Ruling on performing Sawm on Fridays only

Q: Is it permissible to perform Sawm (Fasting) only on a Friday to make up for missed days of Sawm?

A: The Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade us from performing Sawm on Fridays only, if it is fasted for the special merit of that day. It is reported that The Prophet (peace be upon him) visited one of his wives on a Friday when she was performing Sawm. He (peace be upon him) asked her, “Did you perform Sawm yesterday?” She said, “No.” He (peace be upon him) said, “Do you intend to perform Sawm tomorrow?” She said, “No.”He (peace be upon him) said, “Then break your Sawm.” It was also mentioned in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. Al-Bukhari and Muslim) on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

“Do not perform Sawm on Friday, unless you perform Sawm on the day before it or the day after it.”

However, if the Day of ‘Arafah (9th of Dhul-Hijjah) is on a Friday; there is nothing wrong with performing Sawm on that day alone, if it is fasted with the intention of performing Sawm for the Day of ‘Arafah, and not because it is a Friday.

Likewise, if someone has to make up for missed days of Sawm from Ramadan, and they have no other time except a Friday, there is nothing wrong with performing Sawm just on that day, because it is their vacation day.

(Part No. 15; Page No. 415)

The same also applies if the Day of ‘Ashura’ (10th of Muharram) falls on a Friday, there is nothing wrong with performing Sawm on it alone, because it is done with the intention of fasting the Day of ‘Ashura’, not a Friday. That is why the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

“Do not single out Friday (among days) for Sawm, nor its night (i.e. Thursday night, as in the Hijri calendar the night precedes the day) for Qiyam (standing for optional Prayer at night).”

The Nas (Islamic text from the Qur’an or the Sunnah) refers to singling out, i.e., people doing these acts of worship specifically because it is Friday or the night of Friday.

[Fatwas of Ibn Baz|Volume 15|The Book of Fasting|Voluntary Sawm|The ruling on fasting on Friday only]