The Hijri year 1442 has begun.
The last Prophet Muhammad’s migration from Mecca to Medina is accepted as the beginning of the Hijri calendar in the Islamic world. According to the time calculations of the Presidency of Religious Affairs Supreme Council of Religious Affairs, the first day of the month of Muharram, which is considered the first month of the Hijri calendar, started today.
The crescent moon, which marks the beginning of the month of Muharram this year, will be seen for the first time from the east of the Asian continent. Fasting, cooking and distributing Ashura and commemorating the martyrdom of Prophet Muhammad’s grandson Hussein and those who were martyred in Karbala are among the important events in Islamic societies.
Ashura Day will be observed on Saturday, August 29, which falls on the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Hijri year.
Mehmet Kapukaya, a member of the High Board of Religious Affairs of the Presidency of Religious Affairs, who gave information on the subject to AA correspondent, stated that according to the Hijri calendar, night comes first and then day.
Stating that the night connecting Wednesday to Thursday is the first night of the Hijri year due to this situation, Kapukaya said, “On Wednesday, August 19, at 02.42 according to Greenwich time, there will be a gathering at 02.42, on the same day at 14.14 according to Greenwich time, and the crescent moon, which announces the beginning of the month of Muharram, will be seen for the first time from the east of the Asian continent. The next day will be the first day of the month of Muharram.”
“The crescent moon will be visible from Ankara and Mecca”
Kapukaya noted that the moon will set 38 minutes after the sun in Ankara and 35 minutes after the sun in Mecca on Wednesday, August 19, the day of the gathering and dreaming, and said that the crescent moon will be 6 degrees 57 minutes above the horizon in Mecca and 6 degrees 14 minutes above the horizon in Ankara when the sun sets.
In this case, the crescent can be seen from Ankara and Mecca since the criteria for the visibility of the crescent are met, Kapukaya said, adding that the crescent can be seen from many countries including Turkey and Saudi Arabia where the weather is suitable.
Kapukaya said that the Hijri calendar is a “lunar calendar” and that one revolution of the moon around the earth is equal to one month.
Explaining that on the 27th or 28th day of Hijri months such as Muharram and Safar, the moon appears close to each other in the sky with the moon in front and the sun behind, Kapukaya said that the moon sets a little before the evening and the sun sets in the evening.
Kapukaya continued his words as follows:
“Since the sun travels faster than the moon, it catches up with the moon on the 28th or 29th and the earth, moon and sun align. In this case, when viewed from the ground, it appears as if the sun and the moon are together. This situation is called conjunction (ijtima). A month is 29 or 30 days in the Hijri calendar. When the moon revolves around the earth 12 times, there is a ‘lunar’ year, which is 354 or 355 days. However, which months will have 29 or 30 days and which years will have 354 or 355 days has not been predetermined and has not been regulated. As in the Gregorian calendar, the number of months in the lunar calendar is 12. These months are Muharram, Safar, Rabi al-Awwal, Rabi al-Rabi al-Rahir, Jamaz al-Awwal, Jamaz al-Rahir, Rajab, Sha’ban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhu’l-Qa’dah and Dhu’l-Hijjah.”
“The Hijri calendar started to be used from the 17th year of Hijrah”
Pointing out that ancient societies of Middle Eastern origin used both lunar and solar calendars, Kapukaya said that the lunar calendar was developed by taking into account the daily and monthly movements of the moon, and the solar calendar was developed by taking into account the daily and annual movements of the sun to follow agricultural activities.
Kapukaya stated that the lunar calendar, which existed before Islam, was determined in its present form by the Second Caliph Hazrat Umar with the proposal of Hazrat Ali and started to be used as of the 17th year of Hijra, and continued his words as follows:
“After the Hijrah, the Prophet announced the establishment of the Islamic state. Hijrah is also of great importance in terms of legislation. While the verses revealed during the Meccan period dealt with basic belief issues such as tawhid, prophethood and the hereafter and laid down the principles of Islam regarding worship and morality, after the Hijrah, verses related to the ahkam regulating individual and social life were revealed, provisions on worship and transactions were introduced and sanctions were introduced and rules concerning interstate law were determined.”
Noting that the Hijrah was also effective in the course of the Islamic invitation and the spread of the religion, Kapukaya continued as follows:
“It is seen that the Hijrah was considered as a calendar and the beginning of history in the Prophet’s era due to the importance attached to it. The fact that the Companions divided the life of the Messenger of Allah into two periods as ‘Mecca’ and ‘Medina’ and mentioned the years belonging to these periods separately rather than complementing each other is the first sign of this issue. The Hijri calendar is the religious calendar of the Islamic world. The beginning and end of the month of Ramadan, the days of Eid al-Adha, the fulfillment of the pilgrimage, and the nights of the holy nights are all performed on the basis of this Hijri calendar.”
Source: https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/turkiye/hicri-yeni-yil-basladi/1946524
