Fast when you see it, and break the fast when you see it, but if the sky is overcast and y…

Islam > Hadiths > Jurisprudence and juristic principles > Jurisprudence and Juristic Principles

Hadith narrated by Agreed upon

Authenticity grade : Authentic

Hadith text: Fast when you see it, and break the fast when you see i…

عَنْ ابْنَ عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: «إِذَا رَأَيْتُمُوهُ فَصُومُوا، وَإِذَا رَأَيْتُمُوهُ فَأَفْطِرُوا، فَإِنْ غُمَّ عَلَيْكُمْ فَاقْدُرُوا لَهُ».

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) say: "Fast when you see it, and break the fast when you see it, but if the sky is overcast and you cannot see it, then act on estimation."

Explanation of the hadith: Fast when you see it, and break the fast when you see i…

Lessons: Fast when you see it, and break the fast when you see i…

• Sighting the crescent, not the calculations, is what counts in affirming the beginning of the lunar month.
• Ibn al-Mundhir reported scholarly consensus that fasting is not obligatory if the beginning of the month of Ramadan is determined only by calculations without sighting the crescent.
• It is obligatory to complete Sha‘bān thirty days in case the crescent of Ramadan cannot be seen due to clouds or the like.
• The lunar month is either twenty-nine or thirty days.
• It is obligatory to complete Ramadan for thirty days in case the crescent of Shawwāl cannot be seen due to clouds or the like.
• Whoever finds himself in a place where there is none to check on Muslims' affairs in fasting, or he does not pay attention to this, then he should be careful about it and should seek it through someone who affirms it either by sighting it himself or by sighting it by one whom he trusts, and he can thus fast and break his fast accordingly.

Categories : Sighting the Crescent