Table of Contents
What Invalidates the Fast
Fasting in Islam is an act of worship in which the believer refrains from specific things, with a specific intention, during a specific time. In this chapter we focus only on what breaks the fast in Ramadan or other obligatory fasts, without repeating general rulings that are dealt with elsewhere.
The Principle Behind What Breaks the Fast
Fasting is not only about staying away from food and drink. It is a deliberate act of obedience. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever does not give up false speech and acting upon it, and ignorance, then Allah has no need of him giving up his food and drink.”
(Al‑Bukhari)
The fast is invalidated by actions that contradict its reality, such as eating and drinking, and by anything that is treated by the law of Islam as similar to that. Also, for the fast to be broken in the full legal sense, there is usually intention and knowledge. Allah says:
“Our Lord, do not punish us if we forget or make a mistake.”
(Qur’an 2:286)
The scholars understood from this and from other evidences that forgetfulness and genuine mistake are treated differently from deliberate acts.
Key rule: A fast is broken when a person, knowingly and deliberately, allows something that nourishes or is treated like nourishment to enter the body through a recognized route, or engages in acts clearly declared by revelation to invalidate the fast.
Eating and Drinking
Deliberate eating and drinking are the most obvious invalidators of the fast. Allah says when explaining fasting:
“…And eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread of night. Then complete the fast until the night…”
(Qur’an 2:187)
This verse shows two things. First, eating and drinking are what a person leaves while fasting. Second, the time is from true dawn until sunset. Whoever, during this time, deliberately eats or drinks, knowing that he or she is fasting, breaks the fast.
Eating and drinking include any substance taken through the mouth to the stomach. It does not matter if the food or drink is little or much, expensive or simple, beneficial or harmful. The presence of intention is what matters. For example, tasting a small amount of food, then swallowing it on purpose, breaks the fast, because it became eating, not merely tasting.
If a person eats or drinks while forgetful, the fast is still valid by the mercy of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever forgets while he is fasting and eats or drinks, let him complete his fast, for it is Allah Who has fed him and given him drink.”
(Al‑Bukhari and Muslim)
Here the intention to break the fast is missing, so the act is not counted against the person as a sin or as a breaker of the fast.
Accidents, such as swallowing dust, smoke, or water that enters the throat unintentionally while rinsing the mouth, do not break the fast, because there is no deliberate action, although the Muslim should be careful when washing and rinsing during fasting.
Key rule: Deliberate eating or drinking, with knowledge that one is fasting, invalidates the fast. Forgetful or accidental intake does not.
Sexual Intercourse
Sexual intercourse during the daytime in Ramadan is one of the gravest acts that breaks the fast. It is mentioned clearly in the Sunnah. A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said that he had been destroyed because he had intercourse with his wife while fasting in Ramadan. The Prophet ﷺ instructed him to offer a severe expiation if he was able.
One narration mentions:
“A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said, ‘I am destroyed, O Messenger of Allah.’ He said, ‘What has destroyed you?’ He said, ‘I had intercourse with my wife in Ramadan while I was fasting.’ …”
(Al‑Bukhari and Muslim)
From this and similar texts, scholars agreed that intercourse in the daytime of a Ramadan fast, if done deliberately and with knowledge, breaks the fast and requires both making up that day and a special expiation which is heavier than the usual one. The details of that expiation belong in detailed legal study, but what is essential here is that the act is a serious violation of the sanctity of fasting.
If intercourse happens at night before dawn, it does not affect the fast of that day, so long as the person stops before the true dawn begins. Allah says about the nights of Ramadan:
“It has been made permissible for you the night preceding fasting to be intimate with your wives. They are clothing for you and you are clothing for them…”
(Qur’an 2:187)
Thus intimacy is lawful at night, but once dawn comes, intercourse is prohibited, and if someone breaks this rule deliberately, the fast is invalidated.
Key rule: Deliberate sexual intercourse during the daytime of a fasting day in Ramadan both invalidates the fast and entails a heavy expiation, as well as making up the day.
Emission of Semen Due to Desire
While intercourse is the clearest example, other sexual acts that lead to ejaculation can also break the fast, if they are done deliberately and directly by choice. The reason is that they fulfill desire in a major way. The scholars based this on the general intention of fasting which is to restrain from desires.
The Prophet ﷺ instructed the young who could not marry:
“…and whoever is not able to do so, then he should fast, for that will be a shield for him.”
(Al‑Bukhari and Muslim)
Fasting is described here as a shield, particularly against sexual desire. When a person intentionally removes that shield through acts of desire that lead to ejaculation, the meaning of the fast is contradicted.
If a fasting person kisses or touches his or her spouse and this leads to ejaculation, the fast is broken according to the majority. If there is desire but no ejaculation, the fast is not broken, though the person may be blameworthy if he knowingly engaged in something that might lead to what invalidates the fast.
As for natural occurrences such as wet dreams, these do not break the fast, because they are beyond a person’s control and are not chosen. The Prophet ﷺ said regarding the pen that records deeds:
“The pen has been lifted from three: from the sleeper until he awakes…”
(Abu Dawud and others)
By analogy, something that occurs without choice to the sleeping person does not count as a sin and does not invalidate his fast.
Key rule: Deliberate actions that cause ejaculation, such as intentional stimulation, break the fast. Uncontrolled emissions, like wet dreams, do not.
Menstruation and Postnatal Bleeding
For women, the onset of menstruation or postnatal bleeding during a day of fasting invalidates that day’s fast. This is not blameworthy, since it is a natural state created by Allah and women are commanded not to fast during these times. After the period or bleeding ends, the woman makes up the missed days.
The evidence comes from the hadith of a woman who asked the Mother of the Believers Aishah about why a menstruating woman makes up her fasts but not her prayers. Aishah replied:
“That used to happen to us, and we were commanded to make up the fast, but we were not commanded to make up the prayer.”
(Muslim)
This shows clearly that the fast during menstruation is not valid, because if it were valid, there would be nothing to make up. Therefore, if the bleeding starts even shortly before sunset while she is fasting, that day’s fast is invalid and must be made up later. If the bleeding stops before dawn and she attains purity and intends the fast, her fast that day is valid.
Key rule: The presence of menstruation or postnatal bleeding during the fasting day invalidates the fast. When the bleeding ends before dawn, a woman can fast that day.
Intentional Vomiting
Vomiting can occur without a person’s choice, or it can be self induced. The Prophet ﷺ made a distinction between these two states. He said:
“Whoever is overcome by vomiting does not have to make up the fast, but whoever vomits deliberately must make up the fast.”
(Abu Dawud, At‑Tirmidhi)
From this, scholars concluded that if a fasting person is forced by the body to vomit, and he did not bring it on himself, his fast is still valid, as long as he does not swallow any of the vomit back into his stomach on purpose. If a person, however, puts a finger in the throat or uses something to induce vomiting intentionally, then the fast is invalidated and the day must be made up.
The reason is that voluntary vomiting is considered an intentional exit from the normal state of fasting that the revelation has specifically addressed.
Key rule: Unintentional vomiting does not break the fast, but inducing vomiting deliberately invalidates it and requires making up that day.
Injection of Nourishment and Similar Medical Procedures
The purpose of fasting is to leave nourishment and drink. Some modern medical procedures bring nourishment directly into the body by means other than the mouth. The clearest example is nutrient injections or drips that replace food and drink. Scholars have treated such procedures as acting like eating and drinking.
When nutrients are introduced directly into the bloodstream in a way that serves the same purpose as eating and drinking, the fast is considered broken, even if nothing entered through the mouth or nose. This ruling is based on the legal principle that things which fulfill the same function share the same ruling, as well as the understanding of the objectives of the law.
At the same time, not every injection breaks the fast. Injections that contain medicine only, without nourishment, and do not replace food or drink, are not treated like eating. There is a difference between medicine that has no nourishing purpose and substances meant to feed and hydrate the body. Similarly, procedures such as drawing blood for tests, or donating blood, have their own detailed rulings in legal books, but in themselves they are not the same as eating and drinking.
This distinction reflects the goal of fasting, which is leaving off nourishment, not avoiding all physical contact with the body.
Key rule: Injections or drips that provide nourishment or replace food and drink invalidate the fast. Non‑nutritive medical injections generally do not.
Inhaling Substances That Are Like Food and Drink
The mouth and nose are both natural routes to the stomach and the inside of the body. The Prophet ﷺ instructed exaggeration in rinsing the nose during ablution except while fasting. He said:
“Exaggerate in rinsing the nose, unless you are fasting.”
(Abu Dawud, At‑Tirmidhi)
This shows that the nose is a route by which something can reach the throat and stomach. Therefore, inhaling something that is measured and substantial, and is similar in effect to eating or drinking, is considered to break the fast. Examples include nutritional inhalers or vapors that contain calories and act as a substitute for food. Where no nourishment exists and the amount is only a minimal mist, scholars have differed about details, but the main principle is that a clear, nourishing intake breaks the fast.
As with water in ablution, if a person avoids exaggeration and is careful, but a trace unintentionally passes to the throat, it does not break the fast, because it was not deliberate.
The same principle applies to deliberate inhalation of smoke for pleasure, such as smoking. Tobacco smoke is not nourishment in the usual sense, but it carries particles into the throat and chest and is consumed willingly. Contemporary scholars who discuss this question often treat it as invalidating the fast, due to its closeness to the meaning of intake.
Key rule: Any deliberate inhalation of a measurable, nourishing substance through the nose or mouth that reaches inside the body is treated like eating and drinking and breaks the fast.
Apostasy and the Loss of Intention
Fasting is an act of worship, and worship is not valid without belief. If someone leaves Islam, even for a part of the day, then his or her acts of worship on that day are not accepted. Allah says:
“And if you associate [others with Allah], your work would surely become worthless and you would surely be among the losers.”
(Qur’an 39:65)
By this verse and others, the scholars understood that apostasy makes previous deeds void while a person remains in that state. If a person, for example, fasts half a day, then leaves Islam and later returns to it, that day’s fast is not valid and must be repeated. The reason is not that apostasy is similar to eating, but because fasting is an act of faith and the condition of faith was missing during that period.
A related invalidator is the deliberate nullification of the intention. If while fasting a person firmly decides in his heart to stop fasting from that moment and no longer wishes to fast that day, the fast is broken in the meaning of worship, even if he does not immediately eat or drink. Intention is a pillar of worship. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Actions are only by intentions, and every person will have only what he intended.”
(Al‑Bukhari and Muslim)
So if the intention is withdrawn deliberately, the worship has ended.
Key rule: Apostasy during a fasting day and a deliberate decision in the heart to stop fasting invalidate the fast, even before any physical act like eating occurs.
Forgetfulness, Ignorance, and Coercion
Not every action that resembles what breaks the fast is treated the same. The law of Islam regards the state of the person, and whether he acted on purpose, with knowledge, and free choice. Allah says:
“There is no blame upon you for what you do by mistake, but [only] for what your hearts intend.”
(Qur’an 33:5)
And:
“But whoever is compelled by severe hunger with no inclination to sin, then indeed, Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.”
(Qur’an 5:3)
From these and similar texts, scholars drew an important conclusion. If a person eats or drinks while truly forgetting he is fasting, the fast is valid. If a person genuinely does not know a ruling, and sincerely believed that a certain act does not break the fast, the sin may be lifted from him even if some scholars hold that the fast must still be made up. If a person is forced to do something that would normally break the fast, and he has no realistic way to refuse, then his state of compulsion is considered and the full blame is not placed upon him.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Allah has pardoned for my nation mistakes, forgetfulness, and what they are forced to do.”
(Ibn Majah and others)
This hadith shows clearly that the legal responsibility differs when one of these three conditions is present. However, a person should not use this as an excuse. The believer must learn the rulings and avoid doubtful matters.
Key rule: Forgetfulness, genuine mistake, and coercion affect how Allah judges actions that might break the fast, and often remove sin, though the requirement to make up the day can differ by case.
Doubts about Sunset and Dawn
The timing of eating and fasting is critical. If a person eats after he is certain that night has begun, his fast is complete. If he eats before true dawn, he has not yet entered the fasting time. Problems arise when the person is unsure.
Allah says about fasting:
“…And eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread of night. Then complete the fast until the night…”
(Qur’an 2:187)
If someone, thinking that the sun has set, eats, then later it becomes clear that the sun was still above the horizon, this person has eaten during the fasting time. Similarly, if someone thinks dawn has not yet come, and eats, then it turns out that dawn had already arrived, he has eaten after the obligatory time to stop.
The scholars discussed such cases. Many said that the person must make up that day, because in reality he ate at a time of fasting. Others considered the presence of doubt and the general principle of lifting hardship, and held that the fast is still valid. What is essential for a beginner to understand is that a Muslim should avoid this situation by striving to know the prayer and fasting times correctly and not acting on weak guesses.
If one has a solid timetable and follows it carefully, the fast is not broken by small uncertainties. Deliberately taking risks based on pure doubt is blameworthy.
Key rule: A Muslim should avoid eating or drinking based on doubtful guesses about dawn or sunset. If it becomes clear that he ate within the time of fasting, most scholars require that day to be made up.
Summary of Major Invalidators
To review, the major actions that invalidate the fast when done deliberately and with knowledge are: eating and drinking, sexual intercourse, deliberate ejaculation due to desire, menstruation and postnatal bleeding, intentional vomiting, nourishment through non‑oral routes that act like food and drink, deliberate inhalation of substantial, nourishing substances, apostasy, and deliberately canceling the intention to fast.
At the same time, Allah has made the religion spacious. Forgetfulness, true mistakes, compulsion, and natural bodily events outside one’s control, such as wet dreams, do not destroy the reward of fasting. Allah says:
“Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity.”
(Qur’an 2:286)
The Muslim walks between caution and trust. He learns what breaks the fast so that he can avoid it, but he also relies on the mercy of Allah and knows that Allah judges by what is in the heart and by honest effort, not by perfection without error.