MAWLID CELEBRATION IS BID'AH (RELIGIOUS INNOVATION)

 

By

Ibn Abdillah As-sudaisiy Al-Iloori

After Salātul Fajr this morning, I heard an Imam nearby preaching and arguing that the celebration of Mawlid Nabiyy is allowed in Islām. I didn't expect less from him because of his antecedents. 

However, what baffled me was his statement that the verse of Sūratul Māidah (Q5:3) was revealed in relation to Hajj alone and that it is not of general application. He said the verse does not mean that we cannot do whatever the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not do in the Deen. But alhamdulillah, he agreed the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, his Companions and the Tābi'een رضي الله عنهم didn't do Mawlid Nabiyy. But he insisted if we have good intention, we can do it if we like it. SubhanaLlah! He said why are they condemning people who use the occasion to source for funds? He said it is a way of getting the rich to pay their zakat regularly. I was surprised that none of the members of his congregation asked him questions on his statements. 

This is how people of bid'ah mislead people here and there. This is how they interpret the Qur'ān to suit their desires. How can someone interpret the Qur'ān in isolation of the relevant hadiths. They twist the meanings of the Qur'ān using their intellect and they reject hadiths that do not suit their whims and caprices. 

To set the records straight, Mawlid Nabiyy was initiated by Shi'as, a significant portion who are known for cursing and hating some of the Companions of the Prophet رضي الله عنهم. Apart from the fact that Q5:3 signifies completion of Deen with no addition and subtraction, there are many other verses of the Qur'ān and hadiths pointing to the fact that the practice of innovations in acts of worship and imitation of the Kuffar in their ways of worship are forbidden. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was reported to have said repeatedly in almost all of his sermons

وشر الأمور محدثاتها ،وكل بدعة ضلالة،(أخرجه مسلم في صحيحه) "وكل ضلالة في النار"(النسائي بإسناد حسن)

And the worst of matters are their innovations, and every innovation is misguidance. (Narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh). "And every misguidance is in the Fire" (As added by Al-Nasa’i with a good chain of narration)

Imam Ahmad رحمه الله said in his Usul Sunnah that there is no qiyās (analogy) in the interpretation of a Sunnah when the text is crystal clear. There is no qiyās that would extend fasting on Mondays to including yearly celebration of Mawlid from Rabi'ul Awwal to Ramadān. In fact the Prophetصلى الله عليه وسلم was not born in Rabi'ul Awwal. He actually died the on the 12th of Rabi'ul Awwal. So, what are they celebrating? Birth or Deathday? All arguments advanced to support Mawlid Celebration are illogical and unreliable. Let us shun self-desire. Sheikh Sālih Fawzān حفظه الله mentioned in one of his works:

Celebrating the Mawlid is an innovation introduced by some muslims after the three best centuries in order to corrupt the religion of the Muslims. If a person does anything in order to draw closer to Allāh which was not done by the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم or enjoined by him, and was not done by the Caliphs who succeeded him, this action implies that he is accusing the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم of not explaining the religion to the people, and that he disbelieves in the words of Allāh: This day, I have perfected your religion for you. [al-Maa`idah, ayah 3] because he is adding something extra and claiming that it is a part of the religion, but the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم did not bring this. [The Ruling Concerning Maolid Nabawiy: Translated By Shawana A. Aziz, pg 8]

If there is any good in Mawlid Nabiyy, the Companions and the Taabi'een رضي الله عنهم would have been the first to do it. They loved and cherished the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم better than us. Had there been any good in Mawlid Celebration and other various kinds of bid'ah in our society, the four (4) Imams of Islamic jurisprudence would have done it. Are we better than the Companions and their successors? There is nothing we can do to meet up with them. 

No one engages in bid'ah or calls towards bid'ah except one who is ignorant and negligent about his Deen because the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم mentioned in an authentic hadith reported by 'Ali Ibn Abi Tālib رضي الله عنه:

، لَعَنَ اللَّهُ مَنْ آوَى مُحْدِثًا‏

The curse of Allāh is upon anyone who accommodates bid'ah (or habours an Ahlu bid'ah) [Adab Mufrad, 17]

This hadith shows how dangerous it is to propagate bid'ah. No amount of good intention can justify an act of bid'ah in the deen regardless of the status of the one who initiates it in the society. Apart from the fact that Mawlid Celebration is not legislated in the Deen, all arguments supplied by its proponents are untenable, unreasonable, fallacious, illogical and unpresentable on the subject matter. Those arguments are only acceptable to people without basic knowledge of the sharī'ah.

May Allāh guide us aright.

(This article was first published on 5th December, 2016)