Unity When Fasting and On the Day of the ‘Eed [al-Albaanee]

By: Shaykh Muhammad Naasirud-Deen Al-Albaanee (may Allah have Mercy on him)
Source: Silsilatul-Ahaadeeth As-Saheehah #224 (1/440-445)

[ In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, may His Salaah and Salaam be upon his final Messenger Muhammad, and upon all his family members and Companions, to proceed… ]

Regarding the hadeeth:

الصوم يوم تصومون والفطر يوم تفطرون

“Fasting begins on the day you all begin to fast, and Al-Fitr (the ‘Eed) is the day when you all have broken your fasts.” [1]

At-Tirmithee, after mentioning this hadeeth, said, “And some of the people of knowledge explained this hadeeth, saying that fasting and breaking the fast are both done along with the Jamaa’ah and the masses of the Muslims.”

And As-San’aanee said, “In it is evidence that proves that agreement of the people is needed for establishing the ‘Eed, and that the one who is alone in his knowledge of the moon sighting must go along with the others, and their decision regarding the prayer, the breaking of the fast, and the day of slaughtering is binding on him.” [2]

And Ibnul-Qayyim, may Allah have Mercy on him, explained this, saying, “And it has been said (by the people of knowledge) that there is a refutation in this for those who say that a person can fast and break his fast based on calculated estimations, without others having knowledge of this. And it has also been said that if a lone witness sights the moon, and the judge does not accept his sighting (for some reason), then he himself does not begin his fast based on it, nor do the people begin their fasts based on it.” [3]

And Abul-Hasan As-Sindee, after mentioning the hadeeth of Aboo Hurayrah found in At-Tirmithee’s Sunan, said, “And what is apparent from the hadeeth’s meaning is that these affairs are not Continue reading

A Special Ramadhaan Message From the Custodian of the Two Sacred Mosques

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Ever Merciful:

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, the One who said in His Noble Book:

“O you who believe! Prescribed upon you is fasting, as it was prescribed upon the people before you, in order for you to attain piety.” [2:183]

May Allah raise the rank of and grant peace to the best of His creation, Muhammad, the son of Abdullah, and likewise all of his family and companions.

Dear brother citizens and brother Muslims in every place:

As-Salaamu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh.

With each year that passes, we hope you are well.

Here we are, this blessed night, standing before a month from the most noble and greatest of months with Allah, the Blessed and Lofty. All praise is due to Allah, the One who allowed us to reach the month of Ramadhaan, the month of Mercy, Forgiveness, and being set free from the Fire. We ask Allah that He make us from those who fast and stand in prayer out of faith and hope for reward. Within our souls is a great longing for its joyous arrival, because of what lies in its days and nights of worship offered by Muslims, and because of what is encouraged in this virtuous month of keeping ties, coming together, and excusing each other.

Dear brothers and sisters,

We praise Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, for all that He has bestowed upon this blessed land, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, that He has made it the central nest of Islam, with the message of Islam originating from its land. He has given our land the special favor of Continue reading

Do not Disregard the Moonsighting to Rely on Calendars for the Beginning and End of Ramadhaan

In the Name of Allaah, the Ever Merciful, the Most Merciful…

All Muslims concerned with following the Quran and Sunnah properly should be advised that it is not permissible to plan the first day of Ramadhaan based solely on calendars and the scientific predictions behind them.

This is because Allaah has legislated fasting to begin with the sighting of the crescent of Ramadhaan or the completion of 30 days of Sha’baan when the crescent is not visible.  His Messenger (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace) said, quite clearly:

لا تصوموا حتى تروا الهلال ولا تفطروا حتى تروه

“Do not begin fasting until you sight the moon, and do not break your fast (for ‘Eed) until you have sighted it.” (Bukhari & Muslim)

Since Monday will be the 29th of Sha’baan, Ramadhaan 1434 will begin on either Tuesday (July 9, 2013) or Wednesday (July 10, 2013), depending on whether or not the moon is sighted.

Please be advised that any people claiming at this time that Ramadhaan will begin on a pre-specified day are people who are inviting you to leave the clear practice of fasting according to the Book and the Sunnah.

Please take the time to read the following official verdict of the Permanent Committee of Scholars on the topic if you are not entirely clear on the Islaamic rulings related to this matter:

http://www.alifta.net/Fatawa/FatawaChapters.aspx?languagename=en&View=Page&PageID=30&PageNo=1&BookID=10

May Allaah bless the Muslims and unite them upon the Book of their Lord, the Sunnah of His Messenger (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace), and the way of the Companions and early Muslims who practiced it purely.

NOTE: Do not allow the legitimate scholarly differing over the issue of “local” vs. “global” moonsighting to be grounds for anyone to introduce any concept they choose – like rejecting the entire concept of moonsighting altogether!

And Allaah knows best.

Written by: Moosaa Richardson

15 Reasons to Give out Your Own Zakaat al-Fitr Yourself (Part One)

In the Name of Allaah, the Most Merciful…

The Prophet (may Allaah raise his rank and grant him peace) ordered that Muslims give out zakaat al-Fitr at the end of Ramadhan – one saa’ of staple food on behalf of yourself and each person you are responsible for. [1]

In light of the beautiful and complete religion of Islam and the amazing benefits we reap when implementing it properly, we would like to remind ourselves with the benefits of distributing this form of charity personally, from our own hands, without the use of a third party.

I offer this advice to my brothers and sisters in Islam due to widespread use of charity organizations and community services, and some of the harms that result, or at least the loss of some great benefits that we should not be so prepared to forfeit. Continue reading