7 reasons why you may not fast

Ramadan comes with blessing, mercy and forgiveness of Allah. When you think of these benefits, you would not like to miss a single day in the holy month without fasting.

Fasting as the fourth pillar of Islam is compulsory on every Muslim. This is more reasons why every Muslim looks forward to it and covet to reap the rewards therein.

However, Allah out of his mercy does not place any burden on us and this is why He exempts certain people from fasting for certain reasons.

So, when you find yourself under these seven conditions, it is permissible to stay away from fasting. You can even break it if you are already fasting.

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Here are the seven conditions under which Allah exempts some people from fasting

Illness: When a person observing fasting falls ill and he or she feels the illness would worsen or delay recovery if he/she keeps on fasting, it is according to scholars permissible for such a person to break the fast and make up for the missed days after Ramadan.

Pregnant and breastfeeding women: Nursing mothers and pregnant women are permitted to break or stay away from fasting if they fear that abstinence from food and drinks would cause harm to either the child or the mother or both of them.

There are disagreement as regards how to redeem the missed fasts by pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, while a lot of scholars opined both of them can pay Fidyah - a religious donation paid by those who are unable to fast to the poor, without paying the fast later on.

Journey: It is permissible for a fasting Muslim to quit fasting or break it if the journey distance is long enough to necessitate shortening of prayers, it is permissible for the traveler to break his fast.

Menstruating women: It is haram (not permissible ) to observe fasting during menstruation. if the period starts while she had started fasting, it is permissible for her to break it and make up for the number of days she missed later.

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Severe Hunger and thirst : It is permissible for a fasting person to break his fast on condition that he is severely thirsty or hungry that he will not be able to keep on fasting or he will die. But he must perform his fast at a later time.

Old Age : Very old people who have no strength to abstain from food and drinks are not permitted to fast. However, Islamic scholars all agree that the old ones should pay fidyah for each day in Ramadan.

When the fasting person is losing consciousness: If a fasting person loses his mind even just for a moment, fasting wouldn't be compulsory for him anymore. If he goes on fasting, it is not valid.