Eid-ul-Fitr 2018 Moon Sighting: The Muslims will celebrate the most awaited Eid-ul-Fitr after a month-long fasting. However, the Eid ul-Fitr will be celebrated after the sighting of the crescent moon which will officially end the month of Ramzan. The exact timing and date will only be confirmed after the sighting of the crescent moon tonight. The exact date and timings of the Eid-ul-Fitr is different in all countries as it all depends when the moon will be sighted.
All eyes will be on the sky on Thursday night to spot the moon. The crescent moon appears only for a few minutes on the first day of the month and if people miss the chance to spot it, they have to rely on sources from other cities. In Delhi-NCR, the moon sighting can be difficult as the sky has been engulfed with thick haze.
12 months of Islamic calendar carry either 29 or 30 days. Ramzan also has either 29 or 30 days and Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated on the first day of Shawwal, the 10th month of Islamic calendar. However, the number of days in the month is only established after sighting of the moon.
The start date is set by both lunar calculations and physical sightings which determine when the last day of one lunar month ends and a new one begins.
Traditionally, many Muslim-majority countries have followed the dates set by Saudi religious authorities, but in recent years many have used their own astronomical calculations.
Ramzan is a holy month for the world's nearly 1.5 billion Muslims, many of whom practise the ritual of dawn-to-dusk fasting and prayers.
The Ramzan fast, in which even water is prohibited, falls on especially long summer days this year for Muslims in the Northern Hemisphere.
Fasting is intended to bring the faithful closer to God and remind them of those less fortunate. It is also a chance to kick addictions like caffeine and cigarettes.
During the day, Muslims must abstain from eating, drinking, sex, gossip and cursing, and are encouraged to focus on meditative acts like prayer, reading the Quran and charity.
Tradition holds that it was during Ramadan that the Prophet Mohammed started receiving revelations of the Muslim holy book, the Koran.
Ramzan is one of the five "pillars" of Islam.
The others are the profession of faith ("there is no God but God and Mohammed is his messenger"), the obligation to pray five times a day, charity, and the pilgrimage to Mecca.
(With PTI Inputs)
