Was our breaking the fast wrong and do we have to make up the 30th day of Ramadan?

Do we have to make up the 30th day of last Ramadan or offer expiation? I heard that our breaking the fast was wrong and that Ramadan in 1428 AH was 30 days and not 29 days.

Praise be to Allaah.

You do not have to make up the 30th day, because Ramadan was 29 days, based on the fact that the shar’i moon sighting was confirmed and nearly 10 people testified to that, as was mentioned by Shaykh Saalih ibn Muhammad al-Lahaydaan, the head of the Higher Judiciary Council (may Allah preserve him). 

If anyone was outside the Kingdom and relied on its moon sighting, then his breaking of the fast is valid and he does not have to do anything further. 

And Allah knows best.

He lost consciousness because of an accident – does he have to make up his fasts and prayers?

There is a man who was in a car accident and almost died. For along time – including the month of Ramadaan – he was in serious condition and in a coma. After that the Almighty and Most Generous Creator granted him healing and he was restored to perfect health. Zzzzdoes he have to make up his fasts and prayers?

Praise be to Allaah.  

If it really happened as you say, that this man had lost consciousness during that period – including the month of Ramadaan – when he was not aware of anything as a result of the accident, then he does not have to make up the fasts and prayers that he missed during the days when he was unconscious. This is according to the more correct of the two scholarly opinions, and is because he was not accountable or required to do those acts of worship during that period.

 And Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah send blessings and peave upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.

How can he make up missed fasts?

How can he make up missed fasts?.

Praise be to Allaah.

If he did not fast for a reason, such as sickness or travelling, or menstruation in the case of women, then he must make it up after Ramadaan, and he must make up the number of days that he did not fast, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“and whoever is ill or on a journey, the same number [of days which one did not observe Sawm (fasts) must be made up] from other days”

[al-Baqarah 2:185]. 

‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said: That (i.e., menstruation) would happen to us and we would be told to make up the fasts, but we were not told to make up the prayers. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (321) and Muslim (335). 

The time for making up the fasts lasts until the next Ramadaan begins; he can make them up at any time during this period, on consecutive days or separately. 

It is not permissible for him to delay making them up after the following Ramadaan, unless he has an excuse. 

See the answer to question no. 26865. 

But if he did not fast deliberately, with no excuse, then one of two scenarios must apply: 

1 – He did not decide not to fast from the night before, and he did not intend to fast. In this case making up the fast is not valid, because fasting is an act of worship that is linked to a specific time, and if a person fails to do it, it is not valid after that time, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever does an action that is not in accordance with this matter of ours will have it rejected. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2697) and Muslim (1718). 

2 – He did intend to fast from the night before, and he started the day fasting, then he broke his fast during the day with no excuse. He has to make up this day, because he started to do it, which makes it like a vow that he must fulfil. Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded the one who had intercourse during the day in Ramadaan to make up that day, and he said to him: “Fast one day in its place.” Narrated by Ibn Majaah (1671), classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan Ibn Majaah. 

In addition to that, if he broke the fast during the day without any excuse by having intercourse, he must make it up and also offer expiation. For information on this expiation and the rulings thereon, please see the answer to question no. 49614. 

The one who breaks his fast with no excuse also has to repent to Allaah, regret what he has done, resolve never to do it again, and do a lot of righteous deeds such as observing naafil fasts and so on. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And verily, I am indeed forgiving to him who repents, believes (in My Oneness, and associates none in worship with Me) and does righteous good deeds, and then remains constant in doing them (till his death)”

[Ta-Ha 20:82]. 

And Allaah knows best.

He drank something after Fajr during a voluntary fast. Does he have to offer expiation?

I fast every Monday and Thursday, a voluntary fast. It so happened that one night I ate sahoor, and I went to sleep without drinking anything. One hour after Fajr I got up, and I was very thirsty so I drank something, then I fasted until night. Please note that I know that I missed Fajr by an hour. Is this fast valid or not? If it is not, then do I have to offer expiation?.

Praise be to Allaah.

The fast is not valid, because the fast must be from dawn until sunset, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“So now have sexual relations with them and seek that which Allaah has ordained for you (offspring), and eat and drink until the white thread (light) of dawn appears to you distinct from the black thread (darkness of night), then complete your Sawm (fast) till the nightfall”

[al-Baqarah 2:187]. 

Based on this, you will not have the reward for this day that you fasted, because it was not in accordance with sharee’ah, but there is no sin on you for that, because it is permissible for a person to break a supererogatory fast. You do not have to offer expiation either. Expiation is not required for any fast, even an obligatory one, except if a person has intercourse with his wife during the day in Ramadan and they are among those who are obliged to fast. In that case the expiation is obligatory upon him and on her if she did it willingly, and the expiation is to free a slave; if that is not possible, then it is to fast two consecutive months; if you cannot fast, then it is to feed sixty poor persons. But if the husband and wife were not obliged to fast, such as if they were travelling during Ramadan and he had intercourse with her, then there is no sin on him or on her, because it is permissible for the traveller to break the fast. But they have to make up that day when they come back from their journey. Even if we assume that they were fasting on that day but they were travelling, it is permissible for them to break the fast and then have intercourse, and there is no sin on them for that, and they do not have to offer expiation; rather they have to make up that day on which they broke the fast. End quote. 

Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him)

She did not know the signs of puberty so she did not fast in Ramadaan, out of ignorance

According to custom in some Muslim countries, menstruation is regarded as the sign of puberty for women and no attention is paid to the other signs, such as the growth of pubic hair etc, which are known from the books of fiqh. 
As a result of this kind of custom, one of the sisters started to observe the obligatory fast of Ramadaan after she saw menstrual blood, although at that time she was thirteen years old and she already had pubic hair before she got her period, but she does not remember whether that hair was coarse or not, and she does not remember how many years she did not fast after that hair appeared.  My question is: 
1 – What are the signs of a woman’s puberty, according to sharee’ah or to custom? 
2 – What is the ruling on this sister’s not fasting during those Ramadaans when her hair had started to grow but she had not yet started her periods, if the custom on this issue is contrary to sharee’ah?.

Praise be to Allaah.  

A woman is deemed to have reached puberty when one of four things happens: 

1 – When she reaches the age of fifteen.

2 – When her pubic hair grows, which is hair around the private parts.

3 – When she emits maniy (fluid released at climax).

4 – When she starts to menstruate. 

If one of these four things happens, then she has reached the age of puberty and she is now regarded as accountable, and she is obliged to do acts of worship just like adults. If a woman did not know that puberty begins in this manner, then there is no sin on her for not fasting, because she was unaware, and there is no sin on the person who is unaware so long as he was not negligent about learning or finding out when he was able to do so. But she must hasten to make up the fasts that she missed because when a woman reaches the age of puberty, she becomes accountable and she must make up the fasts that she missed during the time when she was accountable. She must strive to work out how many days she missed after she reached puberty, and hasten to make them up so there will no longer be any sin on her.

Is it permissible to marry the daughter of my mother’s maternal uncle?

Is it permissible to marry the daughter of one’s grandfather? For your information, what I mean here by grandfather is the maternal uncle of my mother.
In other words, is it permissible to marry the daughter of my mother's maternal uncle?.

Praise be to Allaah.

It is customary in some societies to call the mother's maternal uncle “grandfather”, but this is not correct in either shar‘i or linguistic terms. The mother's maternal uncle is a maternal uncle to her and all her descendants, and his children are regarded as maternal cousins (awlaad khaal) to the children of that mother. 

For more information, please see the answer to question number 103878. 

Based on that, the daughter of your mother's maternal uncle is regarded as your maternal cousin, and the (female) maternal cousin is not a mahram, so there is nothing wrong with marrying her. Allah, may He be exalted, says:

“O Prophet (Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم)! Verily, We have made lawful to you your wives, to whom you have paid their Mahr (bridal‑money given by the husband to his wife at the time of marriage), and those (slaves) whom your right hand possesses — whom Allaah has given to you, and the daughters of your ‘Amm (paternal uncles) and the daughters of your ‘Ammaat (paternal aunts) and the daughters of your Khaal (maternal uncles) and the daughters of your Khaalaat (maternal aunts)”

[al-Ahzaab 33:50]. 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-Rahmaan al-Sa‘di (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Allah, may He be exalted, said, telling His Messenger of that which was permissible for him (for marriage) as well as for the believers, “and the daughters of your ‘Amm (paternal uncles) and the daughters of your ‘Ammaat (paternal aunts) and the daughters of your Khaal (maternal uncles) and the daughters of your Khaalaat (maternal aunts)”. This includes (daughters of) paternal uncles and aunts, maternal uncles and aunts, near and far. End quote. 

For more information, please see the answer to question no. 112320. 

And Allah knows best.

Who is the guardian of an illegitimate daughter when it comes to her getting married?

A muslim man and woman had an affair and had an illegitamate child from that affair. The married woman took the child into her house and remained married to her husband. It was decided that the biological father would provide for his daughter and that she would live in the house of her mother and her mothers husband. The biological father became a very religious man and it is almost 20 years after this incident. She now lives in a house with her mother, her mother's husband and her older half-brother and half-sister.
Who is the wali of this girl? The biological father who provided for her for 20 years, the step-father, or her older half-brother who also lives with them?.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly: 

The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) differed concerning the illegitimate child. Is he to be attributed to his zaani father or not? There are two opinions, which have been discussed in the answers to questions no. 33591 and 85043. The more correct view is that he should be attributed only to his mother and that he should not be attributed to the zaani. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said in Fataawa Islamiyyah (3/370):  “With regard to the child who is born as a result of zina, he is the child of his mother, not of his father, because of the general meaning of the hadeeth in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘The child is to be attributed to the husband and the adulterer deserves nothing’ – i.e., this is not his child. This is what the hadeeth means. If the man marries her after repenting, then the child has been conceived before marriage and repentance and is not his child; he cannot inherit from the man who committed zina even if he claims him as his child, because he is not his legitimate child.” End quote. 

Secondly: 

Once it is established that the illegitimate child is not to be attributed to the zaani, then he has no ‘asbah [male relatives on the father's side]. 

It says in Asna’l-Mataalib (13/288): The illegitimate child has no ‘asbah because he is not attributed to the father. End quote from Tarqeem al-Shaamilah. 

Some of the scholars are of the view that his ‘asbah with regard to inheritance is his mother, or his mother’s ‘asbah [male relatives on her father’s side]. With regard to guardianship for marriage and other matters, he has no ‘asbah. 

It says in al-Iqnaa‘ (4/505): The ‘asbah of the illegitimate child is the ‘asbah of his mother with regard to inheritance only. … But they have no guardianship authority with regard to marriage or other matters. End quote. 

Based on that, this girl does not have any guardian on the basis of blood ties, so her guardian is the Muslim ruler, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The ruler is the guardian of the one who has no guardian.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (2083) and al-Tirmidhi (1102); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood. 

If you are in a country where there is no Muslim ruler, then her guardian is the director of the Islamic Centre in her country; if there is no such person then it is the imam of the mosque. 

For more information please see the answer to question no. 7989. 

And Allah knows best.