OFFICIAL Eid Al Fitr 2013/1434 – 1st Day of Shawwal – in Different Countries

Wednesday, 7 August 2013:

• Australia:
  1. Not Seen: Abbas Aly (MCW member) from Annangrove NSW reported No moon sighted in Sydney; furthermore heavy cloud and rain. No sighting has been reported from other areas as yet. Observatory information can be found on http://www.sydneyobservatory.com.au/category/astronomy/information/ No moon sighting in NSW, VIC, and QLD either.
  2. Not Seen: Engr Manzoor A Mian (MCW member) from Melbourne, VIC reported: Hilal is not sighted in Perth and anywhere in Australia, Eid will be on Friday the 9th of August 2013. Wassalam
  3. Not Seen: Dr. Shabbir Ahmed (MCW member) Imam of Rooty Hill Mosque Sydney, NSW reported: On Wednesday, 7th August 2013, the Hilal of SHAWWAAL 1434 has not been sighted anywhere with in Australia. Therefore, the Hilal Committee and Majlisul Ulama’ of Australia have declared that the month of SHAWWAAL will commence as of Friday, 9th August 2013.
• Brunei:
  1. Not Seen: Dr. Mohammed Hussain Ahmad (MCW member) from Brunei Darussalam reported: The new moon was not sighted from Brunei (4° 55′ North and 114° 55′ East) on the evening of Wednesday, 07 August 2013. This was officially announced through the National TV and Radio stations. Therefore, tomorrow, Thursday, 08 August 2013 is the completion of 30 days for the month of Ramadan in Brunei. Hence, 1st of Shawwal 1434 will commence on Friday, 09 August 2013.
• Indonesia:
  1. Not Seen: Ahmad I. Adjie (MCW member) from Bandung reported: Hilal was NOT SEEN from the northern hills of Bandung today, 7 August 2013, as reported also by Indonesian Crescent observation organization RHI.
     Regardless of negative sighting, the government has decided by way if Ithbat Court to accept a handful of positive sightings from across Indonesia, mostly said to be by naked eye, although some are using image-processed from optical aid photographs of the sky, showing a hint of the moon-disc with very slight crescent to one side. [Moonsighting.com thinks these are either false witnesses or CCD imaging that has not been accpted by Ulamaa’ yet] For those who follow dating by moonsighting in Indonesia, today Maghrib was 29 Ramadhan so we will be setting 1st Shawwal to be Friday, 9th August 2013. Ied Mubarak!
• Malaysia:
  1. Not Seen: Kamri Paee (MCW member) from Kota Kinabalu Sabah reported: On wednesday August 07, 2013 , Me myself and 3 of my colleaque try to look for the crescent at observation point Kota Kinabalu sabah, Malaysia. The moon cannot be seen due to thick clouds..As usual and official anouncement from our Local authority body Eid will fall on 8th august 2013 ) 1st Shawal 1434.
  2. Not Seen: Mohamad Zafir Nadzri (MCW member) from Telok Kemang reported: Reporting from BaitulHilal, Teluk Kemang, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia (02:26:43.0 N , 101:51:16.0 E). The skies are too cloudy, very hard to see crescent visibility. We together do a observation with In a presence of The Eminence YAM TUNKU BESAR SERI MENANTI.; in a presence of Negeri Sembilan’s Mufti; and many officials officer, and public.
     Government Of Malaysia, using “Imkanurrukyah”; (moon age > 8hours OR altitude > 2°, elongation > 3°). So, tomorrow, Thursday 8 August is a first Syawal.

1st Day of Shawwal in Different Countries

1. India (No one cares for Hijri Committee of India – Calicut/Kozhikode, in Kerala – Birth of moon)
2. Niger (Local Erroneous Sighting)

Thursday, 8 August 2013:

1. Algeria (Calculations)
2. Bosnia and Hercegovina (Follow Turkey)
3. Canada (FCNA/ISNA – Fiqh Council of North America/Islamic Society of North America)
4. China (Following MeccaCalendar.org)
5. Cosovo (Follow Turkey)
6. Croatia (Follow Turkey)
7. Egypt – Moon Born before sunset & moon sets at least 5 minutes after sunset
8. France (CFCM – Conseil Français du Culte Musulman) Altitude > 5°, elongation > 8° [www.lecfcm.fr/?p=3314]
9. Indonesia (Some groups follow calculations) Age > 8 hours, altitude > 2°, elongation > 3°
10. Ireland (ECFR – European Council for Fatwa and Research, Dublin, Ireland: Altitude > 5°, elongation > 8° somehwre on the globe)
11. Lebanon (Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah’s Announcement)
12. Luxembourg (ECFR – European Council for Fatwa and Research, Dublin, Ireland: Altitude > 5°, elongation > 8° somehwre on the globe)
13. Macedonia (Follow Turkey)
14. Malaysia (Calculation – Elongation > 3° or Alt. > 2° or Age > 8 hours)
15. Montenegro (Follow Turkey)
16. Russia (Follow Turkey)
17. Serbia (Follow Turkey)
18. Slovenia (Follow Turkey)
19. Tunisia (Criteria of age, or altitude, or sunset-moonset lag)
20. Turkey (Calculations)
21. USA – Fiqh Council of North America/Islamic Society of North America. The criteria are Moon must be born before Sunset in Makkah, and moonset after sunset in Makkah. These criteria are not applicable for Eid-al-Adha, for which it is relied on Saudi Announcement of Hajj.

Friday, 9 August 2013:

1. Australia (Local Sighting – calculation method have declared Shawal 1st for Thur 8 2013)

MuslimVillage.com Eid Al Fitr 2012/1433 Guide

What is Recommended On the Day of Eid Al Fitr?

To wake up early, preferably before Fajr or at the entering of Fajr

To pray the Fajr group prayer in the masjid

To eat something sweet after the Fajr prayer before going to the Eid prayer area

To eat dates if one can find them, and to eat them in amounts of odd numbers

To perform the purificatory bath (ghusl) before the Eid prayer, even for a person who is not attending the prayer

To clean one’s teeth with a siwak or similar object as much as possible

To wear scented perfume (women do not wear strong scented perfume outside of their homes)

To wear the best of one’s clothes, which consist of the most beautiful, cleanest or newest garments, even if they are not white

To make one’s happiness and joy apparent, thanking Allah for one’s blessings

To smile and display one’s happiness when meeting others

To give much in non-obligatory charity, more than one’s usual habit

To direct oneself to the Eid prayer area, while saying ‘Allahu Akbar’ quietly to oneself and to stop saying it when the Imam begins the Eid prayer

To go to the Eid prayer area by foot

To pay the sadaqat al-fitr (zakat al-fitr) if it is necessary for one to do so

To arrive early at the Eid prayer area so one can pray in the first line

To return from a different direction after performing the Eid prayer

Source: Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah; Ala al-Din Abidin, al-Hadiyya al-Alaiyya; Shurunbulali, Imdad al-Fattah; al-Haskafi, Durr al-Mukhtar

Eid al-Fitr One of the meritorious aspects of the month of Shawwal is that it has been chosen by Allah Almighty for the celebration of Eid al-Fitr, one of the only two annual festivals recognized by the Shari’ah….Continue reading …

The night of Eid – Laylatul Jaiza

It had been the practice of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), that he would not sleep in the night preceding the day of Eid-ul-fitr. This night, Lailatul Jaiza, is when Allah bestows his rewards on those who have spent the month of Ramadan abiding by the dictates of Shari’ah, and all their prayers in this night are accepted InshAllah. Hence, this opportunity should be utilized fully to fulfil one’s material and spiritual needs….Continue reading …

Sadaqat al-Fitr made simple

As this sacred month draws to a close and Eid approaches we could do worse than to think about Sadaqatul-Fitr or Zakatul Fitr as it is sometimes called. Here are some points to understand and remember about the Fiqh of Sadaqatul-Fitr. What is Sadaqatul-Fitr? Sadaqatul-Fitr, also called Zakatul-Fitr, is a charitable duty associated with the month of Ramadan….Continue reading …

10 ways to maintain Ramadan’s spiritual momentum

Consistent maintenance is good practice for the spirit and contributes to the productivity of our spiritual operating systems beyond Ramadan. Below I describe 10 ways I keep the spirit of Islam’s holiest month turned on….Continue reading …