Discussion of the issue of standing for others, and mentioning some of the hadiths reported on this matter along with commentary on them

The Shaykh: And I intended, or resolved, to speak about a minor issue that has become widespread today in the gatherings of Muslims, and based on the word of the brother mentioned earlier, that when the shaykh enters the gathering, the people sitting have the option to remain sitting or to stand. We say: When the shaykh enters a gathering, no one has the right to stand for him; because this shaykh, however high his status, will not be of any mention from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). And we have known from the authentic Sunnah that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is the master of mankind, and that his Companions (peace be upon him) are the best of people after the prophets and messengers; so they are the people who know best what the greatest of people and the master of people, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), deserves in terms of reverence, honor, and exaltation. How could it be otherwise? They heard him (peace be upon him) say to them repeatedly: . This is a hadith narrated by the Imam of Imams, Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari, in his book "Al-Adab al-Mufrad" through many routes and from a group of the Companions. And among what he also narrated is: .
So these Companions who were educated in the etiquette of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and graduated from his school, and accompanied him for as many years as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) willed, each according to his capacity, would not fail to exalt the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with the exaltation he deserves. They had no choice but to exalt the Messenger (peace be upon him) with the exaltation he deserves. So was it part of that that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered a gathering like this—and without likening, as they say—did any of them stand for him?
If we return to the authentic Sunnah, we find the answer clearly in the negative. This is also from what the Imam of Imams narrated in the previously mentioned book, "Al-Adab al-Mufrad": from Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: "No one was more beloved to them than the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and they did not stand for him, because of what they knew of his dislike of that."
So the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not stand for their master; rather, the master of all people. Do you think this was negligence on their part and indifference to exalting the Messenger (peace be upon him) and honoring him with the honor that is befitting and permissible by the Shari'ah? Or was it their response to their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who made them understand that this standing is from the custom of the non-Arabs, and they were prohibited—as we indicated at the beginning of this speech—in many hadiths from imitating the non-Arabs, meaning the disbelievers?
There is no doubt that their not standing for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was out of their respect for him and their magnification of him. Because Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says: . Following the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) with true following requires that a person turn away from his desires and his emotions regarding the command of his Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Sunnah. Therefore, the Companions of the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not stand for him. Why? The answer is in the hadith itself: "Because of what they knew of his dislike of that."
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) disliked it when his Companions stood for him. Do you know why? Some people, from those who are accustomed to opposing this Sunnah, from those who stand for others and for whom others stand, interpret this hadith with an interpretation other than its true meaning. And yet, their interpretation rebounds on them and does not benefit them. They say: "Because of what they knew of his dislike of it"; meaning: the Messenger (peace be upon him) was humble, he was undoubtedly the most humble of people, so out of his humility, he did not like the Companions to stand for him. We do not accept this reason. We accept that the Messenger (peace be upon him) was undoubtedly the most humble of people, but we do not accept at all that this is the reason, and we will mention what the reason is. But we say to those who interpret it with this interpretation: What is the matter with you that you do not humble yourselves with the humility of the Messenger (peace be upon him)? Are you not more deserving of humility than the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)? When the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the people: —and this is a statement that leads to another statement, as they say— Do you know what the meaning is? It means: Pray for me, for Allah will increase me in honor, glory, elevation, and rank. This may contradict humility, but we say that when he orders the people to pray for him, he is ordering them by the command of Allah for him to order them to pray for him; because that is the least that the Messenger (peace be upon him) deserves because he was a guidance for the people, as He (the Exalted) said in the Qur'an: .
If the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not humble himself in this manner, there is no harm in that for him, but the harm is entirely upon you; for it is feared that you will fall into fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). It is feared that if you begin to act in this way toward people, they will stand up for you, and Satan will enter. Satan flows through the son of Adam as blood flows. Satan will enter you in a specific way, changing your morals, habits, and dispositions. It will become such that if one of you enters a gathering and no one stands up, it is as if he has disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger! What has this person done? The least that can be said, as you heard from our story just now, is that he has the option to stand and the option not to stand. So, he did not stand. Why did the world turn upside down for him? Because they understood that standing is a sign of respect, and leaving it off is a sign of insult and lack of honor. Did the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) do this with the Messenger (peace be upon him)? Did they not honor him? Did they insult him by not standing? Never, by no means! But when the correct understanding of this hadith—that the Messenger (peace be upon him) disliked it, "for they knew of his dislike of it"—was distorted, the matter was distorted for them. They said: "There is no harm in standing as a sign of honor." Why did the Companions of the Messenger not stand for the Messenger? Out of humility on his part, they say! We say: Imitate the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and follow his example. Be humble as he was humble. Do not ask your companions to stand for you. Rather, spread among them that you dislike this standing. What will be the result and the outcome? It will be as it was between the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the Companions. The Messenger would enter a gathering and no one would stand. Was it an insult to him? Never. Why? It was an honor to him (peace be upon him), because he disliked it from them. If we, who claim to belong to knowledge and to the status of shaykhs, had followed the path of the Messenger (peace be upon him) in everything, including disliking what he (peace be upon him) disliked, especially these social etiquettes that corrupt hearts and morals, we would be in a society not like this society. We would be in a society free from the traditions of the non-Arab disbelievers.
As for the correct answer to the previously mentioned statement of Anas ibn Malik: "for they knew of his dislike of it," it is a shari'ah-based dislike. The Messenger dislikes this standing; why? Because it is the custom of the non-Arab disbelievers. And you heard just now the hadith of Jabir, where they stood behind the Messenger (peace be upon him) while he was standing. For whom? And why? To implement the text of the Noble Qur'an: .
So they did not stand for Muhammad (peace be upon him) who was sitting in his prayer out of necessity, but they stood for Allah, Lord of the worlds; that is: their intention was to exalt Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and nothing else. What did the Messenger (peace be upon him) do with them? He did not wait until he finished his prayer, but he hastened to enjoin good and forbid evil, so he gestured to them with his hand during the prayer to sit down. After the prayer, he explained it to them with his tongue and his explanation; he said: .