RISHARD KHAN
rishard.khan@guardian.co.tt
The Anjuman Sunnat ul Jamaat Association (ASJA) has ruled that taking a COVID-19 vaccine while fasting for Ramadan does not break or invalidate the fast.
Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar and is regarded as one of the most significant. It is the month of fasting where Muslims abstain especially from food and drink between dawn and dusk among other things. Several things are believed to break or invalidate the fast such as having an impure thought, swearing, swallowing too much saliva and receiving certain kinds of medical treatments.
However, according to a fatwa (a ruling on a point of Islamic law given by a recognized authority) given by ASJA Council of Ulamaa chairman, Mufti Asrarul Haque Al-Azhari, on March 15th, 2021, receiving a COVID-19 vaccine via injection would not invalidate the fast "whether it is a Fard (mandatory), Sunnah (tradition of the Prophet) or Nafl (optional) fast".
"Islamic jurists have applied certain conditions which will nullify the fast as follows: 1. If something enters the stomach through the natural entry sites such as nose, mouth etc. 2. Any injection taken for the purpose of eliminating hunger or if it is of nutritional value," the fatwa read.
It also stated: "Corona vaccine does not go to our body through a natural entry site; rather it is a needle which goes through the pores and cells of the body. It would be like oil when we use it on our bodies. This form of entry does not invalidate fast."
Ramadan is expected to begin around April 12th and it would likely coincide with the Government's COVID-19 vaccination Drive.