The Practice of Fasting (Sawm) in the Modern World
The fiqhi rules and regulations governing the practice of fasting (sawm), observed by adherents of the Muslim faith, are derived from textual sources – the Qur’an and Hadith – by traditional usul al-fiqh methodology. These regulations remained largely unchanged and unquestioned whilst Muslim peoples lived in similar geopolitical contexts to those prevalent in the formative years of Muslim history.
However, Muslims now reside in a diverse range of locations with very different contexts. This has increasingly resulted in these rules being questioned due to conflicts in the Muslim psyche regarding their applicability and relevance. New fiqhi questions relating to the practice of fasting have now arisen with a resultant need for scholarship to either offer contemporary justifications for traditional stances, or offer theoretically consistent alternatives. This workshop facilitated scholarship directly addressing the contemporary fiqhi issues facing the practice of fasting in the modern world.
Presenter | Title of Paper | View Abstract |
Sheikh al-Mushtaq al-Khaqani Imam al-Jawad Foundation for Thought & Culture, Iran |
The Relevance of Time and Space in Religious Interpretation according to Sayyid Kamal al-Ḥaydari | Click here |
Dr Ali Fanaei & Riaz Walji Al-Mahdi Institute |
Length of Fasting: A New Interpretation of the Relevant Texts | Click here |
Ayatullah Professor S. Mustafa Mohaghegh Damad Shahid Beheshti University & The Iranian Academy of Science |
The Juristic Principle of Feasibility (al-Qā’idatu al-Maysūr) and its Applicability to Fasting | Click here |
Professor S. M. Ghari Fatemi Shahid Beheshti University |
What Extent of Difficulty Relieves the Obligation of Fasting? | Click here |
Sheikh Arif Abdul Hussain Al-Mahdi Institute |
Rethinking the Fiqh of Fasting within a Broader Framework | Click here |