This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Muhammad Farooq's book Issues of the Two Eids.
A Reliable Witness for the Proof of the Eid Crescent:.
How many witnesses' testimonies are considered valid for the proof of the crescent of Eid? Scholars differ on this matter. Below, we will present the arguments of this issue, the statements of scholars, and the preferred ruling.
➊ Abd al-Rahman ibn Zayd ibn Khattab, may Allah have mercy on him, addressed the people on the day of the doubtful fast, saying that indeed I attended the gathering of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and asked them about this issue. They told me that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
صوموا لرؤيته، و أفطروا لرؤيته، وانسكوالها، فإن غم عليكم فأكملوا عدة ثلاثين، فإن شهد شاهدان فصوموا وأفطروا
"Fast upon seeing the crescent, and break your fast upon seeing it, and determine the time of worship by the sighting of the crescent. Then, if the sky is cloudy, complete thirty days of the month. Then, if two witnesses testify to the sighting of the crescent, fast and break your fast based on their testimony."
Reference: Musnad Ahmad: 321/4, Sunan Nasai: 2118, Isnad Hasan
➋ Husayn ibn Harith Jadali, may Allah have mercy on him, narrates that the Amir of Mecca (Abdullah ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with him) said in his address:
عهد إلينا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أن ننسك للرؤية، فإن لم نره وشهد شاهدا عدل نسكنا بشهادتهما
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, obligated us to determine the time of worship (fasting and Eid) by sighting the crescent, and if we ourselves do not see the crescent and two just witnesses testify to its sighting, then we determine the time of worship based on their testimony.
Reference: Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of Fasting, Chapter: Testimony of Two Men on the Sighting of the Crescent of Shawwal: 2338, Sunan Dar Qutni: 2171, Sunan Bayhaqi: 248/4 - Isnad: Hasan
➌ It is narrated from Rubai ibn Harash, may Allah have mercy on him, that a Companion, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
إختلف الناس فى آخر يوم من رمضان، فقدم أعرابيان فشهد عند النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم بالله لاهلا الهلال أمس عشية، فأمر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم الناس أن يفطروا وأن يغدوا إلى مصلاهم
"There was disagreement among the people on the last day of Ramadan (about the sighting of the crescent). Then two villagers came and swore by Allah in the presence of the Prophet, peace be upon him, that they had indeed seen the crescent the previous day. Upon this, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, ordered the people to break their fast and commanded them to attend the Eid gathering the next morning."
Reference: Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of Fasting, Chapter: Testimony of Two Men on the Sighting of the Crescent of Shawwal: 2339 - Musnad Ahmad: 314/4 - Sahih
Benefits:.
From these ahadith, it apparently appears that for the confirmation of the Shawwal crescent, the testimony of at least two just Muslim witnesses is necessary. The majority of scholars have adopted this position by deducing from the ahadith that for the confirmation of Eid al-Fitr, the testimony of two just witnesses regarding the sighting of the crescent is obligatory.
➊ Accordingly, Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) states that except for Abu Thawr (may Allah have mercy on him), the position of all scholars is that the establishment of Eid al-Fitr based on the testimony of one just person who claims to have seen the moon is not valid. However, in this matter, Abu Thawr (may Allah have mercy on him) considered the testimony of one just person to be valid.
Reference: Sharh al-Nawawi: 189/4
➋ Abdul Rahman Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him) states that the above-mentioned ahadith are evidence that the testimony of a single person regarding the sighting of the moon is not sufficient for the confirmation of Eid al-Fitr.
Reference: Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi: 253/3
➌ Abu Hanifa (may Allah have mercy on him) and Abu Yusuf (may Allah have mercy on him) accept the testimony of one just person for the confirmation of Ramadan. They even accept the testimony of a slave, a woman, or a bondswoman in this regard. However, for the confirmation of Eid al-Fitr, they require the testimony of two just men and do not consider the testimony of one man and two women to be worthy of consideration. Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) does not permit the testimony of women for the sighting of the crescent for the confirmation of Eid al-Fitr. Malik (may Allah have mercy on him), Awza'i (may Allah have mercy on him), and Ishaq ibn Rahwayh (may Allah have mercy on him) accept the testimony of at least two witnesses for the sighting of the moon for the confirmation of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr.
Reference: ‘Awn al-Ma‘bud: 28/7
Preferred Position:
The preferred position on this issue is that the sighting of the moon by one just person is sufficient proof for Eid al-Fitr, and his testimony will be considered valid. The evidence for this is the following arguments.
Argument Number 1:
It is an established fact that the testimony of a just person is valid for the proof of Ramadan. The evidence for this is a hadith narrated from Abdullah bin Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:
تراءى الناس الهلال، فأخبرت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أني رأيته، فصام وأمر الناس بصيامه
"People were trying to sight the moon, then I informed the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, that I had indeed seen the moon. Upon this testimony, the Prophet, peace be upon him, fasted and ordered the people to fast."
Reference: Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of Fasting, Chapter on the Testimony of One Person Regarding the Sighting of the Ramadan Crescent: 2342 - Sunan Darimi: 1697 - Sahih Ibn Hibban: 3447. Sunan Darqutni: 2127. Sunan Bayhaqi: 212/4 - Mustadrak Hakim: 423/1 - Its chain is Hasan
This hadith is a clear text that the testimony of one just person seeing the moon is sufficient for the proof of Ramadan. Accordingly, by analogy, the testimony of one person regarding the sighting of the Shawwal crescent will be valid for the proof of Eid al-Fitr.
Shawkani, may Allah have mercy on him, says: Since it is not established from authentic hadiths that the testimony of two just men is a condition for the proof of Eid al-Fitr, it is apparent that by analogy with the proof of Ramadan based on the testimony of one person, the testimony of one person is also sufficient for the proof of Eid al-Fitr. Also, except for specific issues (where the testimony of two men is a condition), in other matters, solitary reports are acceptable evidence. Similarly, the testimony of one person will be valid for the proof of Eid al-Fitr.
Reference: Nail al-Awtar: 201/4
Khatib, may Allah have mercy on him, states: There is no disagreement that the testimony of two men regarding the sighting of the Shawwal crescent is accepted, but there is a difference of opinion among scholars about the testimony of one person. The majority of scholars hold that for the proof of Shawwal, at least the testimony of two witnesses regarding the moon sighting is accepted.
Also, some scholars hold that the testimony of one person is valid for the proof of the Eid crescent. They believe that the sighting of the crescent is related to the chapter of news (khabar), which does not apply to testimony (for which two witnesses are required). Therefore, just as the testimony of one person is accepted for the proof of Ramadan, it necessarily follows that the testimony of one person regarding the sighting of the Shawwal crescent is also valid.
Reference: ‘Awn al-Ma‘bud: 27/7
Argument Number 2:
The hadith which is used to prove that the testimony of two men is a condition for the sighting of the crescent moon for Eid al-Fitr is weak.
Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) and Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) narrate:
إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أجاز شهادة رجل واحد على رؤية هلال رمضان، وكان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم لا يحير شهادة فى الإفطار إلا شهادة رجلين
"Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) accepted the testimony of one person for sighting the Ramadan crescent, but the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) only accepted the testimony of two men for the sighting of the Eid al-Fitr crescent."
Reference: Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat by Al-Tabarani: 5353 - Sunan Dar Qutni: 2129 Its chain is weak
This hadith is weak; in its chain, Abu Ismail Hafs bin Umar San'ani (may Allah have mercy on him) is a weak narrator.
