Answered by Shaykh Abdurragmaan Khan
Question: Assalam alaykum,
I live in a region which is nearly polar.As such, fajr is about 3AM, and maghrib 11PM.
I also have an illness called MS, which makes fasting difficult as I get awful migraines and pain. I understand illnesses allows one to not fast.
If fatigue is also an issue, is it permissible for me to pray my maghrib Isha and taraweeh together at 9PM while it is still daylight?
Answer: Wa alaykum al-Salam
Shukran for your question.
As long as a given city has a natural sunrise and sunset, then one would be obliged to follow the times of prayer and fasting based on the occurrence of natural phenomena. As such you will have to fast from true dawn until sunset. Given that 20hrs is a long day, and that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala does charge a soul except with that within it’s capacity, should you find extreme difficulty in fasting the full day, or by fasting you will either become ill, increase in illness or prolong its cure, then under all these circumstances you would be allowed break your fast. Subsequently, later in the year, when fasting becomes possible for you, you will be required to make qada or pay in all missed fasts.
In determining which type of illness permits one to break fast, the jurists stated that any sickness whereby an individual fears he may afflict harm upon his body should he continue fasting, permits him to do end his fasting. Further they stated, if he experiences the sickness before dawn, then he does not have to make an intention and commence the day fasting, however, if he is healthy before dawn, he has to make an intention and commence the day fasting until he experiences the sickness, in which case he may break fast. Finally, the scholars considers it recommended for the sick person who is harmed or experiences difficulty through fasting, to break fast. There are narrations were Imam al-Bukhari and Ibn Sirin broke fast for mild illnesses that caused them pain and difficulty. This is not to encourage you to break fast, but for you not to feel bad when breaking your fast after experirncing pain and difficulty.
Regarding the combining of prayers, your question is unclear. However, if you wish, you may delay the Isha and tarawih prayers until before Fajr, pray them before true dawn enters and immediately after Fajr enters, pray Fajr. Thus it would appear as if your Isha and Tarawih prayers have been joined with the Fajr prayer. If this is not possible, Magrib, Isha and Fajr should be prayed in their allocated times and you may pray tarawih during the day qada’an or as a missed prayer.
And Allah knows best
Wassalam
[Shaykh] Abdurragmaan Khan
Shaykh Abdurragmaan received ijazah ’ammah from various luminaries, including but not restricted to: Habib Umar ibn Hafiz—a personality who affected him greatly and who has changed his relationship with Allah, Maulana Yusuf Karaan—the former Mufti of Cape Town; Habib ‘Ali al-Mashhur—the current Mufti of Tarim; Habib ‘Umar al-Jaylani—the Shafi‘i Mufti of Makkah; Sayyid Ahmad bin Abi Bakr al-Hibshi; Habib Kadhim as-Saqqaf; Shaykh Mahmud Sa’id Mamduh; Maulana Abdul Hafiz al-Makki; Shaykh Ala ad-Din al-Afghani; Maulana Fazlur Rahman al-Azami and Shaykh Yahya al-Gawthani amongst others.