0

I am based in India and after searching online it says the Day of Arafah here starts Tuesday 27th Jun 2023- Wednesday 28th Jun 2023. Is this day followed on the same day worldwide or is it country-based? Will it start in Saudi Arabia today evening or tomorrow evening?

glitch
  • 33
  • 6

1 Answers1

2

The day of Arafah is the 9th day of the month of Dhu’l-Hijjah. The Islamic calendar is Lunar - months start with the sighting the crescent moon. That varies across the globe e.g. places like Saudia Arabia usually experience it earlier than places further east like India, similarly local weather has an effect since successful sighting is less probable in cloudy weather.

There are different schools of thought on how to deal with this variation in sighting with regard to observance of the Islamic rituals. Some scholars argue for universal observances based on a single sighting in the Muslim world, and some argue for separate observances for various regions based on local sightings. This discussion can be seen here: What are the opinions on moonsigthing as per the classical scholars?

Majority of the observances on the Day of Arafah are related to those performing the Hajj and they will obviously follow Saudia Arabia. The Day of Arafah in Saudia Arabia this year (2023) is 27th June as shared by various news outlets.

UmH
  • 28,329
  • 4
  • 40
  • 147