When fasting is optional in journey?

What is the minimum distance to travel that makes fasting optional?

By: Khurshid Imam

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Quran makes fasting as optional during the journey. It is preferred not to fast during a journey.  What should be the minimum distance of travel in order to make fasting as optional? Scholars say that the distance is around 48 miles = 77 kilometers.

With this in mind, imagine the following two scenarios:

A. Scenario 1: I am a poor laborer.  This is the month of ramdhan. I have to carry a heavy load of material on my cycle and cover a distance of 40km. This will be a tiresome journey because of the heavy load and hot weather. But I am not exempted from fasting because the distance is less than 77 km.

B. Scenario 2: I am a rich person. I need to attend a conference in New Delhi. I will catch the flight from Bangalore and in 3 hours I will be in Delhi. I will take an A.C car and go to my venue which again has A.C. This is month of ramdhan but I will not fast because my journey involves traveling more than 77 km.

It is evident that the journey in the first case is harsh, difficult, tiresome and frustrating but fasting is mandatory because the distance is less than 77 km. On the other hand, the journey in the second case is comfortable and without much difficulty. Common sense says that fasting should be exempted in the first case.

We should understand that the definition of journey that requires qasar salah or exemption from fasting, changes with time. Since the time of the Prophet, modes of transportation have changed, the definition of the journey has changed.  Distance which they used to cover in 7 days can be covered today in a few hours.

Today, religious experts should sit, do ijtihaad and come up with a reasonable definition of journey i.e. how much distance needs to be traveled before fasting becomes optional. They should keep into account:

• Geographical area, weather conditions etc.
• Means of transportation used for the journey. Today one can travel in bullock cart as well as in a plane.
• Age of the person undertaking the journey.

Why we can’t have an algorithm regarding the journey through which we can know in which case fasting is exempted?

Moreover, the Prophet did not prescribe any distance as a principle, for which fasting is to be optional.

Since Quran is a dynamic book so Quran has not defined journey. Quran has given the principle that during journey one need not to fast. Definition of the journey will keep on changing with time.

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