The valid intention of fasting
26/03/2023| IslamWeb
Question
In Ramadan, we performed the Taraaweeh prayer and bought our Sahoor (pre-dawn meal) and prepared it. Nevertheless, we slept and did not wake before dawn. Is that a valid intention, or is our fasting invalid?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad 
is His Slave and Messenger.
is His Slave and Messenger. Buying Sahoor and preparing it imply the intention of fasting the next day. Consequently, your fasting is valid, and the fact that you slept and did not eat Sahoor does not invalidate it.
Ibn Taymiyyah 
said, “The intention of fasting in Ramadan, according to the consensus of scholars, does not require one to say, ‘I am fasting tomorrow’; rather, it is enough to have the intention in his heart. The intention follows knowledge. When one knows what he wants to do, he must intend it. Consequently, when the Muslim knows that Ramadan will be from the next day and he is among those required to fast, he naturally intends fasting. Likewise, when he knows that ‘Eed will be the next day, he (by default) will intend - that night - not to fast.”
said, “The intention of fasting in Ramadan, according to the consensus of scholars, does not require one to say, ‘I am fasting tomorrow’; rather, it is enough to have the intention in his heart. The intention follows knowledge. When one knows what he wants to do, he must intend it. Consequently, when the Muslim knows that Ramadan will be from the next day and he is among those required to fast, he naturally intends fasting. Likewise, when he knows that ‘Eed will be the next day, he (by default) will intend - that night - not to fast.” Allah Knows best.
Fatwa answered by: The Fatwa Center at Islamweb
www.islamweb.net