The Life of the Prophet Muhammad by Ibn Kathir - Volume 2 of 4

190 THE LIFE OF THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD
Al-Waqidi stated, "Ibn Aha al-Zinad related to us, from his father, who said,
'Wmar sought advice on a dating system and they agreed upon the emigration."'
Aha Da'iid al-Taydisi stated, from Qurra b. Khalid al-Sadasi, from
Muhammad h. Sirin, who said, "A man went up to Wmar and said, 'Set a dating
system!' He asked, 'What's that?' The man explained, 'It's something other
peoples do; they record things in the form: in such-and-such a month of suchand-such
a year.' 'Fine,' agreed Wmar, 'just set it up.'
"They then discussed the matter of the date from which it should begin. Some
suggested from the beginning of the Mission of the Messenger of God (SAAS),
others suggested from his death. Finally they agreed it should be from his emigration.
Then they discussed at which month it should commence. Ramada was
suggested, and then al-M~&arram, it being the time for the return of people from
their pilgrimage and it was also a sacred month. They agreed on al-Muharram."
Ibn Jarir stated, "Qutayba related to us, quoting Niih b. Qays al-Ta'i, from
'Uthma h. Muh~in, that Ibn CAbbas used to say in regard to the words of the
Almighty, 'By the dawn and ten nights!' (shrat al-Fair; LXXXIX, v.l), that the
reference was to al-Muharram, the dawn of the year."
It is related that 'Ubayd h. Wmayr stated, "Muharram is God's month; it is
the beginning of the year and in it the kacba receives its new cover. It is the
month from which people establish the date and in which coins are minted."
Ahmad stated, "Rawh b. Whada related to us, quoting Zakariyya' b. Ishaq,
from 'Amr h. Din%, who said, 'The first man to put a date on a document was
Ya'ln h. Umayya in the Yemen. The Messenger of God (SAAS) came to Medina
in Rabi' al-Awwal, and people marked that as the first of the year."'
Mulpmmad b. Ishnq related from al-Zuhri and Muhammad b. Salih related
from al-Sha'bi, both saying, "The Baa Isma'il dated from the fire of Abraham
and then from the building by Abraham and Isma'il of the temple, then from the
death of Ka'b b. Lu'ayy, then from the [year of the] elephant. After that 'Umar
b. al-Kha~ab began dating from the emigration. That was in the year 17 or 18
AH."
We made reference to this issue, giving the relevant chains of authority and
lines of transmission in the biography of Wmar, and all praise be to God.
The conclusion is that they did make the beginning of Islamic history from the
year of the emigration. They set its beginning from al-Muharram, this being well
known. This is the consensus of the Imi%ms.
Al-Suhayli and others quoted Imm MZlik as having said, "The Islamic year
began in RahiC al-Awwal, because that was the month when the Messenger of
God (SAAS) emigrated."
He also made such an assertion elsewhere by referring to the Almighty's
words, "certainly a mosque founded in piety from the first day" (siirat al-Tamba
or al-Barz'a; IX, v.108). That is, from the first day of the arrival of the Prophet
(SAAS) in Medina. This was the first day of the era, just as the Companions have
agreed to its first year having been that of the emigration.