Madarijas-Salikeen
5th May 2007, 09:06 PM
Bismillah ar rahman ar raheem
Alhamdulilah wa salatul wa salam ala rasoolullah
Kitab at tawhid by shaykh salih al fawzaan hafidullah page 152
1. The celebration of the birthday of the Prophet
It is a celebration which resembles the christians' celebration of Christ's birth (Christmas). Ignorant muslims and deviant scholars celebrate in the month of Rabi Al-Awwal, The messengers' cbirthday. Some hold this function in mosques , and some at homes while others in designated places that are prepared for this purpose. Large numbers attend such celebration, copying the christians in their bidah of celebrating christmas. Besides the fact, it is an innovation resembling the christians, such celebration also include some polytheistic practices and objectionable things such as reciting litanies that include excessive praising of the messenger of Allaah . They also include supplicating the Prophet to the exclusion of Allaah, and seeking help and relief from him. The prophet forbade revering him excessively saying:
"Do not adulate me as the christians adulated the son of maryam, I am only a human, therefore, c all me the slave of Allaah and His Messenger (Bukhari and muslim)
Those who celebrate the birthday of the Prophet probably believe that the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam attends their functions. Among the objectionable things that take place in such celebrations is reciting litanies in congregations accompanied by drum beating, and the rest of the innovated sufi litanies. Such celebrations allow mixing of men with women, which is a cause of fitnah and leads to committing fornication. Even if such functions are free from these objectionable things, and were restricted to gatherings, eating and expressing joy as they claim, it is still a bidah which is innovated, and according to the hadith:
Every innovated practice is bidah, and every bidah is a means of deviations.
It can also be conductive to objectionable things, which take place in other functions.
We said that this celebration is bidah because it has no base in the book nor the sunnah, nor in the practice of the pious predecessors and the favored generations. Such celebrations evolved, subsequent to the fourth century of Hijrah. It was innovated and devised by the shiite Fatimid. Imam abu hafs taj ad din al fakihani, may allaah grant him his mercy said: "To proceed, it has been repeatedly asked by blessed group of people inquiring about the legitimacy of the functions that some people hold in the month of Rabi al-awwal which they call al mawlid (milad), whether it has a base in the deen. They request a clear answer to their query in general and clarification in particular. I said, while asking Allaah to grant me success: "I hav eno knowledge of a base for such functions, neither in the book nor in the sunnah, nor any of the scholars who adhere to the traditions of the predecessors, who are the examples for the ummah to follow in matters of deen, was reported to have celebrated to it. Rather, it is a bidah innovated by the forgers, and a desire through which greedy people became rich. (Risalat al-Mawrid Fi amal al mawlid)
Shaykh ul islam ibn taymiyyah rahimullah, said : Similar to this is what some people do, they celebrate the birthday of the prophet either to resemble the christians celebration of the birthday of Jesus, whom Allaah saved from evil, or out of their love and adulation to the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam. Although people are at variance with regard to the actual date of the Prophet's salalaahu alayhi wa salam birthday. Such functions were not held by the pious predecessors. Were such functions to be a good thing, the pious predecessors, may Allaah be pleased with them, would have been more deserving than us in holding it. They loved and revered the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam more than we love and revere him, and they were keener than ourselves in seeking goodness. His true love and reverence can be materialized in following and obeying him, and adhereing to his commands, and revivinghis sunnah internally and externally. It can also be materiialized by propagating the message with which he was sent, and struggling by heart, hand and tongue for that purpose. This is the way of the pious predecessors and the muhajireen and ansar, and those who followed them with piety."[/COLOR] (Iqtida as-sirat 2/165. This qoutation has been abridged by the author)[/COLOR]
Books and epistles in the past and present were written to denounce and refute this bidah, besides it being a bidah and resembling the christians, it is also conductive to holding their birthday celebrations, such as the birthday of the awliya, shaykh and leaders, and would open many gates of evil. (We should bear in mind too that celebrating the birthday of the family members is also condemned bidah)
Alhamdulilah wa salatul wa salam ala rasoolullah
Kitab at tawhid by shaykh salih al fawzaan hafidullah page 152
1. The celebration of the birthday of the Prophet
It is a celebration which resembles the christians' celebration of Christ's birth (Christmas). Ignorant muslims and deviant scholars celebrate in the month of Rabi Al-Awwal, The messengers' cbirthday. Some hold this function in mosques , and some at homes while others in designated places that are prepared for this purpose. Large numbers attend such celebration, copying the christians in their bidah of celebrating christmas. Besides the fact, it is an innovation resembling the christians, such celebration also include some polytheistic practices and objectionable things such as reciting litanies that include excessive praising of the messenger of Allaah . They also include supplicating the Prophet to the exclusion of Allaah, and seeking help and relief from him. The prophet forbade revering him excessively saying:
"Do not adulate me as the christians adulated the son of maryam, I am only a human, therefore, c all me the slave of Allaah and His Messenger (Bukhari and muslim)
Those who celebrate the birthday of the Prophet probably believe that the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam attends their functions. Among the objectionable things that take place in such celebrations is reciting litanies in congregations accompanied by drum beating, and the rest of the innovated sufi litanies. Such celebrations allow mixing of men with women, which is a cause of fitnah and leads to committing fornication. Even if such functions are free from these objectionable things, and were restricted to gatherings, eating and expressing joy as they claim, it is still a bidah which is innovated, and according to the hadith:
Every innovated practice is bidah, and every bidah is a means of deviations.
It can also be conductive to objectionable things, which take place in other functions.
We said that this celebration is bidah because it has no base in the book nor the sunnah, nor in the practice of the pious predecessors and the favored generations. Such celebrations evolved, subsequent to the fourth century of Hijrah. It was innovated and devised by the shiite Fatimid. Imam abu hafs taj ad din al fakihani, may allaah grant him his mercy said: "To proceed, it has been repeatedly asked by blessed group of people inquiring about the legitimacy of the functions that some people hold in the month of Rabi al-awwal which they call al mawlid (milad), whether it has a base in the deen. They request a clear answer to their query in general and clarification in particular. I said, while asking Allaah to grant me success: "I hav eno knowledge of a base for such functions, neither in the book nor in the sunnah, nor any of the scholars who adhere to the traditions of the predecessors, who are the examples for the ummah to follow in matters of deen, was reported to have celebrated to it. Rather, it is a bidah innovated by the forgers, and a desire through which greedy people became rich. (Risalat al-Mawrid Fi amal al mawlid)
Shaykh ul islam ibn taymiyyah rahimullah, said : Similar to this is what some people do, they celebrate the birthday of the prophet either to resemble the christians celebration of the birthday of Jesus, whom Allaah saved from evil, or out of their love and adulation to the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam. Although people are at variance with regard to the actual date of the Prophet's salalaahu alayhi wa salam birthday. Such functions were not held by the pious predecessors. Were such functions to be a good thing, the pious predecessors, may Allaah be pleased with them, would have been more deserving than us in holding it. They loved and revered the prophet salalahu alayhi wa salam more than we love and revere him, and they were keener than ourselves in seeking goodness. His true love and reverence can be materialized in following and obeying him, and adhereing to his commands, and revivinghis sunnah internally and externally. It can also be materiialized by propagating the message with which he was sent, and struggling by heart, hand and tongue for that purpose. This is the way of the pious predecessors and the muhajireen and ansar, and those who followed them with piety."[/COLOR] (Iqtida as-sirat 2/165. This qoutation has been abridged by the author)[/COLOR]
Books and epistles in the past and present were written to denounce and refute this bidah, besides it being a bidah and resembling the christians, it is also conductive to holding their birthday celebrations, such as the birthday of the awliya, shaykh and leaders, and would open many gates of evil. (We should bear in mind too that celebrating the birthday of the family members is also condemned bidah)