Is It Disliked to Swallow One’s Saliva When Fasting?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
Question
My mouth produces a large amount of saliva. Every 5 minutes, I have to spit it out. I understand that swallowing saliva does not break fast. However, ingesting a high quantity can be makruh. I’d like to know if the amount is a mouthful or if we can swallow the standard amount?
Also, because I have a cough, is it okay to swallow phlegm?
Answer
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
I pray this finds you in the best of states.
Saliva
You don’t have to spit your saliva while fasting because swallowing saliva inside your mouth won’t break your fast. Nonetheless, it remains disliked for someone fasting to gather his saliva in his mouth and swallow it. [Shurunbulali, Nur al-Idah]
Phlegm
Swallowing mucus that has reached one’s mouth through one’s nose or one’s throat does not invalidate one’s fast. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah]
The reason for this is that by doing so one is not entering anything into the body cavity which would break the fast.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) said: “The fast is broken from what enters [the body].” [Musnad Abu Ya’la by way of Nasb al-Raya]
And Allah knows best.
Wassalam
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge, originally from Algeria, who grew up in France. He began searching far and wide for answers to the fundamental questions of life and was disappointed at the answers he found.
Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.
He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha‘ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others.
He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.
