علم الزمن والوقت
In the Name of Allah the Most Beneficent the Most Merciful
A message* about: “How worships are subject to permissibility, manifested by body organs”
With blessed Eid Al-Fitr approaching, the matter of sighting the crescent is back again trending newspaper and magazine headlines and becoming widely discussed and debated between hard-working scholars, restricted students and common individuals who all share the same subject of interest.
Tackling the topic deeply may help set the bases of the matter to every jurist, astronomer, journalist and ministerial official … otherwise we will exempt the announcement of the end of Ramadan and the beginning of the month of Shawwal, so people can break their fast and return to their normal situation during the whole year after a religious trip aboard “the school of “Ramadan”.
Describing the matter comes as in the following:
Some people mistakenly believe that worships are determined by absolute precision; they are guided by “absolute” not “restricted”, “public” not “special” scripts, although there are other scripts that are closer to “evidence” and more “explicit” in terms of stating the religious rule with no distortion or abridgement.
If worships were established upon absolute precision, most of the people will die, worships will be unbearable obligations and none will be able to fulfill them, because absolute precision is a mathematical and digital theory, which does not suit neither human nature nor the nature of Sharia law that is characterized by tolerance and ease.
This is stated as follow:
Worships are subject to permissibility and ease:
The Almighty Allah says: “Allah intends for you ease, and He does not want to make things difficult for you”.
This verse came in the context of “fast” and contains different types of facilitation which signify the nature of our Sharia law such as mercy, facilitation, tolerance, and removing the burdens.
Some examples of facilitation in Ramadan are: permitting patients to break a fast and make up “the same number of days” later.
Facilitating Ramadan for couples as they used to deceive themselves, so Allah accepted their repentance and forgave them, as mercy from the Almighty and said: “So now have sexual relations with them and seek that which Allah has ordained for you (offspring)”.
Facilitating Ramadan for people who fast implies hastening the breaking of the fasting and postponing Suhoor, until he prohibited “continuity” “until the white thread (light) of dawn appears to you distinct from the black thread (darkness of night)”.
Furthermore, facilitating Ramadan for whoever sights the month of Ramadan (crescent on the first night of the month) to fast, even if it is not fully sighted, then he is not obliged to fast as well as none can oblige him to fast too “whoever of you sights the month, should spend it in fasting”.
Worship times are measured by body organs:
If you observe the worships that require some kind of measurement, whether scales, times periods or terms … we will realize that they are measured under the means which are available to all people rather than limited to the conditions that are available only to scholars, rulers or even what makes one country or one age superior in terms of technical and technological means that are under infinite development; because worships appeared before these tools came to being, which means they are accepted with or without these means, they are also accepted under the means that we use today or even what is yet to be invented in the future.
Therefore, the easy numbers, body-organ measures or anything that is easy for the worshiper to count have always been the source in our worships, all praises to Allah.
Determining Qibla Direction:
Qibla is not a “hole” that people go inside or a point of intersection for people’s destination, as well as it is not a hard goal for people to score; yet Qibla is a prayer direction measured by the face: “So turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid al-Haram (at Makkah)”.
It is known that “face” is one of the body organs, not a “measuring machine” or “geometric design”, even if a human uses “compass” for instance, the latter will determine the direction exactly, however, if he stands for the prayer he will turn his face to that point with so much mathematical indulgence otherwise, a slight mistake in the corner can be enough to make him turn –if he is in Algeria- to Medina instead of Kaaba in Mekkah.
The crescent of Ramadan or Eid is observed by sighting:
The Almighty says “whoever of you sights the month has to fast”, knowing to what extent the meaning conveyed by “sighting” as well as the indication implied by the verse.
The Prophet peace be upon him said “Start fasting on seeing the crescent (of Ramadan), and give up fasting on seeing the crescent (of Shawwal)”, therefore he linked between fasting and terminating it, which are the best forms of worships and some of the human body-organ fruits called “vision”; which varies from one human to another, from place to another, from one geographical area to another, from one climate condition to another …
Nevertheless, the way to fast and break a fast is “vision”, despite the potential for error; however, the Almighty Allah “burdens no soul beyond its capacity” and “according to what Allah has given him” then the verse was followed by “Allah will bring ease after hardship”.
Using measurement is religiously and mentally recognized; however the role that counting plays –as considered by a number of jurists based on their Ijtihad (independent reasoning)- is disapproving not approving; i.e., measurement is supposed to consider sighting in terms of “inability”, when the moon-sighting is not possible for instance.
When sighting enters into force, with a great difference at this level; permissibility, tolerance and easiness are the legal ways to perform worship.
Therefore, stressing on the necessity of gathering all people on “one day” for fasting or breaking a fast is unsuitable to our faith; which can be the reason to ensure individuals and nation’s unity such as: cooperation, trust, taking causes into account, tolerance and giving up on claiming to know more etc.
Determining prayer times:
It is calculated by knowing that the shadow has equal size to the object or to the human being with his full organs, in addition to a stick or anything like that, which is the fruit of sense of vision or any tools used without any burdens.
Sunset can be seen by the eyes, Shafak can also be observed by this organ, whether during Fajr or Isha prayers, which are also be established upon tolerance due to the variety of observers as well as the weather condition that affect the vision.
Meticulousness in Worships is an act of egotism:
Hands are part of the body organs that are used to measure the legal scale for Zakat and Kaffara and others; any attempt to stress over accuracy for human measures other than machines represents an act, which does not reflect the purpose of our religion and contradicts the authentic religious sources.
It was reported about Al-Shatibi by Muhammad Rachid Rida in his introduction about Al-Shatibi’s approach: “He said: Authenticity and scientific research cannot take place regarding the narration reported with reference. I examined the scales and I found out they are different, with variety of differences known as narrations. The legal scale which was approximately reported on the doctrine leaders and recognized by everyone is a handful of wheat or anything that can be carried by both hands together characterized by small and large size, one measure equals four handfuls of wheat, I tried this and I found it true, this is what needs to be used, because it is established upon legal estimation, including meticulousness in the matters, which are not legally required because it is an act of egotism and burden, this is what I only have”.
Azimuth is a direction not a point (Paradox of the straight line):
In our scientific astronomy heritage, there is a science called “Azimuth”, several books were written by scientists such as: Al-Biruni (died in 440 A.H.), who wrote a book entitled “Taswiyat al-buyut fi Ist’imali Dawair As-Sumut”, and “Tahdib shurut al-Amel Litashihi Sumut al-Qibla” in addition to Abu Nasr Mansur (died in 427 A.H.) who wrote a book entitled “The Book of Azimuth”, including Ashatwi (the first half of 4th Century A.H./ 10th Century A.D.) whose book is entitled “Amal al-Irtifaa wu Sumut”.
Azimuth is “” according to the ……………………………….
Azimuth facilitates the determination of Qibla, shadows, heights, cities and navigation … Zayn al-Din al-Amili “known as ash-Shahīd al-thani” in the book of “Knowing Time” P398.
Stand in the line of the prayer”shoulder to shoulder, foot to foot”.
Exaggerated details asked by Banu Israel:
It was reported by Imam al-Tabari in his interpretation about Bani Israel that “when they were commanded by Allah to slaughter a cow, if they immediately did, the task is then over, but since they restricted themselves, Allah put restrictions on them” (interpretation).
As a consequence, when we were ordered to perform worships by the Almighty Allah, worships were established upon easiness and permissibility with investigation and self-reasoning, we have to says “we hear and obey” and worship Him to the best of our ability. There is no doubt that the Almighty never burdens us beyond our strength or our capacity. However, if we act like Bani Israel by seeking specific details and imposing on people to do likewise, Allah will put restrictions on us and will show us things troubling us, according to the Majesty in al-Ma’ idah chapter “O you who have believed, do not ask about things which, if they are shown to you, will distress you. But if you ask about them while the Qur’ān is being revealed, they will be shown to you. Allah has pardoned it [i.e., that which is past]; and Allah is Forgiving and Forbearing”.
The circumstances of the revelation of this verse was the hadith reported by Imam Ali May Allah be pleased with him, he said “when the verse of “And Hajj to the House is a duty that mankind owes to Allah”, a man asked, “Is it every year, O Allah’s Messenger!”
The Prophet remained silent until the man repeated the question three times and he then said: Had I said yes, if I did, it would have become an obligation and you would not have been able to fulfill it.
Leave me as I leave you, those before you were destroyed because of their many questions and disputing with their Prophets. If I command you with something, perform it as much as you can. If I forbid something for you, then refrain from it, then the Almighty Allah revealed the verse: “O you who have believed, do not ask about things which, if they are shown to you, will distress you”.
It is a call for exert efforts for knowledge and ensure accuracy while taking permissibility into account:
It is not a call to avoid any kind of knowledge in any discipline whether “mathematics”, “physics”, “astronomy” or observational sciences … In fact, the opposite is true, specialists have to work hard to provide highly advanced means and techniques in order to make it easy for people to find the right direction to Qibla, determine times and scales … etc, providing that specialists in these fields do not transcend their limits and do not hasten to falsify people or judge them over the invalidity of their worships.
Nevertheless, even with absolute precession, it is known that what is mathematically calculated is characterized by high precession. However, as soon as it takes place in physics, there is something called acceptable error, also called “parallax error” whether by “deficit” or by “excess”, which are always symbolized by (+).
Whoever misbelieves or falsifies the Messenger peace and prayer be upon him is infidel;
The main sources of Islamic laws are: the Holy Qur’an, Nobel Sunnah. The rule says “No independent reasoning with the script”; however, the difference takes place when determining authenticity and evidence in order to prove the right judgment not at the level of the source of Sharia law, knowing that the source of monotheism and jurisprudence are Qur’an and Sunnah, followed by subsidiary sources: whether: consensus, Qiyas (analogical reason), Istislah (juristic preference) and local custom …
Sheikh Qutb Tfaich says in his book “Shamil al-Asl wu al-Far’a”: “Qur’an, Sunnah and consensus are the sources of religion, which are the source of analogical reason, whoever rejects one of the three elements is infidel” (P9).
– “A message about sighting the crescent cannot be proved by verification but by approximation” al-Kindi.
– “Division of worships based on time” Al-Maqdisi.
* I chose a format which was used by scholars during the Islamic golden era for the title, like al-Sufi, Jaghmini, Al-Kindi, Ibn Sina, al-Tusi, where the format begins with: “A message about”, which often tackles the topic directly starting from the title.
Translated by: Toufik Achour
The article in Arabic: رسالة[1] في أنَّ “أوقات العبادات محمولة على التسامح، مقيسة بالجوارح” لـ: د محمد باباعمي
