The Ruling on Distributing Food and Sweets on the Prophet's Birthday
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Question:
Also, our sister asks: On the day of the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) birthday, food and sweets are distributed to people in some areas of our country to commemorate this noble day, and they say that distributing food and sweets, especially the sweets, has a great reward with Allah . Is this correct?
Answer:
Celebrating the birthday is something that people have innovated, and it is not prescribed. It was not known among the righteous Salaf, neither in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), nor in the time of the Tabi'un, nor in the time of the generation following the Tabi'un, nor in the blessed centuries. It was not known in these great eras, which are the three blessed centuries. Rather, people innovated it after that.
The historians mentioned that the first to innovate it were the Fatimid Shi'ah rulers of Egypt and the Maghreb. They were the first to innovate these celebrations, celebrating the Prophet's birthday, the birthday of al-Husayn, the birthday of Fatimah, the birthday of al-Hasan, and the birthday of their ruler. They established celebrations for several birthdays, including the birthday of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). It is well known that they were the first to innovate it in the fourth century of the Hijrah. Then, other people followed them in doing so.
The Sunnah in this matter is not to do this birthday celebration, because it is an innovation introduced into the religion. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih Muslim 1718a, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 1718b. Celebrating is an act of devotion and obedience, so it is not permissible to innovate an act of devotion and obedience without evidence.
What people do today is not a proof. What people do in many cities on the twelfth day of Rabi' al-Awwal, celebrating birthdays, the birthday of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), distributing food or sweets, or reading the biography on that day, and setting up tables, all of this has no basis in what we know from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), nor from his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), nor from the righteous Salaf in the blessed centuries. This is what we have learned from the words of the scholars.
Abu al-Abbas Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), the Shaykh al-Islam, drew attention to this, and al-Shatibi (may Allah have mercy on him) drew attention to it in al-I'tisam bi al-Sunnah, and others among the scholars drew attention to it and explained that this celebration is a matter with no foundation, and it is not from the matters of the Shari'ah. Rather, it is something that people have innovated. So what we advise our Muslim brothers is to leave this innovation and not to be occupied with it. Loving the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) necessitates following him, obeying his commands, and leaving his prohibitions, as Allah the Exalted said: [Al Imran: 31]. So the sign of his love is not that we innovate innovations for which Allah has sent down no authority, such as celebrating the birthday, or swearing by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), or seeking help and aid from him, or circumambulating his grave, or the like of that. All of this is not permissible, and it is not from his love (peace and blessings be upon him). Rather, it is from disobeying his command (peace and blessings be upon him).
So his love necessitates following him, obeying his commands, leaving his prohibitions, and standing by the limits that he (peace and blessings be upon him) has set. This is how the believer is, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: [Al Imran: 31]. He (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: [Al Hashr: 7], and He (Mighty and Majestic) said: [Al Nur: 54].
If celebrating the birthday were a prescribed matter, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would not have concealed it, for he did not conceal anything. Rather, he conveyed the clear message (peace and blessings be upon him). So he did not celebrate his birthday, nor did he order his Companions to do so. The Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them) and the rest of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) did not do it, nor did the Tabi'un and those who followed them with excellence in the blessed centuries. How could it be hidden from them and known to those who came after them? This is impossible. So it is known that innovating it is from the innovations for which no authority has been sent down.
And whoever says: "It is a good innovation," this is an error that is not permissible, because there are no good innovations in Islam. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:, he said: , and he used to preach to the people on Friday and say: Sahih Muslim 867a. So it is not permissible for a Muslim to say about it: "A good innovation," meaning: he contradicts the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and opposes him. This is not permissible for a Muslim. Rather, it is obligatory for him to be polite with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and to beware of disobeying his command (peace and blessings be upon him) and disobeying his Shari'ah in this and other matters. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , this phrase is a general phrase, a general form, that covers the birthdays and other innovations.
And likewise, what some people have innovated of celebrating the night of the Isra' and Mi'raj, the twenty-seventh night of Rajab, or the middle night of Sha'ban, these are also from the innovations, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not do them, nor did his Companions do them, so they are innovations.
And likewise, all the innovations that people have introduced into the religion, they all fall under this meaning. So no one among the Muslims has the right to innovate something in worship that Allah has not prescribed. Rather, it is obligatory for the people of Islam to follow and adhere to the Shari'ah wherever they are, and to beware of innovation, even if it is innovated by whoever innovates it among the great and the prominent. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is above them, above all the great ones, and he is the master of the children of Adam, and he is the one whom Allah has obligated upon us to obey and follow his Shari'ah. So no one has the right to prefer the guidance of any person over his guidance, or the obedience of any person over his obedience. Then Allah is above all, and He is the one who must be obeyed, and He is the true God, and He is the one who sent the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach people and guide people. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is the one who conveys from Allah. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is the one who conveys from Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).
If celebrating these matters were something that Allah ordered, he would not have concealed it, but he would have conveyed it, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) has conveyed the clear message. And likewise, his Companions, if it had been conveyed to them and they had been informed, they would have conveyed it as well. Since this did not come to us from them, we know with certainty that it is from the innovations that people have introduced, and that it is obligatory for the people of Islam not to agree with innovations, but rather for them to proceed on the path that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) proceeded on, and that his noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) proceeded on, and then their followers with excellence in the blessed centuries. We ask Allah for guidance and success for everyone.
Also, our sister asks: On the day of the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) birthday, food and sweets are distributed to people in some areas of our country to commemorate this noble day, and they say that distributing food and sweets, especially the sweets, has a great reward with Allah . Is this correct?
Answer:
Celebrating the birthday is something that people have innovated, and it is not prescribed. It was not known among the righteous Salaf, neither in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), nor in the time of the Tabi'un, nor in the time of the generation following the Tabi'un, nor in the blessed centuries. It was not known in these great eras, which are the three blessed centuries. Rather, people innovated it after that.
The historians mentioned that the first to innovate it were the Fatimid Shi'ah rulers of Egypt and the Maghreb. They were the first to innovate these celebrations, celebrating the Prophet's birthday, the birthday of al-Husayn, the birthday of Fatimah, the birthday of al-Hasan, and the birthday of their ruler. They established celebrations for several birthdays, including the birthday of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). It is well known that they were the first to innovate it in the fourth century of the Hijrah. Then, other people followed them in doing so.
The Sunnah in this matter is not to do this birthday celebration, because it is an innovation introduced into the religion. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
'A'isha reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: He who innovates things in our affairs for which there is no valid (reason) (commits sin) and these are to be rejected.
من أحدث في أمرنا هذا ما ليس منه فهو ردHe who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.
من عمل عملًا ليس عليه أمرنا فهو ردWhat people do today is not a proof. What people do in many cities on the twelfth day of Rabi' al-Awwal, celebrating birthdays, the birthday of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), distributing food or sweets, or reading the biography on that day, and setting up tables, all of this has no basis in what we know from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), nor from his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), nor from the righteous Salaf in the blessed centuries. This is what we have learned from the words of the scholars.
Abu al-Abbas Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him), the Shaykh al-Islam, drew attention to this, and al-Shatibi (may Allah have mercy on him) drew attention to it in al-I'tisam bi al-Sunnah, and others among the scholars drew attention to it and explained that this celebration is a matter with no foundation, and it is not from the matters of the Shari'ah. Rather, it is something that people have innovated. So what we advise our Muslim brothers is to leave this innovation and not to be occupied with it. Loving the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) necessitates following him, obeying his commands, and leaving his prohibitions, as Allah the Exalted said:
Say, [O Muhammad], "If you should love Allah, then follow me, [so] Allah will love you and forgive you your sins
قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْSo his love necessitates following him, obeying his commands, leaving his prohibitions, and standing by the limits that he (peace and blessings be upon him) has set. This is how the believer is, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said:
Say, [O Muhammad], "If you should love Allah, then follow me, [so] Allah will love you and forgive you your sins
قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْAnd whatever the Messenger has given you - take; and what he has forbidden you - refrain from
وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانْتَهُواSay, "Obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away - then upon him is only that [duty] with which he has been charged, and upon you is that with which you have been charged. And if you obey him, you will be [rightly] guided. And there is not upon the Messenger except the [responsibility for] clear notification."
قُلْ أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ فَإِنْ تَوَلَّوا فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْهِ مَا حُمِّلَ وَعَلَيْكُمْ مَا حُمِّلْتُمْ وَإِنْ تُطِيعُوهُ تَهْتَدُوا وَمَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلاغُ الْمُبِينُIf celebrating the birthday were a prescribed matter, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would not have concealed it, for he did not conceal anything. Rather, he conveyed the clear message (peace and blessings be upon him). So he did not celebrate his birthday, nor did he order his Companions to do so. The Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them) and the rest of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) did not do it, nor did the Tabi'un and those who followed them with excellence in the blessed centuries. How could it be hidden from them and known to those who came after them? This is impossible. So it is known that innovating it is from the innovations for which no authority has been sent down.
And whoever says: "It is a good innovation," this is an error that is not permissible, because there are no good innovations in Islam. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Every innovation is misguidance.
كل بدعة ضلالةEvery innovation is misguidance.
كل بدعة ضلالةThe best of the speech is embodied in the Book of Allah, and the best of the guidance is the guidance given by Muhammad. And the most evil affairs are their innovations; and every innovation is error.
إن خير الحديث كتاب الله، وخير الهدي هدي محمد ﷺ، وشر الأمور محدثاتها، وكل بدعة ضلالةEvery innovation is misguidance.
كل بدعة ضلالةAnd likewise, what some people have innovated of celebrating the night of the Isra' and Mi'raj, the twenty-seventh night of Rajab, or the middle night of Sha'ban, these are also from the innovations, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not do them, nor did his Companions do them, so they are innovations.
And likewise, all the innovations that people have introduced into the religion, they all fall under this meaning. So no one among the Muslims has the right to innovate something in worship that Allah has not prescribed. Rather, it is obligatory for the people of Islam to follow and adhere to the Shari'ah wherever they are, and to beware of innovation, even if it is innovated by whoever innovates it among the great and the prominent. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is above them, above all the great ones, and he is the master of the children of Adam, and he is the one whom Allah has obligated upon us to obey and follow his Shari'ah. So no one has the right to prefer the guidance of any person over his guidance, or the obedience of any person over his obedience. Then Allah is above all, and He is the one who must be obeyed, and He is the true God, and He is the one who sent the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach people and guide people. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is the one who conveys from Allah. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is the one who conveys from Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).
If celebrating these matters were something that Allah ordered, he would not have concealed it, but he would have conveyed it, because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) has conveyed the clear message. And likewise, his Companions, if it had been conveyed to them and they had been informed, they would have conveyed it as well. Since this did not come to us from them, we know with certainty that it is from the innovations that people have introduced, and that it is obligatory for the people of Islam not to agree with innovations, but rather for them to proceed on the path that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) proceeded on, and that his noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) proceeded on, and then their followers with excellence in the blessed centuries. We ask Allah for guidance and success for everyone.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.