Ruling On Offering Congratulations At The Beginning Of The Hijri Year
Islamic Rulings -
Living Shariah Verdicts
Islamic Questions & Answers
What
is the ruling on offering congratulations on the
occasion of the Hijri new year and saying "Kull ‘aam
wa antum bi khayr" or praying for blessing, or sending
a card with best wishes for blessings in the new year?
Praise be to Allaah.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah
have mercy on him) was asked: What is the ruling on
congratulating people on the occasion of the Hijri new
year, and how should one reply to a person who offers
congratulations?
He replied:
If someone offers you congratulations, then respond to
him, but do not initiate such greetings. This is the
correct view concerning this matter. So if a person
says to you, for example, "Happy New Year", then you
can say, "May Allaah make it a good and blessed year
for you." But you should not initiate such a greeting,
because I do not know of any report that the salaf
[early generations of Islam] congratulated one another
on the occasion of the new year, rather the salaf did
not regard the first of Muharram as the first day of
the new year until the caliphate of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab
(may Allaah be pleased with him.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-Kareem al-Khudayr said concerning
offering congratulations on the occasion of the hijri
new year:
Praying for another Muslim in general terms, in
phrases that are not meant as a kind of ritual on
special occasions such as Eid, is acceptable,
especially if what is meant by this greeting is
friendship and to show a friendly face to one's fellow
Muslim. Imaam Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said: "I do not initiate the greeting but if someone
greets me I return the greeting, because responding to
the greeting is obligatory. But being the first to
offer congratulations is neither Sunnah nor forbidden.
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