Rulings on the Eclipse Prayer.

The Shaykh : These are two things. The third thing is the eclipse that occurred on the last Friday night before the previous one. When did the eclipse occur? After the dawn had appeared; it occurred after the dawn had appeared. So the people differed on whether they should pray or not. This is because the scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, differed on this issue. Some of them said: If the dawn has appeared, then the eclipse prayer is not performed. That is to say, if the moon is eclipsed after the dawn has appeared, even if it is before the prayer, the prayer is not performed, based on the fact that this is a time of prohibition, and in a time of prohibition the eclipse prayer is not performed. But this opinion is weak. The correct view is that the eclipse prayer is performed, meaning the lunar eclipse, even if that is after the dawn has appeared, except if the light of the day spreads until it covers the light of the moon, if it were clear. In that case, it is not performed, because the moon’s dominion and the benefit derived from it have ceased. And Allah the Exalted made the moon a sign of the night. So He the Exalted said: . Mujahid and others said: "The sign of the night is the moon". And when the light of the day spreads, it does not remain a sign, because its dominion has ceased, so in that case it is not performed. But as long as the darkness of the night is predominant over the light of the day and the moon is eclipsed, it is performed, and there is no prohibition regarding the eclipse prayer. The eclipse prayer is two rak'ahs, with two bowings in each rak'ah. The first recitation, which is before the first bowing, is lengthened, then the second is shorter than it, and then the recitation in the second rak'ah is shorter than the recitation in the first, and so on. Two rak'ahs with four bowings and four... what? Prostrations. This is how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed. The sun was eclipsed in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) on the twenty-ninth of Shawwal in the tenth year of the Hijrah, meaning in the tenth year, after it had risen. It was totally eclipsed until it became like a piece of copper. The people were terrified by this, even the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) stood up in fear, to the point that he grabbed his cloak, and he feared that the Hour had come, because when the sun is totally eclipsed, the environment becomes dark. He ordered that it be announced: . So the people gathered and he prayed with them the prayer you have heard about. In this prayer, he lengthened the recitation greatly, to the point that some of the Companions fainted from the length of standing. And during his standing, Paradise was shown to him and Hellfire was shown to him. He said: meaning: he saw something terrible, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him. And when the prayer ended and the sun had cleared, he delivered a sermon to the people, an eloquent and very great sermon. He delivered it while standing, but it is not reported that he ascended the pulpit; rather, he delivered it while standing, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him. This day was the day on which Ibrahim (may Allah be pleased with him), the son of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), died. And this son was from Maryam the Copt, meaning: not from a free woman or a concubine. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) loved him. He died at the age of sixteen months. He had a wet nurse in Paradise, and when he died, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) wept and said: . On this day, the sun was eclipsed. So the people said: It was eclipsed for the death of Ibrahim, because they were ignorant. They think that if the sun is eclipsed, it means a great person has died, or if the moon is eclipsed, it means a great person has died. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) declared that they are not eclipsed for the death of anyone or for their life. And how can the events on earth affect the atmospheres of the sky? The earth does not affect the sky. But the sky affects the earth with earthquakes, lightning, hail, and other things. As for the earth, its events do not affect the sky. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . We ask Allah to treat us all with His forgiveness.
If we look at our condition today, we find that many of the Muslims are in a state that is not pleasing; they neglect the prayer, they follow their desires, they approve of what is wrong and do not restrain themselves from it, and they are ignorant of what is right or they deny what is right. And therefore . I ask Allah to awaken us and you with His signs, and to forgive us and pardon us and help us to obey Him.