Moon Sighting

Moon Sighting Khutba

Opening Testament of Faith

I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.

I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah.

A Story from Imam al-Qurtubi's Tafsir

And I'll tell you something about Diablo. In Imam al-Qurtubi's tafsir, he talks about - he was mentioning some verses in the chapter of Yasin - and he was being pursued by some Spaniards, Christians, that were trying to kill him. And he didn't know what to do because he was unprotected. So he started reciting these verses.

And as they were coming near to them, he disappeared from their sight. And he said, he heard them saying, "Diablo, Diablo." As he was reciting the verses, Allah veiled him and made him invisible to their eyes. And they literally couldn't see him. And that's Imam al-Qurtubi who actually narrates that story.

The Sacred Mountain and Its History

But this was a sacred mountain to the Native American peoples here - the Ohlone people that were here and the Miwok that were just over there. And unfortunately, these people are no longer here with us. But we're living on their land and something they held sacred.

So it's a blessing to be on top of this mountain and to have seen the new moon. We didn't think we were going to see it. Did anybody think? But Umm Yahya, may Allah reward her, with her amazing eyes, she just saw it.

The Story of Zarqa al-Yamama

And there's also a story of - I'm going to call her Yamama al-Zarqa. Because there was a woman in Arabia that could see for two days. So she could actually, in fact, she saw an army sneaking up on her tribe for two days. And they didn't believe her.

So it's very important to have good eyesight when you go out. And know what you're looking for. And when you see it, know that you're seeing it.

The Prophetic Command to Sight the Moon

So, the Prophet ﷺ said:

"Fast upon sighting it (the crescent) and break your fast upon sighting it."

"Do not fast until you see it."

And he said this, telling people to look - look at the moon and witness it. And I'm sorry that people are deprived of this blessing. It's a great blessing. People think it's impractical. We drove a half an hour. We don't find it impractical.

Gratitude and Eid Greetings

So, (الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ وَشُكْرًا لِلَّهِ - al-ḥamdu lillāhi wa shukran lillāh) - All praise and thanks be to Allah. May Allah give everybody good. (عِيدُكُم مُبَارَكَ كُلِّ عَام وَأَنتُم بِخَيْر - ʿīdukum mubārak, kullu ʿāmin wa antum bikhayr) - May your Eid be blessed, and may you be well every year.

We love all our brothers and sisters - all the people that broke their fast today, their fast and our fast.

Unity and Understanding Among Muslims

"There's no blame on you."

People are following people they trust. And unfortunately, we feel the criteria needs to be more rigorous. And we hope that we can really resolve this problem. And come to a unified North American sighting. And we're committed to that.

We'd like to see the proper criteria used. And we believe that we can unify the Muslim community in North America - based on scientific calculation and naked eye sighting - joining these two extraordinary gifts that Allah has given us. And I really feel that we can resolve this problem, insha'Allah.

Hope for Future Unity

So next year, I hope that we all start the fast on the same day and end it on the same day. But in any case, may Allah accept all of our fasts. May Allah bless the leadership of this country, guide us all, and guide the Muslims wherever they are. And give people a blessed Ramadan and a blessed Shawwal.

The Six Days of Shawwal

And I hope people fast the six days of Shawwal, insha'Allah. And according to Imam Malik, you can do it anytime during the year. But the Shafi'is prefer it's done in Shawwal. So insha'Allah everybody should try to do that.

Closing and Resources

Wassalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Crescentwatch.org - one word, Crescentwatch.org - is an offshoot of the Zaytuna site, which is Zaytuna. You're obviously on it, I think, if you're listening to this.

But Crescentwatch.org is a new site. And we're committed to developing that site and really explaining to people what's at stake here - but also how we can come to a really sound resolution to this problem.

Jazakumullah Khair.