Loving him in light of the Mawlid
By Gulraz Gachi
“There has certainly come to you a Messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; (he is) concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful.”[1]
Allah the Most Merciful truly blessed His servants with the coming of His beloved Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), a light of guidance for mankind who illuminated this world from the day his blessed being entered it to the day it departed. A man who endeared the hearts towards him with his compassion and concern, to the extent that his beloved companions would lay down their lives for him. Thus enacting the words of the Most High:
“The Prophet is more worthy of the believers than their own selves”[2]
A statement that was epitomised by his devoted companions (May Allah be pleased with them) throughout his blessed life.
Faith cannot be complete without loving the greatest of mankind and most beloved to the Creator, the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him.) This love was manifested in its most complete and total form by those that loved him the most -his companions (may Allah be pleased with them.) For Allah the Most Wise chose them from the souls of all of mankind to be the ones to be blessed by his companionship and to aid him in his mission. This love and devotion is perfectly illustrated in the observations of Urwa Ath-thaqafi following his negotiations with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) during Hudaybiah, he said:
“O people, by God I have served as a representative to kings, I have been a representative to Ceasar, Kisra and Najashi. By God, I have never seen a king whose people venerate him the way the companions of Muhammad venerate Mohammed. He does not spit except that it lands in the hand of one of them who rubs it on his face and skin. If he commands them they race to fulfil his command. If he makes ablution they fight for the remains of its water, if they speak they lower their voices in his presence and they do not gaze at him intently out of reverence for him.”
This love and respect for their leader, the seal of the Prophets (peace be upon them all) , sent by the Most Merciful as a mercy to mankind led some of his beloved companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to swallow his blessed blood upon treating him and being unable to dispose of it suitably. Others refrained from speaking out for fear of raising their voices above his, while some couldn’t bring themselves to even look him in the eye out of such awe and respect.
Furthermore we have Khubayb (may Allah be pleased with him) who whilst being mutilated alive before his execution by the Quraish and asked “Would you like Muhammad to be in your place and you be saved?” Responded, “By Allah, I wouldn’t like that I be secure with my family and children while Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is so much as pricked with a thorn. We have his closest friend Abu Bakr As-Siddique (may Allah be pleased with him) being bitten by a scorpion yet not flinching so as not to disturb his beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as he lay asleep on his thigh. We have Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas and Talha ibn Ubaidillah (may Allah be pleased with them) risking their lives in protection of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) at Uhud. We have the female companion (may Allah be pleased with her) afflicted with the calamity of losing her father, her brother and her husband, yet her only concern was the well-being of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him.) The greatest day for them, as one of them mentioned, was the day the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered Al-Madinah and the darkest day was the day his blessed soul returned to its Creator. Yet the greatest manifestation of their love for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was in their eagerness to obey his every order and abstain from his every prohibition, for that truly shows ones love.
The day the blessed Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was born was indeed a blessed, joyous day and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself instructed us on how to recognise this great day when asked regarding fasting on Monday, he said:
“It is (the day) I was born and revelation was sent down to me.”[3]
Thus we are encouraged by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to engage in a regular, weekly act of worship that would bring us closer to our Lord, as opposed to a yearly celebration of his birth.
We must strive to show our love for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as demonstrated by his companions (may Allah be pleased with them), through obedience, and not by empty slogans. For its likeness is that of a disobedient son who once a year on Mother’s Day stands at her doorstep shouting out to everyone his love for her. She asks him to stop and bring her a glass of water, but he ignores her and continues to proclaim his love for her. Compare this to an obedient son who is humbly at the beck and call of his mother’s every wish every day, without the need for a song and dance. Who would best lay claim to loving their mother?
The companions (may Allah be pleased with them) showed their true love for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) by sacrificing their whole lives, living and dying to do that which pleased Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and obeying Allah’s command:
“And whatever the Messenger gives you – take it, and whatever he forbids you from – refrain from it”[4]
Celebrating the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)’s birthday was not a tradition practised by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), his beloved companions or the great imams. Had it been a praiseworthy act they would have been the foremost to engage in it. Rather it was an innovation introduced five centuries after his death.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) conveyed to his companions an earnest desire to meet his brothers. When questioned: “Are we not your brothers?” He replied: “No, you are my companions but my brothers are those that that have not yet come.” The companions asked: “How will you recognise those from your community that have not yet come, O Messenger of Allah?” He replied: “Does not a man who has horses with white legs and white blazes on their foreheads recognise them from amongst horses that are totally black?” They replied: “Of course O Messenger of Allah.” He continued: “As such they will come on the Day of Rising with white marks on their foreheads, hands and feet from wudhu, and I will precede them to the Hawdh[5]
Some men will be driven away from the Hawdh as if they were straying camels and I shall call out to them, ‘will you not come? Will you not come? Will you not come? And it will be said, ‘they changed things after you,’ so I shall say, ‘Then away with them! Away with them! Away with them!’ ”[6]
How terrible it would be to be rejected by our beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) on such a day, in such need, because we were careless and introduced new practices into our perfected religion. We ask Allah to make us of those that truly love Allah and His Messenger, to be raised with whom we love.
Notes:
[1] Surah at-Taubah:128
[2] Surah al-Ahzab:6
[3] Narrated by Abu Qatada Ansari. Recorded in Sahih Muslim, hadith no.2606
[4] Surah Al-Hashr:7
[5] The watering place of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) on the Day of Judgement, from which he will quench the thirst of the believers.
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