₦airaland Forum

demmie1: Iranians don't worship in arabic, they worship in persians.

lier!!!

justaqad: first of all there is no such thing as islamic names,they are all norms,trying to make the arab race superior. secondly Islam is a universal religion,not an arab thing.
i am a proud muslim and i rep my race.OMO YORUBA(IGBO) NI MI.i am proud of my heritage.adopting arabic names does not make me a better muslim.
names like Olanrewaju,Bisola,Temitope all have desirable meanings.

ur acusations are malicious. ur just beefing d arabs. Arabic is d language of d quran, its not just an arab thing, that's d angle u shld look at it from. Islam supercedes any culture or tradditn, Its language is arabic, take it or leave it.

NB: u shld imbibe speaking arabic in ur day to day life not English/yoruba..LOL!

justaqad: now that's an entirely different aspect.if i should learn arabic is solely for worship purpose,nothing more.

fine! If u learn Arabic for worship purpose dat means d lang must be IMPORTANT to u. Y can't u worship in ur own lang? Is it bcus ur lang is not important in worship? No! God choose arabic for His religion n He alone knows y n dts it. I want u to understand dat arabic is an islamic lang(permit me to say) n not just an arab thing. Stop beefing d arabs. U shld be proud n happy to bear an arabic name which is better n safer for u so long as d name is not evil or meaningless...

@ macdaddy.., if a muslim like justaqad tinks he is loosing his identity to the arabs just by mere bearing abubakar an islamic name whc is in arab lang, then do i see ur fault?

No doubt, all men are equal n no one is disrespecting d culture of another. I don't know ur definition of disrespect of culture. Bcus d quran is revealed in arabic lang dsnt make it disrespecful to oda langes, arabic is only a lang of the quran n the messenger,

To b continue sleep is doing me..

@ OP... don't forget to read/say your salat in yoruba language so that u will not loose ur identity to the Arabs..

justaqad: if i bear Abubakar the first thing that comes to your mind is,(arab)while i am yoruba.your name is your identity.i went through a lot trying to explain to people i am yoruba. if an arab converts to Christianity he/she need not change name.and you sure know Christianity is not an arab thing.the point is
IF AN ARAB CANNOT CHANGE HIS NAME WHY SHOULD I?

I don't want to agree wit u on d bases that if u bear Abubakar u are seen as an arab, If u say a muslim I agree. No doubt d name may have an arab origin nevertheless, Arabic is the language of d Quran n d messenger, so if u bear an arabic name ur simply identifying as a muslim n not an arab. Its not a coincidence/mistake that d quran is in d arabic language but of Allah's desires. This is how u as a muslim shld see it rather than saying ur losing ur identity by ur name sounding arabic in nature while ur not an arab. Ur identity as a muslim shld be more important/shld superceed any identity. God creater us all into various tribes n nation but stil choose Arabic language for His religion... don't u think if He desire He could have made us into one nation/tribe? Its a blessing to the arabs for Allah to esteem Arabic language by making it d Quran language, so don't hold it against them.. If the quran language hadn't been arabic n yet d quran came from the arabs then, I wil have a problem if u bear an arab name(abubakar) else I dnt see y u shld stress ur nerves..

^^ I understand your stands. Nobody is talking about the originator of the tweets,a xtian who is to be blamed except d person who retweeted(a muslim). This is to tell us d level of hate dey got for d muslims n r looking/waiting for an opportunity to strike. What do we xpect?
What I will conclude on tis matter is, we really shld be careful n tis is y Elrufai or any muslim mst avoid anytin dat may cause d anger of God bcus its not of d muslims to blasphem be it a joke or whtever. God isn't a jokin/playing matter. we mst stand up n be mujahidun against blasphem be it a non-muslim/muslim dats involved in it. Salam!

edreesabiodun: did he or did he not back them up with links?

I'd rather fine somtin to do with my time than agreeing to tis worthless lies cooked up with tis links.
victims of google misguildance!!!

@OP..Pretty lame!

ashson: Whether you like it or not, as long as you are a muslim, you must bear your father's, married or not. that is the teaching of islam, any good muslim must leave it that way.

period!!

Whether he retweet or tweet its was absolutly wrong of him. Jokes with the name of jesus(as) or any prophets of God in tweets or anywhr is absurd. This is nt an atribute of a good muslim. We as muslims shdnt be caught or seen doing such. We shld stand up against any act of disrespect to any prophet of God let alone Jesus. The Qur’an tells us many wonderful things about Jesus. As a result, believers in the Qur’an love Jesus, honor n believe in him. In fact, no Muslim can be a Muslim unless he/she believes in Jesus,(as). Besides, El-rufai is a Nigerian politician/public figure for that matter, he shld lead by example. When fight come now, they will relocate wit their families n leave the poor masses behind in d hands of God, so we dnt need them to cause confusn for us..he shld be VERY careful next tym..

The politics may have contributed, but having xtian friends may have contributed more. As a muslim, having xtians as frnd isn't a healthy/encouraging thing to do bcus their life style n d islamic way of life contradicts n it wil make u lack behind in ur islamic activities. On d oda hand, try keep devoted muslim frnds who will help u gain back ur conciuosnes of Allah, listens to tafseers as well as go for taalims n islamic programes, inshaa Allah u will be fine.
Concerning deserting dem (ur xtian frnds), My dear brother, since u have make up ur mind to work on ur Imaan, deserting dem is d best thing to do(pardon me) but do it gradually n wisely not in an ofensive way. They will say n think what dey have to, some may even hate u but knw dt Allah will love u in return. I know tis may be difficult but d truth is if u want to replenish ur faith u must take out d anti-faith out of ur life.
Lastly, U shld put it in mind that Salat is an obligation upon u dat u MUST fulfil. They r people who r physically challanged but dey neva miss out dia salat, u hav to see how dey strugle to meet Allah despite dia conditn bcus dey knw its wajib upon them. A frnd of mine wil say..if u r after sucess ran n observe ur salat as u hear d adhan says "come to sucess"
May Allah grant u guidance n ease in this affair, ameen.

^^ brother, I hate repeating words. I don't hav to give u two more reasons to clear u off your doubts when d OP has more than two reasons that states clearly mawlid is an Eid of inovation, n all inovatn is misguidance n every misguidance is in d hellfire.
I'm actually alergic to people who likes diverting attention. We're talking of maulid hia n your bringing shahadah. Well like I said, the massage has be delivered n Allah bears witness wallah!

solbil: thats what i hear from muslims. They would say: if jesus were son of god who then is adam?

that's bcus you fail to understand that God demostrated His power of creation in the way he wishes. U insisted that jesus is d son of God which ur simply saying God fathered jesus(as) despite the fact that He made it clear in the quran that it was said to his mother "be n it was".. On the contrary,xtians r d ones who failed to realise biology is not d only way to father/parent a child.. they believe jesus shld have a father since mary 'his mother' gave birth without a man.. In the Glorious Quran, it was seen that Allah demostrated His power to create in every way..which in this way can be categorized as follows..
1. No man, no woman in d case of Adam(as)
2. Man, no woman in d case of Eve
3. Woman, no man in d case of jesus(as) n lastly
4. Man n woman in case of human like u n me.
With d above we came to d conclusion that jesus fall in d category of creation which makes it clear his not d son of God but was created by the leave n miracles of God..

[quote author=Rafidi ]here is a Sunni (non-Sufi) link on the permissibility of Mawlid,refuting the salafist argument against Mawlid,and citing evidence from hadiths and Quran in favor of observing Mawlid:

http://www.sunnah.org/publication/salafi/mawlid_refute.htm

brother "hadbak" has made the criteria to be the sunnah and Quran in regards to observing Mawlid or not.so we shall follow that and see who really is forming laws based on desires,and sectarian agenda to divide the Muslims.for the majority of Muslims (Shia and the Sunni mainstream;with the exception of salafists) to observe Mawlid and see nothing wrong in it,it is neither haram nor bid'ah,and there is nothing in it that goes contrary to the sunnah and the Quran.

the basic principle of Islamic jurisprudence, concerning mu’amalat (dealings), applies in that everything is halal (permissible) unless it is declared to be haram (forbidden) by the Qur’an or Sunnah. Thus the burden of proof is on the person arguing that something is haram.you dont simply go about claiming the Prophet (s) never ever observe his birthday (a false claim in itself) and then tag it bid'ah because it is something "new".for anything to be tagged bid'ah in the shariah,it must first be established to be haram.and everything is halal until it is proven to be or made haram.

So the question is, ‘Where in the light of the Quran and the Hadith is celebrating Mawlid declared to be unlawful or haram?’

insha'Allah we will examine that in my next post.[/quote]I smile...I'm a sister pls not a brother. Enjoy!

The message has been delivered, Allah bears witness!

Are u saying that what the shia n mainstream sunnis thinks about the birth of the prophet(SAW) superceeds the quran n sunnah? Haba nau.. If you really are THANKFUL TO ALLAH for sending Rasul to tis sinful world, u will follow the quran n sunnah than following what mere ppl think. Islam is complete n simple, masha Allah. May Allah grant us hidayah, ameen.

^^ I really can't say but I know meeting corpers around whr u live shdnt b dificult.corper r in every corner. Jst look around, in shaa Allah u wil fine some1 who wil help u get to dem. May Allah make it easy for u, ameen.

@OP.. Its clear n explanatory.. All refences were quoted fm d quran n sunnah I don't understnd y some persons make coments to divert odas. Allah said He has perfected al-islam, meaning...no addition/deductn, simple! this is clear. Follow d Quran n sunnah,Love wht Rasul love n forbide wht he forbids if you love n respects him. Celebrating his buffday isn't love n respect but opposing the quran n sunnah. If this is not adhered to, u are simply accusing Rasul of not conveying d masage of al-islam completely.. audhubillah n wallah its a terrible sin. We can't say we love Rasul more than his companions did, stil dey neva celebrated his birthday. Mawlid is an Eid of bid'ah dt shld be avoided in shaa Allah.
Allah says "if you disbelieve indeed Allah is free frm being in need of you". N lastly, bid'ah is the sunnah of iblees, it shld be avoided, may Allah guide us ameen. N wallahu Aalam! Salam

justaqad: I see no wrong in celebrating Maulid.the birth of Rosululahi is a blessing to Mankind,so why shouldn't I celebrate the birth of the greatest man ever to grace Earth?depends the celebration mode sha...me prefer dhikir.and a little pary with myself.
These same Sheik remain silent on many arabic cultures that has been incoporated into islam.
Abegi...

my dear brother in islam, we realy should be careful with our statements. No doubt Rasul is d greatest man ever on earth, if we realy love him like we claim we wil stick to his sunnah. However we don't need a day to celebrate d birth of Rasul bcus we celebrate it by following his sunnah everyday.. Wallahu Aalam.. Salam!

Bismillaah Al-Hamdulillaah wa salatu wa salaamu ‘ala rasulullaah
Amma ba’d

Praise be to Allaah the Lord of the Worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and all his family and companions.

The commands mentioned in the Qur`aan and Sunnah to follow the laws of Allaah (subhanahu wa ta’aala) and His Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), and the prohibitions on introducing innovations into the religion are quite clear. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say (O Muhammad to mankind): ‘If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic Monotheism, follow the Qur`aan and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins.’“ [Aal 'Imraan, ayah 31]

“Follow what has been sent down unto you from your Lord (the Qur`aan and Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah), and follow not any Awliyaa` (protectors and helpers who order you to associate partners in worship with Allaah), besides Him (Allaah). Little do you remember!” [al-A'raaf, ayah 3]

“And verily, this is My straight path, so follow it, and follow not (other) paths, for they will separate you away from His path.” [al-A'naam, ayah 153]

And the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “The most truthful of speech is the Book of Allaah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, and the most evil of things are those which are newly-invented.” And he (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 2697; Muslim, no. 1718). According to a version narrated by Muslim, “Whoever does anything that is not in accordance with this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) will have it rejected.“


Celebrating the occasion of the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is forbidden and is to be rejected for a number of reasons:

1 - It is not part of the Sunnah of the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or of the khaleefahs who succeeded him. Since this is the case, then it is a forbidden innovation, because the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Upon you is to follow my Sunnah and the sunnah of the rightly-guided khaleefahs after me; adhere to it and cling to it firmly. Beware of newly-invented things, for every newly-invented thing is an innovation (bid’ah) and every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi no. 2676).

Celebrating the Mawlid is an innovation introduced by some muslims after the three best centuries in order to corrupt the religion of the Muslims. If a person does anything in order to draw closer to Allaah which was not done by the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or enjoined by him, and was not done by the khaleefahs who succeeded him, this action implies that he is accusing the Messenger of not explaining the religion to the people, and that he disbelieves in the words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):

“This day, I have perfected your religion for you.” [al-Maa`idah, ayah 3] because he is adding something extra and claiming that it is a part of the religion, but the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did not bring this.

2 - Celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is an imitation of the Christians, because they celebrate the birth of the Messiah (‘alayhi salaam). Imitating them is extremely haraam. The hadeeth tells us that it is forbidden to imitate the kuffaar, and we are commanded to differ from them. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 2/50; Abu Dawood, 4/314). And he said, “Be different from the mushrikeen.” (narrated by Muslim, 1/222, no. 259) - especially with regard to things that are the symbols or rituals of their religion!

3 - Besides being bid’ah and an imitation of the Christians, both of which are haraam, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is also a means that leads to exaggeration and excess in venerating him, which even goes as far as calling upon him (making du’aa’ to him) and seeking his help, instead of calling upon Allaah, as happens now among many of those who observe the bid’ah of the Mawlid, when they call upon the Messenger instead of Allaah, and ask him for support, and sing qaseedahs (odes) of shirk praising him, like Qaseedat al-Burdah etc. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) forbade going to extremes in praising him, as he said: “Do not exaggerate with me as the Christians exaggerated with the son of Maryam. For I am just a slave, so say (about me): the slave of Allaah and His Messenger.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4/142, no. 3445; al-Fat-H, 6/551), i.e., do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians exaggerated in praising the Messiah and venerated him until they worshipped him instead of Allaah. Allaah forbade them to do that when he said (interpretation of the meaning):

“O people of the Scripture (Christians) ! Do not exceed the limits in your religion, nor say of Allaah aught but the truth. The Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), was (no more than) a Messenger of Allaah and His Word, (“Be!” – and he was) which He bestowed on Maryam (Mary) and a spirit (Rooh) created by Him.” [an-Nisaa`, ayah 171]

Our Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) forbade us to exaggerate concerning him lest the same thing happen to us as happened to them, so he said: “Beware of exaggeration, for those who came before you were destroyed because of exaggeration.” (Narrated by al-Nasaa’i, 5/268; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan al-Nasaa’i, no. 2863).

4 - Observing the innovation of the Prophet’s birthday opens the door to other kinds of bid’ah and being distracted by them from the Sunnah. Hence you find that the innovators are very active when it comes to bid’ah and very lazy when it comes to the Sunnah; they hate it (the Sunnah) and regard those who follow it as enemies, until their entire religion is innovated anniversaries and Mawlids. They have split into various groups, each of which commemorates the anniversary of its imaam’s birth, such as the births of al-Badawi, Ibn ‘Arabi, al-Dasooqi and al-Shaadhili. No sooner do they end the celebration of one birthday but they start the celebration of another. This results in exaggeration concerning these dead people and others, and in calling upon them instead of Allaah, believing that they can bring benefit and cause harm, until they deviate from the religion of Allaah and go back to the religion of the people of the Jaahiliyyah about whom Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And they worship besides Allaah things that harm them not, nor profit them, and they say: ‘These are our intercessors with Allaah.‘” [Yoonus, ayah 18]

“And those who take Awliyaa` (protectors, helpers, lords, gods) besides Him (say): ‘We worship them only that they may bring us near to Allaah.’” [al-Zumar, ayah 3]

Refuting the specious arguments of those who celebrate the Mawlid

Those who think that this bid’ah should be continued produce specious arguments which are flimsier than a spider’s web. These specious arguments may be dealt with as follows:

[First Doubt]  - Their claim that this is veneration of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam):

[Refutation] - The response to that is that the way to venerate him is to obey him, do as he commanded and avoid that which he forbade, and to love him; he is not to be venerated through innovations, myths and sins. Celebrating his birthday is of this blameworthy type because it is a sin. The people who venerated the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) the most were the Sahaabah (radiallaahu ‘anhum), as ‘Urwah ibn Mas’ood said to Quraysh:

“O people, by Allaah I have visited kings. I went to Caesar, Chosroes and the Negus, but by Allaah I never saw a king whose companions venerated him as much as the companions of Muhammad venerated Muhammad (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). By Allaah, whenever he spat, it never fell on the ground, it fell into the hand of one his companions, then they wiped their faces and skins with it. If he instructed them to do something, they would hasten to do as he commanded. When he did wudoo, they would almost fight over his water. When he spoke, they would lower their voices in his presence; and they did not stare at him out of respect for him.” (al-Bukhaari, 3/178, no. 2731, 2732; al-Fath, 5/388).

Yet despite this level of veneration, they never took the day of his birth as an ‘Eid (festival). If that had been prescribed in Islam, they would not have neglected to do that.

[Second Doubt] - Using as evidence the fact that many people in many countries do this.

[Refutation] - The response to that is that evidence consists of that which is proven from the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), and what is proven from the Prophet is that innovations are forbidden in general, and this is an innovation. What people do, if it goes against the evidence (daleel), does not prove anything, even if many of them do it.

“And if you obey most of those on the earth, they will mislead you far away from Allaah’s path.” [al-An'aam, ayah 116 - interpretation of the meaning]

Nevertheless, in every age, praise be to Allaah, there have always been those who denounce this bid’ah and state clearly that it is false. Those who persist in following it after the truth had been explained to them have no proof. 

Among those who denounced the celebration of this occasion was Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah, in Iqtidaa’ al-Siraat al-Mustaqeem; Imaam al-Shaatibi in al-’I’tisaam; Ibn al-Haaj in al-Madkhil; Shaykh Taaj al-Deen ‘Ali ibn ‘Umar al-Lakhami who wrote an entire book denouncing it; Shaykh Muhammad Basheer al-Sahsawaani al-Hindi in his book Siyaanah al-Insaan; al-Sayyid Muhammad Rasheed Ridaa wrote a separate essay on this topic; Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem Aal al-Shaykh wrote a separate essay on it; Shaykh ‘Abd al-’Azeez ibn Baaz; and others who are still writing and denouncing this bid’ah every year in the pages of newspapers and magazines, at the time when this bid’ah is being done.

[Third Doubt] - They say that by celebrating the Mawlid they are keeping the memory of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) alive.

[Refutation] - The answer to that is that the memory of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is constantly kept alive by the Muslim, such as when his name (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is mentioned in the adhaan and iqaamah and in khutbahs, and every time the Muslim recites the Shahaadatayn after doing wudoo and in the prayers, and every time he sends blessings upon the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in his prayers and when he is mentioned, and every time the Muslim does a waajib (obligatory) or mustahabb (recommended) action that was prescribed by the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). In all of these ways (the Muslim) remembers him and the reward equivalent to the reward of the one who does that action goes back to the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam).

Thus the Muslim constantly keeps the memory of the Messenger alive and has a connection with him night and day throughout his life through that which Allaah has prescribed, not only on the day of the Mawlid and things which are bid’ah and go against the Sunnah, for that puts one at a distance from the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and the Messenger will disown him because of that.

The Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) has no need of this innovated celebration, because Allaah has already bestowed veneration and respect upon him, as He says: “and raised high your fame.” [al-Sharh, ayah 4]

For Allaah is not mentioned in the adhaan, iqaamah or khutbah, except that the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is mentioned after Him; this is sufficient veneration, love and renewal of his memory, and sufficient encouragement to follow him.

Allaah did not refer to the birth of the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in the Qur`aan, rather He referred to his Mission, and says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Indeed, Allaah conferred a great favour on the believers when He sent among them a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves.” [Aal 'Imraan, ayah 124]

“He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves.” [al-Jumu'ah, ayah 2]

[Fourth Doubt] - They may say that the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday was introduced by a knowledgeable and just king who intended thereby to draw closer to Allaah.

[Refutation] - Our response to that is that bid’ah is not acceptable, no matter who does it. A good intention does not justify a bad deed and even if a person died as a knowledgeable and righteous person, this does not mean that he was infallible.

[Fifth Doubt] - They say that celebrating the mawlid comes under the heading of bid’ah hasanah (“good innovation”) because it is based on giving thanks to Allaah for the Prophet!

[Refutation] - Our response to that is that there is nothing good in innovation. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 2697; al-Fath, 5/355). And he said, “Every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi, no. 2676). The ruling on innovations is that they are all misguidance, but this specious argument suggests that not every bid’ah is a going astray, rather there are “good” innovations.

Al-Haafiz ibn Rajab said in Sharh al-Arba’een: “The words of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), ‘every innovation is a going astray‘ is a concise but comprehensive comment which includes everything; it is one of the most important principles of religion. It is like his words ‘Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.‘ (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3/167, no. 2697; al-Fat-H, 5/355). Whoever innovates anything and attributes it to Islam when it has no basis in the religion, this is a going astray and has nothing to do with Islam, whether that has to do with matters of belief (‘aqeedah) or outward and inward words and deeds.” (Jaami’ al-’Uloom wa’l-Hakam, p. 233)

These people have no proof that there is any such thing as a “good innovation” apart from the words of ‘Umar (radiallaahu ‘anhu) concerning Taraaweeh prayers, “What a good innovation this is.” (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, 2/252, no. 2010 mu’allaqan; al-Fath 4/294).

They also said that things were innovated which were not denounced by the Salaf, such as compiling the Qur`aan into one volume and writing and compiling the hadeeth.

The response to that is that these matters had a basis in Islam, so they were not newly-invented.

‘Umar said: “What a good bid’ah” meaning innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the shar’ee sense. Whatever has a basis in Islam, if it is described as an innovation, is an innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the shar’eei sense, because innovation in the shar’ee sense means that which has no basis in Islam.

Compiling the Qur`aan into one book has a basis in Islam, because the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had commanded that the Qur`aan be written down, but it was scattered, so the Sahaabah compiled it in one volume so as so protect and preserve it.

The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) led his companions in praying Taraaweeh for a while, then he stopped doing that, lest that become obligatory on them. The Sahaabah (radiallaahu ‘anhum) continued to pray it separately during the life of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and after his death, until ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (radiallaahu ‘anhu) gathered them behind one imaam as they used to pray behind the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). This was not an innovation introduced into the religion.

Writing down the hadeeth also has a basis in Islam. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) ordered that some ahaadeeth should be written down for some of his companions when they asked him for that. In general terms writing it down during his lifetime was not allowed, for fear that the Qur`aan might be mixed with things that were not part of it. When the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) died, this fear was no longer a factor, because the Qur`aan had been completed and arranged in order before he died. The Muslims compiled the Sunnah after that in order to preserve it and keep it from being lost. May Allaah reward them with good on behalf of Islam and the Muslims, because they preserved the Book of their Lord and the Sunnah of their Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) from being lost or being tampered with.

We may also say to them: why was this act of “thanksgiving,” as they call it, not done by the best generations, the Sahaabah, Taabi’een and followers of the Taabi’een, who loved the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) most and who were most keen to do good and give thanks? Are those who introduced the innovation of the Mawlid more rightly-guided than them? Do they give more thanks to Allaah? Definitely not!

[Sixth Doubt] - They may say that celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is indicative of their love for him; this is one way of showing that, and showing love of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is prescribed in Islam!

[Refutation] - The answer to that is that undoubtedly loving the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is obligatory for every Muslim; he should love him more than he loves himself, his child, his father and all the people – may my father and mother be sacrificed for him – but that does not mean that we should introduce innovations, for doing so has not been prescribed for us. Loving him dictates that we should obey him and follow him, for that is one of the greatest manifestations of love, as it is said:

“If your love is sincere then obey him; for the lover obeys the one whom he loves.”

Loving the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) implies keeping his Sunnah alive, adhering firmly to it, and avoiding words and deeds that go against it. Undoubtedly everything that goes against his Sunnah is a reprehensible innovation (bid’ah) and a manifest act of disobedience. That includes celebrating his birthday and other kinds of bid’ah. A good intention does not mean that it is permissible to introduce innovations into the religion. Islam is based on two things, purity of intention and following [the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)]. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Yes, but whoever submits his face (himself) to Allaah (i.e. follows Allaah’s religion of Islamic Monotheism) and he is a Muhsin (a doer of good)  then his reward is with his Lord (Allaah), on such shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.” [al-Baqarah, ayah 112]

Submitting one’s face to Allaah means being sincere towards Allaah, and doing good means following the Messenger and implementing the Sunnah.

[Seventh Doubt] - Another of their specious arguments is when they say that by celebrating the Mawlid and reading the biography of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) on this occasion, they are encouraging people to follow his example!

[Refutation] - We say to them that reading the biography of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and following his example are required of the Muslim all the time, all year long and throughout his life. Singling out a specific day for that with no evidence for doing so is an innovation, and “every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/164; al-Tirmidhi, 2676). Bid’ah does not bear any fruit but evil, and it leads to a person distancing himself from the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam).

In conclusion, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), whatever form it takes, is a reprehensible innovation. The Muslims should put a stop to this and other kinds of bid’ah, and occupy themselves with reviving and adhering to the Sunnah. They should not be deceived by those who promote and defend this bid’ah, for these types of people are more interested in keeping innovations alive than in reviving the Sunnah; they may not even care about the Sunnah at all. Whoever is like this, it is not permissible to imitate him or follow his example, even if the majority of people are like this. Rather we should follow the example of those who follow the path of the Sunnah, even if they are few. Truth is not measured by the men who speak it, rather men are measured by the truth.

The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever among you lives (for a long time) will see many differences. Upon you is to follow my Sunnah and the sunnah of the rightly-guided khaleefahs who come after me. Hold on to it firmly. Beware of newly-invented matters, for every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi no. 2676). So the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) explained to us in this hadeeth what we should do when there are differences of opinion, just as he explained that everything that goes against his Sunnah - be it words or deeds - is a bid’ah, and every bid’ah is a going astray.

If we see that there is no basis for celebrating the birthday of the Prophet, whether in the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or in the way of the rightly-guided khaleefahs, then it is one of the newly-invented matters, one of the bid’ahs which lead people astray. This principle is what is implied by this hadeeth and is what is indicated by the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“O you who believe! Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. (And) if you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allaah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allaah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination.” [al-Nisaa`, ayah 59]

Referring to Allaah means referring to His Book, and referring to the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) means referring to his Sunnah after he has passed away. The Qur`aan and Sunnah are the reference point in cases of dispute. Where in the Qur`aan or Sunnah does it indicate that it is prescribed in Islam to celebrate the Prophet’s birthday? Whoever does that or thinks that it is good must repent to Allaah from this and from other kinds of bid’ah. This is the attitude of the Muslim who is seeking the truth. But whoever is too stubborn and arrogant after proof has been established, then his reckoning will be with his Lord.

We ask Allaah to help us adhere to His Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) until the Day when we will meet Him. May Allaah grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.


Shaykh Dr. Saalih ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan, Member of the Committee of Senior Scholars, Saudi Arabia.

Bismillaah Al-Hamdulillaah wa salatu wa salaamu ‘ala rasulullaah
Amma ba’d

Praise be to Allaah the Lord of the Worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and all his family and companions.

The commands mentioned in the Qur`aan and Sunnah to follow the laws of Allaah (subhanahu wa ta’aala) and His Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), and the prohibitions on introducing innovations into the religion are quite clear. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say (O Muhammad to mankind): ‘If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic Monotheism, follow the Qur`aan and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins.’“ [Aal 'Imraan, ayah 31]

“Follow what has been sent down unto you from your Lord (the Qur`aan and Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah), and follow not any Awliyaa` (protectors and helpers who order you to associate partners in worship with Allaah), besides Him (Allaah). Little do you remember!” [al-A'raaf, ayah 3]

“And verily, this is My straight path, so follow it, and follow not (other) paths, for they will separate you away from His path.” [al-A'naam, ayah 153]

And the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “The most truthful of speech is the Book of Allaah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, and the most evil of things are those which are newly-invented.” And he (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 2697; Muslim, no. 1718). According to a version narrated by Muslim, “Whoever does anything that is not in accordance with this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) will have it rejected.“


Celebrating the occasion of the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is forbidden and is to be rejected for a number of reasons:

1 - It is not part of the Sunnah of the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or of the khaleefahs who succeeded him. Since this is the case, then it is a forbidden innovation, because the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Upon you is to follow my Sunnah and the sunnah of the rightly-guided khaleefahs after me; adhere to it and cling to it firmly. Beware of newly-invented things, for every newly-invented thing is an innovation (bid’ah) and every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi no. 2676).

Celebrating the Mawlid is an innovation introduced by some muslims after the three best centuries in order to corrupt the religion of the Muslims. If a person does anything in order to draw closer to Allaah which was not done by the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or enjoined by him, and was not done by the khaleefahs who succeeded him, this action implies that he is accusing the Messenger of not explaining the religion to the people, and that he disbelieves in the words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):

“This day, I have perfected your religion for you.” [al-Maa`idah, ayah 3] because he is adding something extra and claiming that it is a part of the religion, but the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did not bring this.

2 - Celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is an imitation of the Christians, because they celebrate the birth of the Messiah (‘alayhi salaam). Imitating them is extremely haraam. The hadeeth tells us that it is forbidden to imitate the kuffaar, and we are commanded to differ from them. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 2/50; Abu Dawood, 4/314). And he said, “Be different from the mushrikeen.” (narrated by Muslim, 1/222, no. 259) - especially with regard to things that are the symbols or rituals of their religion!

3 - Besides being bid’ah and an imitation of the Christians, both of which are haraam, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is also a means that leads to exaggeration and excess in venerating him, which even goes as far as calling upon him (making du’aa’ to him) and seeking his help, instead of calling upon Allaah, as happens now among many of those who observe the bid’ah of the Mawlid, when they call upon the Messenger instead of Allaah, and ask him for support, and sing qaseedahs (odes) of shirk praising him, like Qaseedat al-Burdah etc. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) forbade going to extremes in praising him, as he said: “Do not exaggerate with me as the Christians exaggerated with the son of Maryam. For I am just a slave, so say (about me): the slave of Allaah and His Messenger.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4/142, no. 3445; al-Fat-H, 6/551), i.e., do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians exaggerated in praising the Messiah and venerated him until they worshipped him instead of Allaah. Allaah forbade them to do that when he said (interpretation of the meaning):

“O people of the Scripture (Christians) ! Do not exceed the limits in your religion, nor say of Allaah aught but the truth. The Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), was (no more than) a Messenger of Allaah and His Word, (“Be!” – and he was) which He bestowed on Maryam (Mary) and a spirit (Rooh) created by Him.” [an-Nisaa`, ayah 171]

Our Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) forbade us to exaggerate concerning him lest the same thing happen to us as happened to them, so he said: “Beware of exaggeration, for those who came before you were destroyed because of exaggeration.” (Narrated by al-Nasaa’i, 5/268; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan al-Nasaa’i, no. 2863).

4 - Observing the innovation of the Prophet’s birthday opens the door to other kinds of bid’ah and being distracted by them from the Sunnah. Hence you find that the innovators are very active when it comes to bid’ah and very lazy when it comes to the Sunnah; they hate it (the Sunnah) and regard those who follow it as enemies, until their entire religion is innovated anniversaries and Mawlids. They have split into various groups, each of which commemorates the anniversary of its imaam’s birth, such as the births of al-Badawi, Ibn ‘Arabi, al-Dasooqi and al-Shaadhili. No sooner do they end the celebration of one birthday but they start the celebration of another. This results in exaggeration concerning these dead people and others, and in calling upon them instead of Allaah, believing that they can bring benefit and cause harm, until they deviate from the religion of Allaah and go back to the religion of the people of the Jaahiliyyah about whom Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And they worship besides Allaah things that harm them not, nor profit them, and they say: ‘These are our intercessors with Allaah.‘” [Yoonus, ayah 18]

“And those who take Awliyaa` (protectors, helpers, lords, gods) besides Him (say): ‘We worship them only that they may bring us near to Allaah.’” [al-Zumar, ayah 3]

Refuting the specious arguments of those who celebrate the Mawlid

Those who think that this bid’ah should be continued produce specious arguments which are flimsier than a spider’s web. These specious arguments may be dealt with as follows:

[First Doubt]  - Their claim that this is veneration of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam):

[Refutation] - The response to that is that the way to venerate him is to obey him, do as he commanded and avoid that which he forbade, and to love him; he is not to be venerated through innovations, myths and sins. Celebrating his birthday is of this blameworthy type because it is a sin. The people who venerated the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) the most were the Sahaabah (radiallaahu ‘anhum), as ‘Urwah ibn Mas’ood said to Quraysh:

“O people, by Allaah I have visited kings. I went to Caesar, Chosroes and the Negus, but by Allaah I never saw a king whose companions venerated him as much as the companions of Muhammad venerated Muhammad (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). By Allaah, whenever he spat, it never fell on the ground, it fell into the hand of one his companions, then they wiped their faces and skins with it. If he instructed them to do something, they would hasten to do as he commanded. When he did wudoo, they would almost fight over his water. When he spoke, they would lower their voices in his presence; and they did not stare at him out of respect for him.” (al-Bukhaari, 3/178, no. 2731, 2732; al-Fath, 5/388).

Yet despite this level of veneration, they never took the day of his birth as an ‘Eid (festival). If that had been prescribed in Islam, they would not have neglected to do that.

[Second Doubt] - Using as evidence the fact that many people in many countries do this.

[Refutation] - The response to that is that evidence consists of that which is proven from the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), and what is proven from the Prophet is that innovations are forbidden in general, and this is an innovation. What people do, if it goes against the evidence (daleel), does not prove anything, even if many of them do it.

“And if you obey most of those on the earth, they will mislead you far away from Allaah’s path.” [al-An'aam, ayah 116 - interpretation of the meaning]

Nevertheless, in every age, praise be to Allaah, there have always been those who denounce this bid’ah and state clearly that it is false. Those who persist in following it after the truth had been explained to them have no proof. 

Among those who denounced the celebration of this occasion was Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah, in Iqtidaa’ al-Siraat al-Mustaqeem; Imaam al-Shaatibi in al-’I’tisaam; Ibn al-Haaj in al-Madkhil; Shaykh Taaj al-Deen ‘Ali ibn ‘Umar al-Lakhami who wrote an entire book denouncing it; Shaykh Muhammad Basheer al-Sahsawaani al-Hindi in his book Siyaanah al-Insaan; al-Sayyid Muhammad Rasheed Ridaa wrote a separate essay on this topic; Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem Aal al-Shaykh wrote a separate essay on it; Shaykh ‘Abd al-’Azeez ibn Baaz; and others who are still writing and denouncing this bid’ah every year in the pages of newspapers and magazines, at the time when this bid’ah is being done.

[Third Doubt] - They say that by celebrating the Mawlid they are keeping the memory of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) alive.

[Refutation] - The answer to that is that the memory of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is constantly kept alive by the Muslim, such as when his name (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is mentioned in the adhaan and iqaamah and in khutbahs, and every time the Muslim recites the Shahaadatayn after doing wudoo and in the prayers, and every time he sends blessings upon the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in his prayers and when he is mentioned, and every time the Muslim does a waajib (obligatory) or mustahabb (recommended) action that was prescribed by the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). In all of these ways (the Muslim) remembers him and the reward equivalent to the reward of the one who does that action goes back to the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam).

Thus the Muslim constantly keeps the memory of the Messenger alive and has a connection with him night and day throughout his life through that which Allaah has prescribed, not only on the day of the Mawlid and things which are bid’ah and go against the Sunnah, for that puts one at a distance from the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and the Messenger will disown him because of that.

The Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) has no need of this innovated celebration, because Allaah has already bestowed veneration and respect upon him, as He says: “and raised high your fame.” [al-Sharh, ayah 4]

For Allaah is not mentioned in the adhaan, iqaamah or khutbah, except that the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is mentioned after Him; this is sufficient veneration, love and renewal of his memory, and sufficient encouragement to follow him.

Allaah did not refer to the birth of the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in the Qur`aan, rather He referred to his Mission, and says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Indeed, Allaah conferred a great favour on the believers when He sent among them a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves.” [Aal 'Imraan, ayah 124]

“He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves.” [al-Jumu'ah, ayah 2]

[Fourth Doubt] - They may say that the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday was introduced by a knowledgeable and just king who intended thereby to draw closer to Allaah.

[Refutation] - Our response to that is that bid’ah is not acceptable, no matter who does it. A good intention does not justify a bad deed and even if a person died as a knowledgeable and righteous person, this does not mean that he was infallible.

[Fifth Doubt] - They say that celebrating the mawlid comes under the heading of bid’ah hasanah (“good innovation”) because it is based on giving thanks to Allaah for the Prophet!

[Refutation] - Our response to that is that there is nothing good in innovation. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 2697; al-Fath, 5/355). And he said, “Every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi, no. 2676). The ruling on innovations is that they are all misguidance, but this specious argument suggests that not every bid’ah is a going astray, rather there are “good” innovations.

Al-Haafiz ibn Rajab said in Sharh al-Arba’een: “The words of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), ‘every innovation is a going astray‘ is a concise but comprehensive comment which includes everything; it is one of the most important principles of religion. It is like his words ‘Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.‘ (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3/167, no. 2697; al-Fat-H, 5/355). Whoever innovates anything and attributes it to Islam when it has no basis in the religion, this is a going astray and has nothing to do with Islam, whether that has to do with matters of belief (‘aqeedah) or outward and inward words and deeds.” (Jaami’ al-’Uloom wa’l-Hakam, p. 233)

These people have no proof that there is any such thing as a “good innovation” apart from the words of ‘Umar (radiallaahu ‘anhu) concerning Taraaweeh prayers, “What a good innovation this is.” (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, 2/252, no. 2010 mu’allaqan; al-Fath 4/294).

They also said that things were innovated which were not denounced by the Salaf, such as compiling the Qur`aan into one volume and writing and compiling the hadeeth.

The response to that is that these matters had a basis in Islam, so they were not newly-invented.

‘Umar said: “What a good bid’ah” meaning innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the shar’ee sense. Whatever has a basis in Islam, if it is described as an innovation, is an innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the shar’eei sense, because innovation in the shar’ee sense means that which has no basis in Islam.

Compiling the Qur`aan into one book has a basis in Islam, because the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had commanded that the Qur`aan be written down, but it was scattered, so the Sahaabah compiled it in one volume so as so protect and preserve it.

The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) led his companions in praying Taraaweeh for a while, then he stopped doing that, lest that become obligatory on them. The Sahaabah (radiallaahu ‘anhum) continued to pray it separately during the life of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and after his death, until ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (radiallaahu ‘anhu) gathered them behind one imaam as they used to pray behind the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). This was not an innovation introduced into the religion.

Writing down the hadeeth also has a basis in Islam. The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) ordered that some ahaadeeth should be written down for some of his companions when they asked him for that. In general terms writing it down during his lifetime was not allowed, for fear that the Qur`aan might be mixed with things that were not part of it. When the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) died, this fear was no longer a factor, because the Qur`aan had been completed and arranged in order before he died. The Muslims compiled the Sunnah after that in order to preserve it and keep it from being lost. May Allaah reward them with good on behalf of Islam and the Muslims, because they preserved the Book of their Lord and the Sunnah of their Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) from being lost or being tampered with.

We may also say to them: why was this act of “thanksgiving,” as they call it, not done by the best generations, the Sahaabah, Taabi’een and followers of the Taabi’een, who loved the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) most and who were most keen to do good and give thanks? Are those who introduced the innovation of the Mawlid more rightly-guided than them? Do they give more thanks to Allaah? Definitely not!

[Sixth Doubt] - They may say that celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is indicative of their love for him; this is one way of showing that, and showing love of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is prescribed in Islam!

[Refutation] - The answer to that is that undoubtedly loving the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is obligatory for every Muslim; he should love him more than he loves himself, his child, his father and all the people – may my father and mother be sacrificed for him – but that does not mean that we should introduce innovations, for doing so has not been prescribed for us. Loving him dictates that we should obey him and follow him, for that is one of the greatest manifestations of love, as it is said:

“If your love is sincere then obey him; for the lover obeys the one whom he loves.”

Loving the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) implies keeping his Sunnah alive, adhering firmly to it, and avoiding words and deeds that go against it. Undoubtedly everything that goes against his Sunnah is a reprehensible innovation (bid’ah) and a manifest act of disobedience. That includes celebrating his birthday and other kinds of bid’ah. A good intention does not mean that it is permissible to introduce innovations into the religion. Islam is based on two things, purity of intention and following [the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)]. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Yes, but whoever submits his face (himself) to Allaah (i.e. follows Allaah’s religion of Islamic Monotheism) and he is a Muhsin (a doer of good)  then his reward is with his Lord (Allaah), on such shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.” [al-Baqarah, ayah 112]

Submitting one’s face to Allaah means being sincere towards Allaah, and doing good means following the Messenger and implementing the Sunnah.

[Seventh Doubt] - Another of their specious arguments is when they say that by celebrating the Mawlid and reading the biography of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) on this occasion, they are encouraging people to follow his example!

[Refutation] - We say to them that reading the biography of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and following his example are required of the Muslim all the time, all year long and throughout his life. Singling out a specific day for that with no evidence for doing so is an innovation, and “every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/164; al-Tirmidhi, 2676). Bid’ah does not bear any fruit but evil, and it leads to a person distancing himself from the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam).

In conclusion, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), whatever form it takes, is a reprehensible innovation. The Muslims should put a stop to this and other kinds of bid’ah, and occupy themselves with reviving and adhering to the Sunnah. They should not be deceived by those who promote and defend this bid’ah, for these types of people are more interested in keeping innovations alive than in reviving the Sunnah; they may not even care about the Sunnah at all. Whoever is like this, it is not permissible to imitate him or follow his example, even if the majority of people are like this. Rather we should follow the example of those who follow the path of the Sunnah, even if they are few. Truth is not measured by the men who speak it, rather men are measured by the truth.

The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Whoever among you lives (for a long time) will see many differences. Upon you is to follow my Sunnah and the sunnah of the rightly-guided khaleefahs who come after me. Hold on to it firmly. Beware of newly-invented matters, for every innovation is a going astray.” (Narrated by Ahmad, 4/126; al-Tirmidhi no. 2676). So the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) explained to us in this hadeeth what we should do when there are differences of opinion, just as he explained that everything that goes against his Sunnah - be it words or deeds - is a bid’ah, and every bid’ah is a going astray.

If we see that there is no basis for celebrating the birthday of the Prophet, whether in the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or in the way of the rightly-guided khaleefahs, then it is one of the newly-invented matters, one of the bid’ahs which lead people astray. This principle is what is implied by this hadeeth and is what is indicated by the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“O you who believe! Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. (And) if you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allaah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allaah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination.” [al-Nisaa`, ayah 59]

Referring to Allaah means referring to His Book, and referring to the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) means referring to his Sunnah after he has passed away. The Qur`aan and Sunnah are the reference point in cases of dispute. Where in the Qur`aan or Sunnah does it indicate that it is prescribed in Islam to celebrate the Prophet’s birthday? Whoever does that or thinks that it is good must repent to Allaah from this and from other kinds of bid’ah. This is the attitude of the Muslim who is seeking the truth. But whoever is too stubborn and arrogant after proof has been established, then his reckoning will be with his Lord.

We ask Allaah to help us adhere to His Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) until the Day when we will meet Him. May Allaah grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.


Shaykh Dr. Saalih ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan, Member of the Committee of Senior Scholars, Saudi Arabia.

@ bigmanahmad..Masha Allah, May Allah reward you with good n increase us in knoWledge which is beneficial. I do appreciate..Shukran!

Assalamualaikum..
I received this question from a friend and could not give her an answer because I have no knowledge on the matter, so I decide to post it here if we could get a help in shaa Allah.

Question..
Assalam! My question is about henna n its mode of application. Is it permissible to use it to tatoo the body as women do these days during their nikkah? I know totooing is haram islamically n this is why I'm worried..my wedding is coming up and I intend to do it on my body plus I need to be cleared to know if I can or not. Jazakallah n ma-salaam!

Salaam.. Since ur work comsumes most of ur time, I don't know if u can fine this helpful. MCAN usually organises Ta'alims every sundays(morning) atended by corpers, Ex-corpers n Non-corpers in all states which I'm sure Nassarawa isn't an exception for people who r interested in Islamic knowledge or who r after working on their Imaan. It usually does not take more than two hours, not sure of d time doe but you can enquire on that. They discuss a lot of interesting topics, questions n answer sections, sisters n brothers week amonge oda, they are even involved in rural daawah...I believe with these u will come across brothers who will be willing to asist you in shaa Allah..may Allah make it easy, ameen

Omexonomy: So islam belive in miracle. Then why is it that islamic moderators and thier evil minions (tbaba, maclatunji et al) are all over the forum pouring insult on adegboye for doing miracles.

isn't it obvious that Adegboyes miracle is man made in order to sell/advertise his church?

^ U09ce..,are u an Abusites?

Making it for dem n dem wearing it is not haram. What is impermisible n haram is the fact that dey expose it. Women in islam are commanded by Allah to protect dia beauty n expose it only to their husbands. Henna/laali is halal to use. As for you d designer, there is an hadith dat I cant remember to quote it verbatim but it was saying somtin about when one sees somtin which is haram he shld corect it, either with words or action. Try talk to d sisters in a polite manner if dey listen,good for dem n you. If not Allah see n knows your heart. Wallahu Aalam!

don13: Notin spoil, he was never a Christian.

you are right. He was born upon al-fitrah n that's y he is a revert. LMAO!

CAMEROONPRIDE: 1st bold how did you figure that?
2nd bold who told you the op and those who commented against this barbaric act are christians? don't let you hate/anger agaisnt christians blind you...............yerima is a savage for such act, i doubt the girl was even consent.
3) chill man

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Are u one of d paronisers? Don't be scare, I can only pray for God to have mercy on u. U jst potray wht I was talking abt..everybody knows its xtians dat has intolerance, hate n anger for muslims n u jst potrayed it by ur malicious coment "babaric act". I mean,.. Isn't It OBVIOUS, do u nid a sootsayer to tell u that d Op n d anti coments r by xtians? Are u a learner? Yerima is not ur mate/clas, he's more reasonable than u blieve me..
So u call using underage for prostitutn, molestatn n indecency as seeking their consent whn dey r nt grown enuf to make rational decisns for demslves? Smtin dey do u. pls u don't tell me to chill man, U nid it more than I do n I'm not a man.

CAMEROONPRIDE: how can someone thinks about marrying a 15yo girl in the first place

some people do give me cause to worry. I don't know how dey think rily. HOW CANT SOME1 TINK OF MARRING a 15yr gal in d first place? At least its MARIAGE not rape, prostitution or using her for pornography. Do u knw how many children in eastern europe r exploited for s*x? ECPAT has estimated dat dey ar btw 100,000 and 300,000 children sexually exploited yearly through prostitution and pornography in the United States alone, som in South Africa. Most of dem betw d ages of 10-15 yrs. D patronisers ar leaving wit us in d society. U DIDN'T see EVERTIN WRONG wit all dis, u open ur mouth n say sh*t. When a muslim marries(which is safer n better) den, its UNHEARD OFF,u start callin n making all sorts of coments.. U xtians always talk of tolerance bt u neva have it. Ignorant hypocrates!!!

So?