8/34. Chapter:
Jami at-Tirmidhi 731 — Voluntary Fast
What Has Been Related About Breaking The Voluntary Fast
Breaking a Voluntary Fast Hadith Explained
Jami at-Tirmidhi : 731
Jami at-TirmidhiHadith Number 731
حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ سِمَاكِ بْنِ حَرْبٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ أُمِّ هَانِئٍ، عَنْ أُمِّ هَانِئٍ، قَالَتْ كُنْتُ قَاعِدَةً عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَأُتِيَ بِشَرَابٍ فَشَرِبَ مِنْهُ ثُمَّ نَاوَلَنِي فَشَرِبْتُ مِنْهُ فَقُلْتُ إِنِّي أَذْنَبْتُ فَاسْتَغْفِرْ لِي . فَقَالَ " وَمَا ذَاكِ " . قَالَتْ كُنْتُ صَائِمَةً فَأَفْطَرْتُ . فَقَالَ " أَمِنْ قَضَاءٍ كُنْتِ تَقْضِينَهُ " . قَالَتْ لاَ . قَالَ " فَلاَ يَضُرُّكِ " . قَالَ وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ وَعَائِشَةَ .
Umm Hani Narrated from:
I Was Sitting With The Prophet When Some Drink Was Brought, So He Drank From It, Then He Offered It To Me And I Drank It. Then I Said: 'I Have Indeed Sinned, So Seek Forgiveness For Me.' He Said: 'What Is That?' I Said: 'I Was Fasting, Then I Broke The Fast.' He Said: 'Were You Performing A Fast That You Had To Make Up?' I Said: 'No.' He Said: 'Then It Is No Harm For You.'
Reference : Jami` at-Tirmidhi 731In-book reference : Book 8, Hadith 50English translation : Vol. 2, Book 3, Hadith 731
Summary of Jami at-Tirmidhi Hadith 731
This breaking a voluntary fast hadith shows Umm Hani sitting with the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم when a drink was brought. He drank, offered it to her, and she drank. Then she worried that she had sinned because she had been fasting and broke the fast. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked whether it was a fast she had to make up. When she said no, he told her that it did not harm her. The text makes an important distinction between a voluntary fast and a makeup fast. It should not be used to weaken the duty of Ramadan or qada. The lesson is that a voluntary fast has a different level of obligation, and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم eased her worry in that specific case.
What we learn from this hadith
- The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم first asked whether the fast was a makeup fast.
- A voluntary fast is treated differently in this report.
- Umm Hani’s worry was answered with reassurance, not harshness.
- The ruling here should not be applied to obligatory fasts without proof.
