Source: Fatāwā Amanpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri
❖ Question
Is the testimony of two just witnesses necessary to establish moon sighting?
❖ Answer
No, even the testimony of one just witness is sufficient to establish moon sighting.
◈ Evidence from Ḥadīth
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما reported:
((تراني الناس الھلال، فأخبرت رسول اللہ صلى اللہ عليھ وسلم، أني رأيتھ فصامھ، وأمر الناس بصيامھ))
“People sighted the crescent, and I informed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that I had seen it. So the Prophet ﷺ fasted (the next day) and ordered the people to fast as well.”
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd 2342, Sunan al-Dāraqutnī 2156 – with an authentic chain)
Imām Ibn Ḥibbān رحمه الله (3447) authenticated this narration.
Imām al-Ḥākim رحمه الله (1/324) declared it ṣaḥīḥ on the conditions of Imām Muslim, and Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī رحمه الله agreed.
◈ Scholarly Explanation
Ḥāfiẓ Khaṭṭābī رحمه الله (d. 388H) said:
“The Prophet ﷺ accepting the statement of only one person in the matter of fasting is evidence that it is obligatory to act upon khabar al-āḥād (the report of a single trustworthy person). It makes no difference whether the informer is one person or a group of people.”
(Maʿālim al-Sunan 2/102)
✅ Conclusion
Moon sighting for Ramadan can be established by the testimony of a single just and trustworthy witness. For other months, however, fuqahāʾ have discussed stricter requirements, but the Sunnah proves one witness suffices for Ramadan.
