Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata bin Khalil Abu al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut Tahrir
To the questions of the visitors to his Facebook page "Fiqhi"
To Abu al-Asim al-Shami
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. Our dear Ameer, peace and mercy from Allah be upon you. This question has been on my mind for a long time, so I hope for a clarification from you, asking Allah to grant you health and well-being and to open for you His great opening.
Why do we take astronomical calculations in determining the times of the five prayers throughout the year, but we do not take astronomical calculations in determining the start of fasting and Eid?
Answer:
We have previously issued an answer regarding a similar question on 25/11/2003, which stated:
[... - Allah (swt) requested us to fast and break the fast upon the sighting of the crescent (hilal), and He (swt) made the sighting the cause (sabab) for fasting and breaking the fast.
صُومُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ وَأَفْطِرُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ
"Fast at its sighting and break the fast at its sighting."
If we see the crescent of Ramadan, we fast, and if we see the crescent of Shawwal, we break the fast.
- Anyone who follows the texts (nusus) regarding fasting finds them different from the texts regarding prayer. Fasting and breaking the fast are linked to the sighting:
صُومُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ وَأَفْطِرُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ
"Fast at its sighting and break the fast at its sighting."
فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ
"So whoever among you witnesses the month, let him fast it." (Quran 2:185)
Thus, sighting is the ruling (hukm). However, the texts for prayer are linked to the time (waqt):
أَقِمِ الصَّلاَةَ لِدُلُوكِ الشَّمْسِ
"Establish prayer at the decline of the sun." (Quran 17:78)
إِذَا زَالَتِ الشَّمْسُ فَصَلَّوْا
"When the sun passes the meridian, then pray."
So, prayer is dependent on the time; by whatever means you verify the time, you pray. If you look at the sun to see the time of its decline (zawal) or look at the shadow to see when an object's shadow is equal to its length or twice its length as mentioned in the hadiths of prayer times, and you verify that, the prayer is valid. If you do not do that but instead calculate it astronomically and know that the time of decline is at such-and-such hour, then you look at your watch without going out to see the sun or the shadow, the prayer is valid. That is, verifying the time by any means. Why? Because Allah (swt) requested prayer upon the entrance of the time and left the verification of its entrance to you without specifying a method of verification.
As for fasting, He requested fasting by sighting, so He specified the cause (sabab) for you. Furthermore, He told you that if clouds block the sighting and you do not see it, then do not fast, even if the crescent exists behind the clouds and you are certain of its existence through astronomical calculation.
حَدَّثَنَا آدَمُ حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ زِيَادٍ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ يَقُولُ: قَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ أَوْ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو الْقَاسِمِ ﷺ صُومُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ وَأَفْطِرُوا لِرُؤْيَتِهِ فَإِنْ غُبِّيَ عَلَيْكُمْ فَأَكْمِلُوا عِدَّةَ شَعْبَانَ ثَلَاثِينَ
"Adam narrated to us, Shu’bah narrated to us, Muhammad ibn Ziyad narrated to us: I heard Abu Hurayrah (ra) say: The Prophet (saw) said, or Abu al-Qasim (saw) said: 'Fast at its sighting and break the fast at its sighting. If it is obscured from you, then complete the number of [days of] Sha’ban as thirty.'" (Narrated by Bukhari)
Meaning, if you do not see it, complete the period of Sha'ban as thirty days.
- Allah (swt) is the Creator of the universe, and He is the one who taught man what he did not know. Knowledge of the movement of celestial bodies and their details is a grace from Allah upon people. However, Allah (swt) did not ask us to depend on calculation for fasting; rather, He asked us to sight it. So we worship Him (swt) as He requested and do not worship Him (swt) with what He did not request.
Thus, sighting alone is the ruling (hukm) for fasting and breaking the fast, not astronomical calculation. Based on this, we say it is not permissible to use astronomical calculations for fasting and breaking the fast, but rather sighting only, because that is what is mentioned in the texts.]
Your brother, Ata bin Khalil Abu al-Rashtah
22 Sha'ban 1443 AH 25/03/2022 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