Authentic Tafsir of Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 189 in the Light of the Hadith of the Messenger ﷺ
Written by: Abu Ismail Abdul Ghaffar, Hyderabad, India
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds. Peace and blessings be upon His trustworthy Messenger, upon his family, his Companions, and those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment. To proceed:
Allah ﷻ addressed the Noble Messenger ﷺ and revealed the following verse:
﴿يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَهِلَّةِ ۖ قُلْ هِيَ مَوَاقِيتُ لِلنَّاسِ وَالْحَجِّ ۗ﴾
Meaning:
"They ask you, [O Prophet ﷺ], about the new moons. Say, they are measurements of time for the people and for Hajj."
(Surah Al-Baqarah: 189)
The interpretation of this blessed verse is narrated from the Noble Messenger ﷺ, which in fact is from Allah ﷻ Himself, as stated:
Narration of Abdullah ibn Umar (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
"Indeed Allah has made the new moons a means for people to determine their appointed times. Therefore, fast upon sighting it, and break your fast upon sighting it. If clouds prevent you from seeing it, then complete thirty days."
① Abd al-Razzaq (d. 211H) in Al-Musannaf, Book of Fasting, Hadith 7306, vol. 4, p. 156 – verified by Habib al-Rahman al-A‘zami.
② Ibn Khuzaymah (d. 311H) in Sahih, Book of Fasting, Hadith 1906, vol. 2, p. 920.
③ Al-Hakim (d. 405H) in Al-Mustadrak ‘ala al-Sahihayn, Book of Fasting, Hadith 1539, vol. 1, p. 423.
④ Al-Bayhaqi (d. 458H) in Al-Sunan al-Kubra, Book of Fasting, Hadith 7931, vol. 4, p. 205.
⑤ Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi (d. 463H) in A Compilation of the Chains of the Hadith of Ibn Umar on Moon Sighting, Hadith 19, p. 26.
After Allah ﷻ’s command has been revealed, and after the Prophet ﷺ’s clear explanation of it, if someone still engages in self-made interpretations, abandons the consensus of the majority of scholars, and instead follows and promotes rare or odd opinions of some scholars, then such a person is misguided, and is destroying both his deeds and his Hereafter.
We pray that Allah ﷻ protects us all from such misguidance.
Ameen, O Lord of the Worlds.
And upon us is only to convey the message.
Written by: Abu Ismail Abdul Ghaffar, Hyderabad, India
Introduction
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds. Peace and blessings be upon His trustworthy Messenger, upon his family, his Companions, and those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment. To proceed:
Tafsir in the Light of the Hadith
Allah ﷻ addressed the Noble Messenger ﷺ and revealed the following verse:
﴿يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَهِلَّةِ ۖ قُلْ هِيَ مَوَاقِيتُ لِلنَّاسِ وَالْحَجِّ ۗ﴾
Meaning:
"They ask you, [O Prophet ﷺ], about the new moons. Say, they are measurements of time for the people and for Hajj."
(Surah Al-Baqarah: 189)
The interpretation of this blessed verse is narrated from the Noble Messenger ﷺ, which in fact is from Allah ﷻ Himself, as stated:
Narration of Abdullah ibn Umar (RA):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
"Indeed Allah has made the new moons a means for people to determine their appointed times. Therefore, fast upon sighting it, and break your fast upon sighting it. If clouds prevent you from seeing it, then complete thirty days."
Sources of the Hadith
① Abd al-Razzaq (d. 211H) in Al-Musannaf, Book of Fasting, Hadith 7306, vol. 4, p. 156 – verified by Habib al-Rahman al-A‘zami.
② Ibn Khuzaymah (d. 311H) in Sahih, Book of Fasting, Hadith 1906, vol. 2, p. 920.
③ Al-Hakim (d. 405H) in Al-Mustadrak ‘ala al-Sahihayn, Book of Fasting, Hadith 1539, vol. 1, p. 423.
④ Al-Bayhaqi (d. 458H) in Al-Sunan al-Kubra, Book of Fasting, Hadith 7931, vol. 4, p. 205.
⑤ Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi (d. 463H) in A Compilation of the Chains of the Hadith of Ibn Umar on Moon Sighting, Hadith 19, p. 26.
Important Warning
After Allah ﷻ’s command has been revealed, and after the Prophet ﷺ’s clear explanation of it, if someone still engages in self-made interpretations, abandons the consensus of the majority of scholars, and instead follows and promotes rare or odd opinions of some scholars, then such a person is misguided, and is destroying both his deeds and his Hereafter.
Dua
We pray that Allah ﷻ protects us all from such misguidance.
Ameen, O Lord of the Worlds.
And upon us is only to convey the message.
