Q: My mother (may Allah be Merciful to her and admit her into His spacious Paradise) died before the month of Ramadan this year and her age was roughly one hundred years. In her last days, she said that she had never made up for the days of fast in Ramadan that she missed (Part No. 9; Page No. 265) because of the period. She was actually unaware of the relevant ruling. Are we duty bound to fast and expiate on her behalf? If yes, please give us Fatwa on the following, may Allah reward you with the best:1. We do not know the number of days she missed; how can we count these days?2. Is it permissible that anyone other than her heirs fasts on her behalf for a remuneration or for free?3. What should we do first: Fast or pay charity?4. Should the Sadaqah (voluntary charity) given as expiation be paid intermittently for each day or be gathered and given out at once?5. What is the amount of Sadaqah that should be given as expiation? Can we give it out meat with rice or wheat?6. Can we pay Sadaqah to charities to give it to those who deserve it? It is worth mentioning that some residential buildings for expatriates are nearby, including men, women and children. There is also a garrison nearby, but we do not know whether those people are in need of Sadaqah. We would like to know what we should do. May Allah reward you.

A: You can try and work out the number of days your mother has missed, and then fast these days on her behalf along with feeding a needy person an amount of 1.5 kg of the staple food of the country as expiation for delaying in making up the missed fast. This is based on a Hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: If anyone dies in a state (that he had to complete) some days of fast, his heir must fast on his behalf. (Agreed upon by Al-Bukhari and Muslim) Some of (Part No. 9; Page No. 266) the Prophet's (peace be upon him) Companions said that feeding a needy person an amount of half a Sa` (1 Sa`=3 kg. Approx.) of the staple food of the country, is a must for every day of fast missed along with making up for that day. This ruling applies to a person who delays making up for the days he missed until the next Ramadan comes without a valid excuse.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.