Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

assalamualaikum brother burhan,
may allah reward u with wat u desire which is lawful for the services u r doing 4 muslim umma.may allah protect u,me & all our brothers and sisters in faith from the hell fire.....ameen
my question is `my wife asked me to fast on 3 days of zil-hijja before eid ul adha, i just want to know the hadith related to this and which days to fast? can i fast on 7,8,9 of zil-hijja?`could u reply soon as 2day is 1st of zil-hijj? allah hafiz 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

May Allah Subhanah reward you with the best of this world and the Hereafter for your kind comments of encouragement for our humble efforts in the propagation of the Truth. If our humble and modest efforts have helped even one brother or sister get closer to Allah and His Deen of Truth, then we would consider ourselves indeed fortunate to have been given this opportunity by the Lord Most Merciful to serve in His Cause. We hope, beg, and pray the Merciful Lord accepts our humble and weak efforts, forgives us our shortcomings, and saves you, us, and all the believers from the torment of the Hell Fire. Ameen.

Your Question: my question is `my wife asked me to fast on 3 days of zil-hijja before eid ul adha, i just want to know the hadith related to this and which days to fast? can i fast on 7,8,9 of zil-hijja?`could u reply soon as 2day is 1st of zil-hijj? allah hafiz 

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 2431 Narrated by One of the wives of the Prophet (saws)

Hunaydah ibn Khalid narrated from his wife on the authority of one of the wives of the Prophet (saws) who said: ‘The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to fast the first nine days of Dhul-Hijjah, Ashura' and three days of every month.’

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 2419 Narrated by Abu Qatadah

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: ‘The observance of three days' fast every month and of one Ramadan to the other (i.e. the fast of Ramadan every year) is (equivalent to) a perpetual fast. I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of Arafah may atone for the sins of the preceding and the coming year, and I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of Ashura' may atone for the sins of the preceding year.’

Beloved Brother in Islam, it is indeed a Sunnah and a preferred practice of the Messenger of Allah (saws) to fast the first nine days of the month of Dhul-Hijjah. If one, for any reason is unable to fast all the nine days, one may fast any number of days in the first nine days of Dhul-Hijjah; and if one is not able to do even that, that one should at least observe the fast on the blessed Day of Arafah, for this one fast atones for the sins of the preceding and the coming year.

The fasts of the Dhul-Hijja and of the Day of Arafah are considered supererogatory worship; if one observes them one would receive a huge reward from Allah Subhanah, and if for any reason one is unable to perform them, there is absolutely no sin.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan