Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And eat and drink until the white thread becomes distinct to you from the black thread at dawn.} [Quran 2:187]
In a Hadeeth (narration) on the authority of ‘Adiyy ibn Haatim, may Allah be pleased with him, he said, “When the verse in which Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And eat and drink until the white thread becomes distinct to you from the black thread at dawn.} [Quran 2:187] was revealed, I took two strings, one black and the other white, and kept them under my pillow and went on looking at them throughout the night but could not make anything out of it. So, the next morning I went to the Messenger of Allah and told him the whole story. He said:‘That verse means the darkness of the night and the whiteness of the dawn.’” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
Benefits and rulings:
First: The keenness of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, to apply the Divine Orders and their quickness to put the revealed Quran into action. In another narration, ‘Adiyy, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “‘O Messenger of Allah, I memorized and understood everything you advised me to do except the white and the black thread (meaning the verse). I spent the night yesterday having two threads looking at this once and then looking at that another time.’ The Prophet smiled and said:‘It is the white and black threads in the sky.’” [At-Tabaraani] ‘Adiyy, may Allah be pleased with him, was so keen that he put the threads under his pillow.
Second: The Companions did not ask questions unless there was confusion regarding the issues relevant to their worship. Hence, they did their best to understand the Quranic verse. When there was confusion, they asked the Prophet, . The Muslim should submit to texts of the Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation) without raising needless questions. He should ask only about what confuses him regarding matters that draw him near to Allah The Almighty.
Third: The meaning of the verse in which Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And eat and drink until the white thread becomes distinct to you from the black thread at dawn.} [Quran 2:187] means until the whiteness of the dawn becomes distinct from the blackness of the night. Such a distinction could be made when the true dawn takes place.
Fourth: Confusing and similar-sounding words should be referred to the well-versed scholars of Sharee‘ah for elucidation.
Fifth: This verse indicates that what comes after dawn is part of the day, not the night.
Sixth: The end time for eating and drinking is the breaking of dawn. If the dawn breaks while the person is eating and drinking and stops eating and drinking, then the fasting will be valid. If he continues eating and drinking, then the fasting will be invalid.