And the correct view is that whoever fasts on it is recommended to fast the ninth as well, for this was the Prophet’s final instruction—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—as expressed in his words:

“If I live until next year, I shall certainly fast the ninth along with the tenth.”

This is explicitly stated in some chains of transmission of the hadith. This, then, is what the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—prescribed.

As for other practices—such as preparing food out of the ordinary, whether grains or other foods; wearing new clothes; spending more generously; purchasing the year’s supplies on that day; performing a special act of worship, such as a prayer particular to it; slaughtering animals specifically for the occasion; saving meat from the sacrificial animals to cook with grains; applying kohl or dye; bathing; shaking hands; exchanging visits; visiting mosques and shrines; and similar practices—these are reprehensible innovations. Neither the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—nor his rightly guided caliphs prescribed them. Nor did any of the leading Muslim scholars recommend them: neither Mālik, al-Thawrī, al-Layth ibn Sa‘d, Abū Hanīfah, al-Awzā‘ī, al-Shāfi‘ī, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishāq ibn Rāhawayh, nor other leading Muslim authorities and scholars like them.

Although some later followers of these imams would instruct people to observe some of these practices, narrate hadiths and reports concerning them, and say, “Some of these are authentic,” they are unquestionably mistaken and in error, in the judgment of those with