❖ Emission of Semen During Fasting Through Means Other Than Intercourse ❖
Topic: Rules Related to Fasting – Prepared by: Imran Ayub Lahori
❀ What If Ejaculation Occurs Without Intercourse During Fasting?
If ejaculation occurs during fasting without actual intercourse, such as:
✔ Kissing one’s wife,
✔ Physical contact (skin-to-skin),
✔ Or through masturbation,
then does this invalidate the fast?
✦ The Core Principle
In reality, there is no explicit evidence proving that such acts break the fast, unless there is a clear Sharʿī (legal) nullifier. Fasting remains valid unless and until a clear nullifier from the Sharīʿah is established.
Hence:
➤ Since the Sharīʿah has not declared these acts as invalidators of the fast,
➤ The fast does not break due to them.
✦ Masturbation ≠ Intercourse (Invalid Qiyās)
Drawing an analogy between masturbation and intercourse (jīmāʿ) is invalid (qiyās maʿ al-fāriq), because:
➤ Intercourse is more severe and distinct in its nature and implications.
✦ Supporting Athar (Narration)
It is narrated that someone asked ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها:
“What is permissible for a man with his wife during fasting?”
She replied:
“Everything except intercourse.”
➤ [Ṣaḥīḥ: Tamām al-Minnah, p. 419; ʿAbd al-Razzāq: 8439, vol. 4, p. 190]
This clearly indicates that other forms of intimacy, though discouraged, do not invalidate the fast if they do not involve intercourse.
✦ Scholarly Opinions
✔ Ibn Ḥazm رحمه الله supports this position.
➤ [Al-Muḥallā bi’l-Āthār: 4/190]
✔ Imām al-Amīr al-Ṣanʿānī رحمه الله writes:
“The most apparent ruling is that only the one who engages in intercourse must offer both qaḍāʾ (makeup) and kaffārah (expiation). Including others in this ruling is far-fetched.”
➤ [Tamām al-Minnah: p. 418]
✔ Imām al-Shawkānī and Shaykh al-Albānī also preferred this view.
➤ [Also referenced in Tamām al-Minnah]
✅ Conclusion
❖ If ejaculation occurs during fasting due to:
– Kissing,
– Physical contact,
– Or even masturbation,
the fast is not invalidated, although such actions are highly discouraged, especially masturbation, which is sinful in and of itself.
✔ Only intercourse (jīmāʿ) directly nullifies the fast and necessitates both qaḍāʾ and kaffārah.
