Can I fast on a Friday by itself?

by Asma bint Shameem

🔺Generally speaking it is disliked to fast Friday by itself because Friday is a day of ibaadah and duaas as well as a day of ‘celebration’ for the Muslims and is kind of like an Eid for the week. However, if we HAVE to fast on a Friday for a specific reason, it’s better to combine that with fasting a day before or after it. 🍃The Prophet sal Allaahu Alayhi wa sallam said: ‘None of you should fast on a Friday unless he fasts the day before or the day after.’” (al-Bukhaari, Muslim) But sometimes it so happens that Friday is the ONLY day when we can fast and it’s not possible to combine this with fasting the day earlier (Thursday) or a day later (Saturday). Then what? In that situation it’s allowed to fast just Friday by itself because there’s a ‘need’ for it. Similarly, it’s allowed to fast on Fridays for someone who usually fasts alternate days and the fast falls on a Friday, or if Friday is one of the Sunnah days of fasting the 13th, 14th and 15th of every month, or if Arafah or Aashooraa falls on a Friday, etc So the prohibition to not fast on a Friday will not apply in situations such as these because there’s a ‘reason’ or ‘need’ to fast this day. In such situations the INTENTION is not to fast because it’s ‘Friday’ but to either make up a fardh fast or fast Aashhoraa or Arafah, or fast for a specific reason. 🍃The Standing Committee said: “It is permissible for a Muslim to fast on a Friday to make up a day from Ramadhaan, even if he fasts the Friday on its own.” (Fatwa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, vol. 10, p. 347) So go ahead and fast on a Friday if you have leftover fasts to make up, or for some other valid reason but do add a day to this by fasting on either Thursday or Saturday. And if you can only fast Friday and there’s no way you can fast any other day or combine it with another day, then it’s allowed to fast Friday just by itself as well. And Allaah knows best.