Does possession of essential necessities prevent expiation through fasting instead of monetary payment?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Expiations
Primary text
Fasting is sufficient for expiation if the available wealth is entirely consumed by essential needs. Essential needs include housing, a means of transport required due to inability to walk or established custom, and a servant required due to infirmity, old age, or custom. This view is held by Al-Shafi'i. The ruling is that expiation must only be made from wealth exceeding basic necessity. If there is an excess in property (e.g., a house larger than needed, an extra animal, or a servant beyond necessity), that excess must be sold for expiation. If selling or acquiring the necessary replacement is impossible, then transition to fasting is permitted.
Supporting text
Abu Hanifa and Malik state that if one possesses the corpus of an item qualifying for expiation (like a slave for manumission), fasting is not sufficient, even if one needs that item for service, because one is considered to possess what can be freed, based on {or the freeing of a slave; but whoever cannot find [means], then fasting for three days} (Quran 5:89). The counterargument is that possession committed to essential needs does not prevent transition, comparable to necessary food or water which does not prevent transition to Tayammum.