Part One


Praise be to Allah, Who possesses all the attributes of perfection and majesty. I


praise Him for His favours, gifts, grace, and kindness. I bear witness that there is no god


but Allah alone, Who has no partners, a testimony that I save for a Day on which there


will be neither mutual bargaining nor befriending. I also bear witness that our prophet


and master, Muhammad, is His servant and messenger, the caller to the soundest words


and the best deeds. May Allah bestow His peace and blessings upon him and upon his


family and Companions, who were the best of all families and companions.


O Muslims!


Fear Allah, for fear of Allah is the best of all gains and obedience to Him is the


most honourable source of pride.


O you who believe! Fear Allah (by doing all that He has


ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden)


as He should be feared. [Obey Him, be thankful to Him,


and remember Him always], and die not except in a state


of Islam [as Muslims (with complete submission to


Allah)]. (Al ‘Imran: 102)


O Muslims!


The new moon of the month of fasting is drawing near, and the blessed month is


about to come along. People are anticipating it as the passing of days is bringing it closer


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and closer. So many hearts are yearning for this month and are anxiously looking forward


to its glorious nights and days!


In Ramadan one perseveres in words and deeds,


Fasting during the day and standing in prayer at night.


Therefore, be ready to receive it with repentance and returning to Allah; turn your faces


to your Lord, Exalted be He, and seek His mercy, blessings, favours, and benevolence.


Ask Him to pardon your mistakes and humbly implore Him to wipe away your slips. For


so many are the sins that you have committed and that He has recorded against you!


When Ramadan starts and you have been fortunate enough to witness it,


Take off the garments of desire and be hard at work.


Protect it from any forbidden acts that may be the cause of your destruction,


And control yourself just as bridles control horses.


Keep your fast valid by avoiding obscene words,


And shutting your eyes against unlawful sights.


Do not go two-faced among people,


For a two-faced person is the worst of all mankind.


O you who are going to abstain from eating and drinking during the days of


Ramadan! Abstain from doing wrong to your Muslim brothers, taking their property


unjustly, violating their honour, and denying them their rights.


O You who abstain from eating!


If only you abstained from wrong-doing!


Will fasting benefit a wrong-doer,


Whose heart is full of sins?


O Muslims!


If anyone missed fasting any day last Ramadan and has no excuse that prevents


him from making up for it, then he should hasten to fast it before the start of Ramadan. In


addition, it is prohibited to fast on the day of uncertainty (i.e. the day when one does not


know whether or not the following day is Ramadan) unless one is making up for some


missed days or unless it coincides with a day on which one habitually fasts. Abu


Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet, peace and blessings


be upon him, said, “None of you should fast on the day or two days before


Ramadan unless it is a day on which one is in the habit of fasting voluntarily, in


which case one should fast on that day” (Agreed upon). ‘Ammar ibn Yasir, may


Allah be pleased with him, said, “Whoever fasts on the day of uncertainty has


disobeyed Abul-Qasim (i.e. the Prophet), peace and blessings be upon him”


(Reported by Al-Bukhari with a missing narrator in its chain of transmission and by the


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four hadith compilers (Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa’i, and Ibn Majah) as a hadith


with a complete chain of transmitters).


O Muslims!


Remember your needy brothers in Ramadan. Remember the poor, the weak, and


the afflicted. Show mercy to them. Give them charity and keep them free from want


during that month. Draw them closer to you and do not let them feel lonely. Provide food


to the needy, affectionately stroke orphans’ heads, and do good, for Allah loves the gooddoers.


O Muslims!


Guard against wastefulness and extravagance in Ramadan, for they lead to the


withdrawal of favours and the infliction of punishments. Give thanks to Allah for the


prosperous life and abundant provisions you are enjoying by preserving Allah’s favours


from the foolishness of spendthrifts and the wrong practices of squanderers. Allah,


Exalted be He, says:


And give to the kindred his due and to the Miskeen


(needy) and to the wayfarer. But spend not wastefully


(your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift. Verily,


spendthrifts are brothers of the Shayatin (devils), and the


Shaitan (Devil-Satan) is ever ungrateful to his Lord. (Al-


Isra’: 26-27)


O traders at markets! O you who supply and sell goods! Beware of greed and


avarice. Beware of raising and manipulating the prices of goods in the month of


Ramadan. Never sell counterfeit goods and rotten food. Do not cheat Muslims lest you


should be victims of their supplications against you and be destroyed by their complaints


to Allah about you. Ill-gotten money is a bad omen for those who get it; it will turn into


fire that burns its owners and a disaster that befalls its seekers.


O Allah! Let us live to witness the month of Ramadan. O Allah! Let us live to


witness the month of Ramadan while we are in good health, safety, peace, and security, O


Most Generous! O Most Merciful! O Most Benevolent!


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Part Two


Praise be to Allah, Who guides those who ask for His guidance, safeguards those


who fear Him, and protects those who seek His good pleasure. All praise is infinitely due


to Him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, Who has no partners, and


other than Whom there is no deity worthy of worship. I also bear witness that our prophet


and master, Muhammad, is His servant and Messenger. May Allah’s bountiful peace and


blessings be upon him, his family, his Companions, and those who follow his way and his


guidance.


O Muslims!


Fear Allah and be watchful of Him. Obey Him and do not break His commands:


O you who believe! Be afraid of Allah, and be with those


who are true (in words and deeds). (At-Tawbah: 119)


O Muslims!


The sighting of the new moon in the land of the Two Holy Mosques has been


entrusted to a supreme judicial and legal body, which is trustworthy and reliable and


which has earned the approval of everybody, since it acts upon the guidance of the


Qur’an and the Sunnah. Yet, some of those who purport to belong to the field of religious


scholarship or astronomy have adopted an attitude that aims at causing confusion and


casting doubts on whether the month of the fast has started or not. This happens every


year in the mass media and in social networking sites, which only causes chaos and


differences and raises doubts in people’s minds. Therefore, beware of following this evil


course and adopting this reprehensible practice which is contrary to reason and common


sense and does not serve the general interest. If anyone has an opinion or some personal


legal reasoning in this matter, he can state it by adopting the procedures approved by


shari‘ah, without creating confusion, turmoil, or doubts.


If Muslims in non-Muslim countries live in the same village or town or in nearby


areas without much distance between them to call for differences with respect to the


sighting of the new moon, they should have a uniform day on which to start fasting and a


uniform day on which to break their fast and celebrate the ‘Eid. They should avoid


disunity and discord that lead to the differences regarding the days on which they start


fasting and on which they celebrate their ‘Eids. That indeed is the task of the scholars,


leaders, and wise men among them.


Ask Allah to bestow His peace and blessings on Prophet Ahmad, the guide and


the intercessor of all mankind, for whoever invokes Allah to bless him once, will be


blessed for it by Allah ten times over.


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O Allah! Bestow peace and blessings upon Your servant and messenger


Muhammad. O Allah! Be pleased with all the Prophet’s family and Companions, and


with those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment, and also be


pleased with us together with them, O Most Generous!


O Allah! Grant power and glory to Islam and Muslims. O Allah! Grant power and


glory to Islam and Muslims. O Allah! Grant power and glory to Islam and Muslims,


subdue polytheism and the polytheists, and destroy the enemies of the religion, O Lord of


the Worlds! O Allah! Make this country, as well as all other Muslim countries, safe and


secure.


O Allah! Guide our leader and ruler to what You love and accept and lead him to


the way of righteousness and piety. O Allah! Guide him and his Deputy to do that which


gives power and glory to Islam and that which realizes the good of Muslims, O Lord of


the Worlds!


O Allah! Cure the sick among us, relieve the distress of the afflicted among us,


have mercy on our dead, release our prisoners, and grant us victory over our enemies.


O Allah! Help the weak among Muslims. O Allah! Help the weak among


Muslims, O Most Merciful of all the Merciful!


O Allah! Answer our prayers and supplications, O Most Generous! O Most Great!


O Most Merciful!