These are the days of Rabi al-Awwal, and it is
specifically on the 12th of this month during which people
commemorate the Prophet’s (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) birthday, known as the
Mawlid. Other Muslims, such as myself, consider this celebration to be an
un-Islamic innovation. Several years ago I was invited by my local mosque to
deliver the Friday sermon. I was given a list of recommended topics to select
from and then subsequently prepare a khutba on. I selected the topic of
the innovation of the Mawlid and delivered a fiery sermon against this
celebration, denouncing it in very strong words, while urging the congregation
to adhere instead to the Prophet’s Sunna. Immediately after the worship was
concluded there was an uproar in the mosque. From that day I realized how
steeped so many of our people are in innovated celebrations like the Mawlid,
which they are unwilling to relinquish despite knowing full well there is no
basis for such things in Islam. The fact of the matter is that those who do
commemorate the Mawlid do so under the pretext that it is a religious event.
Undoubtedly, there must be millions of uneducated Muslims out there who truly
believe that this tradition is part and parcel of Islam and are simply unaware
of its real status. Tracing the history of this particular celebration, it
becomes known that it was invented by the so-called Fatimid dynasty that ruled
much of the Muslim world from Egypt. The so-called Fatimid dynasty was associated
with the misguided Ismaili subsect of Imamiya Shiism, but ironically it is the
Sunni world in which the Mawlid is celebrated with the greatest of fervor, with
the notable exception of Saudi Arabia. The Barelwis and other denominations
influenced by folk expressions of Islam celebrate the Mawlid, while Salafis and
Deobandis regard it as an innovation. As has already preceded, my own position
mirrors that of the Salafis and Deobandis, i.e., if the Mawlid is an Islamic celebration
was was it not legislated by Allah in the Quran or through the Prophet in his
Sunna? Why was it never observed by the Sahaba or the Salaf? Some may argue that the Mawlid is merely a popular
expression of the Muslims’ love of the Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) and
their joy on the occassion of his birth. Again, the implication is that the
Prophet’s most devoted followers, the Sahaba, lacked this sentiment as they
never observed any kind of celebration in the name of the Mawlid. This
celebration appeared centuries after the Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) had
died, it was invented by the esotericist Ismaili Shiite dynasty. Prophet
Muhammad (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) said:
مَنْ أَحْدَثَ فِي أَمْرِنَا هَذَا مَا لَيْسَ فِيهِ فَهُوَ رَدٌّ
“Whoever innovates into this, our affair, that which is
not from it, then it is rejected.”
“This our affair” means the Din, the Religion of Islam.
Consequently, the Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) did not condemn
innovation or progress that is made in worldly affairs that are separate from
matters of Religion. It is only innovation in Religion that has been severely
condemned because Allah Most High has declared that Islam is complete and
perfect:
الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ
لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ
دِينًا
Today have I have perfected for you your Religion, and
completed My favor upon you and am pleased with Islam for you as Religion.
(Sura 5:3)
In light of this, the Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi
wasallam) said:
وَشَرَّ الأُمُورِ
مُحْدَثَاتُهَا وَكُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلاَلَةٌ وَكُلَّ ضَلاَلَةٍ
فِي النَّارِ
“The worst of
the affairs are the newly-invented. Every newly-invented is an innovation, and
every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Hellfire.”
Indeed, the Mawlid is a textbook case of the kind
of religious innovation that has been reproved by Islam. Religious innovation
that is contrary to the Prophet’s Sunna is the root of the sectarianism and
deviation from the truth in the Muslim world. But although the Mawlid is an
innovation, and the practice of innovations is even more dangerous than the
committing of ordinary sins, it is not the kind of innovation that expels the
doer from the circle of Islam. Therefore, be balanced in your rebuking of the
Mawlid and those who practice it out of ignorance, making sure not to
excommunicate them from Islam merely on account of this matter. The innovation
of the Mawlid is to single out the 12th of Rabi al-Awwal to
celebrate the Prophet’s birthday. True love for the Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi
wasallam) must be expressed in a manner that coincides with the behavior of the
Sahaba (radi Allahu anhum). They would sing poems in praise of the Prophet
(sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) but never singled out the 12th of Rabi
ul-Awwal for that. Nor did they take out processions on the street, waving
banners and holding up placards and the like as is commonly done by the
innovators in our time. The Prophet (sall Allahu alayhi wasallam) cautioned us
that we as a nation would emulate the Jews and Christians to such an extent
that if one of them had entered the hole of a lizard, someone from this nation
would follow him in that foolish action. Worldwide, Christians celebrate
Christmas, the 25th of December, to commemorate the birth of Christ.
This despite the fact that the 25th of December is not his date of
birth, but was transformed into a Christian celebration when previously it was
a pagan Roman festival to mark the winter solstice. Neither the promised
Messiah nor his disciples and original followers ever celebrated Christmas.
Even today there are some Christian churches which reject Christmas, notably,
the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The so-called “traditionalist” Sunni Muslims who
celebrate the Mawlid are no different in this regard from the “traditionalist”
Roman Catholic Church which is the most ardent in celebrating and promoting the
pagan festival known as Christmas. One of the most prominent Barelwi gurus,
Tahir ul-Padri, is arguably the first major religious figure in the Muslim
world who openly and shamelessly participates in Christmas celebrations with
the Christian community. I should make clear here that while there is a growing
tendency of irreligious, liberal and secular Muslims who not only greet and
congradulate Christians on the occassion of Christmas, but actually participate
in the festivities themselves, such a travesty must be avoided with as much
care as possible by true God-fearing Muslims. We cannot compromise on the
Oneness of Allah or the purity of our beliefs and religious practice in the
slightest.
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