The Barelvi Ṣalāt wa Salām: An Analytical Study in Light of Ḥadīth and Imāms
Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, Page 273
❖ Question
The Barelvi scholars recite Ṣalāt wa Salām in their own particular manner. Is this practice established from the Ḥadīth? And is it correct to recite it in this way?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!
The Mu’adhdhins of the Prophetic Era and the Issue of Ṣalāt wa Salām
ʿAllāmah ʿAzīz Zubaydī (رحمه الله) writes in one of his articles:
During the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the following Mu’adhdhins were appointed in three cities:
◄ In Madinah Munawwarah: Bilāl (RA) and ʿAbdullāh bin Umm Maktūm (RA)
◄ In Makkah Mukarramah: Abū Maḥdhūrah (RA)
◄ In Qubā’: Saʿd Qarṭī (RA)
These were companions personally appointed by the Prophet ﷺ. Yet, from none of them is there any report of reciting the Barelvi-style Ṣalāt wa Salām. And these companions were indeed the truest lovers and devotees of the Prophet ﷺ.
The Barelvi Ṣalāt wa Salām
- This specific Ṣalāt wa Salām of the Barelvis is neither proven from the Prophet ﷺ nor from the Companions (RA).
- If truly taught by the Prophet ﷺ, it would be accepted without hesitation; otherwise, it must be abandoned.
Reciting or Singing?
- The Barelvi followers do not merely recite this Ṣalāt wa Salām; rather, they sing it.
- They have devised tones and melodies resembling songs for it.
- We accept the Prophetic Ṣalāt as an act of reward, but this innovated form cannot be deemed correct.
Ṣalāt or a Sectarian Declaration?
- This Barelvi form does not fall under the Ṣalāt taught by the Prophet ﷺ.
- Its purpose is more an expression of sectarian Barelvi identity than genuine devotion.
- This attitude is both legally inappropriate and harmful for the future of the Ummah.
Historical Background
From the blessed era of the Prophet ﷺ until the time of the Khulafā’ al-Rāshidīn, Muʿāwiyah (RA), the Tābiʿīn, the Tābiʿ al-Tābiʿīn, and the great Imāms, this form of Ṣalāt wa Salām never existed.
- Neither before nor after the Adhān.
- Neither any Companion, Tābiʿī, nor Imām transmitted such a practice.
- And they were far ahead of us in knowledge, practice, and love for the Messenger ﷺ.
Thus, when an act was not part of that blessed era despite the need for it, it is counted as bidʿah (innovation).
Guidance from Ḥadīth
The Prophet ﷺ said:
«مَنْ أَحْدَثَ فِي أَمْرِنَا هَذَا مَا لَيْسَ مِنْهُ فَهُوَ رَدٌّ»
“Whoever introduces into our religion that which is not from it, it is rejected.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1/371; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2/77]
Also:
«مَنْ عَمِلَ عَمَلاً لَيْسَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْرُنَا فَهُوَ رَدٌّ»
“Whoever does an action not in accordance with our command, it is rejected.”
Statements of the Imāms
- Imām Mālik (رحمه الله):
Whoever introduces an innovation in Islam and regards it as good has claimed that Muḥammad ﷺ betrayed the message, because Allah said:
﴿اَلْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ﴾
“This day I have perfected for you your religion.”
Thus, what was not religion in the time of the Prophet ﷺ and the Companions cannot be religion today.
[al-Iʿtiṣām by al-Shāṭibī 1/27, 2/150] - Ḥudhayfah (RA):
Whatever the Companions did not consider worship, cannot be considered worship. They left nothing incomplete for those who came after. Therefore, fear Allah and follow the way of the Companions.
Summary
- The practice of reciting this Ṣalāt wa Salām before or after the Adhān is not established from the Prophet ﷺ, the Khulafā’ al-Rāshidīn, the Companions, or the Prophetic Mu’adhdhins.
- It is therefore an innovation (bidʿah).
- What is Sunnah is reciting Duʿā’ al-Wasīlah along with Ṣalāt Ibrāhīmiyyah after the Adhān.
The Barelvi Argument and Its Refutation
They argue that Bilāl (RA) used to recite the following duʿā’ before the Fajr Adhān:
«اَللّٰھُمَّ اِنِّیْ اَحْمَدُکَ وَاسْتَعِیْنُکَ عَلیٰ قُرَیْشٍ اَنْ یُّقِعْمُوا دِیْنَکَ ثُم یؤذن»
“O Allah! I praise You and seek Your help against Quraysh so that they may establish Your religion, then he would call the Adhān.”
[Abū Dāwūd, Bāb al-Adhān Fawq al-Manārah]
✦ Refutation:
① Weak chain:
The narration contains Aḥmad bin Muḥammad bin Ayyūb, a liar and unreliable transmitter. Ibn Maʿīn declared him a fabricator. Another narrator, Muḥammad bin Isḥāq, is a mudallis whose muʿanʿan narration is weak unless supported by explicit hearing.
② No mention of Ṣalāt:
Even within this narration, there is no mention of Ṣalāt Ibrāhīmiyyah or the Barelvi-style Ṣalāt wa Salām.
Hence, their evidence is invalid.
Conclusion
- The Barelvi-style Ṣalāt wa Salām is not established from the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions, or the early generations.
- It is a religious innovation without any Sharʿī basis.
- What is prescribed in Sunnah is reciting Ṣalāt Ibrāhīmiyyah along with the duʿā’ after Adhān.
Hādhā mā ʿindī, wallāhu aʿlam biṣ-ṣawāb.
