Warning Against Adding the Word

The questioner : Professor, excuse me, regarding the Ibrahimiyyah prayers in the salutation upon the Messenger of Allah ... May Allah send blessings upon our master Muhammad, as we have ... I mean, some people say ... . .

The Shaykh: This is another issue. The use of the word "master" (sayyid) in the Ibrahimiyyah prayers is a matter of disagreement between the Hanafis and the Shafi'is. The Hanafis say that the word "master" did not come in the Prophetic instruction to his Companions regarding the salutation upon him. The Shafi'is acknowledge this, but they say that as a matter of etiquette (adab) with the Messenger - peace be upon him - we use the word "master." We see that the correct view is with the Hanafis. Of course, this is not because I was raised on the Hanafi school, for everyone knows that I have no sectarian bias; rather, I am biased toward the Book and the Sunnah. So I say that the correct view is with the Hanafis. This is because some intelligent scholars, when they addressed the explanation of the disagreement in this issue between the Hanafis and the Shafi'is, noted that the Hanafis preferred following (ittiba') over the etiquette that a person brings from himself, while the Shafi'is preferred etiquette over following. The Hanafis called following "compliance" (imtithal), meaning by that, or pointing to that, that Allah - Mighty and Majestic - when He revealed His saying in the Qur'an: . "The Companions of the Prophet said: O Messenger of Allah, we know this salam; so how do we send blessings upon you? He said: . to the end of the Ibrahimiyyah prayers. This is the command. So the Hanafis said compliance is better than etiquette, meaning better than adding the word "master." The Shafi'is said, as you heard, no, etiquette is better than compliance. So some of the intelligent scholars, when they addressed this disagreement, said: "No, compliance is the etiquette." He resolved the disagreement with a concise and useful phrase: compliance is the etiquette. And there is no doubt in this when a person reflects on this phrase. And I give an example so that you understand that compliance is the etiquette, and deviating from compliance is a lack of etiquette, contrary to what many people think. If it is etiquette to exalt the Messenger - peace be upon him - with a word we add to the Prophetic instruction, then it is even more so, and even more so, that we exalt Allah - Mighty and Majestic - and show etiquette with Him with a word we add from ourselves to the Prophetic instruction. So he - peace and blessings be upon him - for example says, and the Ibrahimiyyah prayer has a connection to prayer, so let us bring another example that has a connection to prayer. to the end of the well-known tashahhud. So what is the opinion of the sensible Muslims if a person heard that phrase "etiquette is better than compliance" and the Messenger said: to the end. As long as etiquette is better than compliance, I would say "The praises are for Allah the Exalted" or "The praises are for Allah - Glorified and Exalted is He" or "The praises are for Allah - Mighty and Majestic" and "The good things, peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah - Mighty and Majestic" to the end. It would result in a tashahhud that is strange and far from the instruction of the Messenger - peace and blessings be upon him. And so say about every instruction: if we want to put our intellect and our cold etiquette into it, that will lead us to changing the legislation of the Shari'ah of Allah - Mighty and Majestic - which the Messenger of Allah - peace and blessings be upon him - brought. Therefore, compliance is the etiquette. So the salutation upon the Messenger - peace be upon him - we recite it as we were taught it, without any addition from ourselves. But at the same time, I say I have no objection if I sometimes say "Our Master the Messenger of Allah said such and such" to clarify that he is indeed our master, as we mentioned in the previous hadiths. But in the invocations (awrad) that came from the Messenger - peace and blessings be upon him - preserved word for word, it is not permissible to add to them, just as it is not permissible to subtract from them. For this reason, the common people say "the extra is the brother of the missing."

The questioner : Shaykh, there is a hadith ... .

The Shaykh: This hadith has no basis.

The questioner : I am thinking about the seven, Professor. That we, before the Divine, do not say "May Allah send blessings upon our master Muhammad" as etiquette for the sake of Muhammad, His servant and His Messenger.

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner : We say "May Allah send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad."

The Shaykh : This is it only.

The questioner : Because before the Divine, I mean ... .

The Shaykh: I mean the greatest etiquette must be with Allah.

The questioner : I specified ... .