I
n Islam, travelling is not just part of education. It is actually a form of education. Prophet Muhammad (SAW) realized this early in his prophet hood years and emphasized it. He said: "Seek knowledge even if you will have to travel to China". At that time, the world map, as it is today, had not been crafted out. China was considered the farthest place from Arabia.
It is in accentuation of the Prophets instruction that a renowned Arab poet came up with a stanza which translates thus:
"There is no permanent, resting place for a sensible, learned person. Therefore, move from city to city and adapt to any new environment in which you may find yourself.
Travel and meet new contemporaries similar to those you may have parted with and left behind.
Interact with diverse people because human comfort and prosperity are only attainable with interaction…”
The respect which Islam has for travellers is such that they are described as wayfarers in the Qur'an. And by virtue of their journey, Muslim travellers are not only permitted to reduce their four rakats of (Dhur, ‘Asr and ‘Ishai) to two each. They are also excused from fasting while on journey (although they will make up for the missed fasts later). Not only that, they are also listed as one of the groups qualified to receive Zakat; the proviso, however is that such a journey must be justifiable and legitimate.
Judging by the proviso above it becomes understandable that a Muslim journey in Ramadan must be one of necessity and not of mere pleasure.
The rule is that if the journey is beyond 54 kilometres, a travelling Muslim may break his fast and shorten his Salat. But that rule was formulated at the time when donkeys and camels were the means of travelling.
Today, when it is possible to travel from Lagos to Kano within one hour in a comfortable aircraft or from Ibadan to Lagos in a fully air -conditioned car, within the same period, it may be rather unnecessary to indulge in breaking fast and reducing Salat especially when the traveller must make up for the fast broken after Ramadan.
There is hardly any rule without exception. The modern exceptions to the rule of travelling in Ramadan have transcended those of the donkey age.
However, this does not mean that any Muslim traveller in Ramadan cannot shorten Raka’ats of salat or break his fast. Nevertheless, if that rule is followed, the conditions surrounding it must equally be followed.
Dr.Femi Abbas is a columnist at THE NATION NEWSPAPER and can be reached via: e-mail: femabbas756@gmail.com Tel: 08115708536 (Text only)
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