Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir On the questions of the visitors to his Facebook page "Fiqhi"
To Abu Sabih Faisal
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
Is it true that the migration (Hijrah) of the Messenger (saw) was in Rabi' al-Awwal? If that is the case, why do Muslims celebrate the beginning of the Hijri year and the day of the migration of the Messenger in the month of Muharram?
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
Yes, the Hijrah was on the twelfth of Rabi' al-Awwal... but after about seventeen years had passed since the Hijrah of the Messenger (saw), in the third or fourth year of the era of Umar (ra)... Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, the Ameer of Basra at that time, sent him a letter asking him to look for a new way to calculate the calendar. This occurred when a letter reached Abu Musa al-Ash'ari dated in the month of "Sha'ban" without specifying the year. So, Al-Ash'ari addressed the Caliph Umar saying: "O Ameer al-Mu'mineen, letters come to us, and they are dated in Sha'ban, and we do not know which Sha'ban this is: is it in the past year? Or in the current year?"
Accordingly, the Caliph Umar gathered the Sahaba (ra) and they discussed this matter. Opinions varied; some suggested using the date of the birth of the Messenger (saw) as the beginning of the calendar, while another said: we take the date of his death. However, the most prevalent opinion was to take his Hijrah (saw)...
After the Caliph Umar consulted the two Sahaba Uthman bin Affan and Ali bin Abi Talib on this opinion and they approved it, it was agreed to consider the year in which the Prophet (saw) migrated as the beginning of the calendar. The first of Muharram was chosen as the beginning of the year, and the month of Dhu al-Hijjah as its end. From here, the Hijri year started from the migration of the Messenger, which coincided with the year 622 CE, to become the first year in the Hijri history.
We have adopted this regarding the daily time timing, so we made it according to the timing of Medina as stated in the opening of the radio broadcast. This is so that the Hijri date adopted by the Sahaba in the era of Umar—which is the date of the Hijrah to Medina—matches the timing we have adopted, making it according to the timing of Medina Al-Munawwarah.
I hope the answer is clear, and Allah is All-Knowing and All-Wise.
Your brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
01 Muharram al-Haram 1444 AH Corresponding to 30/07/2022 CE
Link to the answer from the Ameer’s page (may Allah protect him) on Facebook
Link to the answer from the Ameer’s page (may Allah protect him) on the Web