Q: I was afflicted by a serious disease, and I thought I would never be cured. Nothing is impossible for Allah, but He (Exalted be He) says regarding man: And when evil touches him, he is in great despair. I would frequently make Du`a' to Allah to cure me and I would say in my Du`a': "If I am cured, I will observe Sawm (Fast) for two months.'' Now I am not sure whether I intended to observe the concerned Sawm consecutively. Since Allah (Exalted be He) has granted me His Kindness and Mercy and cured me, do I have to observe Sawm for these two months? Do I have to do so on a successive basis?

A: Your saying: "If I am cured, I will observe Sawm of two months" is a vow to do an act of obedience to Allah (Exalted be He). Such a vow has to be fulfilled, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Whoever vows that they will be obedient to Allah, must obey Him; and whoever made a vow that they will disobey Allah, must not disobey Him. On the other hand, it is not Wajib (obligatory) on you to observe the Sawm on a successive basis, as you are not sure that you vowed to do so and the original ruling is that there is no obligation to that effect. Finally, we advise you not to make a vow again because the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade people from making vows saying: It 'the vow' does not 'necessarily' bring good 'in the form of substantial, and tangible results', but it is the means whereby something is extracted from miserly persons. (Part No. 23; Page No. 278) May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.