Praise be to Allah.
There is no doubt that sahoor is a Sunnah and an act of worship, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) enjoined that. He said: “Eat sahoor, for in sahoor there is barakah (blessing).” And he (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The difference between our fasting and the fasting of the people of the Book is eating sahoor.” The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to eat sahoor, so sahoor is Sunnah but it is not obligatory. The one who does not eat sahoor is not sinning but he is forsaking a Sunnah.
So people should eat sahoor even if it is only a little; it does not have to be a lot. So one should eat sahoor using whatever is available, whether it is a few dates or some other kind of food, at the end of the night. If there is no food or he does not feel like eating, then he can drink a little milk or at least water, whatever he can, and he should not forgo sahoor, because there is barakah and a great deal of goodness in eating it; it will help the fasting person in whatever he does during the day. So the fasting person should not forgo sahoor even if it is a little, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Eat sahoor, for in sahoor there is barakah (blessing).” This is what the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said, and this kind of barakah should not be ignored; rather the believer should be keen to attain it even if that is by eating a small amount of food or dates or milk, which will help him in both religious and worldly acts during the day. End quote.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him)
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