MUHAMMAD’S TEACHINGS TO MANKIND
“ The Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, said, "Do not fast just before the beginning of Ramadān. Start the month of fasting upon sighting the new moon, and end it upon sighting it (1). And if the moon is obscured by clouds, then complete thirty days [of fasting] (2)." Footnotes: (1) As with every Hijrī month, the beginning of Ramadān is marked by sighting the crescent moon; its end, the beginning of the following month of Shawwāl, is likewise based on the sighting of the new crescent. (2) Based on a lunar calendar, the length of a Hijrī month is alternately twenty-nine or thirty days. If the crescent moon of Ramadān cannot be seen, then Muslims should consider the previous month of Sha'bān to be thirty days for that year. Similarly, if the crescent moon of Shawwāl (the month following Ramadān) cannot be seen, they should complete thirty days of fasting in Ramadān. ”
