Did the Prophet ﷺ Have a Shadow? Evidences from Qur’an and Ḥadīth
Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 124
Respected Muḥammad ‘Ubayd Allāh Khān ‘Afīf… As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa raḥmatullāh wa barakātuh.
A few days ago, I had a discussion with a person from the Ḥanafī school of thought, who claimed that the Noble Prophet ﷺ did not have a shadow. He belonged to the Barelwī school of thought. We tried hard to find strong evidence proving that the Prophet ﷺ had a shadow, but we could not. Kindly provide evidences from the Qur’an and Ḥadīth regarding the existence of the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow. May Allah reward you with goodness and enable you to serve Islam more and more. Āmīn.
Your brother in Islam:
‘Abd al-Bāsit ‘Abd al-Sattār
Madrasah Jāmi‘ah Kamāliyah, Rāju Wāl, District Okara
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ‘alā Rasūlillāh, ammā ba‘d!
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ, despite his exalted rank, leadership of the Prophets, and the Seal of Prophethood, was a chosen Prophet of Allah and a human being. He ﷺ was:
◈ The nephew of Abū Lahab, the polytheist.
◈ The grandson of ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib.
◈ The husband of Khadījah and ‘Ā’ishah (رضي الله عنهما).
◈ The father of Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthūm, and Fāṭimah al-Zahrā’ (رضي الله عنهن).
Thus, in every aspect he ﷺ was khayr al-bashar (the best of mankind) and al-insān al-kāmil (the perfect human). And since he ﷺ was a human being, it is evident that he had a shadow.
Sūrat al-Naḥl (16:48):
﴿أَوَلَم يَرَوا إِلى ما خَلَقَ اللَّهُ مِن شَىءٍ يَتَفَيَّؤُا۟ ظِلـلُهُ عَنِ اليَمينِ وَالشَّمائِلِ سُجَّدًا لِلَّهِ وَهُم داخِرونَ ﴾
"Do they not see what Allah has created, that their shadows incline to the right and the left, prostrating to Allah while they are humble?"
Sūrat al-Ra‘d (13:15):
﴿وَلِلَّهِ يَسجُدُ مَن فِى السَّمـوتِ وَالأَرضِ طَوعًا وَكَرهًا وَظِلـلُهُم بِالغُدُوِّ وَالءاصالِ ﴾
"To Allah prostrates whoever is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly, and their shadows as well, in the mornings and the afternoons."
✦ From these verses it is clear that:
① Ḥadīth of Anas ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ once led us in prayer at night. During the prayer, he extended his hand forward and then withdrew it. After the prayer, we asked the reason. He ﷺ said:
"Jannah was brought before me, and I saw its fruits. I wanted to pluck a bunch, but I was forbidden. Then Hell was shown to me until I saw my shadow and yours. I then gestured for you to move back."
(al-Mustadrak lil-Ḥākim, 4/456)
Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī (رحمه الله) declared this ḥadīth ṣaḥīḥ.
This ḥadīth explicitly mentions the Prophet ﷺ saying:
"رأيت ظلي وظلكم" — “I saw my shadow and yours.”
② Ḥadīth of Zaynab bint Jaḥsh (رضي الله عنها):
Once, Ṣafiyyah’s (رضي الله عنها) camel strayed. The Prophet ﷺ asked Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) to lend her camel to Ṣafiyyah. She refused harshly, which displeased the Prophet ﷺ, and he did not visit her for three months.
Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) said:
"When the month of Rabī‘ al-Awwal came, he entered (my house). I first saw his shadow and said: ‘This is the shadow of a man; who is it?’ Then the Prophet ﷺ entered."
(Majma‘ al-Zawā’id, 4/324)
This clearly shows she first recognized the Prophet ﷺ by his shadow.
Some claim that since the Prophet ﷺ was nūr (light), he did not have a shadow. But this assumption is baseless. Angels are also nūrī makhlūq (creatures of light), and their shadow is proven.
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī:
When ‘Abdullāh (رضي الله عنه), the father of Jābir (رضي الله عنه), was martyred at Uḥud, the Prophet ﷺ said:
"مازالت الملائكة تظله باجنحتها حتى دفعتموه"
"The angels continued to shade him with their wings until you carried him."
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb al-Jana’iz)
Thus:
✔ The Prophet ﷺ was a human being, and like all humans, he had a shadow.
✔ The Qur’an confirms that all of Allah’s creation has a shadow.
✔ Multiple authentic aḥādīth explicitly mention the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow.
✔ Even nūrī makhlūq (angels) have shadows.
Hence, denying the existence of the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow is equivalent to rejecting the clear teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 124
❖ Question:
Respected Muḥammad ‘Ubayd Allāh Khān ‘Afīf… As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa raḥmatullāh wa barakātuh.
A few days ago, I had a discussion with a person from the Ḥanafī school of thought, who claimed that the Noble Prophet ﷺ did not have a shadow. He belonged to the Barelwī school of thought. We tried hard to find strong evidence proving that the Prophet ﷺ had a shadow, but we could not. Kindly provide evidences from the Qur’an and Ḥadīth regarding the existence of the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow. May Allah reward you with goodness and enable you to serve Islam more and more. Āmīn.
Your brother in Islam:
‘Abd al-Bāsit ‘Abd al-Sattār
Madrasah Jāmi‘ah Kamāliyah, Rāju Wāl, District Okara
❖ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ‘alā Rasūlillāh, ammā ba‘d!
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ, despite his exalted rank, leadership of the Prophets, and the Seal of Prophethood, was a chosen Prophet of Allah and a human being. He ﷺ was:
◈ The nephew of Abū Lahab, the polytheist.
◈ The grandson of ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib.
◈ The husband of Khadījah and ‘Ā’ishah (رضي الله عنهما).
◈ The father of Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthūm, and Fāṭimah al-Zahrā’ (رضي الله عنهن).
Thus, in every aspect he ﷺ was khayr al-bashar (the best of mankind) and al-insān al-kāmil (the perfect human). And since he ﷺ was a human being, it is evident that he had a shadow.
❖ Evidence from the Qur’an:
Sūrat al-Naḥl (16:48):
﴿أَوَلَم يَرَوا إِلى ما خَلَقَ اللَّهُ مِن شَىءٍ يَتَفَيَّؤُا۟ ظِلـلُهُ عَنِ اليَمينِ وَالشَّمائِلِ سُجَّدًا لِلَّهِ وَهُم داخِرونَ ﴾
"Do they not see what Allah has created, that their shadows incline to the right and the left, prostrating to Allah while they are humble?"
Sūrat al-Ra‘d (13:15):
﴿وَلِلَّهِ يَسجُدُ مَن فِى السَّمـوتِ وَالأَرضِ طَوعًا وَكَرهًا وَظِلـلُهُم بِالغُدُوِّ وَالءاصالِ ﴾
"To Allah prostrates whoever is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly, and their shadows as well, in the mornings and the afternoons."
✦ From these verses it is clear that:
- All of Allah’s creation has a shadow.
- Since the Prophet ﷺ is part of Allah’s creation, he too had a shadow.
❖ Evidence from Aḥādīth:
① Ḥadīth of Anas ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه):
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ once led us in prayer at night. During the prayer, he extended his hand forward and then withdrew it. After the prayer, we asked the reason. He ﷺ said:
"Jannah was brought before me, and I saw its fruits. I wanted to pluck a bunch, but I was forbidden. Then Hell was shown to me until I saw my shadow and yours. I then gestured for you to move back."
(al-Mustadrak lil-Ḥākim, 4/456)
Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī (رحمه الله) declared this ḥadīth ṣaḥīḥ.
This ḥadīth explicitly mentions the Prophet ﷺ saying:
"رأيت ظلي وظلكم" — “I saw my shadow and yours.”
② Ḥadīth of Zaynab bint Jaḥsh (رضي الله عنها):
Once, Ṣafiyyah’s (رضي الله عنها) camel strayed. The Prophet ﷺ asked Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) to lend her camel to Ṣafiyyah. She refused harshly, which displeased the Prophet ﷺ, and he did not visit her for three months.
Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) said:
"When the month of Rabī‘ al-Awwal came, he entered (my house). I first saw his shadow and said: ‘This is the shadow of a man; who is it?’ Then the Prophet ﷺ entered."
(Majma‘ al-Zawā’id, 4/324)
This clearly shows she first recognized the Prophet ﷺ by his shadow.
❖ Refuting the Claim “He ﷺ Was Nūr, So No Shadow”:
Some claim that since the Prophet ﷺ was nūr (light), he did not have a shadow. But this assumption is baseless. Angels are also nūrī makhlūq (creatures of light), and their shadow is proven.
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī:
When ‘Abdullāh (رضي الله عنه), the father of Jābir (رضي الله عنه), was martyred at Uḥud, the Prophet ﷺ said:
"مازالت الملائكة تظله باجنحتها حتى دفعتموه"
"The angels continued to shade him with their wings until you carried him."
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb al-Jana’iz)
Thus:
- Angels are nūrī makhlūq.
- Their shade (shadow) is established by authentic ḥadīth.
- Therefore, denying the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow on the pretext of him being nūr is incorrect.
❖ Conclusion:
✔ The Prophet ﷺ was a human being, and like all humans, he had a shadow.
✔ The Qur’an confirms that all of Allah’s creation has a shadow.
✔ Multiple authentic aḥādīth explicitly mention the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow.
✔ Even nūrī makhlūq (angels) have shadows.
Hence, denying the existence of the Prophet ﷺ’s shadow is equivalent to rejecting the clear teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
