I have a question i have seen in ramadan calender the timings for Imsaak and fajer.
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:
Assalamoalikum
warahmatullahi wbarakatuhu,
May
Allah accept your efforts towards spreading true islam insha Allah. Brother i
have a question i have seen in ramadan calender the timings for Imsaak and
fajer.what is imsaak and someone told me that we have to stop eating or
drinking at imsaak time and not at the time of fajer adhaan.please clear this
concept in detail and send the answer as soon as possible.
Jazakumullahu
khairan.
(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:
What is imsaak
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 none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah
Baqarah verse 187:
187 Permitted to you on the night of the fasts is the approach (sexual
intercourse) to your wives. They are
your garments. And ye are their
garments. Allah knoweth what ye used to
do secretly among yourselves; but He turned to you and forgave you; so now
associate (sexual intercourse) with them (your wives), and seek what Allah hath
ordained for you and eat and drink until the white thread of dawn appear
to you distinct from its black thread; then complete your fast till the
night appears; but do not associate with your wives while ye are in retreat in
the mosques. Those are limits (set by)
Allah; approach not nigh thereto. Thus
doth Allah make clear His signs to men that they may learn self-restraint.
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 1.550 Narrated by Qatada
Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet and
Zaid bin Thabit took the 'Suhur' together and after finishing the meal, the
Prophet (saws) stood up and prayed (Fajr prayer)." I asked Anas, "How
long was the interval between finishing their 'Suhur' and starting the
prayer?" He replied, "The interval between the two was just
sufficient to recite fifty Verses of the Qur'an)."
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 1.551 Narrated by Sahl bin Sad
I used to take the "Suhur" meal
with my family and hasten so as to catch the Fajr (morning prayer) with Allah's
Messenger (saws).
Your Question: i
have seen in ramadan calender the timings for Imsaak and fajer.what is imsaak
and someone told me that we have to stop eating or drinking at imsaak time and
not at the time of fajer adhaan
The literal meaning of the Arabic term ‘imsaak’ is to
stop. When the term ‘imsaak’ is used in
the terminology of ‘fiqh’ or jurisprudence, it means the time to stop consuming
‘suhoor’ before the ‘fajr’ prayer; and the interval between the two is about as
much time as it takes to recite fifty verses of the Glorious Quran or
approximately +/- 20 minutes.
The actual ‘imsaak’ time in Shariah, when one should
absolutely stop the consuming of ‘suhoor’ would be the declaration of the
‘fajr’ adhaan; but to be absolutely safe, some Islamic calendars calculate the
‘imsaak’ time as 15-20 minutes before the time of ‘fajr’.
Dear and beloved sister in Islam, depending on where one
resides, the exact timing of the ‘fajr’ or pre-dawn prayers are a little
different. For example, in the Indian
Subcontinent (
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 3.140 Narrated by Adi bin Hatim
When the above verses were revealed: “…..until the white thread of dawn appear to you distinct from its
black thread …” I took two (hair) strings, one black and the other white, and
kept them under my pillow and went on looking at them throughout the night but
could not make anything out of it. So, the next morning I went to Allah's Messenger
(saws) and told him the whole story. He (saws) explained to me, "That
verse means the darkness of the night and the whiteness of the dawn!"
Thus, regardless of where one resides, the absolute safest
thing to do would be to give oneself ample time to eat and drink of their
‘suhoor’; and abstain from eating and drinking before the prescribed ‘imsaak’
time, or absolute latest until the ‘fajr’ adhaan has been declared; thus
leaving absolutely no doubt in their minds regarding the legality of their
fasts.
But perchance if one has something in their mouths, and
the fajr ‘adhaan’ is declared, there is absolutely no harm if one finishes
eating what is already in their mouths….but it would be safest to make that the
last morsel of food or drink, and not try to complete their meal until their
desire is fulfilled.
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
Wister