Question:
Assalamu‘alaikum SS Dato’ Mufti. What is the meaning of fisabillillah while fasting?
Answer:
Waalaikumussalam wbt,
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the many countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
From Ibn Majah, the Prophet PBUH said:
مَنْ صَامَ يَوْمًا فِيْ سَبِيْلِ الله باعد الله وَجْهَهُ مِنْ جَهَنَّم سَبْعِيْنَ عَامًا
“Whoever fasts one day in the cause of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, Allah will separate his face from the fire by (a distance of) seventy years.”
Sunan al-Nasaie (2247) and Sunan Ibn Majah (1717)
From Uqbah bin Amir, he said:
مَنْ صَامَ يَوْمًا فِيْ سَبِيْلِ اللهِ باعد الله مِنْهُ جَهَنَّم مَسِيْرَة مِائَةَ عَامٍ
“Whoever fasts one day in the cause of Allah, the mighty and sublime, Allah will separate him the distance of one hundred years from the fire.”
Sunan al-Nasaie (2254)
Ibn Daqiq al-‘Id said: “The word fisabillillah according to the uruf (custom) is famously used to refer to jihad. If it is applied in terms of fasting, then it has double the benefits, for there are two types of worships in one. Fi Sabillillah is any form of obedience through any means. The first meaning is closer to its meaning. If fasting does not weaken him from jihad, then it is prioritized to join the two worship together.”