Lunar Eclipse Khutbah Given by Sheikh Tariq Mango and Information about the Lunar Eclipse by IAA Middle School Students Ahmad and Seema Hakim

Text from the Khutbah given by Sheikh Tariq after Salat al Khusuf during the time of the Lunar Eclipse on January 31, 2018.

Praise be to Allaah.

“And from among His Signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. Prostrate yourselves not to the sun” nor to the moon, but prostrate yourselves to Allaah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him” (Fussilat 41:37)

When the sun was eclipsed at the time of the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), he went out rushing nervously to the mosque, and led the people in prayer. He told them that the eclipse was one of the signs of Allaah, with which Allaah makes His slaves afraid, and that it may be the cause of punishment coming upon the people. He commanded them to do that which could prevent the punishment, so he commanded them to pray when an eclipse happens, and to make du’aa’, seek His forgiveness, give charity, free slaves and do other righteous deeds so that the punishment would go away and not befall the people. So the eclipse is a reminder to people, making them afraid so that they will turn back to Allaah and pay attention to Him.

During the Jaahiliyyah (before Islam), people used to believe that eclipses happened to mark the birth or death of a great person, but the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) declared this belief to be false and explained the divine wisdom behind the occurrence of eclipses:

Imaam al-Bukhaari and Muslim narrated that Ibn Mas’ood al-Ansaari said: “the sun was eclipsed the day Ibraaheem the son of the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) died, and the people said, ‘The sun is eclipsed because of the death of Ibraaheem.’ The Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘The sun and the moon are two signs from Allaah, and they do not become eclipsed for the death or the birth of anyone. If you see that, hasten to remember Allaah and to pray.’”

It is sunnah to pray Salaat al-Kusoof in jamaa’ah (congregation), because this is what the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did, but it is permissible to pray it individually, as with all other naafil prayers. However, praying it in congregation is better.

May Allah protect and bless all of our beloved community.

The Lunar Eclipse

On January 31, 2018 we saw the power of Allah (SWT) when the lunar eclipse occurred. We understand that the eclipses are from the power of Allah (SWT), but we also believe that Allah has set rules and laws in this universe, and they do not change unless Allah (SWT) specifically wills them to. We humans interpret these rules as the sciences, so it is important to also learn them. The lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth’s shadow blocks the sun’s light, which otherwise reflects the moon. It can only occur at a full moon. The sun, earth, and moon must perfectly line up. There are 3 types of lunar eclipses; total (umbral shadow), partial, and penumbral (penumbra shadow). Unlike for a solar eclipse, special glasses, telescopes, or other fancy devices aren’t needed to watch it. The event usually takes a couple of hours. There are also different colors and shades to the moon. The blood red moon is possible because while the moon is in total shadow, some light from the sun passes through Earth's atmosphere and is bent toward the moon. While other colors in the spectrum are blocked and scattered by Earth's atmosphere, red light tends to make it through easier. The blue moon, as the name implies has a bluish tint to it and is the second full moon in a calendar month. It occurs about every 2.7 years. A supermoon is when the moon is the closest to earth compared to its entire orbit which makes it seem brighter than usual.

On January 31, we witnessed a super blood blue moon, which is a combination of theses 3 different moons, this occurrence is quite rare and last occured 150 years ago. On that day, IAA invited the community to pray salat-al-khusuf and Fajr salah together in jamat. It was also a great way to kick off IAA’s Fajr Program that encourages students and their parents to pray fajr prayer as a community. High School students are encouraged to attend the Friday Fajr in the Homewood masjid, while the Middle School students are encouraged to attend the Saturday and Sunday Fajr in either the Hoover or Homewood masajids. We hope to see you there InshaAllah.