Q204 :If I am traveling to Makkah for Umrah in the
month of Ramadan, should I continue fasting or not?
A204 : The Umrah has nothing to do with fasting in
Ramadan. These are two separate considerations. Any travel in Ramadan
allows a person to avail himself of the concession given by Allah not
to observe the fast. He or she netpensates for not fasting by fasting a
similar number or days to those on which he did not fast in Ramadan,
once he is back from his travel. That the travel is undertaken to
perform Umrah does not restrict that concession in any way. Perhaps
it should be pointed out that the concessions not to fast when one is
traveling allows a person to choose whether to fast or not to fast. It
is authentically reported that the Prophet traveled with a number of
his netpanions in Ramadan. Some of them continued to fast while others
availed themselves of the concession and did not fast. Neither group
reproached the other for its choice. If you feel like fasting on such a
journey and you are confident that fasting will not impose a too heavy
burden on you, you may go on and fast. If you choose to avail yourself
of the concession, you are perfectly entitled to do so.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )