This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Muhammad Farooq's book Issues of the Two Eids.
Prayer for sighting the new moon:
It should be remembered! There is no established Sunnah prayer for sighting the moon, and all the narrations related to moon sighting are not authentic.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Talha bin Ubaidullah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
أن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم كان إذا رأى الهلال قال: اللهم ! أهله علينا باليمن والإيمان، والسلامة والإسلام، ربي وربك الله
"Indeed, when the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw the new moon, he would supplicate: O Allah! Make this moon a cause of blessing, faith, safety, and Islam for us." (Then addressing the moon, he would say) "My Lord and your Lord is Allah."
Reference: Jami' at-Tirmidhi, Book of Supplications, Chapter on What to Say When Seeing the Crescent: 3451. Musnad Ahmad: 162/1 - Musnad Abu Ya'la: 661 - Sunan ad-Darimi: 1688 - Mustadrak Hakim: 284/4 - Chain of narration weak
In this hadith, Sulaiman bin Sufyan al-Madani (may Allah have mercy on him) and Bilal bin Yahya bin Talha (may Allah have mercy on him) are weak narrators.
Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with both of them) said: When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) saw the new moon, he would say these words:
كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إذا رأى الهلال قال: اللهم أهله علينا بالأمن والإيمان، والسلامة والإسلام، والتوفيق لما تحب وترضى ربنا وربك الله
"O Allah! Cause it to rise as a cause of peace, faith, safety, and the ability to perform those deeds which are beloved and pleasing to You. Our Lord and your Lord is One."
Reference: Al-Tabarani al-Kabir: 13330. Sunan ad-Darimi: 1693 - Sahih Ibn Hibban: 888 - Da'if al-Jami' 4404, chain of narration weak, Uthman bin Ibrahim Hatibi (may Allah have mercy on him) is a weak narrator.
Similarly, the supplications narrated regarding moon sighting are not free from weakness and fabrication.
