#38. THE EID OF A PLACES INDEPENDENT ON MOON SIGHTING
” Assalamu alaykum.
Ustaz I hope u had a good iftar. May Allah reward all your effort.
Pls this is an urgent question requiring and urgent answer.
I am currently in Turkey. The people here as you know have a lot of problem with true understand of the Deen. What is happening now is that they have already fixed their Eid for tomorrow. This was announced since Friday. They didn’t even put Ru’yaa , which is the asl into consideration.
And I was told that is their behaviour.
So tomorrow according to them is Eid.
Now, if it was confirmed that the moon has not been sighted , (just as it has been announced by Saudi), thus making tomorrow still ramadan, what is the most appropriate thing for us to do.??
Jazakumullahu khayra. Pls it is urgent as u can see”
ANSWER
Wa alaykum salaam warahmatullaah wabarakaatuh
Alhamdulillaah and may Allah reward you with excellence, aameen.
Beloved one, we ask Allah to be merciful to you and to us all.
Know that the matter you have mentioned is of those things that the Muslim Ummah in this era have been severely tried with adversely and it is to Allah Alone we lay our complaints.
It is important to note that it is not permissible to follow the whims and caprices of such leaders when it becomes apparent that they predate the Days of Eid and Ramadaan accordingly.
The Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – categorically mentioned to us:
ﺻُﻮﻣُﻮﺍ ﻟِﺮُﺅْﻳَﺘِﻪِ ﻭَﺃَﻓْﻄِﺮُﻭﺍ ﻟِﺮُﺅْﻳَﺘِﻪِ، ﻓَﺈِﻥْ ﻏُﺒِّﻲَ ﻋَﻠَﻴْﻜُﻢْ ﻓَﺄَﻛْﻤِﻠُﻮﺍﻋِﺪَّﺓَ ﺷَﻌْﺒَﺎﻥَ ﺛَﻠَﺎﺛِﻴﻦَ . ﺭﻭﺍﻩ ﺍﻟﺒﺨﺎﺭﻱ
“Observe the fast when it is sighted and break the fast when it is sighted. But if it becomes obscure from you, then complete the days of Sha’aban to thirty.”
Recorded and transmitted by Al-Bukhaari
This is the command of the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – from the Lord of the Worlds. For this reason, Shaykhu Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah – rahimahullaah – said:
“For we know by necessity in the Din of Islaam that what is acted upon with respect to the sighting of the crescent for the fast, Hajj, the Iddah, Ilaa’a (boycotting the wife without divorcing her) or other than that of the Injunctions that rely on the crescent by way of Astronomical Calculations determining whether it is seen or not is not permissible. And the many texts that have been narrated from the Prophet – salallaahu alayhi wa sallam – regarding that are indisputable with regards to their numbers.
The entire Muslims have agreed and formed a consensus on this and there was no known difference on this matter either in the past nor in the later, except that some claimant to Fiqh among the later generations that came up after the first three hundred (years) claimed that whenever the crescent becomes obscure, it is permissible to use Astronomical Calculations in its regard and if the Calculations predict that it ought to have been seen then he observes the fast and vice versa.
And this statement, though it is specific to days of obscurity caused by weather in clarity, and specific to Calculations, it is strange and preceded by the Ijmaa proving its error.”
Do not obey or follow any Nation’s Leader calling to such a practice. Indeed the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – said:
.. ﻻ ﻃﺎﻋﺔ ﻓﻲ ﻣﻌﺼﻴﺔ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﺇﻧﻤﺎ ﺍﻟﻄﺎﻋﺔ ﻓﻲ ﺍﻟﻤﻌﺮﻭﻑ .
ﻣﺘﻔﻖ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ
“There is to be no obedience in the realms of disobeying Allah. Indeed obedience is only in what is Ma’aaruf.”
Agreed Upon by both Imaam Al-Bukhaari and Imaam Muslim.
Therefore O brother do not follow them in that. Instead, look for a community, regardless of how small it is, who share the same concerns as you do on this matter. In the absence of any of that, then observe the prayers with them today, while fasting and then break your fast tomorrow.
Allaahu A’alam
Baarakallaahu feekum
Jazaakumullaahu khayran.
