The Islamic calendar is lunar — every month begins with the sighting of a new crescent. The Prophet ﷺ taught a beautiful, optimistic dua to recite the moment one's eye falls on the new moon — for Ramadan, for the Hijri new year, for the night of Eid, or any Hijri month. It greets the new beginning by asking Allah for safety, faith and barakah.
The new moon dua
اللَّهُمَّ أَهِلَّهُ عَلَيْنَا بِالْأَمْنِ وَالْإِيمَانِ، وَالسَّلَامَةِ وَالْإِسْلَامِ، رَبِّي وَرَبُّكَ اللَّهُ
Allahumma ahillahu 'alayna bil-amni wal-iman, was-salamati wal-Islam — Rabbi wa Rabbukallah.
O Allah, bring it over us with safety and faith, with peace and Islam. My Lord and your Lord [O moon] is Allah.
(Jami at-Tirmidhi 3451 — narrated by Talhah ibn 'Ubaydullah (RA), graded Sahih)
When to recite it
- On sighting the crescent of Ramadan — the start of the most blessed month of the year.
- On sighting the crescent of Shawwal — the night of Eid al-Fitr.
- On sighting the crescent of Dhul-Hijjah — the start of the ten most beloved days of the year.
- On any Hijri new month — Muharram, Rajab, Sha'ban, etc.
What the dua asks for
Notice the four pairs: safety (amn) and faith (iman), peace (salamah) and Islam. The Muslim begins each lunar month asking Allah for the four things that matter most — physical security, spiritual security, social peace and submission to Him. The closing 'My Lord and your Lord is Allah' is the Sunnah of speaking to all of creation in tawhid.
A common longer wording
Some narrations include an extended ending: 'hilalu rushdin wa khayr' — 'a crescent of guidance and good'. Both versions are authentic. The shorter wording above is the most widely taught and is what Imam at-Tirmidhi recorded.
Hadith reference
The dua is in Jami at-Tirmidhi (3451) and Musnad Ahmad on the authority of Talhah ibn 'Ubaydullah (RA), one of the ten companions promised Paradise. Imam at-Tirmidhi graded the hadith Hasan Sahih.