Prophet Muhammad�s Birthday Celebration

The Prophet Muhammad
The Prophet Muhammad's Birthday Celebration
By: Dr. Rifyal Ka'bah
http://www.islamic-paths.org/Home/English/Muhammad/Birthday/ Birth_Celebration.htm

The month of Rabi� al-Awwal (the First Spring Season) of the Islamic Calendar is well known in the entire Muslim world as Shahr al-Mawhid (the Month of Birth) of the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. The precise date of his birth is disputed among the historians, but 12 of Rabi� al-Awwal is acknowledge in Indonesia to be the date and it is officially stated as a national holiday. This year that date matches June 26, 1999.

As a matter of fact in Islam there are only two holidays: Idul Fitri (the first day after the fasting month Ramadan) and Idul Adha [(the 10^th day of Zuhijjah (the month of pilgrimage)]. The question is: Why do the Muslim ummah make other days during the year as the Islamic holidays? Why the Prophet�s birthday is celebrated and considered as a holiday?

Going deeply into the seerat (biography) of the Prophet Muhammad, nobody can trace the tradition of Mawlid (the Prophet�s birthday) celebration or other celebrations of very important days in Islamic history. Never the Prophet nor his close companions or people who followed him and his companions encouraged people to make his birthday as a special day.

Nobody knows exactly when the first celebration of the Prophet�s birthday was celebrated or marked as a holiday. Noted in history that the celebration was found during the reign of Wazir al-Afdlal (487-515 AH/1095-1121 CE) of the Fatimite regime in Egypt. The celebration was held during the day time and attended by government officials and Muslim spiritual leaders in town. The Fatimite amir as a head of state sat in the balcony of the palace and three speakers in sequence delivered their Mawlid speeches. They talked about Muhammad�s origin, his birthday and his life. Celebration was not only for the Prophet�s birthday but also the birthday of Ali (the Prophet�s cousin), Fatimah (his daughter) and the Amir as the present imam of Shi�ite Muslim. The influence of the Shi�ite doctrine of the celebration of the Prophet�s birthday was very clear and is still eminence in modern Egypt even today. Foreign tourists who visited Cairo several times or anybody who ever stayed there for a long period will note that Husain�s birthday (the Prophet�s grandson) was celebrated more thoroughly and illimuniously than the Prophet�s birthday, in the meantime the majority of Muslims in Egypt today adhere to Ahlu as-Sunnah�s Islam.

Ibnu Khalikan�s historical report says that Ahly as-Sunnah version of the Prophet�s birthday celebration was introduced in Egypt by Al-Malik Muzaffar Ad-Din Kukburi in 604 AH/1207 CE. Kukburi was brother of Salahuddin al-Ayyubi (Saladin). These were the days of Crusade where almost 200 years waves after waves of crusaders from Europe came to the heart of the Muslim world in the Middle East to fight Muslims in their own countries.

During the crusade a process of acculturation took place. Both Islamic and Christian culture exchanged views on many things and each tried to put its influence on the other. Christians brought sciences, technologies and wisdom of the East to Europe, and Muslim imitated some festivals and feasts of the Christians who lived among them. One of these feasts is the tradition to celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h as Christians celebrated the birthday of Jesus Christ, known as Christmas.

This Christian impact is clearly seen in the use of wax light in Maulid festival, torchlight procession, mass entertainment�s, special cakes and foods on the occasion etc. A bigh festival was organized and attended by a huge number of people from Cairo and its vicinities. The Amir as a head of the stated and the Shufi orders played a significance role in the festival.

A tower made of wood for the Amir was erected in the courtyard of the palace. People attending the festival were entertained by groups of musicians and singers of various kind. Week after week during the month of Mawlid streets of Cairo were overcrowded by people who celebrated the occasion. On the eve of Mawlid, after Maghrib prayer, people under the command of the Amir paraded on the street of Cairo starting from the Citadel proceeding to the Palace. In their hands were torches. On the Mawlid Day all citizens assembled in the courtyard of the Palace where a tower made of wood had been erected. Beside the tower stands a pulpit for the speakers who would sermon the audience and narrate the story of the Prophet�s birthday. The Amir was not only able to see the whole audience from the tower but also watched the troops who parade on one corner of the courtyard. Guests of honor were received by the Amir on the tower and were given jubbah of honor (long dress for man). On the evening the Amir and officers of the state celebrated the Mawlid with shufis in their zawiyah (place where the shufis preferably offer their rituals and shufis practices).

From Egypt the tradition of Mawlid was spread to Mecca and the land of Hejaz in Arabia. From the Holy City where Muslim peoples of different nationals assembled during the hajj season each year, the tradition was spread to North Africa, Morocco and Andalusia (Spain). To the north it was spread to Syria, Irak, Turkey and Balkan peninsula, and to the south, to Yemen and Hadramaut, and to the east, to Southeast Asia and Indonesia.

It was well known in history that Indonesia took its Islamic religious and cultural root from Egypt and Mecca. From the beginning, Mecca had been the center of Islamic heritage and tradition for Indonesian Muslims. Their first intention was to Mecca a pilgrimage, and then stayed in the holy city to seek Islamic studies. Among those pilgrims there were some great teachers of Indonesia�s origin in Mecca who taught Islamic studies to their won countrymen. Later, especially after the opening of the Suez canal for international maritime, Cairo became important as the center of Islamic studies for Indonesian students.

Today, without knowing its origin, the Mawlid celebration and commemoration has become part of religious and cultural life of Indonesian Muslims. Even in some rural areas, the Mawlid celebration is identical with parties to commemorate a child�s birthday, the day of child�s circumcision, marriage, etc.

In fact, the Mawlid celebration is not part of the Islamic religion. It is a cultural side of the Muslim life. Islam is not against culture. Islamic culture was born through cultural activities of the people who adhere genuinely and properly to Islam. In another words, there is nothing wrong for the Muslims to commemorated the Mawlid, if it is done to remind Muslims of the life and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh and the celebration is held within the framework of Islamic doctrines.

The Prophet Muhammad and all prophets from Allah are the reminders for their ummah of the way of Allah. Qur�an was sent down to earth as a reminder (al-zikra) and the ummah who supported the call of the past prophets of Allah were called �people of the reminder� (ashab al-zikr). The tradition to celebrate the Mawlid can go on as long as its aim is to remind the people of the way of life brought by the Prophet Muhammad from Allah the Almighty. By this kind of celebration, the Muslim ummah are supposed to be more convinced of the Muhammad�s universal message as the mercy for the whole world (rahmatan li al��alamin). The Qur'an says: "Thus We have appointed you a middle nation. that ye may be witness against mankind, and that the Messenger may be a witness against you.� (Qur'an 2:143).

The Muslim nation is the best example for the whole world in promoting the truth, establishing justice, enjoying the good, and preventing the bad.

Auzubillahi minash shaitan ir rajeem,

Bismillah ir rahman ir rahim.

Introduction to of Dhikra Mawlid Rasul Allah (s)

by Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Alawi Maliki

Ibn Kathir's Book of Mawlid 
"Dhikra Mawlid Rasul Allah "

The book consists of 31 pages. A copy could be obtained from the Library of University of Princeton, between the many manuscripts there where it was kept in collection under number 4098. Collection 4098 has sixteen different important manuscripts, with "Dhikra Mawlid Rasulullah" being one of them.

That book was written by Ibn Kathir who is a vey well-known scholar from the Salafi school and who was a student of the main Imam and founder of the Salafi school Shaikh ul-Islam, Taqi ad-Din Ibn Taymiyya. When he died, Shaikh Ibn Kathir was buried beside his shaikh, Ibn Taymiyya in the Sufi cemetery in Damascus (al-maqbirat is-sufiyya fi Dimashq).

On the first page of the manuscript, Ibn Kathir says he wrote the book at the request of one of the muadhineen (adhan callers) in the mosque al-Muzaffari in Damascus, mosque of the Hanbalis, in the Salihiyya District --the mosque built by Muzaffar ad-Din Kawkaburi. It was known in Damascus as Jami'a al-Hanabila. At that time Ibn Kallikan, the historian, described the Mawlid of the Prophet (s) as a big celebration, which all scholars of the time used to take as a national holiday and a religious, holiday including Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Kathir. In that mosque was happening a big ceremony for the mawlid. Therefore the muadhins of that mosque, ash-Shaikh 'Imad ud-din Abi Bakr and the Shaikh Badruddin Hassan asked Ibn Kathir to write a book about the permissiblity of Mawlid in Islam.

Being a talmeez (follower) to his shaikh, Ibn Kathir felt it necessary to ask his shaikh's permission for writing such a book. He asked Shaikh Ibn Taymiyya, if he had permssion to write it. Shaikh Ibn Taymiyya gave him permission and encouraged him to do that. This manuscript tells us that Ibn Kathir and Ibn Taymiyya, the great scholars of Islam, were giving permission and authorizing reading of the remembrance of the Mawlid ash-sharif.

In order for the general public to understand, Ibn Kathir wrote it in a very easy language and he included in it what is good to be done in the remembrance of the Mawlid of the Prophet (s), specifically the poetry, the seerah and what is to be said.

Ibn Kathir says in this book, on page 19:

"The Night of the Prophet's (s) birth is a magnificent, noble, blessed and holy night, a night of bliss for the Believers, pure, radiant with lights and of immeasurable price."

The Birth of Islam

In the holiest land of Arabia
In the tribal of Quresh
It was in Makkah
The Prophet Mohammad was born
The Holy Quran was blessed upon him in cave of Hira
When Gabriel asked him to recite Holy Quran
It was the beginning of the religion Islam
This is how Islam was born
Prophet Mohammad said there are five pillars of Islam
Faith in Allah, Prayers, Fasting, Charity and Haj
He said tolerance is what Islam teaches
Without these basic things there is no Islam
He travel across the communities
And said I am the messenger of Allah
Read this Holy book, this is word of Allah
This is Holy Quran as it comes to me
When the news of Mohammad reaches Far East
King of Egypt came to meet Prophet Mohammad

He was surprised to see his living style
He thought that he might be living in a castle
And found him sitting and preaching under a tree
Is this is how you live? asked the King
Yes he said I am Mohammad my life is simple as you see
I am not a King or have any servants
And the castle that you were expecting to see
Allah has given me all that I need
My life is simple as you can see
Where is your food that you eat?" asked the King
Prophet Mohammad said this is dates, which I eat
That king was so impressed by what he saw
And said "Like you a true Muslim can I also be"?
Prophet Mohammad said always forgive your enemy
As I did to that lady who used to throw garbage at me
One day no garbage came on me
I began to worry about her health
And found her in great pain
I comfort her and provided help that she need
She began to cry and said I am feeling ashamed for what I did?

She was so impressed and became a Muslim
At the age of 63, when he was near to his death
He calls to all Muslims to have unity
I am leaving behind for you two things to follow
It is my life (sunnah) and the Holy Quran.

Copy right ( 2005 ) Wasi Siddiqui

Shaykh Mutawalli Ad-Darsh 
(rahimahullah)

Q: Is the celebration of the Prophet's birthday a reprehensible innovation or is it something to be encouraged?

A: We do not call it a celebration but a commemoration of the birth of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.). This is a development which took place at the end of the sixth Islamic century according to Imam as-Suyuti, who researched the origins of the practice.

There are two points of view. On the one hand there are those who consider the commemoration to be a good innovation to remind us of the birth of the Prophet (s.a.w.), to remind us of his achievements and to remind us of the great Islamic way of life we inherited from his coming. In the seventh Islamic century people became more involved in worldly affairs, and the living experience of the Shari'ah was in decline. As a result, scholars took the opportunity to remind people of that great event in the history of humanity. In this commemoration, Muslims revive the memory of the Prophet's achievements.

They quote the Hadith in which the Prophet was asked about the first day of the week, when he replied, "That was the day I was born. That was the day I received my message and when I migrated to al-Madinah." So these were days ingrained in the memory of the Prophet (s.A.w.). Also, upon his arrival in Madinah, the Prophet saw the Jewish community celebrating an event, and when he inquired about it he was told, "This was the day on which God saved Moses and his people", to which the Prophet (s.a.w.) replied, "We deserve to look after the correct tradition of Moses." The proponents of the Mawlid also point to the ayah in the chapter of Ibrahim when God says to Moses (a.s.), "Remember the days of Allah", meaning the days on which Allah has graced them with so many favours.

On the Prophet's birthday, some parts of the life of the Prophet are related, the Qur'an is recited and food is offered to the needy, avoiding the sort of behaviour that is Islamically reprehensible. Those who say that commemorating the Prophet's birthday is a Bid'ah which is not acceptable are influenced by the bad behaviour that took place when people danced in the streets, mixed freely with the opposite sex and danced around the villages. That is the part which is not acceptable.

One of the great Muslim scholars in his book published this century, "Al-Ibda'a fi mazaar 'il Ibtida'a" or "The most innovative thing in explaining the harmful things in innovations" came to the conclusion that the two parties in the Mawlid debate are not talking about the same thing. The party which objects is talking about things which are not generally acceptable, while the party which encourages the commemoration is talking about things that are generally acceptable. The author concludes that if Islamically unacceptable practices are avoided then there is no harm in commemorating the birthday of the Prophet (s.a.w.). This is the view of Ibn Hajar, al-Imam as-Suyuthi and the recently departed great Mufti from Egypt, Sheikh Hasanayn Muhammad Makhluf.

'He [Muzaffar] used to celebrate the noble Mawlid in Rabi` al-Awwal and organize huge festivities for it. He was a wise king, brave, a fierce fighter, intelligent, learned, and just. May he have mercy on him and ennoble his grave. Shaykh Abu al-Khattab ibn Dihya compiled for him a book on the Mawlid of the Prophet (s) an named it 'al-Tanwir fi Mawlid al-Bashir al-Nadhir' [The Illumination Concerning the Birthday of the Bringer of Glad Tidings and Warner] and the king rewarded him with 1,000 dinars for it. His rule lasted until he died in the year 630 [Hijri] as he was besieging the French in the city of Acca [Acre, Palestine] after a glorious and blameless life.'"