The Ruling on Relying on Astronomical Calculations in Fasting and Prayer

The questioner:
And another predecessor says, "I see that Allah says, 'Hasten with them,' which is not what you say. Did Allah command us? The point is that one of them is a witness, and the witness lied, and he says to you, 'And Allah [said] Sha'ban.' And I am the last day regarding Sha'ban. And after that, I spoke about it."

The Shaykh:
I see that the origin of this is a plot by the enemy; its origin is a plot by the enemy to incite, create confusion, and cast doubt on the Muslims in their worship. So its origin is from the enemy, but unfortunately, some of the children of the Muslims adopted it. The best assumption is that they did so out of ignorance. They believed this plot and began to promote it. You know that when trials come, few are safe from them. Trials are known only by scholars. When trials are accepted, only the divine scholars know them. But when they recede, they are not known. So this is a plot that the scholars did not say; rather, these people who were deceived and did not know the intent said it, and they began to promote it. Their matter did not stop at Ramadan; now they say that people are praying without wudu' (ablution). They tell people to pray at times other than the prescribed times, advancing the Fajr prayer to the end. So, is it the case that these people must be stopped, and it is obligatory for people not to believe them and not to be swept up with them?

The questioner:
And by the way, the first presence was to reach, to reach the owners

The Shaykh:
There is no basis for this. The calendar, praise be to Allah, is precise and tested, and reality indicates its correctness. You pray Fajr a quarter of an hour or a third of an hour after the adhan (call to prayer), and if you go out and the world is clearly day, you find that the light is clear in the streets and places. So it is not permissible. This design has not been proven wrong as they say. Rather, these are advertisements for the sake of confusion, occupying the Muslims, and dividing them in these matters. So the students of knowledge should verify and not follow advertisements. They should refer the matter to those in charge. These general matters have references. Not everyone can enter into them. Matters of timing, prayers, and fasting have references to whom one returns, and they are sufficient, if Allah wills. It is not the authority of everyone to enter into them. This would be usurpation and interference in matters where one has no place, and they are for the specialists. Allah the Exalted said: from them.
So general matters are not suitable for everyone to enter into. Rather, they have designated authorities that take charge of and supervise them. And they exist, praise be to Allah. So the Muslims should be reassured about their prayers and their fasting and not pay attention to these advertisements, some of which may come from bad intent and some from good intent. But good intention is not sufficient for safety in such matters. We must verify and trust our references, our scholars, and our specialists. Yes.

The questioner:
And the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) hears from the hadith of Ramadan and says, "Rise to that, and let it be a hardship on that, your affair."

The Shaykh:
All these are words of ignorance; they are not words of knowledge. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: So complete Sha'ban as thirty days, or complete the number of the month as thirty days. He drew for us the easy line, and he did not say, "Look at the calculations and the degrees of the heavens and the stations of the moon and the sun." No, he tied fasting to the sighting and breaking the fast to the sighting. So, it is not a condition that a number of people see it; one is sufficient. If one Muslim sees the entry of the month, it is sufficient. When Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) informed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he saw the crescent, he fasted and ordered the people to fast. They did not say that the calculations indicate that the crescent is tonight or tomorrow. When he was informed that he saw the crescent, he fasted and ordered the people to fast and said: Allah the Exalted said: .
So the matter is tied to the sighting of the new moons. And this has designated authorities, as you heard, where no one enters. Calculations err and hit; it is a human work. But there is no doubt in the sighting. The sighting of the eye has no doubt, and the one who sees is not like the one who hears. Yes.