîh Muslim] 
We know that the Prophet (saws) did not Fast every single day of Sha`bân, because the narration in Sahîh Muslim reads: "… He used to Fast all of Sha`bân, all of Sha`bân except for a little." 
We also have where `A'ishah said: "…so much so that he would observe i`tikâf in the first ten days of Shawwâl" She said this in spite of the fact that the Prophet (saws) definitely did not observe i`tikâf on the first of those ten days, since that is the day of `Eid al-Fitr. 
The same can be said for the hadîth wherein `A'ishah said: "He used to Fast the ten days of Dhû al-Hijjâh" in spite of the fact that the Prophet (saws) definitely did not Fast on the tenth of those ten days, since that day is `Eid al-Adhâ. 
This manner of speaking is common in Arabic. It is common usage to refer to the majority of something as "all of it". For this reason, we have two general axioms in Islamic Law: 
- Most of something can have the same legal status as all of it. 
- Most of something can stand for all of it. 
The Hanbalî jurist al-Bahûtî asserts: "Most of something is handled in the same manner as all of it in the majority of Islamic legal rulings." 

2. A person who has Fasted Ramadaan and fully intends to make up whatever days he has justifiably missed, he has the same reward as the person who Fasted the whole month without missing any days. Therefore, excluding him from the generality of the statement "Whoever Fasts the month of Ramadaan" is unjustifiable. 

3. If we are to insist that it is absolutely necessary for a Muslim to make up the missed days of Ramadaan before observing the six days in Shawwâl, this will force many Muslims to lose out on this important voluntary Fast and its immense benefits. This is especially the case for women who have to miss a considerable number of days in Ramadaan – 12, 13, 14 or even more – on account of menstruation or other justified reasons. We must keep in mind that the same woman might be unable to Fast in the month of Shawwâl for the same reason. So then, how will she be able to make up all the missed days of Ramadaan and still observe an additional six days in Shawwâl? It will no doubt be very difficult for her to do so.
Therefore, we do say to this woman: Make up the missed days of Ramadaan first if it is easy for you to do so. However, if that is something difficult for you, then you should rather observe the six days of Shawwâl first and make up the missed days of Ramadaan later on. 

All these reasons indeed conforms the flexibility and ease that is part of Islamic Law, especially with respect to voluntary worship. 

INSHA'ALLAH TO FURTHER READ SIMILAR PREVIOUS ARTICLES, CLICK:

• IT'S NOT OVER YET! Ramadaan comes with a baggage! SHAWWAAL!!!
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