Eid-ul-Fitr 2019: What is Moon Sighting for eid Time in India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Time Everything you need to know
Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid al-Fitr is being celebrated in India on June 5 this year as the people have seen the moon on Tuesday evening. This festival which also means the Festival of Breaking Fast is observed on the first day of the month of Shawwal. It marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, during which the Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset to commemorate the first revelation of the Quran to Muhammad. Eid-al-Fitr falls on the first day of Shawwal, which is the tenth month of the lunar based Islamic calendar. The month-long fast of Ramzan ends on the festival of Eid ul-Fitr. The date and time of the festival also depends on the sighting of crescent moon in the sky. Hence, the date of Eid ul-Fitr differs from country to country whether the moon has been sighted there or not. The lunar cycle is used to calculate the Islamic Hijri era and this year's Ramadan was observed at a different time in India as moon was not seen in many parts of our country.
Every year the dates of commencement of Ramadan and Eid varies according to the Muslim calendar. The calendar began when Prophet Mohammad migrated from Mecca to Medina in 622 AD. It relies completely on the cycle of a moon.
This year, the young moon was expected to be sighted on June 3-4 which marked the accurate date of Eid Al-Fitr. In countries which lies west of the International Date Line, the moon will be seen on June 4. Six countries will celebrate the Eid ul-Fitr on Wednesday. Muslims in India except for Kerala and South Karnataka, the Eid ul-Fitr will be observed on June 5 since the moon is sighted on June 4.
Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Pakistan and Australia announced that Tuesday will be the last day of Ramzan and that Eid-ul-Fitr will be Wednesday.
Eid-ul-Fitr 2019 Moon Sighting
In the UK, the crescent moon was expected to be seen at 11:02 am on June 3. But the moon was not visible to the naked eye apart from French Polynesia and Hawaii. If the moon is not sighted, this means the Eid will not be celebrated the next day. A statement by HMNAO (HM Nautical Almanac Office) reads, "Easy sightings of the crescent moon are likely on Tuesday, June 4th for most of the world with the exception of Australia except the north-western part, New Zealand, eastern Melanesia, most of Micronesia, Japan, the northern half of Asia, northern Europe including the northern half of the United Kingdom.The crescent moon should be visible globally on Wednesday, June 5th.”
Pakistan announced that they will observe Eid on June 5, following the lunar calendar prepared by the Ministry Science and Technology. Australia was among the first countries to declare Eid on Wednesday. They announced last week that the first day of Eid ul-Fitr will be observed on Wednesday, June 5.
