Fasting, - Doupht & clear, - His grandmother is sick and is unconscious; does she have to offer expiation for not fasting?

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My grandmother has been sick for nearly a year and a half; she is not aware of her surroundings and does not speak and does not ask for food, but when we give her food, she eats. Sometimes she knows who is speaking to her (which is rare), but she does not tell us what she wants from us (she does not say: “I want a bath, may Allaah bless you”). She is sleeping on a bed without moving, and her children help her to move. I want to ask about fasting and prayer; should we pay fidyah on her behalf and do we have to do anything for the time that is past?.
Praise be to Allaah.
If a person reaches a stage of senility and feeble-mindedness, loses his or her mental capacity and is no longer aware, the obligations of fasting and prayer are waived, and he does not have to offer expiation, because one of the conditions of being accountable is that one should be of sound mind.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The Pen has been lifted from three: from the sleeping person until he wakes up, from the minor until he grows up, and from the insane person until he comes to his senses.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (4403), al-Tirmidhi (1423), al-Nasaa’i (3432), Ibn Majaah (2041). Abu Dawood said: It was narrated by Ibn Jurayj from al-Qaasim ibn Yazeed from ‘Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) from the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). He added “and the senile”.
This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani inSaheeh Abi Dawood.
It says in‘Awn al-Ma’bood: Senility refers to when the mind becomes no longer sound because of old age. What is meant here is the old man has lost his mind because of old age. The elderly person may become confused and lose his power of discernment, which means that he is no longer qualified to be regarded as accountable, but he cannot be called insane. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: Fasting is not obligatory unless certain conditions are met: (i) being of sound mind; (ii) being an adult; (iii) being a Muslim; (iv) being able to do it; (v) being resident (i.e., not travelling); (vi) being free of menses or nifaas (post-partum bleeding), in the case of women.
With regard to the first, being of sound mind – the opposite is loss of reason, whether it is due to insanity or senility, meaning old age, or an accident which causes a person to lose consciousness and feeling. Such a person does not have to do anything, because he is no longer of sound mind. Based on this, this elderly person who has reached the stage of senility does not have to fast or feed the poor, because he is not of sound mind. End quote fromLiqa’ al-Baab al-Maftooh(4/220).
With regard to the past, if she was in this state, and was not aware and could not understand anything, then she does not have to fast or offer expiation.
If she was aware and could understand, but she did not fast because she was sick, then one of two scenarios must apply:
1. If at that time she was hoping to recover from her sickness, but the sickness continued, then she does not have to do anything, because what she had to do was make up the fasts when she recovered, but she did not recover.
2. If at that time there was no hope of recovery, then she should offer expiation for each day, which is feeding one poor person, half a saa’ of the local staple food. If she did not offer this expiation, then you must offer it now from her wealth.
We ask Allaah to heal her and make her well, and to guide and help you.
And Allaah knows best.

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Fasting, - Doupht & clear, - Is it permissible forone who is observing i‘tikaaf to leave the mosque in order to wake his family up for sahoor, then come back?

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If the person who is observing i‘tikaaf comes out of his place of i‘tikaaf to wake his family up for sahoor, and that is because there is no one at home, is this regarded as contrary to the conditions of i‘tikaaf?.
Praise be to Allaah.
The one who enters i‘tikaaf should not leave his place of i‘tikaaf during his i‘tikaaf, except for necessary, unavoidable reasons and to tend to his needs, such as bringing food and drink if there is no one who can bring them for him, and relieving himself if there are no washrooms in the mosque. There is nothing wrong with him going out at the time of sahoor to wake his family up so that they can eat sahoor at the proper time, and to wake them up to pray Fajr if they cannot wake up by themselves and there is no one else who can wake them up, because that comes under the heading of encouraging one another to do good and enjoining them to do what is right. If an obligatory duty cannot be done without a thing, then that thing becomes obligatory. But he should not sit at home after waking his family up; he should go back to his place of i‘tikaaf in the mosque.
And Allah is the source of strength. May Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and Companions.

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Fasting, - Doupht & clear, - He did not fast Ramadan and he thought negatively of Allah, may He be exalted

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Will god ever forgive me? i lost my self and i lost my faith i didn't fast on the last Ramadan and i hated god during that time i thought that he was the cause of all my miseries do i still have a chance to enter Islam again? and will god forgive me or am i doomed?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
We ask Allah, may He be exalted, to accept your repentance, forgive you your sins, open your heart to faith and guidance, and to keep away from your mind all negative thoughts of your Lord and Creator, for there is nothing stranger than a person thinking negatively of his Lord when He has blessed him and bestowed upon him thousands of blessings, the greatest of which are the blessing of Islam and the blessing of reason. For He has chosen him from among His creation and has not made him a disbeliever; He has blessed him by making him a human who thinks rationally and ponders things, unlike animals and those who are insane. And He has created in his body and soul blessings of which no one knows the number except Allah.
One of Allah’s blessings is that He tests His slave with some calamities in order to expiate some of his bad deeds, or to increase him in status, or to remind him that he will return to Him and stand before Him. How often has a person turned away from Allah, then calamity was the means that caused him to turn back to Allah and repent, and ultimately turned out to be a means that led to happiness and joy.
When a person is certain that Allah, may He be exalted, is more merciful to him than anyone else, he will be content with His decree, will bear with patience that with which He tests him, and will hope for relief granted by Him.
Think about the blessings that Allah has bestowed upon you; this will increase your gratitude towards Him and will make you recognise His bounty. Remember that no calamity befalls you but there is something good for you in it.
The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “No exhaustion, sickness, worry, grief, harm or distress befalls a believer, not even a thorn that pricks him, but Allah will expiate some of his bad deeds thereby.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5642; Muslim, 2573
At-Tirmidhi (2399) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Calamities will continue to befall the believing man or woman affecting himself or his child or his wealth, until he will meet Allah with no sin on him.”
At-Tirmidhi (2398) and Ibn Maajah (4023) narrated that Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqaas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I said: O Messenger of Allaah, which people are most severely tested? He said: “The Prophets, then the next best and the next best. A person is tested according to his religious commitment. If he is steadfast in his religious commitment, he will be tested more severely, and if he is shaky in his religious commitment, his test will be according to his commitment. Trials will continue to afflict a person until they leave him walking on the earth with no sin on him.”
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani inSaheeh at-Tirmidhi.
Secondly:
If a person feels resentment towards Allah, may He be exalted, in his heart, or is angry with His decree or thinks negatively of Him – Allah forbid – then let him renew his Islam and utter theShahaadatayn(twin declaration of faith), and let him strive hard and do righteous deeds.
He does not have to make up the fasts that he deliberately omitted, because that is an act of worship that is connected to a specific time; if a person deliberately omitted it at the time it was due, it would not be accepted from him after that. Moreover, Islam erases what came before it of sins.
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked: What is the ruling on the Muslim who for many years did not fast Ramadan, even though he did some of the other obligatory duties, and he had no impediment that was keeping him from fasting? Does he have to make up the fasts if he repents?
He replied:
The correct view is that he does not have to make up the fasts if he repents, because in the case of every act of worship that is connected to a specific time, if a person deliberately delays it without an excuse, then Allah will not accept it from him.
Based on that, there is no benefit in making it up. But he has to repent to Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, and do a lot of righteous deeds. And whoever repents, Allah will turn to him in mercy.
End quote fromMajmoo‘ Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, 19/87
We ask Allah to increase you in faith and guidance.
And Allah knows best.

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For children, - Spiritual Stories for Children: Fox and StorkWhat Goes Around Comes Around

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A selfish fox once invited a stork to dinner at his home in a hollow tree. That evening, the stork flew to the fox's home and knocked on the door with her long beak. The fox opened the door and said, "Please come in and share my food."
The stork was invited to sit down at the table. She was very hungry and the food smelled delicious! The fox served soup in shallow bowls and he licked up all his soup very quickly. However, the stork could not have any of it as the bowl was too shallow for her long beak. The poor stork just smiled politely and stayed hungry.
The selfish fox asked, "Stork, why haven't you taken your soup? Don't you like it?"
The stork replied, "It was very kind of you to invite me for dinner. Tomorrow evening, please join me for dinner at my home."
The next day, when the fox arrived at the stork's home, he saw that they were also having soup for dinner. This time the soup was served in tall jugs. The stork drank the soup easily but the fox could not reach inside the tall jug. This time it was his turn to go hungry.
MORAL: A selfish act can backfire on you.

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