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[[Image:Geographic Southpole.jpg|200px|The Geographic South Pole|thumb|right]] | [[Image:Geographic Southpole.jpg|200px|The Geographic South Pole|thumb|right]] | ||
According to [[Islamic Law|Islamic laws]] set out in the [[Qur'an]] and [[hadith]], the keeping and breaking of a [[Fasting|fast]] and the times of [[prayer]], among other things, are related to times of sunrise and sunset. As one gets closer to the North or South Pole, the day or night can extend to up to several months each. At the North Pole itself, daylight and darkness lasts for more than 6 months at a time. Extending the five daily prayers of a period of several months appears to undermine the Islamic ritual, however, and fasting for such a period is evidently impossible. | |||
==Concessions and fatwas== | |||
Islamic scholars have thus issued [[fatwa|fatwas]] instructing Muslims to follow the schedule of their original country or the schedule of the closest country with a distinguishable day and night. However, many Islamic scholars have declared that Muslims must fast for periods of up to and even beyond 20 hours.<ref>"Indeed, the fasts may be twenty hours long, but this is something one will have to adhere to." [http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=1947&CATE=6 Fasting in extreme latitudes] - Sunnipath.com Q&A</ref> | |||
==Extreme fasting windows== | |||
See the following list. Fasting begins at Dawn and ends at Sunset. | |||
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" align="center" width="90%" | |||
!COUNTRY | |||
!DATE | |||
!DAWN | |||
!SUNSET | |||
!LENGTH OF FAST | |||
See the following list. Fasting begins at | |||
{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" align="center" width = "90%" | |||
! COUNTRY | |||
! DATE | |||
! | |||
! SUNSET | |||
! LENGTH OF | |||
|- | |- | ||
|Norway | |Oslo, Norway | ||
|Jun | |Jun 28, 2014 | ||
| | |2:27 AM | ||
|10: | |10:43 PM | ||
| | |20h 16m | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Alaska | |Juneau, Alaska | ||
|Jun | |Jun 28, 2014 | ||
| | |2:25 AM | ||
| | |10:07 PM | ||
|19h | |19h 42m | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Iceland | |Reykjavik, Iceland | ||
|Jun | |Jun 30, 2014 | ||
| | |1:34 AM | ||
| | |12:02 AM | ||
| | |22h 28m | ||
|} | |} | ||
A Muslim was fasting in Iceland, according to some scholars, would have to fast for nearly the entire day. | |||
==Criticisms== | |||
[[Image:Arctic Ocean.png|thumb|upright=1.6|The North Pole.]]Some have asked, if one is to follow the timings of their home city, what is to be the practice of a permanent Muslim resident or even community in near-polar regions. Additionally, when it comes to regions where the day extends to be weeks or even months, the time-window of fasting for the "closest country" where the fasting window is under a day, the time frame usually still ends up being near 24-hours. | |||
Classical and conciliatory modern perspectives likewise appear unable to comfortably deal with the case of Astronauts, and eventually persons settling on extra-terrestrial bodies (moons, other planets, spacecraft, etc.). There is also the question of facing the [[Kaaba]] in [[Mecca]], a city on earth, whilst not on earth. As there have been Muslim astronauts (e.g. Anousheh Ansari<ref>Behrouz Saba - [http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=894da88516d540eef2d9b4b388da8c8e First Female Muslim Astronaut Could Help Bridge U.S.-Iran Gap] - New America Media, September 20, 2006</ref>) some scholars have [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheikh_Muszaphar_Shukor#Spaceflight_and_religion created] guidelines for these cases (one scholar wrote a handbook called ''[[w:Sheikh_Muszaphar_Shukor#Spaceflight_and_religion|Guidelines for Performing Islamic Rites (Ibadah) at the International Space Station]]''). | |||
Considering Muhammad and his 7th century companions, living in the Arabian desert, [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth|likely did not know]] about the earth having poles and being spherical, the shortcomings of Islamic law in these regards are generally found to be unsurprising. | |||
==See Also== | ==See Also== | ||
{{Hub4|Fasting|Fasting}} | |||
{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}} | {{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}} | ||
{{Translation-links-english|[[রমযানের মেরু প্যারাডক্স|Bengali]]}} | |||
==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
* [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.emirates247.com/arctic-muslims-unique-dilemma-in-ramadan-the-sun-never-sets-here-2012-07-24-1.468650|2=2012-08-07}} Arctic Muslims' unique dilemma in Ramadan: The Sun never sets here] | *[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.emirates247.com/arctic-muslims-unique-dilemma-in-ramadan-the-sun-never-sets-here-2012-07-24-1.468650|2=2012-08-07}} Arctic Muslims' unique dilemma in Ramadan: The Sun never sets here] | ||
* [http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=5842&ln=eng How to pray and fast in countries where the day or night is continuous] ''- Fatwa response from the Islam Q&A team'' | *[http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=5842&ln=eng How to pray and fast in countries where the day or night is continuous] ''- Fatwa response from the Islam Q&A team'' | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]] | ||
[[Category:Islam and Science]] | [[Category:Islam and Science]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Fasting]] | ||
[[ru:Пост_на_полюсах]] | [[ru:Пост_на_полюсах]] | ||
[[Category:Cosmology]] | |||
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]] |