Ramadan is not preceded by fasting for a day or two
On the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, he said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: ((Do not precede Ramadan by fasting one day, or two days, unless a man used to fast, let him fast)); [متفق عليه].
In this hadith: Declaring the prohibition of beginning Ramadan by fasting one or two days for those who have not observed a habit of theirs, or connected it to what came before it. If he has not reached it or observed a custom, then it is forbidden. This is what is correct in the Shafi’i school of thought for this hadith, and for the other hadith in Sunan Abu Dawud and others: If Shaban is halfway through, there is no fasting until it is Ramadan, if he connects it with what came before it or coincides with his habit, and if his habit is to fast on a Monday or the like, and he coincides with it and fasts voluntarily with the intention of that, then this hadith is permissible for this hadith. For the predecessors, whoever fasts it voluntarily and whose fasting is obligatory during Ramadan, Ahmad and Jama’ah, on the condition that there is cloudiness; [شرح النووي على صحيح مسلم 7/ 194، 195].
The meaning of the hadith: Do not welcome Ramadan by fasting with the intention of preparing for Ramadan.
Al-Tirmidhi said: This is acted upon according to the scholars. They dislike a man’s haste in fasting before the start of Ramadan due to the meaning of Ramadan.
The wisdom behind prohibiting welcoming Ramadan with fasting:
A- Strengthen yourself by breaking the fast during Ramadan to enter into it with strength and energy.
This is a matter of consideration; Because the implication of the hadith is that if you precede it by fasting for three or four days, it is permissible.
for- For fear of mixing the voluntary prayer with the obligatory prayer, and this is subject to consideration. Because it is permissible for someone who has a habit, as mentioned in the hadith.
C- Because the ruling is linked to the sighting, so whoever precedes it by a day or two may try to appeal that ruling, and this is what is approved, and the meaning of the exception is that whoever has a ward has been given permission to do so; Because he is accustomed to it and is accustomed to it, and abandoning what is familiar is severe, and that is not part of welcoming Ramadan in any way, and this includes making up for it and vowing because they are obligatory.
Some scholars said: A decree and a vow are excluded by conclusive evidence of the obligation of fulfilling them, so the conclusive evidence is not invalidated by conjecture.
In this hadith: a response to those who believe that fasting should be given precedence over seeing, such as the Rafidites, as well as a response to those who said that absolute voluntary fasting is permissible, and further removed from those who said: What is meant by the prohibition is to advance with the intention of Ramadan, and he used the word precedence because precedence over a thing with a thing is only achieved if it is of its kind, so based on this, fasting is permissible with the intention of an absolute voluntary fast, but the context rejects this interpretation and rejects it.
In this hadith: an explanation of the meaning of his saying in the hadith: ((Fast when you see it, and break your fast when you see it. If it is hidden from you, then complete the thirty days of Sha`ban)); [رواه البخاري].
The blame in it is due to the timing, not the explanation.
Ibn Daqiq al-Eid said: Although it is interpreted as referring to taqīt, it is necessary to commit a metaphor; Because the time of sighting – which is night – is not the place for fasting.
Al-Fakihi followed him by saying that what is meant by saying: ((Fast)) Intend to fast, and the whole night is a condition for the intention.
Ibn Hajar said: He fell into the metaphor from which he fled. Because the one who intends to do so is not actually fasting, as evidenced by the fact that it is permissible for him to eat and drink after making the intention until dawn comes.
In this hadith: It is forbidden to start fasting before Ramadan if it is for the sake of precaution, and if it exceeds that, then it is understood as permissibility.
It was said: The prohibition extends to what came before that, and many Shafi’is dissented from it.
They responded to the hadith by saying that what is meant by it is to advance fasting, so where there is a prohibition, it is limited to a day or two. Because it is the majority of those who intend that, and they said: Extend the prohibition from the first sixteenth of Sha’ban due to the hadith of Al-Alaa bin Abdul Rahman on the authority of his father on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, that the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: ((If Shaaban is halfway through, do not fast)); [أبو داود بإسناد صحيح].
Al-Ruyani, a Shafi’i, said: It is forbidden to advance by a day or two.
It is disliked to advance from half of Shaban to the next hadith.
The majority of scholars said: It is permissible to fast voluntarily after half of Sha`ban, and they weakened the hadith contained in it.
Ahmad and Ibn Ma’in said: It is objectionable, and Al-Bayhaqi cited the hadith of Al-Bab as evidence of its weakness, saying: The concession in that is based on what is more authentic than the hadith of Al-Ala, and Al-Tahawi did the same before him.
He cited a proven hadith on the authority of Anas, may God be pleased with him, with a chain of transmission traceable to the Prophet: ((The best fast after Ramadan is Shaban)); [الطحاوي في شرح معاني الآثار 2/83]But its chain of transmission is weak.
He also cited the hadith of Imran bin Husayn, may God be pleased with them both: ((The Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said to a man: Has anyone fasted anything during this month? He said: No, so the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: If you break your fast of Ramadan, fast for two days in its place.)); [متفق عليه].
Then he combined the two hadiths by saying Hadith
Th Al-Alaa is interpreted as referring to one who is weakened by fasting, and the hadith of this chapter is specific to those who are cautious about claiming it is Ramadan, and it is a good plural. [فتح الباري 6/ 158].
And the hadith about fasting a lot in Shaban, on the authority of Ibn Abi Labid, on the authority of Abu Salamah, said: I asked Aisha, may God be pleased with her, about the fasting of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, and she said: ((He used to fast until we said he had fasted, and he would break his fast until we said he had broken his fast, and I never saw him fast more in a month than he fasted in Sha’ban. He used to fast all of Sha’ban. He used to fast in Sha’ban except a little.)); [متفق عليه].
On the authority of Aisha, may God be pleased with her, she said: ((The Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, did not fast more in a month of the year than in Sha’ban. He used to say: “Take deeds as much as you can, for God will not tire until you tire.” He used to say: “The most beloved deed to God is that which the one who does it consistently, even if it is small.”)); [متفق عليه].
He, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, often fasted in Sha’ban without Muharram:
1- Perhaps he did not learn the virtue of the muhrim until the end of his life, before he was able to fast.
2- Or perhaps he presented excuses that prevented one from fasting a lot during this period, such as travel, illness, etc. The scholars said: But only Ramadan was not completed; lest he think it is obligatory; [شرح النووي على مسلم 8/ 37].
The reason for his fasting a lot in Sha’ban is that the year’s deeds are presented in that month. On the authority of Osama bin Zaid, may God be pleased with them both: ((He said: I said: O Messenger of God, I have not seen you fast in any month as much as you fast in Sha`ban? He said: That is a month that people ignore between Rajab and Ramadan, and it is a month in which deeds are taken up to the Lord of the Worlds, so I would love for my deeds to be taken up while I am fasting.)); [النسائي في المجتبى بإسناد حسن].