peace,
For those (e.g. those in polar regions) who find it difficult to fast(or for doing any other forms of worship), these verses may have the answer,
[4:97-100]
That those the angels/malaa'eka make them die,
unjust (to) themselves, they said: "In what you were/have been? "They said: "We were weakened in the Earth/land." They said:
"Was not God's Earth/land wide/spacious so you emigrate in it?" So those, their shelter/refuge (is) Hell, and it was a bad/evil end/destination.
Except the weakened from the men, and the women, and the children, they are not able (of a) solution (means) and nor they be guided a way/path.
So those, may be God that He forgives/pardons on them, and God is often forgiving, (a) forgiver.
And who emigrates in God's sake, he finds in the earth an escape, and a wealth/an abundance, and who gets out from his house emigrating to God and His messenger, then the death overtakes him, so his reward had fallen/been placed on God, and God is a forgiver, merciful.
For example, suppose one born in an atheist family, as he attains maturity, realizing the truth and comes to the truth.
Will he then continue what he followed before(what his atheist parents taught him)?
The verse seems to denote that the whole month of Ramadan should be fasted
Do you have evidence from the Qur'an that Ramadan is the name of a month/lunar cycle? Why Qur'an didn't mention other 'months' of traditional Islamic calendar?(atleast the 4 inviolable 'months'?)
What is wrong with shahr = full moon?
quote
"Classical Arabic Dictionaries deal extensively with the etymology of the word "shahr". For instance in the discussion of "shahr", it gives "ash-harat", a derivative of "shahr", as meaning a pregnant woman whose belly is round. It also gives the meaning of "shahira(t)" as a big wide woman. It also gives the meaning of "ash-har" as the bright white color of flowers. The primary meaning of the word "shahr" is "something obvious", "something public", "something wide", and "something bright". Hence, all the etymology of the Arabic word "shahr" indisputably and clearly points to it being the obvious, wide, round, and bright full-moon and not the thin, unobvious, and dim new crescent moon."http://islam-and-muslims.com/timing.htmlIf shahr =the whole lunar cycle, then it already have number of days in it, i.e. ~29.5 days.
But the Qur’an says fast ‘ayyamn ma’doodat’(2:184), and according to Qur’an the term ‘ayyamn ma’doodat’ is used for ‘10 days’ (in 2:203, Qur’an mentions ‘ayyamn ma’doodat’ for Hajj days, and from 2:189 & 196 Hajj days are 10).
So, fast for ‘ayyamn ma’doodat’ = fast for 10 days.