Islamic Calender

[zarhad]

brothers and sisters
Ramadan Mubarak
hope everyone is well and wish them luck with there roza

Question: Does it say anywhere in the Qu'ran or Sunnah that we should follow the Islamic calender by a perticular place (i.e. saudi or our home country or country we live in)

for example last year my family started fasting a day before pakistani people because we followed saudi and they followed pakistan, and there was one elder at my work that said hes following canada

is there an importance to which one we follow it would be the diffrence sometimes of a day or 2.

salaam

[zarhad]

Im intrested to know how you guys follow too

[itsme]

Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet (saw) instructed: "Fast after you have seen it (the new crescent) and end the fast (at the end of the month) when you seeit. If it is hidden from you, then wait until the 30 days of Sha'ban have passed." - Al-Bukhari and Muslim

According to the majority of scholars, it does not matter if the new moon has been sighted in a different location. In other words, after the new moon is seen anywhere in the world, it becomes obligatory for all Muslims to begin fasting, as the Prophet said: "Fast due to its sighting and break the fast due to its sighting." This hadith is a general address directed to the whole Muslim world - that is, "if any one of you sees the moon in any place, then that will be a sighting for all of the people."

According to 'Ikrimah, al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, Salim, Ishaq, the correct opinion among the Hanafiyyah, and the chosen opinion among the Shaf'iyyah, every "country" (or territory) is to take into consideration its own sighting and not necessarily to follow the sighting of others. this is based on what Khuraib said"While I was in ash-Sham, the new moon of Ramadan appeared on Thursday night. I returned to Madinah at the end of the month. There, Ibn 'Abbas asked me:"When did you people see the new moon?" I said: "We saw it on Thursday night." He said: "Did you see it yourself?" I said: "Yes, the people saw it, and they and Mu'awiyyah fasted." He said: "But we saw it on Friday night. We will not stop fasting until we complete 30 days or until we see the new moon." I said: "Isn't Mu'awiyyah's sighting and fasting sufficient for you?" He said: "No... This is the order of the Messenger of Allah."" - Ahmad, Muslim, at-Tirmidhi

About the hadith, at-Tirmidhi says: "It is hasan sahih ghareeb. Scholars act in accordance with this hadith. Every land has its sighting."

Source: Fiqh-us-Sunnah

Hope this helps insha allah. My country follows this hadith too, that is, we start Ramadan only when we sight the moon and not when Saudi starts.