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Rulings on `Eid
It is haram to fast on the days of `Eid because of
the Hadith of Abu Sa`id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that
the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, forbade fasting on the
day of Fitr and the day of Sacrifice (Adha). (Reported by Muslim, 827)
Some of the scholars say that `Eid prayers are
wajib (obligatory) - this is the view of the Hanafi scholars and of Shaykh
al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him). They say that the Prophet,
peace and blessings be upon him, always prayed the `Eid prayer and never
neglected doing it, not even once. They take as evidence the verse, “Therefore
turn in prayer to your Lord and sacrifice (to Him only)” [al-Kawthar 108:2],
i.e., the `Eid prayer and the sacrifice after it, which is an instruction, and
the fact that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, ordered that the
women should be brought out to attend the `Eid prayers, and that a woman who did
not have a jilbab should borrow one from her sister.
Some scholars say that `Eid prayer is fard kifaya
(Collective Duty). This is the view of the Hanbalis. A third group say that `Eid
prayer is sunnah mu’akkadah (Confirmed Sunnah). This is the view of the Malikis
and Shafa`is. They take as evidence the Hadith of the Bedouin which says that
Allah has not imposed any prayers on His slaves other than the five daily
prayers. So the Muslim should be keen to attend `Eid prayers, especially since
the opinion that it is wajib is based on strong evidence.
The goodness, blessings and great reward one gets
from attending `Eid prayers, and the fact that one is following the example of
the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, by doing so, should be sufficient
motivation.
Essentials
and Timing of `Eid Prayer:
Some scholars (the Hanafis and Hanbalis) say that
the conditions of `Eid prayer are that the iqamah should be recited and the
prayer should be offered in jama`ah (congregation). Some of them said that the
conditions of `Eid prayer are the same as the conditions for Friday prayer, with
the exception of the khutbah, attendance at which is not obligatory. The
majority of scholars say that the time for the `Eid prayer starts when the sun
has risen above the height of a spear, as seen by the naked eye, and continues
until the sun is approaching its zenith.
Description
of the `Eid Prayer:
`Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “The
prayer of `Eid and al-Adha is two complete rak`ahs, not shortened. This is
according to the words of your Prophet, and the liar is doomed.”
Abu Sa`id said: “The Messenger of Allah, peace and
blessings be upon him, used to come out to the prayer-place on the day of Fitr
and al-Adha, and the first thing he would do was the prayer.”
The Takbeer is repeated seven times in the first
rak`ah and five times in the second, the Qur’an is to be recited after each.
It was reported from `A’ishah: the Takbeer of al-Fitr
and al-Adha is seven in the first rak`ah and five in the second, apart from the
takbeer of ruku`. (Reported by Abu Dawud)
If a person joining the prayer catches up with the
imam during these extra takbeers, he should say “Allahu Akbar” with the imam,
and he does not have to make up any takbeera he may have missed, because they
are sunnah, not wajib. With regard to what should be said between the takbeers,
Hammad ibn Salamah reported from Ibrahim that Walid ibn `Uqbah entered the
mosque when Ibn Mas`ud, Hudhayfah and Abu Musa were there, and said, “`Eid is
here, what should I do?” Ibn Mas`ud said: “Say ‘Allahu Akbar’, praise and thank
Allah, send blessings on the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and make
du`a’, then say, ‘Allahu Akbar’, praise and thank Allah, send blessings on the
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him,...etc.” (Reported by at-Tabarani).
Recitation of
Qur’an in `Eid Prayers:
It is recommended (mustahabb) that in the `Eid
prayers the imam should recite Qaf [Surah 50] and Iqtarabat As-Sa`ah [al-Qamar,
Surah 54], as it is reported in Sahih Muslim that `Umar ibn al-Khattab asked Abu
Waqid al-Laythi, “What did the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon
him, used to recite at [`Eid] al-Adha and al-Fitr?” He said, “He used to recite
Qaf. Wa’l-Qur’an al-Majeed [Qaf 50:1] and Iqtarabat As-Sa`ah wa inshaqq al-Qamar
[al-Qamar 54:1].
Most of the reports indicate that the Prophet,
peace and blessings be upon him, used to recite Surah al-A`la [87] and Surah al-Ghashiyah
[88], as he used to recite them in the Friday prayer. An-Nu`man ibn Bashir said:
“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, used to recite on the
two `Eids and on Fridays, Sabbih isma rabbika’l-A`la [al-A`la 87:1] and Hal
ataka Hadith al-Ghashiyah [al-Ghashiyah 88:1].” (Sahih Muslim, 878).
Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “The
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to recite on the two `Eids,
Sabbih isma rabbika’l-A`la [al-A`la 87:1] and Hal ataka Hadith al-Ghashiyah [al-Ghashiyah
88:1].” (Reported by Ahmad and others, 3/116)
The Prayer
Comes Before the Khutbah:
One of the rulings of `Eid is that the prayer
should come before the khutbah, as is reported in Musnad Ahmad from the Hadith
of Ibn `Abbas, who testified that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be
upon him, prayed before the khutbah on `Eid, then he gave the khutbah.” (Musnad
Ahmad, 1905).
Another indication that the khutbah should be
after the prayer is the Hadith of Abu Sa`id (may Allah be pleased with him):
“The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to go out to the
prayer-place on the day of al-Fitr and al-Adha, and the first thing he would do
was to pray, then he would stand up facing the people, whilst they were still
sitting in their rows, and would advise and instruct them. If he wanted to send
out a military expedition, he would decide about the matter then, or if he
wanted to issue a command, he would do it then.” Abu Sa`id said: “This is what
the people continued to do until I came out [to the `Eid prayers] with Marwan,
when he was governor of Madinah, on either Adha or Fitr. When we reached the
prayer-place, we saw the minbar, which had been built by Katheer ibn al-Salt.
Marwan wanted to get on the minbar before the prayer. I pulled on his cloak, and
he pulled on mine in return, then he got on the minbar and gave the khutbah
before the prayer. I said, ‘You have changed it, by Allah!’ He said, ‘O Abu
Sa`id, what you know is gone.’ I said, ‘What I know, by Allah, is better than
what I do not know.’ He said, ‘The people will not remain sitting after the
prayer, so we made it [the khutbah] before the prayer.’“ (Reported by
al-Bukhari, 956).
Anyone who wants to leave during the khutbah is
allowed to do so
Not Delaying
the Prayer for Too Long:
`Abd-Allah ibn Bishr, the companion of the
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, went out with the people on the day of
Fitr or al-Adha, and objected to the fact that the imam came very late. He said,
“At the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, we would have
finished by now,” and that was at the time of al-Tasbih.” (Reported by
al-Bukhari)
This is the case if the prayer is offered in a
prayer place or public place. If, however, the people pray the `Eid prayer in a
mosque, then they should pray two rak`ahs for Tahiyat al-Masjid (“Greeting the
mosque”) before sitting down.
If People
Did Not Know About `Eid Until the Next Day:
Abu `Umayr ibn Anas reported from his paternal
uncles among the Ansar who said: “It was cloudy and we could not see the new
moon of Shawwal, so we started the day fasting, then a caravan came at the end
of the day and told the Messenger of Allah , peace and blessings be upon him,
that they had seen the new moon of Shawwal the day before, so he told the people
to stop fasting, and they went out to pray the `Eid prayer the next day.”
(Reported by the five)
If someone misses the `Eid prayer, the most
correct view is that he may make it up by praying two rak`ahs.
Women’s
Attendance at `Eid Prayers:
Hafsah said: “We used to prevent prepubescent
girls from attending `Eid prayers. Then a woman came and stayed at the fort of
Banu Khalaf, and told us about her sister. Her sister’s husband had taken part
in twelve campaigns with the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and [she
said], ‘my sister was with him on six of them. She said, “We used to treat the
wounded and take care of the sick. My sister asked the Prophet, peace and
blessings be upon him, whether there was anything wrong with her not going out
[on `Eid] if she did not have a jilbab. He said, ‘Let her friend give her one of
her jilbabs so that she may witness the blessings of `Eid and see the Muslims
gathering.’“‘ When Um ‘Atiyah came, I asked her, ‘Did you hear the Prophet,
peace and blessings be upon him, [say this]?’ She said, ‘May my father be
sacrificed for him’ - and she never mentioned him without saying ‘may my father
be sacrificed for him’ - ‘I heard him saying that we should bring out the young
girls and those who were secluded, or the young girls who were secluded, and the
menstruating women, so that they could witness the blessings of `Eid and see the
gathering of the believers, but those who were menstruating were to keep away
from the prayer-place itself.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, 324).
The ‘young girls’ (`awatiq, sing. `atiq) are girls
who have reached adolescence or are close to it, or have reached the age of
marriage, or are very precious to their families, or who are spared from having
to do humiliating work. It appears that they used to prevent these young girls
from going out because of the corruption that arose after the first generation
of Islam; but the Sahabah did not approve of that and they thought that the
ruling should remain in their time as it had been during the time of the
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him,.
Where it says “My sister was with him” it seems
that there is something omitted, probably “the woman said”. [This is reflected
in the translation above. Translator]....
“Menstruating women” - huyyad, sing. ha’id - this
may refer either to girls who have reached the age of puberty, or women who are
having their period and are not tahir (pure).
“Menstruating women should avoid the prayer-place
itself” - Ibn al-Munayyir said: “The reason why they should avoid the
prayer-place is that if they stand with the women who are praying even though
they are not praying, it may appear that they have no respect for the prayer or
are careless, so it better for them to avoid that.”
It was said that the reason why menstruating women
should avoid the prayer-place is as a precaution, so that women will not come
near men for no reason if they are not praying, or so that they will not offend
others with their blood or their odor.
The Hadith urges everyone to attend `Eid prayer,
and to co-operate with one another in righteousness and piety. The menstruating
woman should not forsake the remembrance of Allah or places of goodness such as
gatherings for the purpose of seeking knowledge and remembering Allah - apart
from mosques. The Hadith also indicates that women should not go out without a
jilbab.
This Hadith tells us that it is not proper for
young women and women in seclusion to go out except for a valid reason. It
states that it is preferable (mustahabb) for a woman to wear a jilbab, and that
it is permissible to lend and borrow clothes. It also indicates that `Eid prayer
is obligatory (wajib).
Ibn Abi Shaybah also narrated that Ibn `Umar used
to take whoever he could of his household out to the `Eid prayers.
The Hadith of Umm `Atiyah also states the reason
for the ruling, which is so that women may witness the blessings of `Eid, see
the gathering of the Muslims, and share the blessings and purification of this
day.
Umm `Atiyah gave her fatwa in the Hadith mentioned
above a while after the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, had died, and
it is not reported that any of the Sahabah disagreed with this. The words of `A’ishah,
“If the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, had seen what has happened to
women, he would have stopped them from going to the mosques”, do not contradict
this (provided that women are meeting the Islamic conditions attached to their
going out)... It is better if permission is given only to those women who are
not who are not going to look at men or be looked at, whose attendance will not
lead to anything undesirable and who are not going to rub shoulders with men on
the street or in the mosque. (i.e., women whose going out will not cause fitnah
or temptation to her or to men).
Men should check on their womenfolk when they
going out for the prayer to make sure that their hijab is complete, because they
are the “shepherds” who are responsible for their “flocks”. Women should go out
in shabby clothes, not adorned or wearing perfume. Menstruating women should not
enter the mosque or prayer-place; they can wait in the car, for example, where
they can hear the khutbah.
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