Bismillah. Here are some relevant resources:
- The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has worked with Islamic scholars, imams, chaplains and leaders to produce an
information paper for schools and colleges over the observance of Ramadan during this summer’s exams. - The Practice of Fasting in the Modern World – seminar abstracts from Al Mahdi Institute
- Al Azhar fatwa from 2010 on “Fasting in Countries where the Nights are Short [and the Days are Long]” – detailed jurisprudence, worth a read. Mentions the 18-hour example as definitely constituting harm: “People living in countries with extreme variations in daylight hours and nights face an 18-hour fast or more (more than three-quarters of the entire day), which is certainly a difficult feat. Expert opinions determined the inability of the human body to tolerate such extended periods of fasting which definitely poses harm. Therefore, we cannot maintain that harm is the objective of Islamic law.” Their conclusion is to follow the timings of Mecca and Medina, or what is known as the Hijazi timetable. For practical advice on following this in the UK, see Hafiz Naveed’s work at http://www.al-rukn.com
- Al Azhar Fatwa (2015): “Fasting For Those Working in Strenuous Jobs”
- Fatwa on breaking the fast during Ramadan for students revising for exams (see below for Arabic text)
Source: http://www.elwatannews.com/news/details/36353, 09/08/2012
Question: Is it permitted for the student to break his/her fast in Ramadan to be able to revise in preparation to take exams?
Answer: Dr. Ali Goma, the Mufti of Egypt, replied:
It is appropriate to distinguish between a student who can handle revising with some degree of hardship and one who cannot do so at all because of fasting. It is also appropriate to distinguish between students who finds someone to sponsor him and one who works to support himself and his dependants and whose working life, essential for him to support them, will be affected as a consequence of his failure in the exam.
If student who is mature and responsible under Sharia is in a desperate and real need to revise during the days of Ramadan such that it will affect his and his dependants’ livelihood, and he knows that most probably – by any sign or experience – that his fasting will lead to his failure due to physical weakness or will impair his academic education which is necessary to generate his income and his essential expenditure or the livelihood of his dependants, in this case it permitted for him to break his fast. This is based on what Ibn ‘Abdin and other jurists stated where they allowed bakers and people with similar occupations of manual labour to break their fast.
It is mandatory on these students in this case to make up the missed days, because of this necessity (darurah) or the need (hajah) that is effectively a case of necessity, as soon as this emergency situation comes to an end. It should be noted that this fatwa is based on necessity (darurah), which is always evaluated in terms of its extent and degree. The necessity here is conditional upon (i) the student being forced to revise during Ramadan and it not being possible to postpone the exams. It is again conditional upon (ii) the near-certainty on the part of the student that he will fail if he cannot study and (iii) upon the conviction that this failure will impair or deprive him from completing his education where he will not be able to find work except through it or he will not be able to provide for his and his family’s basic needs except by obtaining it (the education). If one of these conditions is not met, fasting becomes obligatory on him and it is not allowed for him to break the fast.
Translation by Salah al-Ansari & Usama Hasan
اسأل والمفتى يجيب.. هل يجوز للطالب أن يُفطر فى رمضان ليتقوَّى على المذاكرة فى أيام الامتحان؟
هل يجوز للطالب أن يُفطر فى رمضان ليتقوَّى على المذاكرة فى أيام الامتحان؟ يقول الدكتور على جمعة مفتى الجمهورية: ينبغى أن يُفرّق هنا بين من يستطيع المذاكرة مع نوع من المشقة وبين من لا يمكنه المذاكرة أصلاً بسبب الصوم، وأن نفرق أيضاً بين مَن يجد عائلاً يعوله وينفق عليه وبين من ينفق هو على نفسه أو عياله بحيث إن رسوبه سيؤثر على حياته العملية التى لا بد له منها لكسب قوته وقوت عياله؛ فإذا احتاج الطالب المكلَّف شرعاً احتياجاً أكيداً يؤثر على معيشته أو معيشة من يعوله إلى المذاكرة فى نهار رمضان، وغلب على ظنه بأمارة أو تجربة أن صومه يُفضِى إلى رسوبه المستلزم لضعفه أو عجزه عن إكمال مسيرته التعليمية التى لا بد له منها لاكتساب معيشته ونفقته الأساسية أو نفقة عياله: فإنه فى هذه الحالة يباح له الفطر؛ أخذاً بما استظهره ابن عابدين وغيره من إباحة الفطر للخبّاز ونحوه من أرباب الحِرَف الشاقة، والواجب على هؤلاء الطلاب قضاء ما أفطروه بسبب هذه الضرورة أو الحاجة التى تُنَزَّل منزلتها فور زوال هذا الظرف الطارئ عنهم. ويجب التنبه إلى أنّ هذه الفتوى إنما هى فتوى ضرورة، والضرورة تقدر بقدرها، وأنها مشروطة بكون مذاكرة الطالب مضطرّا إليها فى شهر رمضان ولا يمكن تأجيلها، ثم هى مشروطة أيضاً بأنه يغلب على ظنه الرسوب إن لم يذاكر، وهى مشروطة ثالثاً بأن هذا الرسوب سيضعفه أو يحرمه من استكمال دراسته التى لا عمل له إلا بها، أو من توفير الاحتياجات التى لا قوام له أو لعياله إلا بها. فإن عُدِم شرط من هذه الشروط فالصوم واجب عليه ولا يجوز له الإفطار.
UNITY 