Is it obligatory for us to learn the entire religion, and what is it that we must learn from the religion, and is the prayer for the eclipse of the sun and moon, the prayer for the festival, and other prayers
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The questioner : Is it obligatory for us to learn the entire religion? And what is it that we must learn from the religion? And is the prayer for the eclipse of the sun and moon, the prayer for the festival, and other prayers obligatory for us to learn or not?
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for a person to learn all the knowledge he needs. So if he wants to pray, for example, he must learn how to pray. And if he wants to perform ablution, he must know how to perform it. But this learning is achieved by observing people and what they do, if they are people of knowledge. From this, we know that one of the benefits of congregational prayer is that the ignorant learns from the knowledgeable. As for what a person does not need, he is not required to learn it. So we do not say to the poor man, "You must learn the rulings of zakah," meaning the rulings of zakah on wealth. And we do not say to one who is unable to perform Hajj, "It is obligatory for you to learn how to perform Hajj." But knowledge in general is a collective obligation (fard kifayah), meaning that it is obligatory for the Muslim community to preserve its religion in all its rulings, so that the hands of the meddlers do not tamper with it, and the tongues of the distorters do not speak about it.
As for the prayer for the eclipse of the sun and moon, it is a recommended practice (sunnah). Some scholars said it is obligatory. The common practice is that this prayer is performed in the mosques, and the people follow their imam in it. So whatever the imam does, they do. It should be known that the eclipse of the sun and the eclipse of the moon have the same meaning, but the common usage is that "eclipse of the moon" refers to the lunar eclipse and "eclipse of the sun" refers to the solar eclipse, otherwise their meanings are the same.
It remains to be said: When is the prayer for the eclipse prescribed? The answer is: It is prescribed when the sun or the moon is eclipsed by the obscuration of part of their bodies. This may be total or partial. At that time, the prayer is recommended. The call is made for it: "The prayer is a gathering," and the people gather for it in the mosques. It is better for it to be in the congregational mosques, meaning the mosques where the Friday prayer is held, so that the congregation is large and awe and fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) are realized. The imam prays it in two units (rak'ahs), with two bowings (ruku') and two prostrations (sujud) in each unit. He prolongs the recitation in it greatly. So the first standing before the first bowing is very long. Then he bows in a very long bowing. Then he rises and repeats the recitation, al-Fatihah and what follows it. Then he bows in a long bowing, but shorter than the first. Then he rises and praises Allah and prolongs the standing to the extent of the bowing. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the bowing. Then he sits between the two prostrations to the extent of the prostration. Then he prostrates for the second unit like the first, prolonging it. Then he stands for the second unit and recites and prolongs, but shorter than the first. He bows and prolongs, but shorter than the first. He rises and prolongs and recites. Then he bows in a long bowing, but shorter than the first. Then he rises and prolongs the standing to the extent of the bowing. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the bowing. Then he sits between the two prostrations and prolongs the sitting to the extent of the prostration. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the first prostration. Then he sits and recites the testimony (tashahhud) and says the closing salam. It is recommended for the imam after that to deliver a eloquent sermon to the people, admonishing them. If it is easy for him to preach with what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family preached, that is the most complete. Otherwise, he says from his own words what admonishes the people, shakes their hearts, and warns them of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And if the imam is unable to preach, and there is among the people one who can, he is asked to stand and admonish the people. It is said that this sermon is a regular sermon, meaning it is a prescribed sermon like the sermon for the festival after the prayer. Some scholars said: Rather, it is one of the occasional sermons. The closer view is that it is one of the regular sermons, because the eclipse did not occur in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family except once, and he preached. If it had occurred another time and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family had not preached, we would have said it was occasional. But since he preached, the original ruling is that it is prescribed, following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family, and because the occasion requires it. For the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family informed:Sunan an-Nasa'i 1483Hasan (Darussalam) Yes.
The questioner : He says, "O Shaykh."
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for a person to learn all the knowledge he needs. So if he wants to pray, for example, he must learn how to pray. And if he wants to perform ablution, he must know how to perform it. But this learning is achieved by observing people and what they do, if they are people of knowledge. From this, we know that one of the benefits of congregational prayer is that the ignorant learns from the knowledgeable. As for what a person does not need, he is not required to learn it. So we do not say to the poor man, "You must learn the rulings of zakah," meaning the rulings of zakah on wealth. And we do not say to one who is unable to perform Hajj, "It is obligatory for you to learn how to perform Hajj." But knowledge in general is a collective obligation (fard kifayah), meaning that it is obligatory for the Muslim community to preserve its religion in all its rulings, so that the hands of the meddlers do not tamper with it, and the tongues of the distorters do not speak about it.
As for the prayer for the eclipse of the sun and moon, it is a recommended practice (sunnah). Some scholars said it is obligatory. The common practice is that this prayer is performed in the mosques, and the people follow their imam in it. So whatever the imam does, they do. It should be known that the eclipse of the sun and the eclipse of the moon have the same meaning, but the common usage is that "eclipse of the moon" refers to the lunar eclipse and "eclipse of the sun" refers to the solar eclipse, otherwise their meanings are the same.
It remains to be said: When is the prayer for the eclipse prescribed? The answer is: It is prescribed when the sun or the moon is eclipsed by the obscuration of part of their bodies. This may be total or partial. At that time, the prayer is recommended. The call is made for it: "The prayer is a gathering," and the people gather for it in the mosques. It is better for it to be in the congregational mosques, meaning the mosques where the Friday prayer is held, so that the congregation is large and awe and fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) are realized. The imam prays it in two units (rak'ahs), with two bowings (ruku') and two prostrations (sujud) in each unit. He prolongs the recitation in it greatly. So the first standing before the first bowing is very long. Then he bows in a very long bowing. Then he rises and repeats the recitation, al-Fatihah and what follows it. Then he bows in a long bowing, but shorter than the first. Then he rises and praises Allah and prolongs the standing to the extent of the bowing. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the bowing. Then he sits between the two prostrations to the extent of the prostration. Then he prostrates for the second unit like the first, prolonging it. Then he stands for the second unit and recites and prolongs, but shorter than the first. He bows and prolongs, but shorter than the first. He rises and prolongs and recites. Then he bows in a long bowing, but shorter than the first. Then he rises and prolongs the standing to the extent of the bowing. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the bowing. Then he sits between the two prostrations and prolongs the sitting to the extent of the prostration. Then he prostrates and prolongs the prostration to the extent of the first prostration. Then he sits and recites the testimony (tashahhud) and says the closing salam. It is recommended for the imam after that to deliver a eloquent sermon to the people, admonishing them. If it is easy for him to preach with what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family preached, that is the most complete. Otherwise, he says from his own words what admonishes the people, shakes their hearts, and warns them of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And if the imam is unable to preach, and there is among the people one who can, he is asked to stand and admonish the people. It is said that this sermon is a regular sermon, meaning it is a prescribed sermon like the sermon for the festival after the prayer. Some scholars said: Rather, it is one of the occasional sermons. The closer view is that it is one of the regular sermons, because the eclipse did not occur in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family except once, and he preached. If it had occurred another time and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family had not preached, we would have said it was occasional. But since he preached, the original ruling is that it is prescribed, following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family, and because the occasion requires it. For the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family informed:
The sun and the moon are two of the signs of Allah (SWT), and they do not become eclipsed for the death or birth of anyone
إن الشمس والقمر ءايتان من ءايات الله، وأنهما لا ينكسفان لموت أحد ولا لحياته، ولكن الله تعالى يخوّف بهما عبادهThe questioner : He says, "O Shaykh."