When we celebrate Milad, we
gather, in order to send salutations (Esal-e-Swaab) to the Prophet [May
Allah bless him and grant Him peace], give charity to the poor (Sadaqah
Khairat) and remember wilaadah(Birth) and virtues of the Prophet [May
Allah bless him and grant Him peace]. The Ahl as-Sunnah does not say
that one must celebrate “Milad” only on 12 Rabee’-ul-Awwal, in fact it
can be celebrated at anytime of the year. Generally Milad-un-Nabi is
celebrated, on the 12th of Rabee’ul-Awwal, by Muslims all over the
world. In every Muslim country, there is a public holiday for
“Milaad-un-Nabee”, except one country, but even in that country, the
people celebrate “Milaad” individually. The birth of the Anbiyaa’ has
been mentioned in the Qur’an. For example, Adam, Musaa, Eesaa, and
Yahyaa (May Allah bless them and grant them peace). If it is wrong to
talk about the birth of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him
peace), then why has Allah TA’ALA mentioned it in the Qur’an?
Evidence of Milaad-un-Nabi from the Qur’an
Allah Ta’ala says in the Holy Qur’an:
Say: “In the bounty of Allah, and his mercy;- Therein let them rejoice.” That is better then what they Amass.
(Yunus, 58)
In this verse, Allah Almighty tells us that we should be happy when we
receive blessings and mercy from Him. Without doubt, the Prophet [May
Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] is the greateset mercy and blessing
of Allah Almighty
Allah Almighty says in the Qur’an:
“And we sent not to you but a mercy for all the worlds” (Al’Anbiyaa’, 107)
AllahAlmighty says in the Qur’an:
Oh Prophet! The communicator of unseen news. We have sent you as a present beholder and bearer of glad tidings and a warner.
And an inviter towards Allah by His command and a brightening sun.
And give glad tidings to the believers that for them is great bounty of Allah.
(Al-aHzaab, 44-47)
AllahAlmighty says in the Qur’an:
…remind them of the day of Allah…
(Ibraaheem, 5)
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani write that:
“the day of Allah” refers to the day on which AllahAlmighty has done a
favour on mankind. For example, the freedom of Bani Isra’il from the
slavery of Fir’awn.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir, and Fath-ul-qadeer, by Hafidhh Ibn Kather and Qaadee Shawkaanee]
Allah’s graetest favour on mankind was the birth of the Prophet [May
Allah bless him and grant Him peace]. This means that the Milaad of the
Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace] is a “day of Allah”,
therefore we should remember it.
Hafidh Ibn Rajab writes that:
It is recommended to fast on those days on which Allah Almighty has sent
blessings on us. The greatest favour which AllahAlmighty has bestowed
us with, is the sending down of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and
grant Him peace]. Allah Almighty says in the Qur'an:
“I have favoured among nations and sent to you a Prophet from among you”(ltaa’if-ul-ma’rif, page 111, by Hafidh Ibn Rajab)
Some other evidences of Milaad
Our Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace]
celebrated the birth of his son Ibraaheem by freeing a slave. (Tareekh
Ibn Kathir, “Birth of Ibraaheem”).
Imam Muslim writes that the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him
peace] was asked about the fast on Mondays, which he used to keep, the
Prophet replied “This is the day of my birth”.
(Muslim, “Kitaab-us-Sawm”)
This proves that the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] kept fast on Mondays to show gratitude for his birth.
Imam Bukhari writes that:
when Abu Lahab died, someone from his household saw him in a dream, they
asked him what happened in the grave he said “I am being punished
severely, but on Mondays, I get water from my finger with which I am
freed Thuwayba,
(Bukhari, “Kitaab-un-Nikaah”)
Friday is a special day for Muslims because this is the day that Allah created Aadam[May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
(The Muslim book of Jum’ah, also Tareekh Ibn Kathir, vol.1, “Story of Aadam (May Allah bless him and grant him peace])
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes that Abu Lahab freed Thuwayba on the day that
the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] was born.
(Sirat-un-Nabee, “Birth of Prophet May Allah bless him and grant Him peace]”, by Hafidh Ibn Kathir)
This proves that a kaafir, Abu Lahab, was happy on the day of the birth
of the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] and was
rewarded by having his punishment reduced. If this is true, then indeed
Allah will bless a Muslim who rejoices the birth of the Prophet [May
Allah bless Him and grant Him peace]. This Hadith has been used by many
‘Ulamaa’, to justify the celebration of Milad.
Allama Ibn Hajr Asqalani writes that Sohaily said that Abbaas
Radi-Allahu-unhu, who was the uncle of the Prophet [May Allah bless Him
and grant Him peace], had the above dream. Apart from this, other
Muhadditheen have also attributed this dream to Abbaas Radi-Allahu-unhu.
(Fath-ul-baari, “Nikaah”, by Hafidh Ibn Hajar Asqalaanee)
A person may ask, “When did Abbaas Radi-Allahu-unhu have this dream? Was
it before or after he embraced Islam?” The answer to this is that he
had this dream after coming into the fold of Islam (Seerah-Ibn-Hashaam)
Abu Lahab died after the battle of Badr before which Abbaas
Radi-Allahu-unhu embraced Islam.
Fatwa of Scholars for Milad
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah writes:
“Those people who celebrate Milaad through the love and respect of the
Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace], will be rewarded by
Allah.
[Iqtidaa’ us-siraat-il-Mustaqeem, page 294]
He also writes that:
If someone celebrates Milaad with the love and respect of Prophet [May
Allah bless him and grant Him peace], he will have a “big reward”. He
says that in Muslim communities, Milaad-un-Nabi gatherings are only done
with the respect and love of the Muslims for the Prophet [May Allah
bless him and grant Him peace]
[Iqtidaa’ as-siraat-il-Mustaqeem, page 297, by Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir wrote that:
There was once a King, Abu Sa’eed Malik Muzaffar - a man of good deeds.
In his kingdom, wherever he saw a lack of water, he would build a well.
He also established many Islamic study centers. Every year, he would
spend half a million dinars on hosting a gathering of his people to
celebrate the birthday of the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him
peace]
[Tareekh Ibn Kathir, see story of King Abu Sa’eed, Volume 13]
Ibn Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab Najdi, in his book, writes:
“Thuwaiba, who was the freed slave of Abu Lahab fed Rasolallah
Sallalalhu ‘alaihi wa sallam milk. Abu Lahab freed Suwaiba at the time
when she informed him that a son has been born at your brother’s house.
After the death of Abu Lahab he was seen in a dream, in which he said ‘I
am in severe punishment but this is lessened on Mondays, he showed his
forefinger, and said that he would suck from it. This is so because it
was with this finger that I freed Suwaiba when she informed of the birth
of the Prophet, and she also fed the Prophet Sallalalhu ‘alaihi wa
sallam milk”. Ibn Jawzi states: Abu Lahab is that kaafir who has been
specially referred to, in the Qur’an. If such a person can be rewarded
for celebrating the Milaad of the Prophet Sallalalhu ‘alaihi wa Sallam,
then imagine how great the reward would be for a Muslim when he
celebrates it.
[Mukhtassar Sirat-ur-rasool, “Milaad-un-nabi”, by Ibn Muhammad bin Abdul wahhaab Najdi].
The above is evidence that celebrating the birthday of the Prophet [May
Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] in the form of a gathering is
permissible. Otherwise Hafidhh Ibn Kathir would not have referred to it
as a good deed and Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah would not have said that there
would be a “big reward” for doing so.
Some people have the opinion that King Abu Sa’eed introduced the
celebrating of this occasion. This is not true because Hafidh Ibn Kathir
states that in the 5th Century hijree, a King named Malik Shah
celebrated it also with a gathering
[Tareekh Ibn Katheer biography of Malik Shah]
Some people even argue that the Holy Prophet was not even born on the
12th Rabbi Awwal. This argument is baseless, as Hafidh Ibn Kathir has
discussed this in Sirat-un-nabi. He states that the majority of the
scholars agree that the Prophet was born on the 12th of Rabee’ul-Aawal.
The evidence of the people who do not accept this is weak.
(As-Sirat-un-nabi, vol.1, “Birth of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace]”)
Muhammad Ibn Is-haaq states that the Prophet was born on the 12th of Rabee’ul-Awwal.
(Seerah Ibn Hashaam, “Chapter Birth of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace]”)
Ibn Is-haaq was a Taabi’ and was born in 75 Hijrah. His book is the
oldest book available of seerah in Islamic history. The first book of
Seerah was written by Musa bin Uqba. This book is no longer avaiable for
reference.
The Ahl as-Sunnah celebrate the Milaad of the Prophet [May Allah bless
Him and grant Him peace] with love and respect. If someone does not
celebrate it, we do not call them a kaafir because the matter of Milaad
does not affect the ‘Aqeedah of a person. The celebrating of this should
not cause any divisions among Muslims.
Hafidhh Salaahuddeen Yoosuf [A great follower of Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah and Shaikh Najdee] writes:
On the birth date of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant him
peace], to give charity to the poor or to build a Masjid. We agree in
this type of celebration of Milaad.
(Milaad-un-nabi, by Hafidhh.Yoosuf, page 92)
Hafidh Ibn Kathir writes: “On the day of the birth of Prophet[May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace], Shaytaan cried a lot.”
(Sirat-un-nabi, “Birth of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace]”, by Hafidh Ibn Kathir)
From Ibn Kathirs narration we can see that to feel unhappy on the
Birthday of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] is the
way of shaytaan not the way of a Muslim!
Some questions raised concerning the Milaad
Although the Prophet was born on the 12th of Rabee’ul-awwal he
also died on the same date. How then can the 12th of Rabee’ul-awwal be a
happy day?
Mourning for someone’s death should not be more than three days, except
for a woman, who has lost her husband. The Prophet’s [May Allah bless
him and grant Him peace] death was over 1400 years ago, so the period of
mourning has passed. But, after someone dies, his death is remembered
by reciting the Qur'an, remembering his merits, giving alms, and making
du’a for him. Even if the period of mourning for the Prophet’s [May
Allah bless him and grant Him peace] death exists, all the actions
mentioned above are included when people gather for Milaad-un-nabee. For
this reason, there is not need to separate the celebration of the
Prophet’s [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace] birth, and the
mourning of his death.
How can there be an Eid Milaad-un-nabi when there are only two Eids (Al-Fitr and Al-AdhHaa)?
Allah Almighty says in the Qur’an:
Prophet Isa [May Allah bless him and grant Him peace] prayed to Allah
Almighty “Oh Allah, our Lord, send down to us a tray of food from the
Heavens so that it may be an occasion of Eid for us for the first and
the last of us.” (Al-Maa’idah, 114)
Imam Hakim writes that the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him
peace] said “Friday is also an Eid day”. Once, in the Prophet’s time Eid
came on Friday and the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant Him
peace] said “Allah has given you two Eids today”.
(Mustadrak, “Jum’ah” by Imam Haakim and summary by Imam Dhahabi).
Imam Tirmidhee writes
“Abdullah-bin-Abbaas was reciting verse 3 of surah maa’ida, from the
Qur’an. A Jew, sitting close-by heard it and said to Abdullah “If that
verse which you recited, was revealed to us, we would make that day an
Eid day”. Abdullah-bin-Abbas replied “When this verse was revealed,
there were two Eids on that day. One of them was the Hajj day and the
other Friday”.
[Tirmidhee , “Tafsir”, and also Tafsir Ibn Kathir, surah 5, verse 3]
From the references above, it is proved that the term “Eid day” does not
specifically apply to the two Eid days (Al-fitr and al-adhHaa), but
instead, it could be used for any Islamic holy day. This means that we
can refer to “Milaad-un-Nabi” as “Eid-Milaad-un-nabi”
Books on Milaad-un-Nabi (SallahoAleheWasalam)
Imam Tirmidhi, in his book even gives the title of one of this chapters, the name “Milaad-un-Nabee”. (Tirmidhi, shamaa’il)
Imam Waaqdi (A second century Scholar) also wrote a book entitled “Milaad-un-Nabi”. The original copy can be found in Cairo.
Allama Ibn Al-Jawzi, wrote a book called “Milaad-un-Nabi” in which he
gives very strong proofs permitting the celebration of Milaad. |