Yahya related to me from Malik from Hisham ibn Urwa from his father that Hamza ibn Amr al-Aslami once said to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, "Messenger of Allah, I am a man who fasts. Can I fast when travelling?" The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "If you want you can fast, and if you want you can break the fast."

Some food was presented to me and Hafsah. We were fasting, but broke our fast. Then the Messenger of Allah (saws) entered upon us. We said to him: A gift was presented to us; we coveted it and we broke our fast. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: There is no harm to you; keep a fast another day in lieu of it.

The Prophet of Allah (saws) used to say when he broke his fast: O Allah, for Thee I have fasted, and with Thy provision I have broken my fast.

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that once in the time of Uthman ibn Affan the new moon had been seen in the afternoon and Uthman did not break his fast until evening had come and the sun had set.

Yahya said that he had heard Malik say that some one who sees the new moon of Ramadan when he is on his own should start the fast and not break it if he knows that that day is part of Ramadan. He added, "Some one who sees the new moon of Shawwal when he is on his own does not break the fast, because people suspect the reliability of someone among them who breaks the fast. Such people should say, when they sight the new moon, 'We have seen the new moon.' Whoever sees the new moon of Shawwal during the day should not break his fast but should continue fasting for the rest of that day. This is because it is really the new moon of the night that is coming ."

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "If people are fasting on the day of Fitr thinking that it is still Ramadan and then definite evidence comes to them that the new moon of Ramadan had been seen one day before they began to fast and that they are now into the thirty- first day, then they should break the fast on that day at whatever time the news comes to them. However, they do not pray the id prayer if they hear the news after the sun has begun to decline."

(the wife of the Prophet) Hamza bin `Amr Al-Aslami asked the Prophet, "Should I fast while traveling?" The Prophet replied, "You may fast if you wish, and you may not fast if you wish."

The Prophet (saws) said: When one of you is fasting, he should break his fast with dates; but if he cannot get any, then (he should break his fast) with water, for water is purifying.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'z Zinad from al-A'raj from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Fasting is a protection for you, so when you are fasting, do not behave obscenely or foolishly, and if any one argues with you or abuses you, say, 'I am fasting. I am fasting.' "

The Prophet came to Medina and saw the Jews fasting on the day of Ashura. He asked them about that. They replied, "This is a good day, the day on which Allah rescued Bani Israel from their enemy. So, Moses fasted this day." The Prophet said, "We have more claim over Moses than you." So, the Prophet fasted on that day and ordered (the Muslims) to fast (on that day).

The Prophet said, "(Allah said), 'Every good deed of Adam's son is for him except fasting; it is for Me. and I shall reward (the fasting person) for it.' Verily, the smell of the mouth of a fasting person is better to Allah than the smell of musk."

Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar used to be cupped while he was fasting. Nafi said, "He later stopped doing that, and would not be cupped when he was fasting until he had broken the fast."

When the Divine Revelation: "For those who can fast, they had a choice either fast, or feed a poor for every day," (2.184) was revealed, it was permissible for one to give a ransom and give up fasting, till the Verse succeeding it was revealed and abrogated it.

That he heard Muawiya bin Abi Sufyan on the day of 'Ashura' during the year he performed the Hajj, saying on the pulpit, "O the people of Medina! Where are your Religious Scholars? I heard Allah's Apostle saying, 'This is the day of 'Ashura'. Allah has not enjoined its fasting on you but I am fasting it. You have the choice either to fast or not to fast (on this day).' "

When the Prophet arrived at Medina he found that the Jews observed fast on the day of 'Ashura'. They were asked the reason for the fast. They replied, "This is the day when Allah caused Moses and the children of Israel to have victory over Pharaoh, so we fast on this day as a sign of glorifying it." Allah's Apostle said, "We are closer to Moses than you." Then he ordered that fasting on this day should be observed.

Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'n Nadr, the mawla of Umar ibn Ubaydullah, from Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman that A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to fast for so long that we thought he would never stop fasting, and he would go without fasting for so long that we thought he would never fast again. I never saw the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, fast for a complete month except for Ramadan, and I never saw him do more fasting in any one month than he did in Shaban.'

Yahya related to me from Malik that he had heard that the people of knowledge did not disapprove of people fasting using tooth-sticks at any hour of the day in Ramadan, whether at the beginning or the end, nor had he heard any of the people of knowledge disapproving of or forbidding the practice.

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, about fasting for six days after breaking the fast at the end of Ramadan, that he had never seen any of the people of knowledge and fiqh fasting them. He said, "I have not heard that any of our predecessors used to do that, and the people of knowledge disapprove of it and they are afraid that it might become a bida and that common and ignorant people might join to Ramadan what does not belong to it, if they were to think that the people of knowledge had given permission for that to be done and were seen doing it.

Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "I have never heard any of the people of knowledge and fiqh and those whom people take as an example forbidding fasting on the day of jumua. Fasting on it is good, and I have seen one of the people of knowledge fasting it, and it seemed to me that he was keen to do so."

Allah's Apostle used to leave fasting in a certain month till we thought that he would not fast in that month, and he used to fast in another month till we thought he would not stop fasting at all in that month. And if one wanted to see him praying at night, one could see him (in that condition), and if one wanted to see him sleeping at night, one could see him (in that condition) too.

I asked or someone asked the Prophet (saws) about perpetual fasting. He replied: You have a duty to your family. Fast during Ramadan and the following month, and every Wednesday and Thursday. You will then have observed a perpetual fast.