OF
THE
ESSAY – “AWA’IL AL-SHURUR
AL-ARABIYYA”
(BEGINNINGS OF THE ARABIC/ARABIAN MONTHS)
(Published in 1998 by Hidden
Treasure Press in conjunction with Claremont
Main Road Masjid Publications – with all
rights reserved by Dr Ebrahim
Moosa)
[REVIEWED
BY ABDURRAZAK EBRAHIM SNR ON AN INVITATION/CHALLENGE FROM RASHIED OMAR, IMAM OF
THE CLAREMONT MAIN ROAD MOSQUE – DATED 1 JAN 2000]
[
1 ]
“Awa’il
al-Shuhur al-Arabiyya” is translated by Dr Ebrahim Moosa to mean “Beginnings of the
Arabic months”. A more precise translation is
“Beginnings
of the Arabian months”.
The
year is 1939 and Islam is widespread throughout the world. There are
Far
Eastern Muslim countries, Russian Muslim states, North and Middle African
Muslim countries, and Muslim communities scattered in every land on each continent. There are also Middle Eastern
Arab lands.
Was
Shaykh Shakir’s choice of the word ‘al-Arabiyya’ deliberate,
premeditated, designed, calculated, or the result of the prevalent Arab innate
complex of being superior to non-Arab Muslims. Could the latter be good reason
for Shaykh Shakir’s non-use of the word ‘al-Islamiyya’ – The topic under
discussion in the essay is the Islamic Lunar Calendar and not the Arabian
lunar calendars.
Reading
through the extremely impressive CV of Shaykh Shakir on pages 7 to 9, it is
difficult to believe that such an educated ‘ jurist’ would have as first
choice, the term ‘al-Arabiyya’ instead of ‘al-Islamiyya’. Is it
possible, that even as early as 1939 that the word Arab meant more than the
word Islam ? This is usually the result of a mindset that has been inculcated
into certain intellectuals and unfortunately their arrogant attitudes in
respect of basic fundamental human values cannot be reversed.
The
Middle Eastern Arab countries were still in the grip of European colonial
influences and viewed Europe as the center for culture, arts and the sciences.
The Arab ‘elite’ distanced themselves from the masses. Sheigh Muhammad Doi
aptly explains this phenomena in his book “Islam in the 20th
Century” – Quote : ‘Due to colonial influences, many Arab Muslim academics
became victims of an inferiority complex and began so-called intellectual re-interpretations
of the Shariah, and called these new verbal reinterpretations ‘fresh Ijtihaad’
(neo-Ijtihaad) and adopted this term as a newly found treasure’.
If
Shaykh Shakir could not differentiate between ‘al-Islamiyya’ and ‘al-Arabiyya’ one wonders at the
‘marvels’ and ‘ miracles’ that may be encountered in the essay proper.
[
2 ]
THE
FOREWORD
The foreword is by Imam A. Rashid Omar of the Claremont
Main Road Mosque and dated April 1988. This is not part of the translation but
certain observances are essential.
[ 2.1 ]
“This institution has been in the forefront of
advocating the adoption a lunar calendar based solely on astronomical
computation”
An excellent academic exercise and it must be noted that
the word ‘Islam’ does not feature in this exercise.
[ 2.2 ]
“ Hopefully,
this well-researched treatise which comprehensively marshals the shari’a
evidences (adilla) pertaining to the lunar calendar, will convince sceptics
that the idea of a lunar calendar based on astronomical calculations is not so
far-fetched and strange”
Dear reader, you are at liberty to judge the research and
evidences of Shaykh Shakir in the light of the above statement and to weigh
carefully Shaykh Shakir’s knowledge or non-knowledge of astronomy and
calculations and whether ‘well-researched treatise’ is an apt discription of
the essay.
The
use of the word ‘sceptics’ (textual meaning – those who doubt the validity or
divine origins of religious principles) strengthens ones perception of the
mindset of Shaykh Shakir and those who follow him. If one is opposed to a
purely calculated lunar calendar for the purposes of religious observances,
does that automatically class one as a ‘doubter’ ? And are the propagators of
such a calendar the ‘only true believers’ ?
Believe
in what I preach and do not question or protest ? – Is this the modus
operandi at the Claremont Main Road
Masjid ?
[
3 ]
Dr Ebrahim Moosa has made it quite apparent that the
translation has “all rights reserved’.
I
may be infringing some law or the other by attempting an examination of the
translation. Is one not supposed to air an honest opinion of the translation –
even if conclusions different to those of the author are arrived at !
Freedom
of speech, Doc.
[
4 ]
[ 4.1]
(Page 7, lines 16-18)
Shaykh Shakir appears to have been brilliant as a child.
At the tender age of 10 he was exposed to aspects of modern scientific
and technical education, including elementary science.
Unfortunately it seems that scientific ‘unlearning’ took
place in the later years of Shaykh
Shakir’s life. He describes conjunction (birth of the moon / instant of new
moon) as follows :-
[
4.1.1 ]
(page 30, lines 8-11)
‘the
crescent wanes after sunset’
[
4.1.2 ]
(Page 30, lines 13-16)
‘the
position of the moon when it disappears behind the sun’
[
4.1.3 ]
(Page 34, lines 27-29)
‘where
the moon wanes behind the earth’
What is
conjunction ?
Conjunction is defined as the instant
when the center of the moon has the same celestial longitude as the center of
the sun from the perspective of the center of the earth. In other words, the
lunar disc (the moon) is completely hidden from view during this period.
Consequent
to the first appearance of the lunar crescent on the western horizon after
sunset the moon waxes (increased illumination) until the
fourteenth night when it appears as the full moon. After this the moon wanes (diminishing
illumination) until it disappears over the eastern horizon before sunrise
on the twenty-eight day of the month.
Doc,
you need basic instruction in astronomy.
[
4.1.1 ]
[ the
crescent wanes after sunset] – WANE IS DEFINED AS THE DIMUNITION OF LUNAR
ILLUMINATION – this occurs from the day after FULL MOON till the end of the
LAST QUARTER. The WANING CRESCENT occurs when the last light of the lunar disc
disappears over the eastern horizon BEFORE SUNRISE.
[
4.1.2 ]
[ the
moon disappears behind the sun] is hyper-nonsensical. The moon revolves
around the earth on an orbit between the earth and the sun.
[
4.1.3 ]
[where
the moon wanes behind the earth] is super-hyper-nonsensical. Where is this
place behind the earth! The earth is a sphere/globe – there is no such place as
‘behind the earth’.
[
4.2 ]
(Page 13, lines 19-28)
Carlo
Nallino
seems to be the only source of Shaykh Shakir’s astronomical knowledge. Nallino
is unknown among astronomers. His claim
to fame is a Vatican commissioned Latin
translation of the Arabic treatise of the Muslim astronomer/scientist/sheigh al-Battani
(850-929 GC – Gregorian/Christian year) , and another translation of
measurements.
The
question arises – Why did the learned sheighs of the Al-Azhar who were well
versed in the Arabic language not conduct their own research into the works of the
eminent and authoritative early Muslim astronomers/scientists ?
The
better known early Muslim astronomers who studied and wrote volumes on the
lunar disc and early crescent visibility were, inter alia, :-
Yakub
ibn Tariq (767-778 GC)
Habash
(740-840 GC)
Al-Khwarizmi
(- 830 GC)
Ibn
Maimon (731-861 GC)
Al-Battani
(850-929 GC)
Al-
Farghani (contemporary of Al-Battani)
Thabit
bin Qurra (826-901 GC)
Abdurraghmaan
Al-Sufi (-986 GC)
Ibn
Sena (contemporary of Al-Sufi)
Ibn
Yunus (-980 GC)
Nasir
Al-Din (-1274 GC)
Al-Tusi
(contemporary of Al-Din)
Ghiyath
Al-Kashani (-1450)
Shaykh
Shakier does not refer to any of the above leading authorities when he attempts
to discuss lunar science. This is a sad reflection on the sheighs of that time
and of the present.
It
is logical to conclude that his only source was Carlo Nallino, a Roman
Catholic language professor from the
University of Rome in Italy.(Page 13, lines 19-28).
[
4.3 ]
(Page 14, lines 1-3)
“Shaykh Shakir was firmly opposed to social reforms
affecting women , and wrote scathing attacks on Western influences in
Muslim society”.
This is the
typical Arab male attitude towards women.
[
4.4 ]
(Page
14, lines 21-27)
“Shaykh
Shakier had objected to the amendment to the rules of crescent-sighting
proposed by Sheigh Muhammad bin Mustafa al-Maraghi, viz., that no report of naked eye
crescent sightings be accepted if scientific knowledge contradicted such
testimony”.
This
was not something new ! The criteria set by the Khalifa Umar ibn Khattab [RA]
in 17 AH included, inter alia, that sighting reports must conform to basic
scientific understanding and natural laws. Perhaps the learned Sheighs of the
Al-Azhar were unaware of this fact.
[
4.5 ]
(Page
14, lines 27-31)
“ After
acknowledging his previous error in opposing al-Maraghi Shakier went on to
accept scientific knowledge as a sufficient basis for calculating the lunar calendar. He appeared to be
convinced that the objective of Islamic Law was to establish an accurate
calendar irrespective of the means of doing so”.
Perhaps there was a different Qur’an in those days. The
Holy Qur’an that we read and research , states :-
SURA
BAQARA (CHAPTER 2, VERSE 189)
YAS’ALOONA
– they/the
people
Ask/question/seek guidance/request information
KA
– from
thee/Muhammad/Apostle of Allah
ANIL
– about/concerning/regarding/in
respect of
A’HILLAH
– the first sightable lunar crescent/s on the western horizon
After sunset on
the 29th day/s
QUL
– say/declare/proclaim/assert/state/avow/pronounce
HIYA
– that the
first sightable lunar crescent/s of the 29th day/s
MAWAQEETU – are
visible signals that pinpoint an unwavering and
Inflexible
lunar month beginning for special and
Necessary religious duties and
responsibilities
LINNAASI
– for
mankind
WAL HADJ – and a
compulsory local Makkah sighting for the marking
Of the month of Dhul
Hijjah
The
Holy Qur’an, the first primary source of Shariah, is quite emphatic on how the
lunar month should be established. Any other system, no matter how attractive
it may appear to our restricted intellect, cannot replace the Islamic lunar
calendrical system based on lunar crescent sighting. Shaykh Shakir is way off track.
[
4.6 ]
(Page
15, lines 4-7)
“It is alleged that Shaykh Shakir, in
private correspondence with Sheigh al-Ansari, said that he had published the
essay in order to stimulate debate among the learned, but that otherwise, he
did not have a firm view on the matter.
However,
this essay was never withdrawn from circulation and was republished as late as
1992 GC”.
It
would be interesting to know how many times the essay was republished between
the original in 1939 GC and Dr Moosa’s version in 1992 GC.
Quote
: Shaykh Shakir states – “I do not have a firm view on the matter”.
[
4.7 ]
(Page
15, lines 16-21)
“ Sheigh
al-Kawthari accused Shakier of having pretences of being an independent jurist
and advised him to desist from writing about the disciplines of Fiqh and
Hadith. In Kawthari’s words, Ahmad Shakier should realize that the two
disciplines are ‘not within his ken’ and that an intelligent
person abandons that in which he does not excel”
A
true statement – Ahmad Shakier’s knowledge of astronomy and related sciences
is zero-rated.
[
4.8 ]
(Page
16, lines 5-7)
“
As there is no credible concensus among
contemporary jurists to support a calendar based on astronomical new moon”.
Dr Moosa also displays ignorance in respect of the lunar
calendar. One wonders how much of the ‘essay’ is Ahmad Shakier and what
proportion of it is Dr Moosa’s ?
‘contemporary
jurists’ –
Who are these people ? And who has given them the right to decide on the type
of calendar that I must use for my religious observances ?
The
Islamic Lunar Calendar has been set according to Divine Law as revealed to the
Holy Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] more than 1400 lunar years ago. No man was ever
given the right to change Divine Law – perhaps Dr Moosa knows a secret way of
circumventing that which Allah has made Halaal.
[
4.9 ]
(Page
16, lines 24/25)
“
Ahmad Shakier’s opinion on this subject (calendar based on astronomical new
moon) deserves scholarly attention.”
Please,
Dr Moosa, do not confuse an assignment given to an astronomy student at high
school level with a subject that
requires the total and undivided attention of well qualified and
experienced scientists and researchers..
Ahmad Shakier has no opinion.
A
calendar based on astronomical new moon – Where are the criteria ?
Dr Moosa, if you have no suggestions, do you expect your ‘jurists’ to conjure
up a set of criteria ? And the ‘jurists’ you mention – do they have any idea of
calendrical systems ? Or do they sit in a circle and rub a lamp, hoping for
some miracle !
[
5 ]
[ 5.1 ]
(Page 21, lines 5-8)
“A FEW DAYS LATER
‘AL-MAQTAM’ MAGAZINE REPORTED THAT THE SAUDI ARABIAN GOVERNMENT HAD DECIDED
THAT NOT SATURDAY, BUT SUNDAY {21 JANUARY 1939} WAS TO BE THE 1ST DHUL
HIJJAH. AS A RESULT THE PILGRIMS WENT TO ARAFAT ON MONDAY”
The Saudi had been enthroned by their British peers as
rulers of the Arabian peninsula in the early 1930’s GC. The Saudi authorities
had decided on a simple rule – NEVER ON A SATURDAY (JEWISH SABATH), AND NEVER
ON A SUNDAY (CHRISTIAN SABATH). Any sighting-based event was not to be observed
on the aforementioned days. Years later this procedure ceased to exist – after
the Saudi first began their ‘love-affair’ with the United States, and later when
the Saudi officially recognized the State of Israel.
In 1939 GC, the Arab world was well aware of the Saudi lunar
month dating system. Shaykh Shakier seems to be one of the very few individuals
who were in the ‘dark’.
[ 5.2 ]
(Page 23, lines 12-15)
‘”MOST PEOPLE
HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PERFORM THE PILGRIMAGE ONLY ONCE IN THEIR LIFETIME AND
THEY FEAR THAT IN CASE OF AN ERROR IN DETERMINING THE REAL DAY OF
‘WUKUF’ THEY MAY FAIL TO FULFIL THEIR RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS”
THE ABOVE STATEMENT POINTS TO THE HEART OF THE SO-CALLED
‘PROBLEM’ THAT BESETS ‘MUSLIM’ COUNTRIES AND THE VARYING LUNAR CALENDRICAL
SYSTEMS ADOPTED IN THOSE COUNTRIES.
The Fard Ibadah of Hadj is observed in the Month of Dhul
Hijjah, on the 8th, 9th, 10th Days, and the
subsequent Days of Tashreeq. If Makkah does not establish the month correctly,
then the days will be wrongly enumerated, and the rites of the Hadj will be
performed on these wrongly – marked days, and not according to the dictates of
Shariah.
This problem of the Saudi manipulation of the pure Islamic
Lunar Calendar is the greatest threat ever to face Islam. It erodes and
invalidates the Fifth Pillar of Islam.
And what do our famous/infamous ‘jurists’ do ? Like Nero,
they fiddle while the Hadj burns ! They quibble over a scientific-based lunar
calendar of which they know sweet blow-all !
The Holy Prophet [PBUH], in his Last Sermon, stated the
following, amongst others : “ O Men ! the unbelievers indulge in tampering with
the calendar in order to make permissible which Allah forbade, and to prohibit
what Allah has made permissible. With Allah the months are twelve in number.
Four of them are holy, three of these are successive and one occurs singly
between the months of Jumada and Shabaan.
Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He has
lost all hope of that he will be able to lead you astray in big things, so
beware of following him in small things”.
[ 5.3 ]
(Page 23, lines 15-18)
“THIS CONTROVERSY PROMPTED ME TO WRITE A TREATISE ON
DETERMINING THE CRESCENT AND TO CIRCULATE THIS OPINION FOR COMMENT AMONG
INTELLECTUALS”.
Definition – ‘to
determine the crescent’ – to decide/ regulate/ resolve/ establish/ conclude/
discover/ prove / demarcate ? Makes no sense whatsoever. A very poor
translation, Doc ! Or is it perhaps the result of your non-understanding of
astronomical terms ?
[ 5.4 ]
(Page 23, lines 22-27)
“THE STANDARD AUTHENTIC REPORTS (A’HADITH) ON THIS TOPIC ARE
:-
‘FAST WHEN YOU SEE IT (THE CRESCENT) AND END YOUR FAST WHEN
YOU SEE IT (AGAIN); BUT IF IT IS HIDDEN FROM YOU (BY CLOUD OR MIST) THEN
COMPLETE SHABAAN TO THIRTY (DAYS).
And
‘DO NOT FAST UNTIL YOU SIGHT THE CRESCENT AND DO NOT END
YOUR FAST UNTIL YOU SIGHT IT; BUT WHEN IT IS HIDDEN FROM YOU (BY CLOUD OR MIST)
CALCULATE IT’.
The word ‘hidden’ is the mot apt translation of the
Arabic. “Cloud and mist’ is an addition by person/persons unknown who have zero
understanding of astronomical affairs. Kindly go back to the definition of
conjunction ! – during this period the moon is completely ‘hidden’ from
view and cannot be seen. For approximately fifteen hours on either side of the
instant of conjunction – the moon is completely hidden from view. So ; when the
moon is ‘hidden’ from view, then add an extra day to the month. If you
want to define ‘add an extra day to the month’ as
calculation/enumeration/scientific deduction/mathematical
conclusion/computation/estimation,etc., then the prerogative is yours to use
the word of your choice, but it will boil down to ‘simple arithmetic’ – you
only have to add a single unit to the total. If the aforegoing is the cause of
problems in the Muslim world, what would have happened if we were told to add
more than 1 ? – catastrophic results !
Doc, please read the following :-
Factors which directly affect the visibility of the lunar crescent
(1)
(1) Brightness of the moon, which depends on the arc of
light, the weather (clouds, etc), atmospheric extinction (haze, smog, high
humidity, and even pure air (no dust, pollution, smoke, low humidity).
(2)
(2) Brightness
of the sky near the moon (time since sunset, altitude of the moon, compass
direction of the moon’s position and the point of sunset, and the contrast
between the moon and the sky).
(3)
(3) Angle
which the ecliptic makes with the horizon for a given location and time of the
year; the tilt of the moon’s orbit relative to the earth’s orbit, the angular
distance of the crescent from the sun’s apparent path through the stars, and
the location of the moon’s maximum deviation from its ‘average path’.
If the above factors translate as ‘clouds and mist’
then I am afraid, the planets that you (Doc) and I inhabit are light years
apart.
[ 5.5 ]
(Page 24, lines 28-31)
“THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT DURING THE PRE-ISLAMIC AND EARLY
ISLAMIC PERIODS, THE ARABS DID NOT POSSESS AUTHORITATIVE SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE
(MA’RIFA ILMIYYA JAZIMA) OF ASTRONOMY. THEY WERE AN UNLETTERED COMMUNITY,
AND WRITING AND CALCULATION WERE NOT PART OF THEIR PREVALENT CULTURE”.
If one were to mark Ahmad
Shakir’s examination papers on astronomy and history, his results would be a
big zero for each.
In pre-Islamic Arabia, the Arabs comprised of those of the
Jewish faith, the Christian faith, and many other religious and pagan
practices. Makkah was a center of religious festivities. The idols around the
Kaaba were numbered and positioned to show the time of day, the month, the
mansions (manzil) in the heavens traversed by the sun and the moon, and the
seasonal positions of the major constellations and stars. The resident priests
and scribes were well versed in astrology and the prevalent calendrical system.
Let us use the term ‘manzil’ as an example to illustrate the
astronomical knowledge prevalent at that time. ‘Manzil’ is an Arabic expression
derived from the ancient Akkadian word that literally means ‘mansion’. It was
used in reference to the so-called ‘night residences’ of the moon, and these
signs formed the Lunar Zodiac of 28 manzils, each one being 12 degrees 51
minutes and 26 seconds wide. The mansions were divided into four groups of seven
mansions each, starting at 0 degrees of each cardinal sign – (Habash).
The people of the area had adopted a lunar calendar based on
crescent sighting from the time of Nabi Moosa [AS] – (Rosental).
The origin of a chronology of events in North Arabia may be
traced as far back as to the construction of the Holy Kaaba by Nabi Ebrahiem
[AS] based on a lunar calendar with crescent sighting as the criteria –
(S.S.S.Rizvi).
In south Arabia, a calendar system originated in 115 BC when
the Hiyarites adopted one using the reign of the Tubba as the epoch years of
their era, and basing their system on crescent sighting – (Ilyas).
The names of the months of the old Arabian calendars were
the same as those of the present Islamic Lunar Calendar. The original practice
was to use 12 lunar months to the year.
In the pre-Islamic Arabian calendars the annual pilgrimage
to the Kaaba was the most significant event. Although this was of a basically
religious nature, it was also important for trade and business. When the
pilgrimage was out of season it created difficulties in procuring the crops and
sacrificial animals for trade and use. To overcome this, the Arabs in Makkah
introduced a system of intercalation known as Naasi in Arabic.
The practice of using the newly visible crescent for month
beginnings is an ancient practice and was common with all calendar users in the
Middle Eastern countries.
It was from this very same pre-Islamic Arab that the number
‘zero’
evolved , and some of us claim that those Arabs were
illiterate, were ignorant of the sciences, and could not read or write.
‘THEY WERE AN
UNLETTERED COMMUNITY’
The word ‘unlettered’ has
been used to describe the Holy Prophet [PBUH]. The adjective is interpreted to
mean one who does not read or write. Used as an adjective for a community will
mean a people who could not read or write.
‘AN-NABI UL-UMMI’- there is no dispute regarding the
meaning of the word ‘Nabi” – in both Hebrew and Arabic it means prophet. The
qualifying adjective ‘Ummi’ which is commonly translated as ‘unlettered’ causes
a problem. Muslim writers usually allege that the word means illiterate. The
reason for this fairly regular interpretation is that the Holy Prophet’s
illiteracy is considered to be substantial evidence that the Holy Qur’an was
Divinely revealed to him. Are we not forcing a meaning into the word ‘Ummi’
which it does not really yield. The best interpretation can be gained by
studying the word in its context rather than by reading a preconceived,
preferent meaning into it. The word comes from the same root letters as
‘Ummah’, meaning a people, community or nation. The word ‘Ummah’ does not imply
the meaning of an illiterate people, community or nation, but it can well mean
an ‘uneducated’ people in a certain sense. The interpretation of the word
‘unlettered’ to mean ‘illiterate, stretches its meaning too far without
reference to its context.
Prophets were sent to various communities/people/nations,
such as the Prophet Hud (AS) who was sent to the people of ‘Ad, and the Prophet
Salih (AS) was sent to the people of Thamud. In both cases the Holy Qur’an adds
that each of these prophets were ‘Akhahum’, i.e., a brother of the community to
which each was sent. On several occasions the Holy Qur’an says that a messenger
was sent to ‘Kulli Ummah’ (to every community) at one time or the other.
Likewise, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was sent to the Arabs,
the ‘Ummiyyun’. Being a people who had not yet received any messenger or
revelation, they were better capable of a genuine understanding of the
unadulterated Message of Allah. ‘Ummi’ could mean ‘universal’ or one drawn from
a people, hitherto uneducated in Divine Counsel, to convey to them a Scripture
(The Holy Qur’an) by which they may be purified of their ignorant ways and be
instructed in Divine Wisdom. The pre-Islamic age is referred to as ‘Jahiliyya’
(the time of ignorance).
The word ‘unlettered’ when applied to a people would most
logically refer to the Arabs in comparison with the People of the Book (Ahlal
Kitaab). This does not necessarily mean a people who could not read or write,
but a people who had no prior receipt of a Divine Scripture. The Holy Qur’an
constantly emphasizes its Arabic state (Innaa anzalnaahu Qur’aanaan arabiyyan).
The conclusion can be drawn that the ‘illiterate’ Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) referred to in Sura 7, Verses 157/158, means in fact the
‘unlettered’ Prophet in the sense of a prophet for those as yet without
Scriptures.
To coin a word – the best translation of ‘Ummi’ would be ‘
unscriptured’, and not unlettered or illiterate.
The Holy Qur’an / Sura 3, Verse 20 – ‘Uwtul kitaaba wal
ummiyyin’ (the ‘scriptured’ and the ‘unscriptured’).
The Holy Qur’an / Sura 2, Verse 78 – ‘Ummiyyuuna laa
yaalamuunal kitaab’ (unlettered people in that they know not the Scripture).
In conclusion – the word ‘Ummi’ is an adjective predicative
of the Holy Prophet’s Mission rather than descriptive of his person; and the
‘unlettered people’ is indicative of the Arab’s unawareness of Divine
Revelation rather than their lack of knowledge of reading and writing.
[ 5.6 ]
(Page 25, lines 3-7)
“It was this reason that the Prophet [PBUH] stipulated the
lunar months as a basis for ritual devotion (Ibadah) with its definite and
visible features that are accessible to all persons, if not most of them,
namely, viewing the crescent with the naked eye”
With due respect to the
Holy Prophet [PBUH], the above statement is utter ‘poppycock’. Allah alone has
stipulated the lunar months as the Islamic time-keeping system and subsequently
for the purposes of certain forms of Fard Ibadah.
The Holy Qur’an (Sura Tauba – Chapter 9, Verse 36)
‘The number of months in
the sight of Allah is twelve in a year
so Ordained by Him the Day He created the heavens and the
earth’
The Holy Qur’an (Sura Yunus – Chapter 10, Verse 5)
‘It is He who made the Sun to be a shining glory
And the Moon to be a light of beauty
And measured out stages for her
That ye might know the number of years and the count of
time’
The Holy Qur’an (Sura Ya’seen – Chapter 36, Verse 39)
‘And the Moon
We have measured for her mansions to traverse
Till she returns like the old and withered lower part of a
date-stalk’
(A return to the point of
beginning – the Hilaal / lunar crescent)
The Holy Qur’an (Sura Baqara – Chapter 2, Verse 189)
(detailed explanation
given on previous page)
[ 5.7 ]
(Page 25, lines 21-26)
“Later, however, Muslims conquered the world, took
possession of the reins of knowledge and contributed to every discipline. They
translated and excelled in the ‘sciences of the ancients’ (ulum al-awa’il),
explored many of their secrets and preserved these for posterity. Among these
(sciences) were astronomy, astrology, and the measuring of distances between
stars”
It was previously
mentioned that Ahmad Shakier’s knowledge of history was neither here nor there.
When did the Muslims conquer the world ?
Although Shakier knew of the immense strides made by the
early Muslims in astronomical research, he only seems to know the Roman
Catholic Christian Carlo Nallino source. Shakier made no attempt to research
the Islamic sources.
The early Islamic states placed a special emphasis on
astronomical research and this became a standard element both in formal and
religious education. As the Muslims brought larger domains under their
administration, so did they bring in cultured civilizations. This, together
with the Islamic state’s priority to develop learning and especially the
science of astronomy, contributed enormously to the development of the science
of the lunar crescent’s earliest visibility and its advance prediction for
greatly varying geo-environmental situations.
In this field they built upon the work of earlier
researchers (Babylonian, Hindu, and Jewish). Besides rigorous science, simple
schemes (zeroth order approximations) were devised to construct long-term
calendars, especially to inter-convert Islamic dates with Justinian and other
luni-solar calendrical dates.
Backed by extensive research, Muslim scientists developed
visibility tables and produced volumes of reference works. Habash,
al-Khwarizmi, al-Battani, and al-Maimon developed mathematical rules and tables
for predicting the new crescent. Ibn Yusuf, al-Sufi, and al-Kashani explained
in scientific detail ‘crescent visibility’ in their reference books Hakimi Zij,
Astroglobes, and Khakani Zij. Thabit bin Qurra, ibn Sena, and al-Tusi improved
on the Babylonian and Indian crescent visibility tables. Yakub ibn Tariq
developed tables for the lunar crescent’s earliest possible visibility.
Unfortunately, with the ‘sack’ of Baghdad by the Mongol
Hulaga Khan in the 13th Century GC and the incursions and
destruction caused by the Christian Crusades, there was a subsequent demise of
scientific scholarship and a gradual decline in technical expertise in
astronomy and other sciences in the Muslim lands. The use of ‘proper lunar
crescent expected visibility rules’ devised and developed by Muslims during 700
years of research for the construction and verification of the lunar calendar
became too complicated for later Muslim calendar makers.
No further developments appear to have taken place in this
area of science until the late second half of the 19th Century GC
when European astronomers began taking an interest in their translated works of
the early Muslim scientists and astronomers.
There has been an energetic revitalization in the field of
lunar crescent visibility sciences during the last three decades (from circa
1970 GC). Present day leading authorities, amongst whom are Professor Muhammad
Ilyas, Professor Imad Ahmad, Dr Monzur Ahmad, Dr Shaukat, etc., are engaged in
researching the intense scientific system that critically examines the lunar
crescent’s earliest visibility.
[ 5.8 ]
(Page 25, lines 28-30)
“Most jurists and experts in prophetic reports were either
not familiar with the astronomical sciences (ulum al-falak) or had only an
elementary knowledge of them”
How can a person
(Shakier) who himself has zero knowledge of astronomical sciences pass judgment
on others ? If I were to make a statement claiming that Bill Gates knows
nothing concerning computers, you would laugh all the way down the
communication highways. Perhaps Shakier was referring to himself.
[ 5.9 ]
(Page 26, lines 8-12)
“Consider the fatwa of Taqi al-Din al-Subki
(d.1355 GC) who mentions that if calculation based on conclusive premises
proves that crescent visibility is impossible, then the testimony of witnesses
(who actually sighted the crescent) should not be accepted but should be
regarded as fraudulent or committed in error”.
Doc, have you ever heard
of a Khalifa named Umar Ibn Khattab (RA)
who, in 17 AH, set out
the criteria for the Islamic time-keeping system and stated, inter alia, that ‘the
sighting report must comply to basic scientific understanding and natural laws’
? It seems as though Shakier himself is unaware of the aforementioned great
personage.
An interesting situation
arises at the end of Ramadaan 1421 that could perhaps illustrate the above
situation.
Using Greenwich in the United Kingdom as an example, we
examine the available ephemerical data :-
Conjunction (birth of the new moon) – 17h22m48s GMT
(Greenwich Mean Time) on Monday 25 December 2000.
Apparent sunset is at 15h58m22s. The moon-age at sunset will
be (minus) 1h 24m 26s. Therefore the crescent cannot be sighted
(impossible) anywhere in Europe on the evening of Monday 25 December 2000.
Let us examine the data for Makkah on 25 December 2000 :-
Conjunction at 17h22m48s on Monday 25 December 2000. Apparent
sunset is at 17h45m56s; moon-age is (plus) 23m08s; and the moon-phase if
0.0002.
Impossible to sight the crescent in Saudi Arabia or anywhere
else in the Middle East.
We can go on to the coordinates of any locality on earth for
Monday 25 December 2000 and the result will be the same – the crescent is
hidden from view on the evening of Monday, 25 December 2000.
Therefore Tuesday, 26 December 2000, cannot be the 1st
Shawaal 1421. The correct date is the 29th Ramadaan 1421. (IF THE
VARIOUS ‘MUSLIM’ COUNTRIES HAD DATED THE BEGINNING OF RAMADAAN CORRECTLY).
Tuesday (26 December
2000) evening presents an interesting scenario. According to the criteria used
for earliest crescent visibility by the following authoritative sources :-
Schock
Bruin
Schaefer
Yakub ibn Tariq
Ilyas
Shaukat
Maunder
Fotheringham
South African Astronomical Observatory
-
- the lunar
crescent would not be visible to the naked eye after sunset. It follows
therefore, that Wednesday (27 December 2000) will be the 30th Ramadaan
1421) and
-
- THURSDAY
(28 December 2000) is the 1st SHAWAAL 1421.
-
- AND AS PER
THE USUAL REDICULOUS PATTERN, EID-UL-ADHA WILL BE OBSERVED IN SOME COUNTRIES ON
26 DECEMBER 2000,
IN OTHER COUNTRIES ON 27 DECEMBER
2000,
AND IN SOME ON 28 DECEMBER 2000.
A LAUGHABLE
STATE OF AFFAIRS !
[ 5.10 ]
(Page 26,lines 23-24)
“The Law does not entertain absurdities”
The best and most
reasonable statement in the entire essay.
[ 5.11 ]
(Page 27, lines 22-23)
“This was the situation of (the traditional jurists). At
that time the cosmic sciences (al-ulum al-kawniyya) were not as widespread”.
A gross misrepresentation of the facts. Until the 1400th
Century GC, astronomy was a compulsory subject for all those who undertook
Islamic religious studies.
[ 5.12 ]
(Page 27, lines 27-29)
“Nevertheless, this noble and tolerant Sharia will remain
for as long as Allah allows this world to flourish. It is a legislative system
capable of serving every community and age”
Then, why do you wish to
change the Shariah criteria for an Islamic time-keeping system ?
SHARIAH can be defined as the Path to be followed by Muslims.
(1)
(1) The first primary source of Shariah is the Holy
Qur’an.
(2)
(2) The second
primary source of Shariah is the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet [PBUH] recorded as
A’Hadith.
(1)
(1) The first
secondary source of Shariah is Al-Ijma – defined as the concensus of
opinion of the Companions (Sahabah) of the Holy Prophet [PBUH] and the
agreement reached on the decisions taken by the learned Jurists.
(2)
(2) The other
secondary sources of Shariah are :-
(2.1) Al-Qiyas – defined as
the legal principle introduced in order to derive a logical conclusion of a
certain law on a certain issue that has to do with the welfare of Muslims. In
exercising this, however, it must be based on Qur’an, Sunnah and Al-Ijma.
(2.2) Al-Ijtihad – defined
as the exercise of one’s reasoning to arrive at a logical conclusion on a legal
issue compiled by the Jurists to deduce a conclusion as to the effectiveness of
a legal precept in Islam. Any form of Ijtihad must have as its starting point,
a principle of the Qur’an, Sunnah or Ijma, and cannot be used to achieve a
result which contradicts a rule established by the aforementioned sources.
(2.3) Istisan – defined as
seeking the best solution for the benefit of the general public, but not in
contradiction of the Qur’an, Sunnah or Ijma.
(2.4) Istishab – defined as
the presumption in the laws of evidence that a state of affairs known to have
existed in the past continues to exist until and unless the contrary is proven.
(2.5) Urf/Adat – customary
rules are valid unless they contradict the primary sources of Shariah.
(2.6) Sadd al-Dharai – related
to public interest or public welfare, but not in contradiction of the primary
sources of Shariah.
In 17 AH, the Khalifa Umar Ibn
Khattabh (RA), in consultation with senior Sahabah (RA) formulated the
following criteria for the Islamic time-keeping system (this would be in
keeping with the first secondary source of Shariah – Al-Ijma) :-
(1)
(1) The length
of the lunar month – 29 or 30 days
(2)
(2) The length of the lunar year – 354
or 355 days
(3)
(3) The day begins at Maghrib
(4)
(4) The maximum number of consecutive
months – four for 30-day months, and three for 29-day months
(5)
(5) Each new month begins with the
visual sighting of the first moonlight of the new crescent visible on the
western horizon after sunset
(6)
(6) Look for the new crescent on the
29th day, and if it remains hidden, then complete the month as of 30
days
(7)
(7) The visual sighting report must be
witness supported
(8)
(8) The persons involved in the
sighting report must be adult, sane, truthful, reliable, and with good (implied)
and unquestioned eyesight
(9)
(9) The visual sighting report must
not conflict with basic scientific understanding and natural laws
(10) Sighting must be carried out
in an organized way for each and
every
month
[ 5.13 ]
(Page 27, lines 29-33 and
Page 28, line 1)
“For this reason we observe that the textual sources (nusus)
of the Qur’an and the Sunnah contain a number of subtle references to (serve)
as contingences. When such (new) occasions do arise, these inferences are
interpreted and understood (in a creative manner) even though the ancients
(mutaqaddimun) may have explained these incorrectly (‘ala ghari haqiqatha)”.
If the ancients referred
to are the Jurists par excellence (Malik, Hanbal, Shafi’I, Hanifi, Ahmad, Sadiq
Jaffer) then one needs to have ones head examined if one doubts questions their
explanations and interpretations.
The ‘subtle references’ in respect of the Islamic
time-keeping system are not enumerated at all. This is a classic example of
‘playing with words’.
[ 5.14 ]
(Page 28, lines 5-8 )
“We are an unlettered community. We do not write or
calculate. The month is like this (demonstrating with his hands) and like this:
meaning at times 29 (days) and at times 30 (days)”
Here again we find the word ‘unlettered’. In the
context of the above statement by the Holy Prophet [PBUH] and the audience he
was addressing at the time one arrives at the following conclusion : He
referred to the Jews and the Christians when he said ‘we do not write or
calculate’ because the method of recording and calculation of the Jewish
and Christian calendrical systems was not for Muslims.
The 6th Century GC scholar Dionysius Exiguus
adopted the birth of Jesus as the initial epoch of the Christian calendar.
Prior to his compilations, the Christian calendar began with the beginning of
the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The calendar revolved around the
date of Easter. The dating of Easter was standardized, using March 21 as the
date of the equinox and the Metonic cycle as the basis for calculating lunar
phases. The months in the most part were named in honour of Roman emperors and
were solar in nature.
The Jewish calendar is a combined lunar/solar calendar and
strives to have its years coincide with the tropical year and its months
coincide with the synodic months. A leap month is inserted about every third
year to keep the calendar in tune with the seasons. An ordinary year has 353,
354, or 355 days, and a leap year has 383, 384, or 385 days. An ordinary year
has 12 months and the leap year has 13 months. Every month starts approximately
on the day of a new moon.
Hence the Prophet’s [PBUH] words ‘We do not write or
calculate’.
And the statement in the Last Sermon ,“There are twelve
months in a year”.
[ 5.15 ]
“The month is 29 (days). So do not fast until you see (the
crescent), and do not eat until you see it. And if it becomes obscured,
calculate it (faqduru lahu) {i.e. the month}”
Obscured is defined as hidden/lacking
light/dark/without clear outline/indistinct.
Calculate it – to reckon
by mathematics/simple arithmetic – add one day to the month to make it a total
of 30.
‘Faqduru lahu’ - the
purposeful misinterpretation of an infinite verb carefully selected to
propagate the moon-age concept by joining the word ‘calculation’ to the birth
of the new moon. The selected word ‘calculation’ is taken from a single Hadith
and the remaining twenty – odd Ahadith concerning the visual sighting of the
lunar crescent have been ignored.
In any case, calculate means a simple arithmetical exercise
– ADD ONE DAY TO THE MONTH TO MAKE IT A TOTAL OF 30 DAYS.
[ 5.16 ]
(Page 28, lines 14-16)
“The ancient scholars – may Allah shower His Mercy on them –
were correct in their commentary (tafsir) on this report, but erred in
its interpretation”.
Who are these ‘ancient
scholars’ ? If Shaykh Shakier is referring to the Jurists par excellence, then
he has surely taken leave of his senses.
The early commentators researched the Holy Qur’an with a
comprehensive grasp and understanding of the Classical Arabic of the Holy
Qur’an. Their interpretations form part of Shariah.
It is the present day exercise of deriving new verbal
meanings of the Holy Qur’an that has resulted in divisions and animosity
amongst Muslims.
[ 5.17 ]
(Page 30, lines 8-11)
“The beginning of the true month (al-shahr al-haqiqi) would
be the night in which the crescent wanes after sunset (i.e. conjunction) even
if it did so momentarily”.
Doc, the parenthesis was your idea. What a boo-boo !
The last light of the
waning crescent will disappear over the eastern horizon before sunrise, and
this is approximately + 15 hours BEFORE CONJUNCTION.
I shall pose the question again – How much of the
translation is Dr Ebrahim Moosa’s, and which parts belong to Shaykh Shakier ?
According to Shariah, the ‘actual’ or ‘real’ month is the
observable month. Shaykh Shakier sees a difference and infers that the lunar
month based on conjunction is the ‘real’ month.
LET US PLACE SHAYKH SHAKIER’S REAL MONTH TO THE TEST.
“The beginning of the true month will be the night in which
conjunction takes place”
We shall use the
co-ordinates of the Great Mosque (al-Haram Shareef) in Makkah, and Makkah local
time.
YEAR MONTH CONJUNCTION MAKKAH SUNSET
1419 1 14H19 – 26/04/98 18H38
2 22H10 – 25/05/98 18H04
3 06H28 - 24/06/98 19H03
4 16H22 - 23/07/98 18H56
5 04H41 - 22/08/98 18H44
6 19H39 - 20/09/98 18H17
7 12H47 - 20/10/98 17H51
8 07H05 - 19/11/98 17H37
9 01H20 - 19/12/98 17H40
10 18H24 - 17/01/99 17H58
11 09H17 - 16/02/99 18H16
12 21H26 - 17/03/99 18H28
·
· Months 1,3,4,7,8,9, and 11 –
conjunction takes place between sunrise and sunset. As Shaykh Shakier’s
criteria does not take into account conjunction during the day, it is therefore
assumed that the year 1419 will consist of 5 months only. Where to now, Doc ?
[ 5.18 ]
(Page 30, lines 13-16)
“Among the staff (of the Egyptian observatory) are graduates
of Al-Azhar as well as others who are capable of calculating the position of
the moon when it disappears behind the sun (conjunction) even for a moment, at
all times and every month.
Doc, you are being very liberal with your parenthesis.
Once again, we witness the impossible – ‘the moon
disappearing behind the sun’.
Please Doc, do not insult our intellect !
[ 5.19 ]
(Page 30, lines 33-34)
I would even add; it is mandatory to establish the lunations
(i.e. duration of a lunar month) by calculation”.
For your information Doc, like all bodies of the solar
system the moon rotates on its own axis, but its rotation has a notable
peculiarity. It coincides exactly in period and duration with its sidereal
revolution of 27 days 7 hours 43 minutes and 11.5 seconds, and this means that
the moon always shows the same face to the earth. Such synchronism is not
the product of chance ! And this was common knowledge to the early Muslim
astronomers. Their computations were within +/- 5 minutes of present day
scientific study results.
And Shaykh Shakier thinks that it was going to be
accomplished for the very first time ? Carlo Nallino had a ‘dull’ student.
[ 5.20 ]
(Page 32, lines 4-6)
“It is known that the horizons differ with a variation in
latitude and longitude. Just as this variable has a bearing on determining the
month by sighting, it also affects calculation”.
Doc, this is the
classical case of the ‘flat earth theory’ by those individuals who regard the
Mercato projection of the earth as the real picture of our world. They do not
take into account the spherical shape of the earth. As a result of the tilt of
the earth on its axis, the sunset/sunrise line is at an angle to the longitude.
You cannot determine the horizon (mathla) by longitude or latitude.
[ 5.21 ]
(Page 33, lines 30-32)
“If the moon disappears after sunset (i.e. conjunction) then
the new month has entered and begun”.
Only 5 months in 1419, 4 months in 1420, and 4 months in
1421 ?
Perhaps Ramadaan will appear once every five years ; what a
boon to those who desist from fasting !
How many days will there be to each month ? Doc, your
‘calculation is urgently required for this ‘mathematical’ problem. Perhaps the
utterances of the Grand Mufti of Egypt, Dr Nasr Fared, may be of assistance –
“We must launch an Islamic satellite to moniter the moon and to determine the
beginning of the new moon” (Arab News – 19/12/99)
[ 5.22 ]
(Page 34, lines 27-29)
Is it compulsory to consider the beginning of the month from
any point of reference on the globe where the moon wanes behind the earth
(i.e.conjunction)”
Wonders never cease !
Shaykh Shakir knows of a place behind the earth ! And he also acknowledges that
the earth is a globe immediately after the exposition of his ‘flat earth
theory’.
[ 5.23 ]
(Page 34, lines 34-35 and
Page 35, lines 1-3)
“They will ask thee about
the new moons.
Say:They indicate the times for (various activities of)
humankind,
Including the pilgrimage (Hajj)” (Q.2-189)
Here Allah directs people to the
function of the cycle of phases of the moon, its waxing and waning, as a notion
of time in their affairs, and a period of pilgrimage”.
A gross misinterpretation of Sura
Baqara (Chapter 2, Verse 189).
New moon is defined as
conjunction., and to add insult to injury, Doc has miraculously made the
instant of conjunction to wax and wane (increase and decrease in lunar
illumination). He has also included the full cycle of the phases of the moon (lunar
crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, last
quarter, and the waning crescent) into the instant of conjunction.
The zenith of stupidity ! Yes.
[ 5.24 ]
(Page 35, lines 14-16)
“The day of fasting is the day when you fast, the day of eating is when
you eat, and the day of sacrifice is when you sacrifice”.
This Hadith is reported to have occurred during the
Holy Prophet’s Pilgrimage in Mecca.
Sura Baqara (Chapter 2, Verse 189) states that
there must be a compulsory lunar crescent sighting in Makkah in order to
establish the Pilgrimage month of Dhul Hijjah.
Because the rites and rituals of the Hadj take
place in and around Makkah, it is logical that Makkah has a local sighting of
the lunar crescent to establish the Sacred Days of the Pilgrimage.
Can you imagine the annual millions converging on
Makkah and each group demanding to observe their own days of Hadj in accordance
with the calendrical system of their country of origin ? Utter chaos.
The inference drawn by Shaykh Shakier is that
Makkah should be the center that establishes the global lunar calendar.
This leads to the ‘million petro-dollar question” –
Which authority in Makkah will compile the lunar calendar ? And what criteria
will be used ?
Fact – the Saudi clergy are subservient to the
Saudi royalty; the administrators of Makkah are subservient to the Saudi
royalty; the ‘big boss’ is the Saudi king.
We conclude that the Saudi king will be responsible
for the ‘unified global lunar calendar’. From the frying pan into the fire.
Thanks Doc, you can have the king – checkmate.
[ 6 ]
Quote : Allahmah Muhammad Iqbal : “They do not wish to change
themselves, but wish to change the Qur’an”
I thank you for having read this far.
Shukrun
Wassalaam
Abdurrazak Ebrahim Snr
Phone : Cape Town : 706 3972
(National code 021 #
International code 2721)
<email : [email protected]>
homepage : http://www.geocities.com/ebrahimsenior