﷽
Advice to love the Messenger of Allāh by adherence to his Sunnah and avoiding all forms of Bidʿah
A Warning against the innovation of Mawlid from the Mimbar of the Masjid of the Prophet ﷺ in Madinah
﴾ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِینَ﴿
All the praises and thanks be to Allāh, the Lord of the entire universe.
﴾ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِیمِ﴿
The Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
﴾مَـٰلِكِ یَوۡمِ ٱلدِّینِ﴿
The Only Master of the Day of Recompense
(Al-Fātiḥah 1:2-4)
I praise and thank Him for His manifest Grace. I testify that there is no diety that is truly worthy of worship except Allāh alone, without any partner, the Strong, the Mighty. I also testify that our Prophet and Master Muḥammad is His servant and trustworthy Messenger. O Allāh, send Your Ṣalah and Salām upon Your servant and Messenger Muḥammad, and to his family and all his companions.
As for what follows;
Fear Allāh as He should be feared and remain firm upon Islam with the firmest handhold. Whoever holds fast by fearing Him will succeed with goodnesses and be saved from all evil and destruction.
He -the Most High- said:
﴾لَقَدۡ مَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَى ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِینَ إِذۡ بَعَثَ فِیهِمۡ رَسُولࣰا مِّنۡ أَنفُسِهِمۡ یَتۡلُوا۟ عَلَیۡهِمۡ ءَایَـٰتِهِۦ وَیُزَكِّیهِمۡ وَیُعَلِّمُهُمُ ٱلۡكِتَـٰبَ وَٱلۡحِكۡمَةَ وَإِن كَانُوا۟ مِن قَبۡلُ لَفِی ضَلَـٰلࣲ مُّبِینٍ﴿
Indeed Allāh conferred a great favour on the believers when He sent among them a Messenger from among themselves, reciting unto them His Verses, and purifying them (from sins by their following him), and teaching them the Book (the Qurʾān) and the wisdom (the Prophetic Sunnah), while before that they had been in manifest error.
(Āli-ʿImrān 3:164)
Allāh sent Muḥammad ﷺ as a mercy to the entire universe. There is no good that a Muslim attains in this world or the Hereafter except that Allāh has decreed it through his (the Prophet ﷺ) hands. So after the right of Allāh comes the right of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ.
Allāh -the Most High- says:
﴿ ٱلنَّبِیُّ أَوۡلَىٰ بِٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِینَ مِنۡ أَنفُسِهِمۡۖ وَأَزۡوَ ٰجُهُۥۤ أُمَّهَـٰتُهُمۡۗ ﴾
The Prophet is closer to the believers than their ownselves, and his wives are their mothers.
(Al-Aḥzāb 33:6)
He -the Most High- says:
﴿ یَـٰۤأَیُّهَا ٱلَّذِینَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱسۡتَجِیبُوا۟ لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمۡ لِمَا یُحۡیِیكُمۡۖ ﴾
O you who believe! Answer Allāh (by obeying Him) and (His) Messenger when he calls you to that which will give you life
(Al-Anfāl 8:24)
The right of the Prophet ﷺ is to love him and give him precedence over everything, to obey that which he commanded with, avoid that which he prohibited, believe in his sayings, and not worship Allāh, the Almighty, except according to his law.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said
“None of you have truly believed until I am more beloved to him than his father, his children and all of mankind.”
Reported by Al-Bukhārī and Muslim from a ḥadīth narrated by Anas -may Allāh be pleased with him-
It is considered disrespectful towards the Prophet ﷺ to make preparations for the innovation of the Mawlid and for innovations that have no evidence, and is a shortcoming in following the Prophetic Sunnah.
He -the Most High- says:
﴿ قُلۡ إِن كُنتُمۡ تُحِبُّونَ ٱللَّهَ فَٱتَّبِعُونِی یُحۡبِبۡكُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَیَغۡفِرۡ لَكُمۡ ذُنُوبَكُمۡۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورࣱ رَّحِیمࣱ ﴾
Say (O Muḥammad ﷺ to mankind): “If you (truly) love Allah then follow me, Allāh will love you and forgive you of your sins. And Allāh is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”
(Āli-ʿImrān 3:31)
Those from the forerunners who had traveled (with the Prophet ﷺ) from the Muhajirīn and Ansar had not even heard of the Mawlid. So they were victorious by following the Prophetic Sunnah, acting upon it and avoiding all kinds of innovations.
He -the Most High- says:
﴿ وَأَنَّ هَـٰذَا صِرَ ٰطِی مُسۡتَقِیمࣰا فَٱتَّبِعُوهُۖ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ ٱلسُّبُلَ فَتَفَرَّقَ بِكُمۡ عَن سَبِیلِهِۦۚ ذَ ٰلِكُمۡ وَصَّىٰكُم بِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَتَّقُونَ ﴾
“And verily, this is my Straight Path, so follow it, and follow not (other) paths, for they will separate you away from His Path. This He has ordained for you that you may become righteous.”
(Al-Anʿām 6:153)
– Shaykh ʿAlī bin ʿAbdur-Raḥmān al-Ḥudhaifī -may Allāh preserve him-, Imām and Khaṭīb of Masjid an-Nabawī, from the Khuṭbah Al-Jumuʿah on 10th Rabīʿ Al-Awwal 1446H
– Translated by: Abū Āsiyah Muzaffar bin Ḥussain -may Allāh forgive him, his parents, his mashayikh, his family and all the Muslims-
