Hafiz Ghulam Haider Ali Qadri explains in detail why it is permissible to stand whilst reciting Salaat O Salaam (sending Salawaat) on the Holy Messenger صلى الله عليه وآله وصحبه وسلم). May Allah سبحانه و تعالى rewards his efforts immensely. Ameen.

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In Allah’s Name we Begin, The Compassionate, The Most Merciful

Peace and Blessings on His Messenger

Question

I would like to know why, in some masjids, they send Durood shareef (congregating in a circle or group) after Jummah prayers, after the salah has been concluded? Could I have evidence from the Holy Quran and Authentic Sunnah of our beloved Prophet s.w.a, in your answer?

Answer

It is completely within the Shari’ah (Islamic Law) to send blessings and salutations upon the beloved Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings upon him, his family and companions). In fact, it is a Quranic injunction to do so, as is evident from the Quranic Ayah: “Undoubtedly, Allah and his Angels send blessings on the Prophet (the communicator of unseen events), O you who believe, Send upon him blessings and salutations in abundance”. (Surah Al Ahzab (33), verse 56)

The above verse of the Holy Quran is generic in its import therefore there is no restriction as to the time, place, form and manner in which the blessings and salutations are to be sent upon the beloved Holy Prophet (peace be upon him, his family and companions). We are commanded by Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) to send blessings and salutations in abundance.

Sending salawat (blessings) and salaam (salutations) upon the beloved Holy Prophet (peace be upon him, his family and companions) after Friday prayers is mustahab (permissible). The believers are guided and commanded to recite the durood supplication upon the beloved Holy Prophet (saws) in their prayers and whenever his blessed name is mentioned in their presence, and whenever they will or please, regardless of whether they happen to be standing, sitting, or lying down.

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him, his family, and companions) said “invoke salawat (blessings) upon me abundantly on Friday because it is a day that is (particularly) witnessed and the Angels witness it. As soon as a person invokes blessings on me, his invocation is show to me until he ends it”. Hazrat Abu Darda (radi Allahu anhu) asked “even after your passing away?”. The prophet (saws) replied “verily Allah has forbidden the earth to consume the bodies of the Prophets”. (Ibn Majah)

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him, his family and companions) said “increase your recitation of durood on me, on Friday, because the Angels present themselves to me. There is no servant of Allah who recites salutations on me except that his voice reaches me, from wherever he is.” The companions asked: even after your departure? He (saws) replied. “yes, after my departure too, because Allah (swt) has made it haram upon the earth to consume the bodies of the Prophets”. (Jila ul Ifhaam by Ibn Qayyim Al Jawziyyah)

Standing up (Qiyaam) whilst offering Salawat and Salaam to Rasoolullah (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) is desirable and commendable (mustahab) according to the belief of the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’ah. It is an act of respect and love, the origin of which is established from the Shari’ah. This is the consensus of the ulama of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah. No scholar of the Ahlus Sunnah has ever objected to it.

Hazrat Aisha Siddiqa (radi Allahu anha) has narrated: “I have never encountered anyone that had emulated the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam) in manner, likeness and speech more than Hazrat Fatima (radi Allahu anha), may Allah honour her face. When she came in to visit him (the Prophet) he got up to (welcome) her, took her by the hand, kissed her and made her sit where he was sitting; and when he went in to visit her, she got up to (welcome) him, took him by the hand, kissed him, and made him sit where she was sitting”. (Sunan Abu Dawood; Ash’atul Lama’aat). This shows that Rasoolullah (saws) stood up to honour and respect his noble daughter and vice versa.

Hazrat Abu Huraira (radi Allahu anhu) said that the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) was seated with them in the mosque and speaking to them. When he rose to depart, they all rose with him and remained standing until he entered any of the houses of his blessed wives. (Mishkaat). This show the companions (Allah be pleased with them all) stood up to respect and honour Rasoolullah (saws).

Hazrat Usama ibn Sharik (radi Allahu anhu) narrates: “I came to see the Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) while his companions were with him, and they seemed as still as if birds had alighted on top of their heads (this shows their etiquette when in his presence). I gave him my salaam and I sat down. Then bedouins came and asked questions which the Prophet (saws) answered.) … The Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) then stood up and the people stood up. They began to kiss his hand, whereupon I took his hand and placed it on my face. I found it more fragrant than musk and cooler than sweet water.” (Abu Dawud; Ibn Majah)

In another Hadith: The people of (Banu) Quraiza agreed to accept the verdict of Hazrat Sa’d bin Mu’adh (Allah be pleased with him). So, the Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) sent for Hazrat Sa’ad (ra), and the latter came (riding) a donkey and when he approached the Mosque, the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) said to the Ansar, “Get up for your chief or for the best among you!” (Sahih Bukhari). Indeed, Hazrat Sa’ad (radi Allahu anhu) is worthy of such honour. The Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) said: “The Throne (of Allah) shook at the death of Hazrat Sa’ad bin Mu’adh (ra).”

Allama Ibn Hajar Makki (rahmat ullahi alaih) states in “Moulidatil Kabeer”: “It is proven from Sunnah to stand for others besides the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam), thus in honour of the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) it is permissible to stand, in the first instance. The proof here is the command the Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) gave to stand, in respect of Hazrat Sa’ad ibn Muadh (ra).”

Imam Nawawi (rahmat ullahi alaih) hold the same view (in his commentary of this hadith) and he even quotes the opinion of Qadhi Iyad Maliki (rahmat ullahi alaih). Also commenting on this Hadith, Hazhrat Shaikh Shah Abdul Haq Muhaddith Dehlvi (rahmat ullahi alaih) writes: “A great number of eminent ‘Ulama have taken this Hadith as proof in support of Qiyaam in Meelad (standing when reciting salaat o salaam)” (Ash’atul Lama’aat)

Imam Nawawi (rahmat ullahi alaih) said that the Hafidh Abu Musa Al Ashbahani (rahmat ullahi alaih) recited:

• Qiyami wa al-aziz ilyaka haqqun (I swear by the All-Powerful (Allah) that my standing for you (O Prophet) is right and true)
• Wa tarku al-haqqi maa laa yastaqimu (And to leave truth and right is to embrace error)
• Fa hal ahadun lahu aqlun wa lubbun wa ma’rifa yaraka fa laa yaqumu (I ask: can anyone possessed of a mind, heart and knowledge, upon seeing you, not stand up?)

(Sharh Muslim and Al Tarkhis bil Qiyam of Imam Nawawi)

Hafidh Abu Musa (rahmat ullahi alahi) passed away in 581 AH, nearly 6 centuries after the time of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and yet he stands for him in the present tense and mentions “seeing him”. This seeing of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) by the pious believers is an attested fact.

It is mentioned in “Hisn-al-Haseen”, on the basis of several Ahadith: “When any man enters a Masjid he should say, ‘With Allah’s name. And salutations be on His Rasool (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam)’”.

Allama Sakhawi (rahmat ullahi alaih) has narrated from the Hadith of Hazrat Ali (Allah ennoble his blessed countenance and be pleased with him): “Whenever you enter the masjid, recite Durood for the Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam)” – and has also quoted a Hadith narrated by Hazrat Fatima (on her be peace and Allah be pleased with her), the daughter of Rasoolullah (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) who said, “Whenever Rasoolullah (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam) entered the Masjid he recited first Durood and Salaam for Hazrat Muhammad (i.e. upon himself) …” If some people say the only posture in which it is permitted to recite Salawat is the posture of Jalsa (in Salaah when reciting “Attahiyyaat”) then the only option open to him is to sit at the entrance of the masjid and recite the Salawat and then enter the masjid. Of course, no one does that so we can deduce that those entering the masjid are reciting the salawat whilst standing or walking.

Allama Ibn Hajar Makki (rahmat ullahi alaih) said: “To stand at the mention of the Mawlid (reciting salaat o salaam) is something the Ahl as-Sunnah Wal Jamaah have all agreed upon, as being a commendable action. And the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) says, ‘My followers do not agree upon misguidance and the Hand of Allah is upon the (majority) group; and he who deviates, deviates towards the Fire (of Hell)“. (Tirmidhi) (Mawlidatil Kabeer)

When the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) was born “a cluster of stars concentrated over the roof of his house at the time of the birth of the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam); Angels hoisted flags on the holy Ka’ba and in the east and in the west; the whole atmosphere was filled with the voices of Angels and Houries reciting Salutations on him in the standing position and congratulating each other and rejoicing with abandon; animals also congratulated each other at the birth of the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam), the Ka’ba bowed in a manner of saluting, and the falsehood vanished and the light of truth spread light in all directions.” (Mawaahib-e-Ladunniyah; Mauladul Uroos)

Haji Imdaadullah Muhajir Makki (rahmat ullahi alaih) (who was the spiritual guide of the deobandi scholars) stated: “To reject such a practice is to be denied a great deal of good. If one stands for respect when the sacred name of the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) is mentioned in a Mawlid Shareef, what harm is there? When someone (an ordinary person) appears, we stand up for him, so if we stand up for our Master to show respect, what wrong is there?” (Imdaadul Mushtaaq)

Haji Imdaadullah (rahmat ullahi alaih) further states: “The way of this servant (himself) is this: I present myself in the gathering of Meelad regarding it as a means of blessing I even commemorate it and I gain great pleasure and peace by standing.” (Faisla Haft Mas’ala)

Moulvi Ashraf Ali Thanvi (a Deobandi scholar) writes in a biography that he authored of his spiritual guide Haji Imdaadullah (rahmat ullahi alaih). He writes that Haji Imdaadullah (rahmat ullahi alaih) stated that “to reject such a practice is to be denied a great deal of good. If one stands for respect when the sacred name of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him, his family and companions) is mentioned in a Mawlid, what harm is there?” (Imdaadul Mushtaq)

Moulvi Ashraf Ali Thanvi writes: the ulama have unanimously agreed that the practice of standing out of respect is allowed and he evidences this by saying that when Rasoolullah (saws) would visit his noble daughter Hazrat Sayyidah Fatima (as) she would stand respectfully and vice versa. (Al Ifaadatul Yaumiya)

The Mujaddid Ala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Qadri (rahmat ullahi alaih) writes: “Qiyaam (standing) is consistently practiced by the famous Imams. None of them refuted or denied this. Therefore, it is Mustahab (recommended)”. (Iqaamatul Qiyaamah).

The act of Qiyaam (standing) in salaat o salaam is not Fardh (obligatory). Anyone who does not stand is not regarded as a Kaafir or Faasiq just because he does not participate in the act of Qiyaam (standing). Qiyaam is regarded as Mustahab according to us. One who leaves a Mustahab act is not even a sinner let alone becoming a Kaafir. Only those people are Kaafirs who insulted Rasoolullah (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam).

The Grand Mufti of the Hanafis at Makkatul Mukarramah, Allama Sheikh Abdullah Siraj (rahmat ullahi alaih) writes: “Standing in honour at the time of the mention of the Holy Prophet’s (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) birth has been a practice for generations by the great leaders and the judges of Islam, regardless of any opposer thereof, and have established it. Thus, it is a commendable act.”

In the ruling of Allama Muhammad Omar ibni Abi Bakr Raees (rahmat ullahi alaih), Mufti of the Shafi’is, in Makkatul Mukarramah, it is stated: “The standing at the mention of the Prophet’s (sallal laahu alaihi wa aalihi wasallam) birth has been commended by the learned of Islam and it is good because the honour and respect of the Holy Prophet (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam) is obligatory upon us.”

We have presented evidence from the Holy Quran, the blessed Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (pbuh), the practice of his family and his companions (ra) and the views of the learned scholars of the Ummah to establish and demonstrate that standing due to reverence, honour and respect for the Holy Prophet (pbuh) is from amongst the traditions of Islam and in conformity with the Shari’ah. May Allah Almighty (swt) guide us all on the straight path and instill in our hearts the true love of the blessed Holy Prophet (peace and blessings on him, his family and companions). Ameen

Compiled by Hafiz Ghulam Haider Ali Qadri

Waltham Forest Islamic Association

2^nd April 2021 / 19^th Shaban 1442 AH

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