Is the sighting of the moon in one country the sighting for all countries, or does each country have its own sighting?
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The questioner : The questioner asks: Is the sighting of the moon in one country the sighting for all countries, or does each country have its own sighting?
The Shaykh : From the jurisprudential perspective, the correct view is that each region has its own sighting. If they see the crescent, they fast; if they do not see it, they do not fast. Similarly, if the dawn breaks in one region but not in another, those upon whom the dawn has broken abstain, and those upon whom it has not broken, what do they do? They eat. For this reason, for example, we are currently in Makkah eating, while the people of the Eastern Province are fasting. At the end of the day, they eat, and we are fasting. The crescent is exactly like the sun. Just as the daily breaking of the fast and fasting are restricted in each place according to its own conditions, so too is the crescent. This is from the jurisprudential perspective. From the practical perspective, people follow the rulers in their location. If the ruler rules that the month has entered, fasting is obligatory; if he rules that it has ended, breaking the fast is obligatory, based on the hadith:. Accordingly, if we are under the authority and ruling of the ruler in this country that the month has entered, we fast. If he rules that the month of Ramadan has ended, what do we do? We break our fast. The same is said regarding Muslim communities in lands of disbelief.
The Shaykh : From the jurisprudential perspective, the correct view is that each region has its own sighting. If they see the crescent, they fast; if they do not see it, they do not fast. Similarly, if the dawn breaks in one region but not in another, those upon whom the dawn has broken abstain, and those upon whom it has not broken, what do they do? They eat. For this reason, for example, we are currently in Makkah eating, while the people of the Eastern Province are fasting. At the end of the day, they eat, and we are fasting. The crescent is exactly like the sun. Just as the daily breaking of the fast and fasting are restricted in each place according to its own conditions, so too is the crescent. This is from the jurisprudential perspective. From the practical perspective, people follow the rulers in their location. If the ruler rules that the month has entered, fasting is obligatory; if he rules that it has ended, breaking the fast is obligatory, based on the hadith: