Have you ever felt uneasy because your debts have piled up, but circumstances make it difficult for you to pay them? For example, due to illness or pregnancy and breastfeeding. You must also be wondering how you will account for it. But you don’t need to be confused, because Islam is a religion of rahmatan lil ‘alamin. There is an option to pay fidyah for people with certain conditions to pay off fasting debts. Before doing so, find out more about the definition of fidyah and its rulings here!
Definition of Fidyah
In Arabic, fidyah means to replace or make up for. Based on the term, fidyah is a certain amount of property that must be given to the poor as a substitute for missed worship. Fidyah also means feeding one poor person to make up for one day of fasting.
“(That is) in a certain number of days. So if any of you is sick or traveling (and he breaks his fast), then (he must fast) the number of days missed on other days. And it is obligatory for those who find it difficult to observe it (if they do not fast) to pay the fidyah, (which is) to feed a poor person. Whoever willingly does good deeds, that is better for him. And fasting is better for you if you know.”
(QS. Al-Baqarah: 184)
Through the above verse, Allah explains that if a Muslim misses a fast, then he is obliged to make up for it on other days, the number of days that have been missed. If a Muslim is unable to make up the missed days because of a serious condition, then he is allowed to pay a fidyah. What are the conditions that make it permissible for a person to pay fidyah?
People Who May Pay Fidyah in Lieu of Fasting
Of course, not just anyone can pay fidyah. There are Islamic rules and regulations. Including if you intentionally cancel fasting, then it is obligatory to pay it. In accordance with Islamic provisions, the following are people who may pay fidyah as a substitute for fasting. Of course, if you are not included in this group, then it is obligatory to pay fasting debt, yes!
- People who are sick and have little potential for recovery
If someone has a disease, and the disease is difficult to cure, or the potential for recovery is small, then it is allowed to pay fidyah.
- An Elderly Person Who Is Unable to Fast
A person who is elderly, and his body is decrepit and weak. He is unable to fast, so it is permissible for him to make up the fast with a fidyah.
- One who has passed away and has a fasting debt
If a Muslim dies during or after the month of Ramadan, due to illness. His sickness made him unable to fast, so his family members can pay his fasting debt with fidyah.
- Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women During the Month of Fasting
Pregnant and breastfeeding women during the fasting month, if they fear for the nutrition of the child they are carrying or breastfeeding, according to some scholars, must pay fidyah. However, according to Imam Shafi’i, they must make up the fast as well as pay the fidyah.
- People who make up fasts after Ramadan
According to Surah Al-Baqarah verse 184, if a person does not fast in Ramadan, he must make up the fast in another month. According to the scholars, it is obligatory to make up the fast in another month before the next Ramadan comes. If the debt from last year’s Ramadan is only paid by fasting after this year’s Ramadan, it must be made up by fasting and paying the fidyah.
Read also: Paying Fidyah Automatically Repays Ramadan Fasting Debt, Is It? Not Necessarily!
How Much Fidyah Must Be Paid
If you are included in the group that is allowed to pay fidyah, then how much fidyah must be paid? There are different opinions about the size of the fidyah that must be paid. Here are the differences in the amount of fidyah:
- Pay One Mud
A hadith narrated by Daruquthniy, “from Ali ibn Abi Talib and from Ayyub ibn Suwaid, states the Prophet’s order to a man who has intercourse with his wife on an afternoon in Ramadan to perform the expiation or penalty of fasting for two consecutive months. If he is unable, then he must pay a fine of 1 araq (basket) containing 15 saa’ of dates.”
Roughly speaking, the fine or fidyah in the hadeeth is 1 Sha’, which is equivalent to 4 mud. In the hadith, the dates that were fined were 4 x 15 = 60 mud, to be given to 60 poor people. The same amount to make up for fasting for two months (60 days). In today’s calculations, 1 mud is equivalent to 0.6 kg or ¾ liter.
So the fidyah payment of one mud is equivalent to the price of staple food, if in the past Arabs used dates, in Indonesia using the count of rice. If the price of rice is Rp 11,000 per liter, then ¾ of it is Rp 8,250.
- Paying Two Muds
Feeding the poor for Rp 8,250 worth of rice seems inappropriate. Moreover, it is possible that our daily food is more than twenty thousand rupiah. Therefore, there are other scholars such as Abu Hanifah, who argue that ½ sha’ or 2 mud of wheat, is equivalent to half a sha’ of dates or flour recommended by Radulullah. It is given for lunch and dinner until one poor person is full. half a saa’ weighs the equivalent of 1.5 kg of staple food.
- Payment of One Sha’
There is also a view among the Hanafis that one saa’ is equivalent to four muds. It is equivalent to zakat al-fitr. If measured on a scale, the weight of 1 saa’ is 2,176 grams. If the volume is measured, then 1 saa’ is equivalent to 2.75 liters.
From the above comparison, we can see that the minimum amount of fidyah to be paid is 1 mud. However, it would be better to give a fidyah equal to one portion of the daily food that we eat, to each poor person.
How to Pay Fidyah
After knowing the definition of fidyah and its ruling, next we find out how to pay fidyah in accordance with Islamic provisions. There are three ways that we can do, including:
- Cook food, then invite poor people equal to the number of fasting days that you did not perform during Ramadan. If it is difficult to find a poor person, the scholars also allow you to feed only one poor person for 30 days (or the amount of your fasting debt).
- Giving uncooked food, which is the staple food, and it is also good to give side dishes to complement it.
- Entrusting the fidyah payment to a trusted organization such as Dompet Dhuafa. The organization will distribute food or other basic necessities to the poor. Actually, it is possible to give the fidyah money directly to the poor, but we cannot be sure whether the money is really for daily food or is instead used for bad things, such as spree or gambling.
Friends, by reading the definition of fidyah, the ruling, and its provisions above, we now understand whether our current situation is permissible to pay fidyah or not. If we are still able to make it up, then it is still obligatory for us to make it up. However, if there are other possibilities that we will face such as an illness that does not heal, we need to replace the fast as well as pay the fidyah.
If you experience this, you can fulfill fidyah at Dompet Dhuafa. Through Dompet Dhuafa, your fidyah will be distributed to the right people and in accordance with Islamic provisions. Click the banner below to pay your fidyah now!
