Q:

Salam, kindly consider this situation: on a fasting day, I was cleaning myself after passing stool using a bidet spray, and had sprayed at my rear end private area. However, I am not sure whether or not water had entered the rear end passage.

To test this further, on a non-fasting day, I tried to intentionally spray water from the bidet into the rear passage, to establish a baseline for what it feels like to have water enter it. However, even when intentionally trying to do so, I find that it is not immediately obvious and I can’t tell whether or not water had truly entered.

Given how I can’t decipher whether or not water had entered through the rear, even when intentionally trying to make it enter, I am concerned that my judgment for whether or not water had truly entered the rear is flawed. Therefore, I am unsure if my fasts are nullified or not. if one tried to make water enter, but isn’t sure whether or not it truly had entered, does that mean he/she can still take it as water having NOT entered ? I don’t know if this is a fair judgment to make.

I guess my underlying question is: If I don’t have a gauge as to whether or not I have indeed nullified the fast through water entering the rear opening (or through any other nullifier, for that matter), how can I be sure that I really nullified the fast or not at all?

I understand that in the instance where I am not sure whether or not water had entered, I can simply take it as water had *not* entered, as doubts aren’t enough of a basis to deem one’s fast as being nullified.

The problem is, however, I don’t know what it is like to have water enter the rear opening in the first place. Therefore, I am not able to establish a proper basis for differentiating between doubts and instances where water had truly entered and nullified my fasts.

I hope you understand my question. Thank you for your patience.

Jazakallah Khairan

A:

Wa alaykum as-salam wa-rahmatullah wa-barakatuh,

In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Mercy-Giving,

Peace and blessings be upon His noble Prophet Muhammad.

I am afraid, brother, that this way of thinking might lead you to obsessive doubts. Islam is an easy religion and its rituals are simple and easy as well. You said that you did not intend to enter water into your anus, which is enough evidence to declare that your fasting was not nullified.

So, you did not need to go through all these tiresome examinations. Even if you had intended to do that, still your fasting would not have been declared definitely nullified, since there is scholarly disagreement on this issue. In fact, the opinion that does not nullify fasting in this case seems more reasonable.

Almighty Allah knows best.