It has never been reported that he ﷺ performed the ʿEid prayer in the mosque without a valid excuse. Going out to the open plain instills greater awe in the Muslims, enhances the stature of Islam, and makes the rites of the religion more visible. There is no undue hardship in doing so, since the occasion is infrequent—unlike the Friday Prayer—except in the Noble Mecca, where the prayer is offered in the Sacred Mosque.

The time for the ʿEid prayer begins when the sun has risen about a spear’s length above the horizon, for that is when the Prophet ﷺ used to pray it, and its time extends until the sun reaches its zenith.

If the people do not learn that it is ʿEid until after the zenith, they should perform the prayer the following day as a make-up. Abu ʿUmair ibn Anas reported on the authority of several of his uncles among the Anṣār who said: “The crescent of Shawwāl was hidden from us, so we began the morning fasting. Late in the day a caravan arrived and testified that they had seen the crescent the previous night. The Prophet ﷺ ordered the people to break their fast that day and to go out the next morning for their ʿEid.” Related by Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd, and al-Dāraquṭnī, the ḥadīth was judged ḥasan and authenticated by a number of ḥadīth scholars. Had it been permissible to perform the prayer after the zenith, the Prophet ﷺ would not have deferred it to the next day. Furthermore, the ʿEid prayer is legislated as a large public gathering, so a period beforehand is required for people to prepare.

It is recommended to perform the ʿEid al-Aḍḥā prayer early and to delay the ʿEid al-Fiṭr prayer. Al-Shāfiʿī transmitted in a mursal report that the Prophet ﷺ wrote to ʿAmr ibn Ḥazm: “Hasten the Aḍḥā and postpone the Fiṭr, and remind the people.” Performing the Aḍḥā prayer early gives the community ample time for the slaughtering