Fath al-Rabbani

Benefits: … There are two forms of boasting: (1) Expressing it verbally, as people nowadays are often heard saying that their mosque is very beautiful and spacious, the stone used in it is very expensive, its minarets are so tall, the carpet laid in it is of such and such type, the woodwork in it has been done with great skill, while the administrators listening to this feel pleased by it. (2) Expressing it through actions, for example, by indulging in excess in the decoration and adornment of the mosque and thinking in one’s heart that our mosque is distinguished from all other mosques, and sometimes even expressing this verbally. Whether anyone admits it or not, in one way or another, this pride is found among most people in both its forms, except those whom Allah wills. But the question is that the governments and people who build grand mosques do not even acknowledge these realities, even though clear indications of this are found in their words and actions, showing that their aim is to compete with other mosques. Such people are requested to carefully study the following discussion:

1. It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Darda and Sayyiduna Ubadah ibn Samit (radi Allahu anhuma) that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “Build it as a simple shelter like the shelter of Musa.” (Meaning: the mosque of Madinah.) (Al-Fawaid al-Muntaqah lil-Mukhlis: 9/193/1, Dala’il al-Nubuwwah lil-Bayhaqi: 2/542, Musnad al-Shamiyyin lil-Tabarani: p. 425, al-Sahihah: 616)

Undoubtedly, there is great reward and merit in building mosques; this act is a major cause for attaining Paradise. In this regard, may Allah grant a great reward to those who assist (Ameen). Nevertheless, in the present era, the focus and center of thought for most mosque administrations has become that their mosque should be the most beautiful. Nowadays, tens of millions of rupees are being spent on each mosque, while the matter of guidance and their population appears to be the same as before the reconstruction, or even less.

2. It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas (radi Allahu anhu) that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “I have not been commanded to decorate and adorn the mosques.” Then Ibn Abbas himself said: “You will surely adorn them as the Jews and Christians adorned (their places of worship).” (Abu Dawud: 448)

3. It is narrated from Sa’id ibn Abi Sa’id that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “When you decorate your mosques and beautify your copies of the Qur’an, then destruction will befall you.” (Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah: 1/100/2, al-Sahihah: 1351)

In the blessed era of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), funds amounting to millions were collected at the time of jihad, and the wealth of spoils that he (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) acquired and distributed among the people during his blessed life cannot even be estimated. But when it came time to build the Prophet’s Mosque, it was given the design of Musa’s (alayhis salam) shelter. Allah Ta’ala granted the Rightly Guided Caliphs, especially Sayyiduna Umar (radi Allahu anhu), unique sources of abundant income during his golden era of caliphate, in which even the treasures of Caesar and Chosroes were poured out upon the Muslims, but the architectural design of the Prophet’s Mosque was not changed. What is the secret behind this? The center of goodness, piety, and purity is the Prophet’s Mosque, whose builder is Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) himself. After the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram), its virtue is established; in it, the reward of one prayer is more than a thousand times greater, yet it was presented in the form of a simple shelter. Therefore, we too should reflect on our actions and focus on populating the mosques, not on making them more and more beautiful, and, like the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), spend our wealth on the builders of personalities and nations in the service of Islam.

It must be kept in mind that the mosque is the house of Allah Ta’ala and the most beloved place to Him. Would it not be appropriate to say that even the permission for the design and construction of this house should be sought from its Owner, i.e., Allah Ta’ala? We have become overawed by the grand and majestic buildings of houses in our society and have started comparing and measuring mosques against them. In this matter, it is extremely astonishing that those who spend countless amounts on mosques—consider: curtains are being hung on the walls, hundreds of thousands are being spent on the pulpit and mihrab, various types of tiles are being installed, expensive and decorated carpets are being laid, ablution (wudu) areas and toilets are being adorned, main doors are being made attractive—but when it comes to the issue of the salary of the khateeb, imam, servant, and the teacher of children for Qur’an education in the same mosque, extreme stinginess is shown. And it must be written without reservation that most members of the administration wish that these people not be free of worries and remain under their control. If the service of Islam is truly the objective, then why this contradiction?

Dear readers! Would you be surprised that today, in April 2010, a person is responsible for leading prayers, delivering sermons, teaching the Qur’an to sixty children, and cleaning the mosque; the mosque is five hours’ journey from his home, he gets two or three days off after two or three months, but his salary is six thousand rupees. One organization arranges five thousand, and the mosque’s local leaders give one thousand rupees per month as a great favor, and not only do they not respect their imam, they are not even willing to consider him as an employee. Now, when these same people spend on decorating the mosque, should their action be considered service to Islam? (So to Allah is the complaint.) I neither understand this point nor will I try to understand it. Nevertheless, I do pray that Allah Ta’ala accepts the wealth they have spent and grants them even more sincerity.