According to Imam al-Kattani, in his original work of scholarship Taratib al-idariyyah, the Prophet appointed a timekeeper in Medina to maintain sacred time for the community. Scholars understood from this that sacred timekeeping was an obligation binding upon some among the community (fard kifayah) in order to maintain correct prayer times as well as to determine days and months according the lunar calendar. Both fasting in Ramadan and performing hajj are individual obligations that the community of Muslims is required to maintain until the end of time, and both are solely determined by the lunar calendar.
Reflections on the Heavens and the Earth by Sheikh Hamza Yusuf
Filed under: Uncategorized , astronomy, imam
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