What is your advice regarding fasting on the Day of Ashura, given that there has been much discussion about its timing this year and a disagreement has arisen? What is the correct way to determine it?
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The questioner : May Allah forgive us and you, O honorable Shaykh. You have already answered my question about the Day of Ashura over the phone, but perhaps your answer to my question can provide more detail. The question says: In the last two days, there has been a lot of talk about the Day of Ashura and which day it will be. Some said that yesterday, Wednesday, was the ninth day, and today, Thursday, is the tenth. Others said that Wednesday was the eighth and Thursday is the ninth. We heard that after the Fajr prayer yesterday, Wednesday, you informed the worshippers in the mosque that the day was the ninth, which was Wednesday. What is the validity of these claims? What should one do if he did not fast on Wednesday, if it was the ninth? And what do you advise Muslims regarding this day?
The Shaykh : Yes, as for my advice to Muslims regarding this day, I say: It is recommended to fast this day, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged it when he said:.
As for what concerns establishing the date of Ashura, I will give you a legal rule from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) upon which you can build:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered that if the crescent moon of the thirtieth night is not seen, we should complete the month as thirty days. He said regarding Ramadan:Sunan an-Nasa'i 2124Sahih (Darussalam). This is a rule for all months, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned Ramadan because it is the month in which people are keen to look for the crescent. Based on this, we say:
When will the month of Dhul-Hijjah be thirty days this year?
Tuesday is the thirtieth. Did we see it on the night of Tuesday?
The answer is: We saw it, and it was established by the testimony of two people, so this necessitates its entry. If only one person saw it, or if no one saw it, then it is obligatory for us to complete the month of Dhul-Hijjah as thirty days. If we complete the month of Dhul-Hijjah as thirty days, when does the first day of this month become?
It becomes Wednesday. So Wednesday is the eighth, Thursday is the ninth, and Friday is the tenth. This is what aligns with the legal rules. As for whoever told you that I said to the people at Fajr on Wednesday that the day was the ninth, he lied, and we did not speak. Praise be to Allah that Allah restrained us from speaking yesterday in the afternoon; otherwise, I would have said, "Perhaps I should inform the people so I do not mislead them," because I told them in the sermon that the tenth is Friday. I said, "Perhaps I should alert them," but praise be to Allah that Allah restrained my tongue, and I said nothing. Because people exaggerated about me; one person said, "Shaykh Abdullah ibn Sa'd told me from Shaykh Ibn Qa'ud, and both are well-known and trustworthy, from the Council of Judiciary that yesterday was the ninth." If this comes to you with this chain, then another comes, and then others, and they say, "We heard on the radio from the Council of Judiciary that the month entered on Tuesday." But what I also heard with a correct chain is that one of the judges asked Shaykh Saleh al-Luhaydan, the head of the Supreme Council of Judiciary, and he said: "It was not established with us except by the testimony of one person, and the testimony of one person does not establish the entry of the month except in Ramadan." So praise be to Allah, a fatwa has just been issued by Shaykh Abdul Aziz ibn Baz, the Mufti of the Kingdom, that Friday is the tenth day. The matter is easy. Whoever fasted Wednesday thinking it was the ninth, and Thursday thinking it was the tenth, should fast tomorrow thinking it is the tenth, and he will have completed three days. Do you understand?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Good, and also do not believe everything that is reported about the scholars. You see things reported about the scholars that whiten the head, which have no basis.
The questioner : The one who reported it, O Shaykh... mentioned Shaykh Abdullah al-Sa'd and mentioned Shaykh...
The Shaykh : Abdullah al-Sabt?
The questioner : Shaykh Abdullah al-Sabt.
The Shaykh : Al-Sabt who is in Kuwait?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : About me?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : What Allah willed, it reached there!
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : No, no. As for Abdullah al-Sa'd, one of the students told me, and he is a trustworthy man, from Abdullah al-Sa'd from Shaykh Abdullah ibn Qa'ud from the Council of Judiciary. Also, Khalid al-Muzayni, one of our students who is a teaching assistant at the university, told me directly from the Council of Judiciary that yesterday was the ninth and today is the tenth. But with witnesses. And what appears to me, and Allah knows best, is that those in the council heard from a witness who was one person, and they analogized this to the month of Ramadan and said that it was established. In any case, praise be to Allah, the matter is broad. Nothing has been missed for you; fast tomorrow and it will be the tenth. And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions.
The questioner : It was written in the newspaper that the ninth day is...
The Shaykh : I mentioned to you, may Allah bless you and the brothers, a hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): If we do not see it, we complete thirty. But some people were misled by something else, which is the calendar. The thirtieth of Dhul-Hijjah according to the sighting is considered the thirty-first in the calendar, because the calendar was ahead of us, even in Dhul-Hijjah, it was ahead of us by one day.
We conclude the session, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions, and until we meet again.
The Shaykh : Yes, as for my advice to Muslims regarding this day, I say: It is recommended to fast this day, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged it when he said:
I reckon with Allah that He will expiate the year before it
إنّي أحتسب على الله أن يكفّر السّنة التي قبلهاAs for what concerns establishing the date of Ashura, I will give you a legal rule from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) upon which you can build:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered that if the crescent moon of the thirtieth night is not seen, we should complete the month as thirty days. He said regarding Ramadan:
Fast when you see it and stop fasting when you see it, and if it is obscured from you (too cloudy), then complete thirty (days).
صوموا لرؤيته وأفطروا لرؤيته فإن غمّ عليكم فأكملوا العدّة ثلاثينWhen will the month of Dhul-Hijjah be thirty days this year?
Tuesday is the thirtieth. Did we see it on the night of Tuesday?
The answer is: We saw it, and it was established by the testimony of two people, so this necessitates its entry. If only one person saw it, or if no one saw it, then it is obligatory for us to complete the month of Dhul-Hijjah as thirty days. If we complete the month of Dhul-Hijjah as thirty days, when does the first day of this month become?
It becomes Wednesday. So Wednesday is the eighth, Thursday is the ninth, and Friday is the tenth. This is what aligns with the legal rules. As for whoever told you that I said to the people at Fajr on Wednesday that the day was the ninth, he lied, and we did not speak. Praise be to Allah that Allah restrained us from speaking yesterday in the afternoon; otherwise, I would have said, "Perhaps I should inform the people so I do not mislead them," because I told them in the sermon that the tenth is Friday. I said, "Perhaps I should alert them," but praise be to Allah that Allah restrained my tongue, and I said nothing. Because people exaggerated about me; one person said, "Shaykh Abdullah ibn Sa'd told me from Shaykh Ibn Qa'ud, and both are well-known and trustworthy, from the Council of Judiciary that yesterday was the ninth." If this comes to you with this chain, then another comes, and then others, and they say, "We heard on the radio from the Council of Judiciary that the month entered on Tuesday." But what I also heard with a correct chain is that one of the judges asked Shaykh Saleh al-Luhaydan, the head of the Supreme Council of Judiciary, and he said: "It was not established with us except by the testimony of one person, and the testimony of one person does not establish the entry of the month except in Ramadan." So praise be to Allah, a fatwa has just been issued by Shaykh Abdul Aziz ibn Baz, the Mufti of the Kingdom, that Friday is the tenth day. The matter is easy. Whoever fasted Wednesday thinking it was the ninth, and Thursday thinking it was the tenth, should fast tomorrow thinking it is the tenth, and he will have completed three days. Do you understand?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Good, and also do not believe everything that is reported about the scholars. You see things reported about the scholars that whiten the head, which have no basis.
The questioner : The one who reported it, O Shaykh... mentioned Shaykh Abdullah al-Sa'd and mentioned Shaykh...
The Shaykh : Abdullah al-Sabt?
The questioner : Shaykh Abdullah al-Sabt.
The Shaykh : Al-Sabt who is in Kuwait?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : About me?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : What Allah willed, it reached there!
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : No, no. As for Abdullah al-Sa'd, one of the students told me, and he is a trustworthy man, from Abdullah al-Sa'd from Shaykh Abdullah ibn Qa'ud from the Council of Judiciary. Also, Khalid al-Muzayni, one of our students who is a teaching assistant at the university, told me directly from the Council of Judiciary that yesterday was the ninth and today is the tenth. But with witnesses. And what appears to me, and Allah knows best, is that those in the council heard from a witness who was one person, and they analogized this to the month of Ramadan and said that it was established. In any case, praise be to Allah, the matter is broad. Nothing has been missed for you; fast tomorrow and it will be the tenth. And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions.
The questioner : It was written in the newspaper that the ninth day is...
The Shaykh : I mentioned to you, may Allah bless you and the brothers, a hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): If we do not see it, we complete thirty. But some people were misled by something else, which is the calendar. The thirtieth of Dhul-Hijjah according to the sighting is considered the thirty-first in the calendar, because the calendar was ahead of us, even in Dhul-Hijjah, it was ahead of us by one day.
We conclude the session, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions, and until we meet again.