Malang (malangkota.go.id) – For Muslims who fast during the holy month of Ramadan, imsak is not a foreign term because this term only exists during the month of Ramadan. Imsak is often interpreted as a sign of the end of sahur time and the beginning of fasting time.
Agus Supriadi, Lc., MHI, a lecturer at the Faculty of Islamic Studies, Islamic Family Law Study Program, University of Muhammadiyah Malang, when met on Wednesday (12/4/2023), explained that in terms of language, imsak, imsak, or as-shoum means refraining from eating, drinking, and having sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset.
According to him, imsak has the same meaning as fasting, which is to restrain oneself. Imsak literacy itself is famous in Indonesia and has a special meaning. Referring to the 1400s, imsak began to be heard in the Ottoman era and also Egypt.
The imsak in question is the moment 5-10 minutes before the dawn call to prayer sounds. The Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs through the hisab and rukyat team in 2016 and also Indonesian scholars agreed on a special schedule related to the imsak time.
The schedule is used as a reminder or a yellow light for fasting people to immediately prepare to restrain themselves from various desires, including eating and drinking. "Usually the imsak time is used to clean yourself or your mouth from leftover food after sahur. You can rinse your mouth or brush your teeth," he added.
So, what is the law if someone eats and drinks during imsak time? The lecturer who is familiarly called Agus explained that eating and drinking during imsak time is allowed. This is because basically the fasting time begins when the dawn call to prayer sounds.
"It is explained in the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad SAW, from Zaid bin Thabit Radhiyallahu 'Anhu that the Messenger of Allah explained the distance between the call to prayer and sahur, namely simply reading 50 verses. "This hadith was narrated by Bukhari and Muslim," said Agus.
From the hadith, the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs agreed that the imsak time is approximately 5-10 minutes before dawn. Keep in mind, imsak is not a mandatory sign for us to stop sahur. "Imsak is a yellow light or just a caution so that we don't overdo it when eating sahur," concluded Agus. (say/yon)
