RAMADAN in the Philippines will officially start Tuesday, March 12, after the moon was not sighted on Sunday night, Bangsamoro Darul-Ifta’ (BDI) announced.
The BDI annually conducts moon sighting activities in the country to observe the first glimpse of the crescent moon.
The sighting determines the commencement of Ramadan, the holy month for Muslims.
“So whoever sights (the new moon of) the month (of Ramadan), let him fast it,” Qur’an’s Surah Al-Baqarah Chapter Two (2) Verse 185 stipulates.
On March 1, Bangsamoro Mufti Sheikh Abdulrauf Guialani, together with other BDI ulama (body of Muslim scholars) and religious sectors, decided to administer this year’s moon sighting in various areas in Mindanao, including Cotabato City; Maguindanao del Norte; provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi; and Iligan City.
Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, is a month-long sacred time for Muslims around the world to reflect, pray, and fast as a means of spiritual discipline and strengthened faith.
Believers of the Islamic faith exercise obligatory fasting, one of the five pillars of the religion.
BDI executive director Emran Mohamad urged the whole Muslim community to abide by the Bangsamoro Mufti’s declaration regarding the date of Ramadan’s commencement.
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