Discussion of the issue of standing for others, and the Shaykh’s mention of some of the hadiths regarding it, along with commentary on them, the stance of the Companions, and some of the interpretations of those who permit it, and the refutation of those interpretations.

The Shaykh : I intended, or resolved, to speak about a specific detail that has become widespread today in the gatherings of Muslims. Based on the word of the brother mentioned earlier, that when the Shaykh enters the gathering, the people sitting there should remain seated, or that they should stand. We say that if the Shaykh enters a gathering, no one has the right to stand for him, because this Shaykh, however high and exalted he may be, will not be anything mentioned from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). We have learned 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 them) are the best of people after the prophets and messengers. Therefore, 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 veneration, honor, and exaltation. How could it be otherwise? They heard him (peace and blessings be upon him) say to them repeatedly and over and over again . 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 chains and from a group of the Companions. And among what he also narrated is .
Therefore, these Companions who were trained in the etiquette of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), who graduated from his school, and who accompanied him for as many years as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) willed, each according to his capacity, it was not possible for them not to exalt the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with the exaltation he deserves. It was not possible for them except to exalt the Messenger (peace be upon him) with the exaltation he deserves. Was it part of that that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered a gathering like this one—and without likening, as they say—did any of them stand for him?
If we return to the authentic Sunnah, we find the answer explicitly in the negative. This is also 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 it."
Therefore, the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not stand for their master, indeed the master of all people. Do you think this was negligence on their part or indifference to exalting the Messenger (peace be upon him) and honoring him with the honor that is fitting and permissible by the Shari'ah? Or was it their response to their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who made it clear to them 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 numerous 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 exaltation of him, because Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says . So 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. That is why 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 it.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) disliked it when his Companions stood for him. Do you know why? Some people who are accustomed to opposing the guidance of the Sunnah, who stand for others and for whom others stand, interpret this hadith with an interpretation other than its correct ones. And yet, their interpretation comes back to them and does not return to us. They say: "because of what they knew of his dislike of it", meaning the Messenger (peace be upon him) was humble. He was, without a doubt, 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, without a doubt, the most humble of people, but we do not accept at all that this is the reason. We will mention what the reason is. But we say to those who interpret it this way: what about you, why do you 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 people —and this is a statement that leads to another statement, as they say—, do you know what this means? It means: "Pray for me, that Allah may increase me in honor, glory, and rank." This may contradict humility, but we say that when he commands people to pray for him, he is commanding them by the command of Allah to pray for him, because that is the least he deserves from the Messenger (peace be upon him) because he was a guidance for people, as the Exalted said in the Qur'an: . So if the Messenger (peace be upon him) did not humble himself in this way, there is no harm in that for him. But you bear all the harm, because fitnah is feared for you. It is feared that if you become accustomed to people standing for you, Satan will enter you in a special way, for Satan flows through the son of Adam like blood. He will change your morals, your habits, and your dispositions, so that one of you enters a gathering and no one stands for him, and it is as if he has disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger. What did this person do? The least that can be said, as you heard from our story earlier, is that it is permissible for him to stand and permissible for him not to stand. That is what he said. Why did the sky fall on him? Because they understood that this standing is a sign of respect, and leaving it is a sign of insult and lack of honor. Do you think the Companions were with the Messenger (peace be upon him)? Did they not honor him? Did they insult him by not standing? Never, never! But when the correct understanding of this hadith—the dislike of the Messenger (peace be upon him) of it, because of what they knew of his dislike—deviated, their matter deviated, and they said that honoring by standing is permissible. Why did the Companions of the Messenger not stand for the Messenger? Out of his humility, they say. We say: Imitate the Messenger of Allah, follow his example, and humble yourselves with his humility. Do not ask your companions to stand for you, but 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 enters the gathering, and no one stands. Is that an insult to him? Never! Why? It is an honor to him (peace be upon him) because he disliked it from them. So if we, who claim to belong to knowledge and to the path of the Shaykhs, had followed the path of the Messenger (peace be upon him) in everything, including disliking what he disliked, especially such social etiquettes that corrupt hearts and corrupt morals, we would have been in a society not like this society. We would have been in a society without the traditions of the disbelieving non-Arabs.
As for the correct answer to the previously mentioned statement of Anas ibn Malik, "because of what they knew of his dislike of it", it is a Shari'ah-based dislike. The Messenger dislikes this standing. Why? Because it is from the custom of the non-Arabs. And you heard earlier 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: .
Therefore, they did not stand for Muhammad (peace be upon him) who was sitting in his prayer out of necessity. Rather, 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, and he said: .