Understanding the Ahl al-Hadith Stance on Milad un-Nabi: A Matter of Obedience and Love
We do not celebrate Milad because we truly love the Messenger
Written by: Maqbool Ahmad Salafi
Jeddah Dawah Center, Al-Salamah, Saudi Arabia
You may have read about the incident of the Garden of Fadak, which summarizes that out of true love for Allah’s Messenger, Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) did not grant Sayyida Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) a share from the Garden of Fadak. There was no personal interest for the first caliph; it was solely the genuine love for the Messenger of Allah that motivated him. However, based on this incident, the entire Shia community defames Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), insults him, and calls him derogatory names. Let’s revisit this incident as narrated in Sahih Bukhari to better understand the topic.
In the first hadith, Sayyida Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) makes a request. The hadith is narrated in Bukhari as follows:
Narrated by Aisha: Fatimah and Abbas (peace be upon them) came to Abu Bakr asking for their inheritance from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and they were then requesting their land from Fadak and their share from Khaybar. (Sahih Bukhari: 6725)
Now, let’s read Abu Bakr Siddiq’s response to Sayyida Fatimah’s request as mentioned in the next narration of Bukhari:
Abu Bakr said to them: “I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say: ‘We do not leave any inheritance; what we leave is charity. The family of Muhammad only eats from this wealth.'” Abu Bakr said: “By Allah, I will not leave anything that I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) doing, except that I will do it.” (Sahih Bukhari: 6726)
What do we learn from Abu Bakr’s response to the request for Fadak?
We learn that Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), immersed in love for the Messenger, did not accept Sayyida Fatimah’s request purely out of sincere love for Muhammad (peace be upon him). There was absolutely no personal interest behind it. He acted upon the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and revived the Sunnah, yet the Shia regard this sincere love of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) as animosity and call it usurpation.
The same situation applies to the Barelvi community regarding the Ahl al-Hadith’s stance on the celebration of Milad un-Nabi (peace be upon him). We, the Ahl al-Hadith, do not celebrate the day of the Prophet’s birth because of our true love for him. We have numerous sayings of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that discourage the celebration of Milad un-Nabi, yet the Barelvis label our love as enmity and disrespect.
Let us present a few texts to provide evidence of our true love for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).
Allah has commanded all believers to obey Him and His Messenger. Allah, the Exalted, says:
"Say, 'Obey Allah and the Messenger.' But if they turn away, then indeed, Allah does not like the disbelievers." (Al-Imran: 32)
This verse not only commands obedience to Allah and His Messenger but also states that those who do not obey are disbelievers, and Allah does not love disbelievers. Thus, obedience to Allah and His Messenger is a means of attaining Allah’s love.
In another place, Allah commands obedience to the Messenger:
"But no, by your Lord, they will not truly believe until they make you, [O Muhammad], judge concerning that over which they dispute among themselves and then find within themselves no discomfort from what you have judged and submit in [full, willing] submission." (An-Nisa: 65)
This verse indicates that one must not feel any discomfort in their hearts regarding the commands of the Messenger; they must fully accept and obey his commands, which is the complete manifestation of following the Messenger. This following is the cause of love for Allah and the Messenger. Allah says:
"Say, 'If you love Allah, then follow me, so Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.'" (Al-Imran: 31)
In this verse, Allah has established the criterion for His love as following the Messenger, which is also the criterion for loving the Messenger. Thus, whoever obeys the Messenger loves Allah and the Messenger.
From these texts, it is clear that following the Messenger is the essence of loving him. Conversely, anyone who disobeys the Messenger or does not refrain from the actions he prohibited does not love the Messenger but rather harbors animosity towards him.
Now, let’s look at the texts where the Prophet (peace be upon him) prohibited us from innovating in the religion, meaning we should only perform those actions that he commanded, and refrain from those he did not command. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
"Whoever introduces something into this matter of ours that is not part of it, it will be rejected." (Sahih Bukhari: 2697)
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "And every innovation is a misguidance, and every misguidance leads to the Fire." (Sunan an-Nasa'i: 1577)
Now, let’s look at the texts that state that those who do not obey the Messenger and do not follow his commands are wrongdoers, for whom there is a painful punishment, and they will be driven away from the Hawd (the Pool of Abundance).
Allah says:
"And who is more astray than one who follows his desire without guidance from Allah? Indeed, Allah does not guide the wrongdoers." (Al-Qasas: 50)
Allah says:
"And let those beware who oppose the Messenger's order, lest calamity strike them or a painful punishment befall them." (An-Nur: 63)
Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
“I will be at the Hawd (the Pool) before you, and some men from among you will be brought to me, and then they will be driven away from me, and I will say, ‘O my Lord! These are my companions!’ It will be said, ‘You do not know what they innovated after you.'” (Sahih Bukhari: 6576)
In summary, we obey the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) as he has commanded us to obey, and this obedience is a sign of our love for him. He has prohibited us from innovating in the religion, and we refrain from doing so, which is also part of obedience and a sign of love for the Messenger. Anyone who claims to love the Messenger but does not obey his commands or accept his decisions does not truly love him. Innovating in the religion also indicates a lack of love for the Messenger, as it contradicts his commands.
Now consider that if we do not celebrate Milad un-Nabi because the Prophet (peace be upon him) neither commanded it nor demonstrated it, and it is an innovation in the religion, then are we not true lovers of the Messenger? This is why we say that we do not celebrate Milad because we truly love the Messenger, yet our sincere love is labeled as animosity and disrespect. This is similar to how the Shia blame Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) in the matter of the Garden of Fadak.
In this context, I would like to mention that a few days ago, I came across a video of the Barelvi leader Ilyas Qadri Attari, in which he stated that if someone claims to love their father but does not obey him, then they are disobedient.
This sentiment is expressed in an Arabic poem as follows:
لوکان حبک صادقا لاطعتہ – ان المحب لمن یحب مطیع
Translation of the poem: If your love were true, you would obey him, for the lover is obedient to their beloved.