It has also been quoted from Ahmad ibn Hanbal that the fast...

It has also been quoted from Ahmad ibn Hanbal that the fast of the day of ‘Ashura was wajib .”[^5] Kasani writes, “The fast of the day of ‘Ashura was wajib during those days.”[^6] ‘Asqalani says, “It can be deduced from the total sum of reported hadith s that this fast was wajib .” After this, he has listed six reasons to support and prove his claim.[^7] A critique of ‘Asqalani’s statements Ibn Hajar writes, “In matters where Allah’s command and law had not yet been revealed, the Holy Prophet (S) preferred to follow the Jewish ways, especially in matters where the Jews were opposed to the ways of the idol-worshipers.”[^8] Problem This claim is opposed to hadith s quoted from the Holy Prophet (S) because he said the following about opposing the Jews, «صوموا عاشوراء وخالفوا فيه اليهود.» “Fast on the day of ‘Ashura and by doing so oppose the Jews.”[^9] Also, Ya‘la ibn Shaddad narrates that he heard from his father that Holy Prophet (S) said, «صلّوا في نعالکم وخالفوا اليهود.» “Pray your prayers in your slippers and in this way oppose the Jews.”[^10] And it has been reported in another hadith that the Holy Prophet (S) said, «لا تشبّهوا باليهود.» “Do not resemble the Jews in any way.”[^11] In light of the above traditions, it cannot be claimed that the fast of the day of ‘Ashura was enacted for the sake of imitating or resembling the Jews.

Jews and fasting on the day of ‘Ashura When we study history, we come to know that the Jews organized their traditions around their own calendar. The Jews had their own months which did not coincide with the Islamic calendar. There is no logic in saying that they ‘fasted on the 10th of Muharram’, unless it could be proven that this date always coincided with the Jewish day of fast. Their fasting did not take place every year on the day of ‘Ashura and certainly not in the holy month of Muharram.

Apparently, the tradition of the Jews at the time of the Holy Prophet (S) was that on the 10th of the month of Tishri of the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur, the Jews observed a fast. They say God delivered Moses and his people and drowned Pharaoh and his forces on that day. It cannot be said, however, that Pharaoh was drowned on the day of ‘Ashura. On the contrary, these events are said to have taken place on the 10th of Tishri which does not correspond to the day of ‘Ashura.