When And How Did Hijrah Announce The Start Of The Islamic Calendar Year?
By
Kaniz Fatma, New Age Islam
22 July
2023
Main Points
1. How did the
Islamic year begin with Hijra?
2. Why was
Muharram the first month of the Islamic calendar?
3. When did the
Islamic date first start to appear on letters and other items?
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In his book
"Kamil fi al-Tarikh," Allama Ibn Athir provided some sayings
that demonstrate that the correct and preferred opinion is that Hazrat Umar
Farooq commanded over the writing of Islamic dates on letters and other
materials during his Khilafah, and this is what caused the Islamic year to
begin with Hijrah. Another tradition claims that the Prophet of Allah (peace be
upon him) ordered the Islamic calendar to be written when he arrived in
Madinah. The former tradition, which is true, states that Hazrat Umar ibn
Al-Khattab (RA) gave the command to establish the Islamic calendar.
According
to scholars, the need to find an Islamic calendar of Muslims arose after Abu
Musa Al-Ash'ari, the Emir of Basra, received a letter in the seventeenth year
of Hazrat Umar's caliphate that was dated in the month of "Sha'ban."
He wrote in a letter to Caliph Hazrat Umar, "O Commander of the Faithful,
the books came to us, it was dated in Sha'ban, and we do not know if it was in
the past year or the present year." Actually, the main argument was that
writing date and year has a lot of advantages. Anything that can be recorded is
incredibly useful. The process of learning things is halted upon entering the
date, including when the letter arrived and the day it was issued, etc.
When Hazrat
Umar determined that Hazrat Abu Musa Ash'ari's remarks were exceedingly
rational, the illustrious Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) were
convened for advice. When should the Islamic calendar begin? All the Companions
were interviewed by Hazrat Umar Farooq on this issue. The responses of the
Companions to this came from four different angles. A group of Companions
proposed starting the Islamic calendar year with the Prophet's auspicious birth
year. The second party proposed starting the Islamic calendar year with the
year in which the declaration of Prophethood occurred, and the third party
proposed starting the Islamic calendar year with the Hijrah year. The fourth
group proposed beginning the Islamic year in the year of the Prophet's passing.
There was a
discussion among the Companions to determine which of the four sorts of ideas
presented in the Majlis-e-Shura should take its final shape. After some
thought, Hazrat Umar Farooq concluded that Hijrah would be a better way to
start the Islamic calendar year. The explanation for this is that the Prophet
(peace be upon him) and his companions started to worship Allah in a serene and
peaceful manner beginning in the year of Hijrah, and the same year the
foundation of the Prophet's Mosque (Masjid-e-Nabwi) was built, acting as a
centre for the spread of Islam.
Muslims
value the beginning of the Hijrah year because it brings to mind a significant
period in their history. In this period, the Muslims were liberated from the
oppression and torment at the hands of the polytheists and unbelievers in Mecca
and were able to establish a solid and secure way of life.
The subject
of when the Hijrah year should begin was also brought up in the same Majlis-e-
Shura that Hazrat Umar presided over.
Additionally,
a number of viewpoints were presented on this subject. A group of Companions
suggested starting the Islamic calendar’s month from the month of Rajab. The
second group suggested that since Ramadan is the best and most fortunate month,
the year should begin with that month. The third group of Companions proposed
that the Islamic calendar should begin with the month of Muharram because it is
during this month that pilgrims return from the Hajj. The fourth group argued
that Rabi-ul-Awwal should be the first month of the year because it was during
this month that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) migrated from Makkah to Madinah.
After
hearing these four arguments, Hazrat Umar Farooq decided he favoured the month
of Muharram, and all the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) thereafter
concurred.
Notably,
the first day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar, saw the
martyrdom of Hazrat Ameerul Momineen Umar Farooq (may Allah be pleased with
him). In the closing days of Dhul-Hijjah, he was attacked by a radical
murderer. Unable to withstand the pain of his injuries, he passed away on the
first day of Muharram.
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Kaniz Fatma is a classic Islamic scholar and a
regular columnist for New Age Islam.
URL: https://newageislam.com/the-war-within-islam/hijrah-islamic-calendar-year/d/130279
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