Celebrating The Maulid // 03
By Dr Abubakar Muhammad Sani Birnin kudu Hafizahullah
Three
Another argument forwarded by Ibnul Jazariy in his book ‘Urfut Ta’reef Bil Maulidis Shareef’ and Shamsuddeen Ibnu Naarisriddeen Ad-Dimashqi in his ‘Mauridus Saadii Fi Maulidil Haadi’ is that Abu Lahab was seen in a dream and was asked about his situation in Hell. He replied: ‘I am in the hell fire. But the torment is lightened on me every Monday night and I suck some water from the tip of my finger. And this is because I freed Thuwaibah when she announced to me the good news of the birth of the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) and for suckling him’. This is also mentioned by Suyuti in the aforementioned reference.
Four
The saying of Allah Ta’aala: ((Say: In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy therein let them rejoice. That is better than what they amass (of wealth)) Yunus: 58.
They say: To be happy with the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) is demanded by the Qur’an, as seen in this verse. Therefore Allah orders that we rejoice in His mercy, and the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) is the greatest mercy. See Al-Maulidur Rawiyy Fil Maulidin Nabiyy by Alawi Al-Maliki p.10.
These are the strongest arguments, at least which are traceable to the Qur’an and Hadith. There are others drawn from a more distant point of view, and others based on the fact that many people amongst whom some ulama participate in the observance of the maulid. Some of these are:
1. That the first person to innovate the maulid was a renowned just ruler;
2. That Ibn Batuta, in his travels, praised Muhammad ibn Muhiyiddin al-Tabari, one of the judges in Makkah at his time, for his observance of the maulid;
3. That the maulid is a way of remembering the most important personality ever created;
4. That the maulid is recommended by many ulama and that it is one of the good things introduced in Islam;
5. That it is a congregation of alms giving and praising and extolling the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam).
In addition to the various hadiths with some ambiguous meanings they cling to. Some of these are:
1. “Man sanna sunnatan hasanatan…”;
2. Ibn Mas’uud’s saying “Maa Raahul Muslimuna Hasanan fahuwa indallahi hasan” (Whatever the Muslims consider good is good in the sight of Allah);
3. The categorisation of bid’ah by some ulama into good and bad or into wajib, mustahab, mubah, haram and makruh;
Before responding to all these arguments, I think it is important we note some points.
1. The term ‘ibadah’ (worship) is defined as anything loved and pleased with by Allah, either in the form of a saying or action, explicit or implicit.
2. The term ‘bid’ah’ (innovation) denotes anything that possesses the following qualities:
Being an innovation
(One) Claimed to belong to the deen of Islam
(Two) Not having any legal origin. This is in line with the hadith of the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) : “Man Ahdatha Fii Amrinaa Hadha Ma Laisa Minhu Fa Huwa Raddun” (Whoever innovated into this affair of ours (Islam) what does not belong to it, will not be accepted). (See Jaami’ul Uluumi Wal Hikam by Ibn Rajab vol.1 p.177). By this definition, worldly affairs like scientific and technological advancements, are not considered as ‘bid’ah’ even though they are innovated.
3. The hadith of the prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) ‘Kullu bid’atin dalalah’ (Every innovation is a bid’ah) is a generalisation comprising all kinds of bid’ah as far as the aforementioned definition is concerned. So there is no bid’ah that is good in Islam.
4. Drawing near to Allah through any ibadah must be in line with the shari’ah in two basic points:
(One) Establishing the origin of that ibadah by authentic legal evidence. Therefore it should not be deduced from a false hadith or based on the saying of someone whose saying or action is not a binding ‘hujjah’.
(b) Preserving the original mode of performing the ibadah as taught by the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam).(See Qawaa’idu Ma’rifatil Bida’ip.66).
5. Any act of worship originating from mere reasoning, desire or sentiment, like the saying of an alim, some devoted Shaikhs, or customs of some countries or communities, or some tales or dreams, is considered a bid’ah. (See Al-’itisaam by As-Shatibi vol.1 p.212-219).
6. Any act of worship abandoned by the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam), that is, he did not perform it, even though the factors necessitating its performance were established to prevail, and all obstacles preventing the performance were nonexistent, the performance of that act by somebody else is a bid’ah. E.g. the outward expression of the ‘niyyah’ (intention) to enter into prayer, pronouncing the call to prayer (al-adhan) in prayers other than the five daily prayers and praying two rak’aats after performing the sa’ayi between Safa and Marwa. (See Al’itisaam vol.1 vol.361-364).
Dr. Abubakar Muhammad Sani Birnin Kudu
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