What counts with regard to confirming the beginning of a Hijri month is sighting the new moon, or the completion of 30 days of the previous month if the moon is not sighted.

How to Prepare for Ramadan: 1. Sincere repentance 2. Du’a (supplication) 3. Rejoicing at the approach of the blessed month 4. Discharging the duty of any outstanding obligatory fasts 5. Seeking knowledge 6. Hastening to complete any tasks that may distract you from doing acts of worship. 7. Sitting with one’s family members to tell them of the rulings on fasting. 8. Preparing some books to read 9. Fasting some of the month of Sha’ban 10. Reading Quran

Fasting on the two days of Eid is haram. It is also haram to fast on the days of al-Tashreeq which are the three days after Eid al-Adha.

How to pray ‘Eid prayer: 1- In the first rak’ah, the imam should say Takbirat al-ihram after which he should say six or seven more takbirs. Then he should recite al-Fatihah, and recite Surat Qaf. 2- In the second rak’ah, he should stand up saying takbir, and he should say takbir five times, and recite Surat al-Fatihah then Surat al-Qamar.

The Shar`i evidence indicates that a sheep that has reached the age of six months may count as a sacrifice, as may a goat that has reached the age of one year, a cow that has reached the age of two years, and a camel that has reached the age of five years. Sacrificing an animal that is younger than that is not permitted, but if an animal that is older than that is sacrificed, it is permitted and is better.

• Hajj by proxy (Hajj al-badal) is not valid in the case of the obligatory Hajj on behalf of one who is able to perform Hajj himself. • Hajj al-badal may be performed on behalf of a sick person who has no hope of recovery, or one who is physically incapable, or one who has passed away. • Proxy Hajj cannot be done on behalf of one who is financially incapable (and cannot afford to go for Hajj), because the obligation of Hajj is waived for the one who is poor. • It is permissible for a woman to perform Hajj on behalf of a man, and for a man to perform Hajj on behalf of a woman. • It is not permissible for anyone to perform Hajj on behalf of two or more people in one Hajj. • It is not permissible for anyone to have the aim of earning money by performing Hajj on behalf of another. • If a Muslim dies without having performed the obligatory Hajj, and he met all the conditions of it being obligatory, then it is obligatory to perform Hajj on his behalf from the wealth that he left behind. • With regard to evaluating the Hajj that a man performs on behalf of someone else, and whether it is like the Hajj he does for himself, or is lesser or greater in virtue, that is known only to Allah. • The best is for a son to perform Hajj on behalf of his father, and for a relative to perform Hajj on behalf of his relative, but if he hires a stranger to do it, that is permissible. • It is not stipulated that the one who performs Hajj on a person’s behalf should know his name. • It is not permissible for the one who has been appointed to perform Hajj on behalf of someone else to appoint someone else to do it except with the consent of the one who originally appointed him. • One should seek out good, sincere and trustworthy people who have knowledge of the rites of Hajj to perform proxy Hajj (Hajj al-badal).

It is not allowed to anticipate Ramadan by fasting one or two days before it begins for those who do not have a habitual pattern of fasting or who are not continuing to fast after starting to fast before (in the first half of Sha`ban).

The fast that was done with the intention of observing a voluntary fast cannot count as a fast observed to make up for a missed obligatory fast.

In order to be on the safe side and to ensure that one has discharged one’s duty it is better to do wudu in the event of the emission of wind from a woman's front passage. If this is continual and happens in all situations, then this woman should do wudu for each prayer.

`Umrah is composed of four things, namely: ihram, circumambulation of the Sacred House (tawaf), sa`i between al-Safa and al-Marwah, and shaving the head or cutting the hair.