Muharram and Ashoora

Allah’s sacred month of Muharram is a blessed and important month. It is the first month of the Hijri, or Islamic Calendar and is one of the four sacred months concerning which Allaah says that which translates as:

“Indeed, the number of months with Allaah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allaah [from] the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred. That is the correct religion [i.e., way], so do not wrong yourselves during them …” [At-Tawbah 9:36]

Abu Bakrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said: “The year consists of twelve months, of which four are sacred; the three consecutive months of Dhu’l-Qi’dah, Dhu’l-Hijjah and Muharram, and Rajab, which comes between Jumaada and Sha’baan.” (Bukhaari).

Muharram is so called because it is a sacred month and to confirm its sanctity.

Allaah’s words which translate as: “…so do not wrong yourselves during them…” [At-Tawbah 9:36]. Mean; do not wrong yourselves during these sacred months, because committing sins during these months is worse than during the other months.

It was reported that Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allaah be pleased with him, said that this phrase: “…so do not wrong yourselves during them…” initially referred to all the months, then these four were singled out and made sacred, so that sin in these months is more serious and good deeds bring a greater reward.

Wrongdoing at any time is a serious matter, but Allaah gives more weight to whichever of His commands He will.

Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, said: “The Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said: “The best of fasting after Ramadaan is fasting during Allaah’s month of Muharram.’” (Muslim).

This Hadeeth is meant to encourage increasing one’s fasting during Muharram, without meaning that one should fast for the entire month.

Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allaah be pleased with him said: “The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam came to Madeenah and observed that the Jews were fasting on the day of ‘Aashooraa’. He asked: “What is this?” They replied: ‘This is a righteous day, it is the day when Allaah saved the Children of Israel from their enemies, so Moosa fasted on this day.’ He sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam replied: “We have more right to Moosa than you” so he fasted on that day and commanded [the Muslims] to do likewise.” (Bukhaari).

A version narrated by Imaam Ahmad adds: “This is the day on which the Ark settled on Mount Joodi, so Nooh, peace be upon him, fasted this day in thanksgiving.”

It was also reported that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam used to fast on ‘Aashooraa’ in Makkah, before he migrated to Madeenah. When he migrated to Madeenah, he found the Jews celebrating this day, so he asked them why, and they replied as described in the Hadeeth quoted above. He commanded the Muslims to be different from the Jews, who took it as a festival, as was reported in the Hadeethof Abu Moosa, may Allaah be pleased with him, who said: “The Jews used to take the day of ‘Aashooraa’ as a festival. The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said: ‘So you [Muslims] should fast on that day.’” (Bukhaari). Apparently the motive for commanding the Muslims to fast on this day was the desire to be different from the Jews, so that the Muslims would fast when the Jews did not, because people do not fast on a day of celebration.

Fasting on ‘Aashooraa’ was a gradual step in the process of introducing fasting as a prescribed obligation in Islam. Fasting appeared in three forms. When the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam came to Madeenah, he told the Muslims to fast on three days of every month and on the day of ‘Aashooraa’, then Allaah made fasting obligatory when He said that which translates as: “… decreed upon you is fasting…” [Al-Baqarah 2:183] (Ahkaam al-Qur’aan by al-Jassas, part 1).

The obligation was transferred from the fast of ‘Aashooraa’ to the fast of Ramadaan, and this one of the proofs in the field of Usool Al-Fiqhthat it is possible to abrogate a lighter duty in favour of a heavier duty.

Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allaah be pleased with him and his father, said: “I never saw the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam so keen to fast any day and give it priority over any other than this day, the day of ‘Aashooraa’, and this month, meaning Ramadaan.” (Bukhaari).

The meaning of his being keen was that he sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam intended to fast on that day in the hope of earning the reward for doing so.

The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said: “For fasting the day of ‘Aashooraa’, I hope that Allaah will accept it as expiation for the year that went before.” (Muslim). This is from the bounty of Allaah towards us: for fasting one day He gives us expiation for the sins of a whole year. And Allaah is the Owner of Great Bounty.

‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allaah be pleased with him and his father, said: “When the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallamfasted on ‘Aashooraa’ and commanded the Muslims to do likewise, they said: “O Messenger of Allaah! It is a day that is venerated by the Jews and Christians.’ The Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam replied: “If I live to see the next year, in sha Allaah, we will fast on the ninth day too.” But it so happened that the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam passed away before the next year came.” (Muslim).

Al-Shaafi'i and his companions, Ahmad, Ishaaq and others said: “It is mustahabb to fast on both the ninth and tenth days, because the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam fasted on the tenth, and intended to fast on the ninth.” On this basis it may be said that there are varying degrees of fasting ‘Aashooraa’, the least of which is to fast only on the tenth and the best of which is to fast the ninth as well.

At-Tahhaawi said: “The Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam allowed us to fast on ‘Aashooraa’ and urged us to do so. He did not say that if it falls on a Saturday we should not fast. This is evidence that all days of the week are included in this. In our view – and Allaah knows best – it could be the case that even if this is true (that it is not allowed to fast on Saturdays), it is so that we do not venerate this day and refrain from food, drink and intercourse, as the Jews do. As for the one who fasts on a Saturday without intending to venerate it, and does not do so because the Jews regard it as blessed, then this is not makrooh…”

The author of Al-Minhaaj said: “‘It is makrooh, or disliked, to fast on a Friday alone…’ But it is no longer makrooh if you add another day to it, as mentioned in the saheeh report to that effect. A person may fast on a Friday if it coincides with his habitual fast, or he is fasting in fulfilment of a vow, or he is making up an obligatory fast that he has missed, as was stated in an authentic report.”

Al-Shaarih said in Tuhfat al-Muhtaaj:

“ ‘If it coincides with his habitual fast’ – i.e., such as if he fasts alternate days, and a day that he fasts happens to be a Friday.

‘ if he is fasting in fulfilment of a vow, etc.” – this also applies to fasting on days prescribed in Islamic law, such as ‘Aashooraa’ or ‘Arafaah. (Tuhfat al-Muhtaaj, part 3, Baab Sawm al-Tatawwu’)

Al-Bahooti, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “It is makrooh to deliberately single out a Saturday for fasting, because of the hadeeth of‘Abdullaah ibn Bishr, may Allaah be pleased with him, who reported from his sister that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said: “Do not fast on Saturdays except in the case of obligatory fasts” (reported by Ahmad with a jayyid isnaad and by Al-Haakim, who said: according to the conditions of Al-Bukhaari), and because it is a day that is venerated by the Jews, so singling it out for fasting means being like them… except when a Friday or Saturday coincides with a day when Muslims habitually fast, such as when it coincides with the day of ‘Arafaah or the day of ‘Aashooraa’, and a person has the habit of fasting on these days, in which case it is not makrooh, because a person’s habit carries some weight.”

Imaam al-Nawawi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said:

“It expiates for all minor sins, i.e., it brings forgiveness of all sins except major sins.”

Memahami isu perbezaan tarikh raya kesan dari keputusan Arab Saudi

Sekadar satu perkongsian. Personally saya tak berapa setuju dengan label bid'ah ke mana-mana pihak dalam isu ini.

(Pemilik blog)

Global Moonsighting, a Modern Bid‘ah

http://73k.org/islam/globalsighting.html

Ironically, one Muslim website (from a certain masjid that "calls to the sunnah") quite openly stated the following on its main page before this article became public. Now it can only be found on their Yahoo Groups message list:

"As you know, Masjid ______ follows the opinion of wahdatul matale' (unification of the horizon), so if the moon is visually sighted anywhere in the world (without relying on calculations), then we break fast as numerous hadeeth on the subject expressly indicate. Our position on this has been same from day one."

First of all, what they are essentially doing is calling people to bid‘ah, because,

1. Nowhere will you find a single hadith that tells about one country (like Egypt) following the sighting of another country (like the Arabs of the Arabian peninsula). I challenge any shaykh to find such a hadith, because no one could travel great distances or use telephones and satellites to report such sightings until about 50 years ago, if even that early. On the contrary, we find that Muslims living much closer to one another with different sightings never bothering to follow one another:

   A narration of Ibn ‘Abbas in Sahīh Muslim indicates that local moonsighting alone was the prevailing method in the time of the Blessed Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and was a part of the teachings of the Blessed Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) to the Sahābah. The narration goes like this:

   بيان أن لكل بلد رؤيتهم وأنهم إذا رأوا الهلال ببلد
   ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏يحيى بن يحيى ‏ ‏ويحيى بن أيوب ‏ ‏وقتيبة ‏ ‏وابن حجر ‏ ‏قال ‏ ‏يحيى بن يحيى ‏ ‏أخبرنا ‏ ‏وقال الآخرون ‏ ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏إسمعيل وهو ابن جعفر ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏محمد وهو ابن أبي حرملة ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏كريب ‏ ‏أن ‏ ‏أم الفضل بنت الحارث ‏ ‏بعثته إلى ‏ ‏معاوية ‏ ‏بالشام ‏ ‏قال فقدمت ‏ ‏الشام ‏ ‏فقضيت حاجتها ‏ ‏واستهل ‏ ‏علي رمضان وأنا ‏ ‏بالشام ‏ ‏فرأيت الهلال ليلة الجمعة ثم قدمت ‏ ‏المدينة ‏ ‏في آخر الشهر فسألني ‏ ‏عبد الله بن عباس ‏ ‏رضي الله عنهما ‏ ‏ثم ذكر الهلال فقال متى رأيتم الهلال فقلت رأيناه ليلة الجمعة فقال أنت رأيته فقلت نعم ورآه الناس وصاموا وصام ‏ ‏معاوية ‏ ‏فقال لكنا رأيناه ليلة السبت فلا نزال نصوم حتى نكمل ثلاثين أو ‏ ‏نراه فقلت ‏ ‏أو لا ‏ ‏تكتفي برؤية ‏ ‏معاوية ‏ ‏وصيامه فقال ‏ ‏لا ‏ ‏هكذا أمرنا رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏وشك ‏ ‏يحيى بن يحيى ‏ ‏في ‏ ‏نكتفي أو ‏ ‏تكتفي

   Sahīh Muslim Book 6
   Chapter 5: THERE IS A SIGHTING OF THE MOON FOR EVERY TOWN
   THE SIGHTING AT ONE TOWN CANNOT BE HELD VALID FOR THE
   OTHER TOWN SITUATED AT A CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE FROM IT

   Kurayb narrates that Umm al-Fadl sent him to Mu‘āwiyah in Sham for something.
   Kurayb says, "I went to Sham and finished the job. I was in Sham when the month
   of Ramadān began and we saw the moon the night of Friday. When I reached
   Madinah at the end of the blessed month, Ibn ‘Abbas asked me about Sham.
   (After answering him) He then asked me when we saw the moon.
   I said, 'We saw the moon the night of Jumu‘ah.'
   He asked, 'Did you see it as well?'
   I said, 'Yes, I saw it too and many others saw it and we all kept fasting and so did
   Mu‘āwiyah (that is according to that moonsighting).'
   Ibn ‘Abbas said, 'But we saw the moon on Saturday night, therefore, we will keep
   fasting for thirty days according to that unless we sight the moon on the 29th.'
   I asked, 'You don’t think the moonsighting of Mu‘āwiyah and his fasting is enough
   for you?'
   Ibn ‘Abbas replied, 'No, this is how the Blessed Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) taught us.'"
   (Muslim H.1819, Tirmiðī H.629, Nasa'i H.2084, Abū-Dāwūd H.1985, Musnad Ahmad H.2653 Dar-qutni H.2234)

   This hadith is clear evidence. When Ibn ‘Abbas was informed by the person who himself sighted the moon that the people of Sham had begun Ramadān one day before, he responded that it was not only his opinion, but also the teachings of the Blessed Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) that the moonsighting of another locality was not compulsory upon them.

   Shaykh ‘Uthaymīn has issued a very clear fatwa to Muslims in the Americas and other lands outside the Arabian Peninsula with no ambiguity whatsoever regarding this matter:

   It is well known amongst astronomers that the time the moon rises differs from place to place. The moon might be seen in one place and not in another. Therefore, according to the verse, whoever does not see it is not obliged to fast. . . . If, therefore, each place has its own ruling due to the variation in the time that the sun rises and sets, the same also applies due to the variation in the time that the moon rises and sets. . . .
   Therefore, the answer to the question is clear. It is obligatory for you to follow the sighting of the new moon in the place where you are.Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymīn
   al-Aqalliyāt al-Muslimah - Page 84, Fatwa No.23

2. In the system of "global sighting" (wahdat-ul-matale') one is de facto not following any moon sighting at all, rather one is following calculations instead! You see, Saudi Arabia is always the first to announce the beginning of any new month because they follow either their calculated Umm-ul-Qura calendar, (which is generated by mathematical calculations of the New Moon, a phase that precedes the actual hilāl!), the Jewish Calendar, or sometimes the Kuwaiti Algorithm implemented by the Microsoft Windows operating system. Here is the evidence: Is Saudi Arabia following the Sunnah, the Jews, or Microsoft?

   According to the Islamic Crescents' Observation Project (ICOP), "Most people think that Saudi Arabia always adopts the actual sighting of the crescent as the basis to start Islamic months. But during the previous years, it was very clear to the public as well as to astronomers that most of the Saudi months were wrong if the actual sighting is the basis for starting the Islamic month. Fortunately, the Jordanian Astronomical Society (JAS) received a telegram from The Highest Religious Council "Majlis al-Ifta' al-A‘ala" in Saudi Arabia confirming that Saudi Arabia adopts the astronomical calculations and totally ignores the actual sighting. Below is a literal translation of this telegram." (see ICOP - The Actual Saudi Dating System)

   

   One experienced moon sighter, Salman Zafar Shaikh, writes, "In the case of ‘Īd-ul-Fitr 1420 AH, I myself went with the Makkah committee to a sighting point on a hilltop of Shamesi outside the city of Makkah Mukarramah on Thursday evening. Neither I, nor the other 5 committee members sighted the Hilāl. But we came back to the Harām Sharīf and were astounded to hear the announcement that ‘Īd-ul-Fitr was next day (Friday). In fact moonset was before sunset in Makkah for Thursday evening. In this case the error was quite brazen" (see Hilāl Sighting in Saudi Arabia: A First Hand Report). Brother Salman goes on to explain, ". . . apparently it is the same few [Saudi] people at certain locations, reporting on those occasions when the claims are extraordinarily early in Saudi Arabia, year after year. WAllāhu A‘alam!"

   If you look at 15 years of the Umm-ul-Qura calendar one will be surprised to see that only 20.6% of the dates correspond with possible naked eye sightings of the hilāl under good weather conditions:

   Color Code	Visibility possibility under good weather conditions	How many times this condition is met in 180 months	Percentage of times this condition is met in 180 months
   Green	Visible with the naked eye	37/180	20.6%
   Yellow	Visible with optical aid	31/180	17.2%
   Brown	Not visible at all	110/180	61.1%
   Pink	Month begins before new moon	2/180	1.1%

   Shaykh Qaradāwī has given a fatwa on what to do in case one has gotten caught up in this mess of Saudi using calculations instead of calling the new month by actual sighting, as was the case on January 07, 2000 which they claimed was ‘Īd-ul-Fitr 1420 AH, but was actually only the 30th of Ramadān.

   On December 31, 2005, the sun should set (drop completely below the Makkan horizon) at 17:49 local Saudi time with the moon already dipping below the horizon 5˚ to its left at 18:03, insha'Allāh. At 18:08 (only 19 minutes after sunset) the moon too will be compelely below the Makkan horizon, insha'Allāh, making it totally impossible to see any hilāl. All experienced moon sighting observers know that with only 0.5% phase and less than 8 degrees of separation between it and the sun, no hilāl can be sighted under such poor conditions. But just wait and see, Saudi Arabia will officially announce that they "sighted thehilāl" like they always claim, so that it matches their calendar, making January 1, 2006 the 1st of Ðūl Hijjah, and thus, ‘Īd-ul-Adhā will fall on January 10, 2006, unless of course, the Saudi regime repents from following calculations and goes back to the sunnah of actually sighting the hilāl.

   Update: Saudi Arabia came through again and delivered as expected, announcing that Ðūl Hijjah 1426 started on January 1, 2006, just as predicted by their pre-calculated calendar.

   If Saudi Arabia really did see the hilāl on Oct. 03, 2005 around 18:08 local Saudi time, with only 2 minutes between sunset and moonset for sighting it, why could it not be seen with much better visibility chances further to the West? Consider how the moon moves around the earth in its orbit while looking at this sky charts in which the horizonal line just above the sun represents the horizon, i.e. everything below that horizontal line in the middle has already set (gone down below the horizon) and cannot be seen, even with a radio telescope from that location.

   Sky Charts at sunset on Monday, October 3, 2005:

   Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (the moon actually set before the sun!)
   Makkah, Saudi Arabia
   Madinah, Saudi Arabia
   Marrakech, Morocco
   Los Angeles, California, USA
   Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, USA
   

   Allāh says in His book: الشَّمْسُ وَالْقَمَرُ بِحُسْبَانٍ which has been translated by Khan in the Noble Qur'ān (the English translation preferred by those who support "global" sighting) as: "The sun and the moon run on their fixed courses (exactly) calculated with measured out stages for each (for reckoning, etc.)." (Sūrat-ur-Raĥmān 55:5)

   Since the scientists have measured the synodic period of the moon to be 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes, and 2.8 seconds, i.e. the length of time it takes for us to observe a complete orbit of the moon from earth, if the Saudis report having seen a crescent moon on Monday, October 3, 2005 around 18:08 local Saudi time, that means an observer like myself with excellent viewing conditions should see and even bigger crescent 30 days, 7 hours, and 32 minutes later, espcially given the quality Nikon 7x50 binoculars and a 35mm SLR camera equipped with 300mm telephoto lens using FujiFilm:

   [01] [02] [03] [04] [05]
   [06] [07] [08] [09] [10]
   [11] [12] [13] [14] [15]
   [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]
   [21] [22] [23] [24] [25]
   [26] [27] [28] [29] [30]
   [31] [32] [33] [34] [35]
   [36] [37] [38] [39] [40]
   

3. Even in the case of ‘Īd-ul-Adhā, there is no evidence from the Qur'an or sunnah that the Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وسلم) or any of the Sahābah ever tried to establish a so-called "Wahdatul Matale' (unification of the horizon)":

   "If, as we are told by those postulating the 'Day after Arafat' position, that ‘Īd-ul-Adhā is dependent on the Hajj date, then why did the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) make no effort to ascertain the Hajj dates in Makkah for his ‘Īd celebration in Madinah? After the conquest of Makkah in the seventh year of the Hijra there would have been no problem in finding out when the Hajj was going to be since there would be ten days for a rider to travel to surrounding areas with the glorious news. The Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وسلم) made no attempt to know, or to inform the Muslims in the areas around Madinah about when the Hajj was in Makkah. Every Muslim community prayed according to its own sighting of the crescent of Ðūl Hijjah. Accordingly, all the scholars of Islām are unanimous that ‘Īd-ul-Adhā is on the 10th of Ðūl Hijjah which is determined by the sighting in each locality, and NOT ON THE 10th OF ÐŪL HIJJAH IN MAKKAH. It is a bid‘ah to try to impose a Vatican-like dogma on the Muslim ummah, although the propagators would tell you that they are simply following a 'universal horizon.' Don't be fooled. In Ramadān of 1999 it was claimed that the moon was seen in Yemen and Libya, and the Muslims of those countries began fasting on December 8, 1999. Those who claim to accept any sighting anywhere in the world conveniently ignored those Muslims, opting for the 'universal sighting' of their choice. The Companions of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) opposed every attempt to impose the moon sighting in one town over the others, even in close proximity, when it was not seen on a clear horizon, or when the horizon was cloudy on the 29 day of the Islamic month." (The Community News, a newsletter published by TARIC, vol. 107, March 8, 2000.)

4. To call people to follow a "global sighting" is to defy the laws of Allāh. Just as He has ordained for us to pray five times a day at times according to the position of the sun relative to our own horizon where we happen to be at that time, so has He ordained for us to look for the hilāl and sight it where we happen to be living or staying during that time of the month. To say there is one universal horizon, or a "unity" of the horizon is absolutely absurd. It would be the same as arguing that we should follow the prayer timings of Masjid Al-Ĥarām for the sake of unity. To call people to pray in perfect global synchronization with Makkah would be a profound bid‘ah, just as it is to call people to the falsehood of "one horizon," would be to ignore that the planet earth is round, and imitate the ignorant Christians of earlier centuries who fought science tooth and nail, maintaining that the earth was flat.

   There are inifinite horizons since the earth is round and covered with many visible obstructions of a clear horizon. If you don't believe it, try to go outside and watch the sun set just before Maghrib. Chances are, you'll need to drive outside of the city to avoid having tall buildings obstruct your view, or you'll have to move a few meters to the left or right of that tree that's blocking your view.

   You see, just moving a few meters has changed your view of the horizon, so let's examine the situation of the sun and the moon. At any given time, the sun is hidden to half of the planet earth, while the other half can see it, and thus has daylight. As the earth turns on its axis, Maghrib is constantly happening for a thin band along the surface of the earth where late afternoon is turning to night. Likewise, on the other side of the planet, the first light of dawn is rapidly moving along a narrow band of the earth's surface towards the West. So, Fajr is constantly happening somewhere in the world, 24 by 7, never stopping. Even though we may be eating our dinner, for someone, somewhere, it's their Fajr time.

   The moon, just like the sun, is never visible to more than 50% of the earth's surface at any time, day or night. What the proponents of "wahdat-ul-matale" have never seemed to grasp is a simple truth, a decree of Almighty Allāh, that the moon moves ever so slowly apparently from West to East, i.e. it is slowing moving in the same direction that the earth is spinning! If these people who call to the bid‘ah of global sighting would take the time to reflect on this simple fact, they might understand this all-important second fact:

   "North America lags the rest of the world in time (they are 10 hours behind South Africa), quite often they will see the new moon before the rest of the world, and thus start the new month ahead of the rest of the world. This is a consequence of the fact that the sun sets last over the American continent, giving the new moon more time to age and become visible."
   Jamiatul Ulama (KZN) - Hilaal Committee

   So, this is why global sighting is wrong, why it was never implemented by anyone until less than 50 years ago: Allāh has made it impossible to implement!

   Proof: If a new moon (not a hilāl, but an "invisible" moon) has been born and only develops into a mature visible hilāl by 20 minutes after sunset in Honolulu, Hawaii, which would mark the beginning of Ramadān for them, what are the Saudis, Kuwaitis, and Bahrainis going to do about their fasting? It's 18:30 at night in Honolulu and by the time they got to a phone and called anyone in Saudia it was 19:00, that's 07:00 in the morning, the next day in Saudi Arabia. Too late to get on Saudi TV 1 to announce the beginning of Ramadān. Oops! They also missed out on the first night of praying tarawīĥ! For Manila in the Philippines and many places in Australia, their Muslims will have no chance whatsoever of starting Ramadān on time since it is already 12:30 in the afternoon (or later in some Australian time zones) the NEXT DAY! How can someone say that Allāh (سبحانه وتعالى) would prefer this type of unfairness to be imposed on His slaves just west of the International Dateline?

   From this proof, we see their is no ĥikmah whatsoever in the so-called "global" moonsighting (wahdat-ul-matale'). Please note that this proof is completely devoid of "calculations" or the use of star charts. This is just plain common sense that shows how ridiculous "global" sighting really is. With local sighting, Muslims are not following any ethinic group, tribe, political affiliation, or regime/government. No one feels slighted. No nation/state is preferred over another. That's the Islamic way: the fair way, the just way, the way that Allāh (سبحانه وتعالى) commands us to follow, and the way His Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) taught Ibn ‘Abbas (remember the Kurayb Hadith?).

5. Any so-called fatwa from any of the four great Imāms supporting "global" moonsighting (wahdat-ul-matale') can never be applied to this current bid‘ahsimply because none of them lived during a time when travel across thousands of kilometers could be achieved in the same day, nor could they speak with someone sitting on the other side of the planet over a telephone to inquire about hilāl sightings.

   Any fatwa from any of the four great Imāms would at best be considered a "local," "regional," or if one wished to stretch it very far, a "national" sighting. From an astronomical point of view, the differences between positions and phases of the moon for positions on the earth that could be reached by a fast horse in less than a day are for all practical purposes, exactly the same. Please review the following star charts for Makkah and Madinah:

   Makkah, Saudi Arabia
   Madinah, Saudi Arabia
   

In conclusion, there is no evidence from the Qur'ān or the sunnah, supporting a so-called "global" moonsighting (wahdat-ul-matale') that relies on sighting attempts from observation points spanning thousands of kilometers around the globe. Until 50 years ago, it was technologically, logistically, and financially impossible to implement. Regarding the fasting of Ramadān, a proof was given in point number 4 that is not even possible to implement this so-called "global" moonsighting (wahdat-ul-matale') according to the sharī‘ah.

Appendix

Shaykh M. Ibrahim Memon quite eloquently states, "During the time of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), moon sighting was always conducted locally and the people of Makkah and Madinah maintained their own [separate] Islamic calendars. One of the proofs for this can be found by carefully analyzing the sīrah.

"When Rasūlullāh (صلى الله عليه وسلم) performed his one and only Hajj, the 9th of Ðūl Hijjah was a Friday. He passed away three months later in Madinah on Monday, the 12th of Rabi al-Awwal. These historical facts are established through hadith. However, when one tries to reconstruct the Islamic calendar given those days, the 12th of Rabi al-Awwal does not fall on a Monday, any which way you try.

Based on the local Makkan moon sighting, if every month was 29 days, 12th of Rabi al-Awwal would fall on Thursday.

Based on the local Makkan moon sighting, if every month was 30 days, 12th of Rabi al-Awwal would fall on Sunday.

Concerning local sighting Shaykh M. Ibrahim Memon states, "not only is this way easy, but it is actually a of the tradition of the Blessed Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and of the people after him throughout the history of Islam."

Additional Resources

Starting Date of Hijri Months: Is Saudi Arabia following the Sunnah, the Jews, or Microsoft?

Report of Six Official Saudi Hilāl Sighting Committees
"Majlis Al Qadah Alala started Ramadān, Shawwal, and Ðūl Hijjah 1426 AH utilizing the calculated dates of the Umm-ul-Qura civil calendar which corresponds exactly to the first starting day for the months of the Calculated Rabbinical Calendar of Israel namely Tishrei (4th October/1st day of Ramadān in Saudi Arabia), Cheshvan (3rd November/1st day of Shawwal-‘Īd-ul-Fitr in Saudi Arabia) and Tevet (1st January/1st day of Ðūl Hijjah in Saudi Arabia), respectively. Many of our Islamic Scholars who know the truth continue to be silent."
It seems the report forgot to mention that the calculated "Saudi" 1 Ðūl Qa‘idah 1426 for December 2, 2005 is also exactly the same as the 1st of Kislev 5766. Looks like a good starting point for some Interfaith Dialogue between the Saudi Royal family and the Likud Party of Israel!

Saudi ‘Alim Asks Muslims in North America not to pray ‘Īd on Day after ‘Arafah

U.S. Naval Observatory: Crescent Moon Visibility and the Islamic Calendar: "The record for an early sighting of a lunar crescent, with a telescope, is 12.1 hours after New Moon; for naked-eye sightings, the record is 15.5 hours from New Moon. These are exceptional observations and crescent sightings this early in the lunar month should not be expected as the norm. For Islamic calendar purposes, the sighting must be made with the unaided eye.

"If we ignore local conditions for the moment, and visualize the problem from outside the Earth's atmosphere, the size and brightness of the lunar crescent depend on only one astronomical quantity - the elongation of the Moon from the Sun, which is the apparent angular distance between their centers. For this reason the elongation has also been called the arc of light. If we know the value of the elongation at any instant, we can immediately compute the width of the crescent.

"This large range of possible elongations in the one-day-old Moon is critical, because at this time the width of the crescent is increasing with the square of the elongation, and the surface brightness of the crescent is also rapidly increasing. Some of the earliest reliable sightings of the crescent occur near elongations of around 10 degrees. Obviously, simply specifying the age of the Moon cannot tell the whole story. Of course, the elongation of the Moon does not tell the full story, either. But, of the two parameters, the elongation is a much more reliable parameter to use as a starting point in assessing the lunar crescent visibility at any given date and time.

Sacred Astronomy (‘ilm at-tawqit)

Moon Sighting Fundamentals by Youssef Ismail

Moon Sighting - an audio lecture by Hamza Yusuf

Causes and implications of the Saudi confusion about the dates for Hajj and ‘Īd
"The Saudi regime also manipulated the start and end of last Ramadān, as they had done many previous ones. While the overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide celebrated ‘Īd-ul-Fitr on Saturday, January 8, the Saudis had announced the sighting of a non-existent moon on Thursday January 6 to 'celebrate' ‘Īd-ul-Fitr on Friday, January 7.

"One Saudi newspaper, Arab News at least had the decency to admit later (February 11) that the January 7 celebration was based on false information. The regime, however, kept mum. The Arab News story followed the discovery that there was a partial eclipse of the sun on February 5 which lasted until after sunset, thus making any sighting of the moon impossible even had the moon been there to be sighted. According to this analysis, the month of Shawwal, according to the Saudi calculation, ended up having 31 days, an impossibility from the Islamic point of view (lunar months can only be of 29 or 30 days).

"This regular confusion is despite changes made to the Saudis' calendar arrangements following criticism from around the world of their arbitrary practices. The Saudi regime has now set up Hilal (crescent) sighting committees in six cities: Makkah, Riyadh, Qassim, Hail, Tabuk and Asir. The committees comprise religious scholars, quddah (plural of qadi), astronomers, scientists and other qualified people, as well as volunteers. Yet the regime does not follow the information provided by these committees, instead apparently relying on sighting claims by laymen without applying any standard for verifying the information. Neither the Shawwal (‘Īd-ul-Fitr) moon nor the Ðūl Hijjah moon was sighted by the experts in the committees on the dates on which they announced their sightings. These committees have been appointed but they are virtually powerless.

Moon Sighting Announcements in Saudi Arabia Valid?
"Further, if the argument of the [former ISNA] article is accepted and it is held that the real intention of Qur'ān and Sunnah was to link the celebration of ‘Īd-ul-Adhā with the Saudi dates, as a mandatory provision for all Muslims in the world, it means that the sharī‘ah has stressed a principle which was not acceptable for 1300 years. It is not against the Quranic declaration that Allah does not make a thing mandatory unless it is practical for the human beings.

"If the authors [of the former ISNA article] argue that the celebration of ‘Īd-ul-Adhā was not linked with the dates in Makkah in the past but it has become a mandatory requirement of the sharī‘ah now, then the question arises, who has abrogated the previous principle and on what basis? There is no provision in Qur'ān or the Sunnah which orders the Muslims to celebrate ‘Īd-ul-Adhā according to their local dates up to a particular time and to link it with the dates in Makkah thereafter. Whoever considers this and similar questions arising out of this unprecedented theory advanced in the article can appreciate its fallacy.
(Source: Ask the Imam Online. Mufti Ebrahim Desai)

Moonsighting (Hilāl) in Saudi Arabia and its implications worldwide
"In view of the present discrepancies in moon sighting, the view that Ikhtilāf-e-Matālih is considered may be adopted and each country should make their own independent decisions. It is incorrect for the Muslims in North America (especially the Arab brethren) to follow Saudia Arabia's ruling on ‘Īd-ul-Fitr and ‘Īd-ul-Adhā due to the moonsighting being inconsistent with sharī‘ah laws of sighting the moon."
(Source: Ask the Imam Online. Mufti Ebrahim Desai)

Which Hilāl (Islamic Crescent) to Follow?
"Synchronizing ‘Īd-ul-Adhā worldwide with hilāl sighting in Saudi Arabia is not appropriate because it is neither ikhtilāf-ul-Matāle (multiple horizons/local sighting), nor wahdat-ul-matāle (single horizon - follow first report of hilāl - no matter from which country). . . . According to the Shaykh ibn ‘Uthaymīn (r.a) fatwa, and other scholars, Ðūl Hijjah determination is no different from other 11 months and should be by local sighting (ikhtilāf-ul-matāle). . . . Using sighting in Saudi Arabia for here [in North America] can force us to ignore our earlier local hilāl sighting. (The world is round - for certain years, e.g. North America should see hilāl one date before the Middle-East)."

Dark Side of the Moon

Wikipedia article on the Islamic Calendar "Nevertheless, the religious authorities of Saudi Arabia also allow the testimony of less experienced observers and thus often announces the sighting of the lunar crescent on a date when none of the official committees could see the lunar crescent."

Microsoft: Adjusting Hijri date in Outlook 2003 according to Um-AlQura algorithm

WebExhibits: The Islamic calendar
"Saudi Arabia doesn't rely on a visual sighting of the crescent moon to fix the start of a new month. Instead they base their calendar on a calculated astronomical moon."

A sample moon sighting

Friday evening, 02 December 2005: first hilāl of Ðūl Qa‘idah 1426
Cloudless weather conditions
Sunset was at 17:15 EST.
Sighted with Nikon OceanPro 7x50 7.2° CF WP compass binoculars at 17:28 EST.
Sighted with a 300mm telephoto lens at 17:34 EST.
Sighted with naked eye at 17:39 EST. Can you see it? It's already 31 hours and 38 minutes after the new moon. Pretty old for a first day hilāl. Remember the record sighting listed above of 15.5 hours by the U.S. Naval Observatory? There is nothing record breaking about his sighting, yet without knowing exactly where to look, a novice probably would not have been able to spot it.

Keep in mind that this hilāl, barely visible with the naked eye, boasts a 2.7% phase (percentage of surface visible) and is 17° away from the sun.

The so-called "sighting" reported by Saudi officials on Oct. 03, 2005 marking the premature beginning of Ramadān 1426 had a phase of 0.00% and was only 1.63° away from the sun. The moon was already partially below the horizon after the sun completely set! This so-called "sighting" happened only 4 hours and 40 minutes after the new moon! Remember the all-time record of 15.5 hours by the U.S. Naval Observatory? A hilāl sighted only 4 hours and 40 minutes after the new moon? I don't think so!

In the photos above, the moon was stayed in the sky almost 48 minutes after the sun went down completely, yet one had to wait 13 minutes before the sky was dark enough for the hilāl to be visible, and 24 minutes after sunset for one to be able to spot it with the naked eye, although the exact position with binoculars had been established 11 minutes before! Now tell us how the Saudis could see any hilāl with only 2 minutes of viewing after sunset and a visible lunar surface area of 0.00%.

Memahami Perbedaan Idul Adha 1431 H

PENANGGALAN HIJRIAH

Memahami Perbedaan Idul Adha 1431 H

http://sains.kompas.com/read/2010/11/16/09075675/Memahami.Perbedaan.Idul.Adha.1431.H-4

M ZAID WAHYUDI

KOMPAS.com - Potensi adanya perbedaan Idul Adha 1431 Hijriah sudah diprediksi para ahli hisab rukyat dan astronom sejak beberapa tahun lalu. Perbedaan itu terwujud saat ini dengan adanya sebagian umat Islam Indonesia yang memperingati Idul Adha pada Selasa ini, sama seperti di Arab Saudi, dan sebagian lagi Rabu esok.

Melalui sidang isbat atau penetapan yang dilakukan Kementerian Agama dan dihadiri wakil berbagai organisasi massa Islam, pemerintah menetapkan Idul Adha 10 Zulhijah 1431 H jatuh pada 17 November 2010.

Anggota Badan Hisab Rukyat Kementerian Agama yang juga Profesor Riset Astronomi Lembaga Penerbangan dan Antariksa Nasional Thomas Djamaluddin di Jakarta, Senin (15/11), mengatakan, secara teoretis atau hisab, bulan sabit tipis atau hilal tidak mungkin diamati pada 6 November karena ketinggiannya di atas ufuk masih di bawah dua derajat. Hal itu juga didukung dengan data pengamatan yang menunjukkan hilal belum bisa dilihat atau dirukyat di seluruh Indonesia.

Dengan demikian, bulan Dzulqa’dah atau bulan ke-11 dalam kalender Islam dibulatkan menjadi 30 hari sehingga 1 Zulhijah bertepatan dengan 8 November.

Di Indonesia, lanjut Djamaluddin, jika ada yang menetapkan Idul Adha pada 16 November, hal itu karena menggunakan kriteria wujudul hilal atau terbentuknya hilal (tanpa perlu diamati) sehingga bulan Dzulqa’dah hanya 29 hari.

Perbedaan lain muncul dengan ketetapan Pemerintah Arab Saudi yang menetapkan Idul Adha juga pada 16 November sehingga puncak ibadah haji berupa wukuf di Arafah dilakukan pada 9 November kemarin.

Menurut Djamaluddin, keputusan Pemerintah Arab Saudi menentukan Idul Adha tahun ini tergolong kontroversial. Secara teoretis, hilal tidak bisa dirukyat pada 6 November di Mekah. Namun, ternyata otoritas setempat menentukan berbeda.

Sebagai catatan, dalam keputusan penentuan hari raya, Pemerintah Arab Saudi sering kali digugat oleh para astronom di Timur Tengah dan kawasan lain. Meskipun Arab Saudi menggunakan metode melihat hilal untuk menentukan awal bulan, tapi sering kali hilal yang diklaim bisa dilihat itu secara teoretis astronomi tidak mungkin bisa dilihat.

Garis penanggalan bulan

Anggota Badan Hisab Rukyat Kementerian Agama lainnya yang juga ahli kalender di Program Studi Astronomi, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Moedji Raharto, mengatakan, garis penanggalan pada kalender Hijriah berbeda dengan garis penanggalan kalender Masehi.

Garis penanggalan Masehi didasarkan pada patokan garis bujur timur atau garis bujur barat 180 derajat. Dalam penanggalan ini, daerah yang memiliki garis bujur sama atau berdekatan mulai dari kutub utara hingga kutub selatan akan selalu memiliki hari yang sama. Perubahan hari dimulai pada pukul 00.00.

Daerah yang lebih timur juga dipastikan akan lebih dahulu waktunya dibandingkan daerah di baratnya. Karena itu, dalam sistem penanggalan Masehi, waktu di Jakarta atau waktu Indonesia barat (WIB) selalu empat jam lebih dulu dibandingkan waktu Mekkah.

Namun, garis penanggalan bulan berbeda. Garis penanggalan bulan memiliki 235 variasi. Setiap bulannya, garis penanggalan bulan berbeda-beda. Garis penanggalan bulan akan kembali di dekat tempat yang sama sekitar 19 tahun kemudian.

Banyaknya variasi garis penanggalan bulan ini ditentukan oleh posisi Bulan terhadap Bumi, dan posisi sistem Bumi-Bulan terhadap Matahari.

Daerah yang pertama kali melihat hilal akan mengawali hari lebih dulu. Hal ini berarti, daerah yang terletak pada garis bujur yang sama atau berdekatan, hari atau awal bulan Hijriahnya bisa berbeda. Hari dimulai setelah Matahari terbenam atau magrib, bukan pukul 00.00.

Kondisi ini, lanjut Moedji, yang membuat waktu di Jakarta tidak selalu lebih dahulu dibanding Mekkah. Jika diasumsikan, hilal pada Zulhijah kali ini pertama kali dilihat di Mekkah, maka sesudah magrib atau sekitar pukul 18.00 di Mekkah sudah masuk bulan baru.

Saat itu, di Jakarta sudah pukul 22.00 WIB. Baru pada magrib keesokan harinya, Jakarta memasuki Zulhijah. Artinya, pada bulan Zulhijah kali ini waktu di Jakarta tertinggal 20 jam dibandingkan waktu Mekkah.

”Dalam penanggalan Hijriah, waktu di Indonesia bisa jadi lebih dulu dibandingkan waktu di Arab Saudi. Namun, bisa jadi pula Arab Saudi lebih dulu dibanding Indonesia,” tambahnya.

Menurut Moedji, perbedaan awal hari dalam kalender Hijriah inilah yang sering dipahami secara salah. Mereka beranggapan, karena waktu di Indonesia lebih cepat dibanding Mekkah, maka saat di Mekkah berhari raya, di Indonesia juga harus berhari raya. Padahal, konsep ini didasarkan atas pencampuradukkan konsepsi kalender Hijriah dan Masehi sehingga menimbulkan kerancuan.

”Umat Islam Indonesia harus memahami bahwa mereka menggunakan dua sistem kalender. Kalender Masehi untuk keperluan sehari-hari dan kalender Hijriah untuk keperluan ibadah. Setiap kalender memiliki konsep dan konsekuensi masing-masing yang berbeda,” ungkapnya.

Meskipun berbeda, baik Moedji maupun Djamaluddin mengajak umat Islam menghormati perbedaan yang ada. Kejadian ini harus kembali memacu umat Islam Indonesia untuk segera membuat kriteria penentuan awal bulan Hijriah secara bersama yang berlaku nasional.

Jika sudah ada, maka konsepsi ini bisa disosialisasikan secara regional dan internasional sehingga diperoleh sistem penanggalan Hijriah yang bisa berlaku secara global.

”Sistem penanggalan Hijriah memang lebih kompleks dibandingkan penanggalan Masehi, tapi itu bukan berarti tidak bisa distandardisasi,” ujar Moedji.

Mereka pejuang senyap

Sudah lama tidak menjengah blog yang memang tidak harapkan ada pengunjung ini. Ruang ini hanyalah tempat menggoreskan apa yang menyentuh hati merakamkan apa yang diharap menjadi inspirasi sesiapa yang ditakdirkan Allah sempat singgah,

Semalam sempat saya mengisi majlis yang dianjurkan oleh saudara-saudara kita dari Indonesia yang merantau mencari rezeki di bumi Allah yang bertuah ini. Tema yang dimaksudkan untuk menghangatkan zikra Isra dan Mi'raj itu dihalakan ke "Kuatkan Cinta meskipun belum berjumpa". Sudah tentu ini sangat menguja kerana saya sendiri bukanlah pakarnya berbicara soal cinta-kasih seperti penulis-penulis tenar seperti Ust Hasrizal atau Habiburrahman asy-Syirozi.

Berbekalkan carian hadith cinta Rasul kepada umat dan cinta para sahabat kepada baginda, justeru jurang antara standard cinta yang telah diteladankan oleh baginda dan para sahabat dengan hakikat capaian diri membuat saya semakin kerdil untuk berbicara tajuk ini.

Namun kegigihan saudara kita yang tergabung di dalam wadah Ikatan Pekerja Muslimin Indonesia untuk menjayakan majlis ini meskipun dengan sambutan dan kehadiran yang sangat sederhana, mendorong saya untuk menggagahkan diri menghuraikan apa yang diharapkan seadanya. Sedar tak sedar, lebih sejam setengah juga masa yang dihabiskan. Kebanyakan mereka adalah akhawat yang didukung oleh segelintir kecil muslimin yang disandarkan untuk tugas-tugas yang memerlukan mereka ke depan.

Di hati saya terdetik ungkapan "Merekalah serikandi senyap !" Di antara kesibukan tugas mencari rezeki meringankan beban keluarga di kampung, mereka masih dapat menyempatkan diri bukan hanya untuk majlis ini, bahkan majlis-majlis pengajian rutin untuk menyediakan wadah bagi rakan sewarga dan senasib agar tidak hanya dalam arus khayalan dan silauan hidup di rantauan. Tentu bukan sedikit masa yang dicurahkan untuk mencari dana, menyusun gerak kerja, mempromosikan, memujuk dan seumpamanya sedangkan mereka juga terdesak di antara tuntutan kerja yang kebanyakannya di perkilangan.

Tanpa kiprah mereka yang menjalankan amanah ini, sudah tentu sindrom kehanyutan yang meresahkan mereka akan lebih parah lagi. Dalam dingin sambutan mereka tetap bertahan.

Malam ini, deringan telefon dari sahabat sekerja bahawa seorang muslimat yang menjadi nadi penggerak program muslimat di surau dalam kariah kami kini koma di hospital. Doa tulus diharapkan agar beliau dapat kiranya Allah memudahkan beliau untuk pulih kembali. Sekali lagi saya diingatkan dengan seorang lagi serikandi senyap dalam kehidupan dakwah kita. Mereka bukanlah tokoh-tokoh glamor yang nama mereka sering terpampang di media sebagai apa sahaja. Mereka hanyalah pemangkin kepada kelangsungan program-program dakwah setempat yang rajin mengumpulkan sahabat handai dan memanfaatkan tenaga para ustaz. Mereka membolehkan surau kecil sempit menjadi gudang penyimpan cikal ilmu untuk bekalan ke rumah dan menyirami keluarga dengan siraman dingin iman dan taqwa yang mereka perolehi di surau kecil. Mereka tidak mencari nama. Mereka hanya dikenali lewat SMS yang sering menerjah inbox bertanyakan sama ada kita yang mereka percaya boleh berbagi ilmu sempat singgah di laman mereka.

Ya Allah, kuatkanlah para pejuang senyap ini dan banyakkanlah bilangan mereka agar tertegak din mu lewat kesenyapan mereka unuk memenuhi setiap inci bumi dengan daulat kalimah-Mu.

Ust Zahar bicara ttg Adab Penuntut Ilmu yg Terhakis

Jaga Adab Bertambah Berkat

Oleh

Zaharuddin Abd Rahman

http://www.zaharuddin.net/

Semasa saya sedang memberikan kuliah pertama dalam kelas Fiqh Muamalat bagi pelajar tahun 3 di European Institute of Human Science. (www.eihs.org.uk)

Tiba-tiba seorang pelajar dari Russia mengangkat tangan lalu bercakap dalam bahasa arab yang masih boleh saya fahami walaupun bunyinya agak sedikit kelam kabut.

Ia satu perkembangan memberangsangkan, kerana sebahagian pelajar ini dahulunya tidak mengenali huruf 'Arab, namun hari ini dalam tempoh 4 tahun, mereka sudah boleh bercakap ‘Arab dengan gaya bahasa pasar, walaupun ada kesalahan namun ia tertutup dengan gayanya yang penuh yakin.

Itulah salah satu kunci untuk berjaya dalam pertuturan bahasa, keyakinan terlebih dahulu dan diikuti pembetulan sedikit demi sedikit.

"ustaz, kami sebenarnya suka kuliah ini tetapi kami harap ustaz tidak mengambil hak kami, biasanya pensyarah memberikan kami 10 minit rehat dan tamat 10 minit lebih awal"

Panas juga saya mendengarnya, namun disebabkan ini kelas pertama dan saya juga tidak maklum kebiasaan pengajaran di sini, saya hentikan kelas untuk 10 minit sebagaimana diminta dan menyambung kembali sejurus selepas itu.

Mengajar Fiqh Muamalat menjadikan saya begitu khusyuk sehingga tidak sedar waktu yang berlalu, keghairahan saya memberikan penerangan ditambah dengan pelbagai isu semasa yang sedang cuba difahamkan kepada pelajar. Majoriti pelajar bertubi-tubi mengajukan persoalan dengan penuh minat kerap menjadikan saya semakin tidak melihat jam.

Kelas ini dijadualkan pada hari Isnin bermula jam 11 pagi sehingga jam 1 petang. 2 jam kelas sememangnya berat kecuali bagi mereka yang benar-benar ghairah dengan ilmu.

Saya teringat kelas Sarjana (MA) Fiqh ketika di Jordan yang berlangsung 3 jam tanpa henti. Namun demikian, inilah suasana kelas yang amat saya rindui sekarang, malah amat luar biasa apabila saya tidak dijengah perasaan mengantuk sama sekali walau 3 jam, berbeza sekali dengan kelas-kelas di ketika saya di peringkat Sarjana Muda (BA), mengantuk kerap menjengah.

Memang banyak alasan mempertahankan mengantuk itu, namun ia bukanlah sesuatu yang baik di hadapan guru.

Sebelum kelas kedua bermula, saya meninjau dokumen-dokumen yang disediakan untuk pensyarah oleh pihak pentadbir institut, tiada sama sekali peruntukan 10 minit rehat, semuanya diberikan atas budi bicara pensyarah.

"Tidak mengapalah, saya boleh berikan InshaAllah" demikian niat saya dengan harapan waktu rehat tersebut dapat memberikan kelegaan minda dan tenaga para pelajar.

Setakat ini tiada yang tertidur di dalam kelas saya, itu satu yang baik malah cemerlang. Namun walau tidak tidur, tidak dinafikan ada yang matanya celik tetapi mindanya tidur.

Bagi mengelak paksaan demikian, saya berfikir mungkin memberikan mereka rehat itu boleh diterima.

Kelas kedua bermula.

Sebelum ia bermula, pihak pentadbir institut memaklumkan kepada para pensyarah agar memperlahankan sedikit penerangan kerana tahap kecekapan bahasa arab pelajar adalah berbeza-beza di antara satu dengan yang lain. Kami juga diberitahu agar jangan tergesa-gesa kerana mengejar silibus tetapi boleh berhenti di mana sahaja asalkan pelajar dapat faham.

Ada bagusnya juga, fikir saya

Teringat saya di UIAM yang agak terkejar-kejar untuk menamatkan silibus yang disediakan. Topik-topik pula kebanyakannya bukan ringan untuk pelajar.

HAK ANDA ATAU SAYA ?

Sedang khusyuk saya menjawab soalan pelajar dan menerangkan perihal pecahan aqad di dalam Fiqh Muamalat, tiba-tiba .

"Ustaz, maaf , hak kami adalah untuk berehat 10 minit" tegas pelajar yang sama dahulu.

Kali ini saya cukup terasa.

Saya merasakan biadapnya pelajar ini.

"Anda salah" kata saya

"Tiada hak anda untuk berehat 10 minit, jangan sesekali mendakwa ia HAK anda. Ia adalah hak saya sama ada untuk berikannya atau tidak"

"Malah ingin saya ingatkan, anda semua dengan adab menuntut ilmu, jika anda berfikir kelas ini adalah sebagai satu perniagaan, anda pelanggan kerana membayar yuran dan saya tukang jual, anda tersilap, mungkin anda boleh berfikiran sedemikian jika ini bukan pengajian Islam, namun dalam pengajian Islam unsur barakah sewaktu pengajian amat penting"

"Anda semua ini, merupakan bakal-bakal imam, qadhi dan mufti di negara anda, tiba-tiba sibuk dengan 10 minit rehat, mengabaikan adab majlis ilmu, adakah anda rasa anda boleh berjaya dengan sikap begini" Celoteh saya dengan separuh marah.

Saya marah dengan sikap bakal-bakal pendakwah ini, datang ke Institut untuk mempelajari ilmu Islam, namun dibawa sikap dan adab tidak Islam. Tidak hormati guru dan majlis ilmu.

Seorang pensyarah dan pakar hadis di Universiti Al-Yarmouk dahulu sangat sensitif dengan adab dalam majlis ilmu, sehingga jika terdapat pelajar yang menyilangkan kaki sewaktu duduk (di dalam kelas) akan dimarahinya, paling tidak akan disindirnya secara tajam.

Ada pula guru yang membalingkan pen kepada pelajar yang tidur dan macam-macam lagi.

Malangnya, guru yang ingin mendidik ini berhadapan dengan karenah pelajar yang kurang adab.

Terhakis sungguh adab menuntut ilmu, tiada lagi penghormatan kepada guru, saya sering teringat bagaimana para pensyarah Islam di pelbagai institusi pengajian dicemuh dan dikutuk oleh pelajarnya tanpa sebab yang haq.

Cara berinteraksi dengan guru juga semakin jauh dari adab murid dan penuntut ilmu.

Sebaliknya pensyarah yang memberikan soalan bocor, bermudah-mudah, selalu memberi waktu rehat, mungkin dianggap hero dan favourite. Tidak ketinggalan sebahagian rakan-rakan sepengajian saya ketika di Jordan yang suka mengutuk pensyarah di luar kelas. Malah ada yang dituduhnya sebagai zalim hanya kerana tidak memberikan soalan-soalan jangkaan.

Padahal yang memberikan soalan bocor itulah yang zalim dan mengkhianati amanah.

Allah swt pernah menggambarkan bagaimana adab penuntut ilmu di hadapan gurunya :-

قَالَ فَإِنِ اتَّبَعْتَنِى فَلاَ تَسْأَلْنى عَن شَىءٍ حَتَّى أُحْدِثَ لَكَ مِنْهُ ذِكْراً

Ertinya : Berkata Khidr (selaku guru), jika kamu ingin ikutiku maka jangan kamu bertanya apa-apa sehinggalah aku menceritakannya kepadamu " ( Al-Kahfi, 70)

Imam az-Zamakhshari berkata :

وهذا من آداب المتعلم مع العالم والمتبوع مع التابع

Ertinya : Inilah sebahagian dari adab penuntut ilmu bersama gurunya, pengikut dengan yang diikutinya" ( Al-Kasyyaf, 2/686)

Namun ini tidaklah bermakna, anda tidak boleh bertanya apa jua semasa guru mengajar, apa yang perlu adalah ‘minta izin' dan menunggu guru menamatkan percakapannya.

Adab-adab penuntut ini sangat ditekankan oleh ulama silam sehingga Imam Al-Ghazzali menyebut :-

ومهما أشار عليه المعلم بطريق في التعلم فليقلده وليدع رأيه فإن خطأ مرشده أنفع له من صوابه في نفسه

Ertinya : Apapun yang diterangkan oleh guru semasa pengajian maka hendaklah (penuntut) mengikutinya dan meninggalkan pandangan peribadinya, kerana kesilapan sang guru lebih bermanfaat dari apa yang mungkin benarnya apa yang datang dari dirinya (penuntut)" ( Ihya 'Ulumiddin, 1/50)

Tidak dinafikan kita boleh berhujjah, berdiskusi dan mengkritik pendapat Imam Al-Ghazzali di atas, namun sefaham saya ia dibuat dalam konteks penekanan keperluan menghormati guru, meyakini ilmunya dan adab-adab penuntut ilmu di hadapan guru.

Sebagai murid atau penuntut, jika anda tidak bersetuju dengan sesuatu pendapat guru, anda boleh berbincang dengan guru secara tertutup, mengemukakan hujjah anda dalam bentuk yang beradab dan tenang serta menjaga air muka serta menghormati tarjihan sang guru.

Ramai saya temui, penuntut yang menampilkan hujah seolah-olah si guru tersebut tidak tahu. Ramai penuntut yang baru khatam dua tiga buah kitab, merasakan diri lebih bijak dari gurunya.

Jika ada yang mengatakan, "memang hakikatnya murid itu lebih bijak dari gurunya" atau "murid tidak yakin guru itu lebih tahu dari dirinya",

Nescaya ketika itu, murid itulah yang KURANG BIJAK, salah dan kurang berilmu, iaitu kerana dia perlu memilih guru, lalu kenapakah memilih guru yang diyakini kurang ilmu berbanding dirinya ?. Malah sebenarnya, individu yang merasakan dirinya berilmu adalah tanda dia belum cukup berilmu. Ye, sepatutnya, walau siapapun guru, walau terbukti sang guru 'kurang ilmu', namun anak murid yang pandai tetap akan beroleh manfaat dan ilmu baru dari guru tersebut, banyak cara dan bentuknya.

Imam Malik Bin Anas dan Muhammad Ibn Sirin berkata :-

العلم دين فانظروا عمن تأخذون دينكم

Ertinya : Ilmu itu agama, maka telitilah dari siapa kamu ambil ilmu agamamu" (Tibyan fi adab hamla al-quran, 1/25)

Lihatlah contoh anak murid Imam Syafie Rabi yang berkata :-

وقال الربيع صاحب الشافعي رحمهما الله ما اجترأت أن أشرب الماء والشافعي ينظر إلي هيبة له

Ertinya : Berkata Rabi', murid dan rakan SYafie, aku tidak berani meminum air sedangkan Imam Syafie sedang memandang ke arahku, merasakan kehebatannya" (Tibyan fi adab hamla al-quran, 1/25)

Malah penuntut ilmu Islam di zaman silam amat menghargai gurunya sehingga mereka sering berdoa :-

اللهم استر عيب معلمي عني ولا تذهب بركة علمه مني

Ertinya : "Ya Allah, tutuplah aib guruku dari penglihatanku dan janganlah hilangkan berkat ilmunya dariku"

WEB INI JUGA MEYAKSIKAN

Inilah juga sikap sebahagian pengunjung web ini dan lain-lain web agama apabila bertanya soalan dan membidas hujjah. Terdapat yang tiada adab langsung, dalam masa yang sama mengharap jawapan saya dan rakan-rakan ustaz.

Saya cuba membayangkan web ini sebagai satu medan dakwah dan kuliah ilmu yang diberkati, Namun ia kerap dicemari oleh individu kurang adab. Bila dimarah, disindir kononnya kita tidak sabar dan tidak berhikmah.

Sebaiknya, jika tidak mempercayai saya dan apa yang saya sampaikan, jauhkan sahaja diri dari web dan tulisan saya. Abaikan saya, semudah itu.

Di benaknya, berhikmah itu agaknya boleh dipijak-pijak tanpa melawan. Sedang baginda Nabi s.a.w dan para sahabat sendiri pun pernah bertegas dan keras dalam pendekatan. Kebanyakkannya bergantung kepada latar belakang penanya dan pelaku kesilapan.

Perlu saya tegaskan, para ustaz termasuk saya adalah manusia biasa, tidak maksum dan jika ada yang biadap, tidak ramai ustaz yang masih ingin melayani soalan dan hujahnya.

Terdapat juga yang amat cetek ilmunya, tetapi bila membantah seolah terlalu bijak, sedangkan dari soalan yang diutarakan, kita sudah boleh menjangka sejauh mana ilmunya, kerana soalan itu sebahagian dari ilmu.

AMRU KHALID DAN GURUNYA

Gambar : Sebelah kiri saya guru dan supervisor kami, Prof. Dr Mawil Izzi dein, UZAR, Syeikh 'Amru Khalid, Ust Abd Halim naam (rakan phd), dan Fauzi ( rakan Phd dari LIbya)

Semalam, saya berpeluang bertemu dengan Syeikh 'Amru Khalid, seorang tokoh Muslim yang amat popular di dunia Islam terutamanya di dunia Arab. Beliau tersenarai salah seorang dari seratus orang tokoh paling berpengaruh di dunia. Baca berita berkenaan pencapaian top 100 ini.

Beliau juga sedang menyiapkan PhD nya di Universiti of Wales, Lampeter. Supervisor beliau juga adalah sama dengan saya iaitu Prof. Dr Mawil Izzi Dein. Semasa bertemu dengannya saya cuba mengajaknya untuk memberikan sedikit kuliah pendek kepada warga Malaysia di sini. Namun dengan penuh hormat beliau menolak sambil merujuk kepada Dr Mawil.

Bayangkan, tokoh sebesarnya masih hormat dan mengambil kira pendapat gurunya. Hormatnya kepada Dr Mawil kelihatan cukup jelas.

KESIMPULAN

Berusahalah mencari guru yang dipercayai, doakan agar tidak terlihat aibnya, dan jangan mencari kelemahannya, ambil kebaikannya, diskusi dengannya dengan adab dan masuki majlisnya dengan hormat agar berkat ilmu mampu sampai dan memberikanmanfaat di dunia dan akhirat.

Ingatlah, berkat itu amat perlu dalam pengajian ilmu Islam, dengan wujud keberkatan, kefahaman mudah diperoleh, ingatan lambat luput, amalan menjadi mudah, hati menjadi tenang.

Tanpa adab, berkat hilang dan susut, kefahaman tidak menjelang tiba, lupa adalah sindrom biasa dan fikiran sentiasa merasa serabut, hati gersang dan kering.

Sekian

Zaharuddin Abd Rahman

http://www.zaharuddin.net/

5 Nov 2008

Last update: 05-04-2010 20:59