Does Actual Climax Have to Take Place For The Fast to Be Broken, or Would it Break Even If There Was No Climax But Sperm Still Exited?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

I read on SG that masturbation, which doesn’t lead to ejaculation, doesn’t break the fast. However, I read in a different answer that if one were to masturbate without reaching climax, but sperm still exited, that it would lead to major ritual impurity. One would require a Ghusl, since, despite no ejaculation taking place, the sperm exited as a result of one’s own physical doing and arousal. Does the same thing apply to fasting? i.e., does the actual climax have to take place for the fast to be broken, or would it break even if there was no climax but sperm still exited? I read the answers, but none of them specifically addressed this issue.

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

It also applies to fasting. The reason is the same that the sperm exited as a result of one’s own physical stimulation even though there was no climax.

Masturbation

The ruling of masturbation is that it is a major sin and is strictly prohibited (Haram).

If one masturbates during the fast of Ramadan, the fast is invalidated and must be made up. However, since masturbation is a limited fulfillment of desire, its penalty is of a lesser category, and thus, the expiatory (kaffara) fast is not required.

[Ibn ʿAbidin , Radd al-Muhtar]

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.

Related Answers

• Masturbation Archives – SeekersGuidance
• Climax vs. orgasm: How to tell the difference (medicalnewstoday.com)
• Purification of the Heart for Youth: Diseases of the Heart and Their Cure – YouTube
• The Path of Muhammad: Birgivi’s Manual of Taqwa Explained – YouTube
• Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms, and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart: Hamza Yusuf (Book)

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Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.