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What happens if Eid falls on Jumu’ah?

What happens if Eid falls on Jumu'ah?
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April 20, 2023
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Two Eids!

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace be on him) said:

The best day on which the sun has risen is Friday; on it Adam was created and on it he was made to enter Paradise. (Muslim)

Ibn Abbas reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:

Verily, Allah has made this day of Friday a celebration for the Muslims (Ibn Majah)

Thus every Jumu’ah is an Eid for Muslims. If Eid falls on a Jumu’ah it is two Eids in one!

Do you have to pray two salahs in congregation?

During the life of the Prophet (peace be on him) if Eid fell on a Friday, what did they do? It is a common question whether we have pray two congregational prayers – Eid and Jumu’ah?  Though it is better to pray both prayers, according to authentic narrations (in Abu Dawood and Ibn Majah and others) the Prophet (peace be on him) gave permission to those who prayed Eid salah, not to pray Jumu’ah, but to pray Dhur.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

Two festivals (Eid and Friday) have synchronised on this day. If anyone does not want to offer the Friday prayer, the Eid prayer is sufficient for him. But we shall offer the Friday prayer. (Abu Dawoud and Ibn Majah, Sahih)

What if I Eid is not being celebrated on Friday in other mosques/parts of the world?

Each Eid the ummah is divided whether to celebrate with their local mosque, or at the same time that it is celebrated elsewhere. The moon-fighting leaves the Ummah in disarray and disunited. In the Hanafi school if the crescent is seen in one city it’s for all cities to follow.

Whatever reasoning or camp we follow, we have to observe Eid according to when it is being celebrated in our local area. This is based on the fundamental principle that the ummah should be one body.

The Prophet (peace be on him) said siyam is when the community fasts and the Eid is when the community offers sacrifice:

Fasting is the day when you (i.e., the Muslim community) fast, iftaar is the day when you (all) break your fast and adha is the day when you (all) offer your sacrifice. (Abu Dawood,Tirmidhi)

Sadly, instead of this scenario, we have families divided on Eid day with their local mosques celebrating Eid on different days. And people choosing to celebrate based on day when it is Eid in Saudi Arabia or Pakistan or Zimbabwe…

The importance of unity in the community

Against prophetic advice, we are specialised in breaking the community into pieces. The Prophet (peace be on him) in the above hadith taught us the importance of being united and having community spirit.

He taught us not to be trouble makers in the ummah, at odds with the rest of the ummah. Yet, many of our imams and community leaders are the troublemakers, and allowing  their egos to override the interests of the ummah, creating fractions in the ummah.

Regardless of whether anyone is happy which day it is or not it, Eid is about being together, without having half the population fasting while the others are feasting.

We should fast on the day when people in our area are celebrating even if this differs from when it is being celebrated abroad. If you left Birmingham and arrived in a different city, you would not celebrate Eid when Birmingham is celebrating, you should celebrate it the day it is being celebrated where you have arrived.

If there was a single authority which declared the day of Eid we would not be bickering over this issue every year, we would have one day for everyone. However we do not have one leader, instead everyone thinks he is a leader. As per the Arab proverb, it is like an onion farm where everyone is a head.

Though there is no single authority or leader, 10 years the main mosques in the UK decided to start Ramadan together. This is community spirit. Anyone who differs is breaking up the ummah. Do not put your authority above communal harmony. Islam is not a corner shop, it is an ummah shop.

Splitting hairs and missing the bigger picture

There are plenty of ayahs on not being disunited. Obedience is the key for the unity of the ummah rather than self-promotion. This does not mean blindly following but understanding the importance of unity and harmony.

And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favour of Allah upon you – when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favour, brothers. And you were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided. (3:103)

People need to understand that it is not necessary for them to be convinced whether the declaration of Eid was correct or not, it is up to them to follow the authority or the majority. Rather than going into the details and making up their own minds on the issue.

If we get bogged down in the details, we are missing the bigger picture. We are sacrificing the strength of the community by prioritising our individual reasoning. The devil is in the detail.

Our attitude should be of obedience:

O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best [way] and best in result. (4:59)

However, we are predisposed towards having a rebellious attitude towards authority, which is further embedded in our children by schools in the West as they promote the mentality of individualism, challenging and rebelling against conventional ideas. We were warned against this:

And know that among you is the Messenger of Allah. If he were to obey you in much of the matters you put forward to him, you would face difficulty, but Allah has endeared to you faith (imaan) and has made it pleasing in your hearts and has made hateful to you disbelief, defiance and disobedience. Those are the [rightly] guided. (49:7)

What if the authority makes a mistake

Accompanying the conflict every year, we have accusations that authorities made a mistake and fake news in addition fuelling the confusion and division.

Hypothetically if the authority makes a mistake – it is their problem. It is not an issue for the public, individuals in the public do not have to expiate for the mistake if there was one.

There is a proverb in Arabic that if two people argue whether an animal in the distance is a bird or a goat, and then it flies away, but the party who was wrong still insist its a goat. Even its flying!

It’s time for the ummah to get beyond flying goats, and unite in the greater interests of the community.

Spread happiness

The sunnah is to spread happiness on Eid – dress well, share good news and be optimistic, as the Prophet (peace be on him) was all the time.

Uqbah ibn Amir narrated that the Prophet (peace be on him) said:

The day of Arafah, the day of sacrifice, the days of tashreeq are (the days of) our festival, O people of Islam. These are the days of eating and drinking. (Abu Dawood)

In the narration of Imam Ahmad, he said:

These are the days of eating and drinking and remembrance of Allah the Almighty.

Eid Takbeer

We remember Allah by doing takbeer, known as Takbeer E-Tashreeq (tashriq), which the majority of scholars say is part of Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah to recite (peace be upon him).

Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allah, wa Allahu akbar, Allah akbar, wa Lillaah il-hamd

Allah is the greatest,

Allah is the greatest

There is no god but Allah

And Allah is the greatest

Allah is the greatest

And to Allah belongs all praise

How to pray Salah on Eid ul Fitr

  • Make the intention to pray the Eid prayer.
  • When the imam says the opening takbeer (‘Allahu Akbar’) repeat it with him.
  • Say the introductory Dua to yourself gently.
  • The imam will say six more takbeer, raise your hands for each one.
  • Recite Surat al-Fatihah behind the imam and listen to the imam’s recitation of another surah.
  • While entering into ruku with the imam, say ‘Allahu Akbar,’ and continue the prayer cycle as usual.
  • Recite Surah al-Fatihah behind the imam and listen to him recite another surah during the second prayer cycle.
  • With the imam, add five more takbeer. Before ruku, place your hands to your sides after the third and last takbir.
  • Say ‘Allahu Akbar’ with the imam as you move into the kneeling posture and finish the prayer cycle as usual.

We ask to enable us to enjoy Eid and the blessings which Allah gave us all, and be better people and improve ourselves and become closer to Him and those who He loves. Ameen.

Eid Mubarak.

Moon-fighting and Flying Goats – Utrujj

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Shaykh Haytham Tamim is the founder and main teacher of the Utrujj Foundation. He has provided a leading vision for Islamic learning in the UK, which has influenced the way Islamic knowledge is disseminated. He has orchestrated the design and delivery of over 200 unique courses since Utrujj started in 2001. His extensive expertise spans over 30 years across the main Islamic jurisprudence schools of thought. He has studied with some of the foremost scholars in their expertise; he holds some of the highest Ijazahs (certificates) in Quran, Hadith (the Prophetic traditions) and Fiqh (Islamic rulings). His own gift for teaching was evident when he gave his first sermon to a large audience at the age of 17 and went on to serve as a senior lecturer of Islamic transactions and comparative jurisprudence at the Islamic University of Beirut (Shariah College). He has continued to teach; travelling around the UK, Europe and wider afield, and won the 2015 BISCA award (British Imams & Scholars Contributions & Achievements Awards) for Outstanding Contribution to Education and Teaching.

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