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Consensus on lunar calendar

Consensus on lunar calendar
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A panel of experts set up by the Pakistan government has prepared a scientific lunar calendar to end the controversy over moon-sighting. This move has been initiated so that the confusion and controversies that are created ahead of various Muslim festivals are done away with and Muslims in Pakistan and across the globe can rely on exact dates for observing these important days.
The lunar calendar that has been prepared by Minister for Science and Technology has already announced that Eid-ul-fitr is expected to fall on June 5.
The Ministry for Science and Technology in Pakistan has been pushing for using scientific methods for preparing the Islamic calendar and doing away with the traditional moon-sighting practices used by the Ruet-e-Hilal Committees.
Notably, the Pakistan government formed a scientific committee this month to end the moon-sighting controversy, angering several Islamic scholars. The calendar has been prepared through collaboration between Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), experts on space and weather experts.
Now the government is planning a meeting of the members of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) as well as the moon sighting committee so that they understand the extensive working that was done to compile the calendar.
The calendar has been prepared for five years which would be reviewed every five years. But the moot question that remains to be answered is how will the calendar stand its logic as no other Islamic country has tried to follow a patter which Pakistan is trying to implement.
We are witness to various such calendars being in vogue in some gulf countries but when it comes to important dates like Eid and Ramadan, these countries too prefer the moon sighting and follow the same patter as is dictated by the lunar activity.
The Pakistan government claims that science has made it easy to predict the lunar calendar and as such the confusion that is created on important dates can be done away with.
However, why such exercise has not been carried out by countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and other gulf nations needs to be pondered over.
Observing festivals and important days in Islamic calendar is a question of faith for all Muslims and mere scientific logic and reason cannot be superseded over our claims of predicting exact dates and time for observing these festivals.
The issue is very crucial and it needs consensus and debate among various sections and sects. Besides, the Islamic scholars too need to be taken on board before making it a public document.
After all the Muslim community needs a better deal as we are already fighting on various fronts that have the potential of harming our interests? At this juncture the Muslim world needs to be united and issuing of a lunar calendar without achieving consensus on it can prove to be more damaging than proving beneficial.


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