Ramadan Mubarak - Fast starts today

Chairman of ASJA’s Moon Sighting Committee, Imam Raffaic Mohamed, in a telephone interview explained the “one day” difference saying the moon, which would have heralded the start of Ramadan, had not been sighted locally.

“Sunday was the 29 day of the month, so last night, (Sunday), you had to look for the moon but it was not sighted, so you complete 30 days today because the Islamic day starts at midnight, so we complete 30 days, so the first fast will be tomorrow Tuesday,” Mohamed said. “Now you have to understand if the moon was sighted last night (Sunday), today Monday would have been the first fast but because it was not sighted we complete 30 days, in Islam we call this 30th day, the doubtful day, to make sure, the month contains either 29 or 30 days,” he added.

The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 months in a year of 354 or 355 days and each month of the Islamic calendar commences on the birth of the new lunar cycle. Traditionally this is based on actual witnessing of the crescent marking the end of the previous lunar cycle and hence the previous month thereby beginning the new month. Consequently, each month can have 29 or 30 days depending on the visibility of the moon, astronomical positioning of the earth and weather conditions.

Meanwhile, Mohamed said such countries like Saudi Arabia did not necessarily conform to the actual sighting of the moon but based their calendar on mathematical calculations of the calendar.

“They have a different way of doing things, they don’t go with sightings, they just calculate their thing and this is one of the problems we face today, there is a Hadith where the prophet give guidelines, when you see the moon, you start your fast, when you see the moon, you break your fast, meaning that the month begins with the sighting of the new moon,” he said. He also sought to clear up another controversy saying the fast would begin at the break of dawn and conclude at sun set.

“Fast starts at break of dawn, and it ends with sun set Break of dawn is around 4.25 am so that’s why you use a term ‘break of dawn’ because it shifts, and sunset is about 6.25pm. that’s why use a term and not use a specific time,” he said, adding, “The dawn is between night and day.” According to the website, Islam and Time, Makkah calendar, “Ramadan 2016 / Ramzan 1437 will begin on 6th June 2016, Monday in most countries of the world, except a large part of Oceania and a few of the eastern-most countries of Asia.”