Ruling on Food Offerings, Sweets, and Rice on Mawlid al-Nabī ﷺ
Compiled by: Tauheed.com
❖ Principle: Worship and Offerings are Only for Allah
According to Islamic teachings, all vows (nadhar), offerings (niyāz), sacrifices, and acts of worship are exclusively for Allah alone.
Thus, preparing sweets, rice, or food as niyāz on Mawlid al-Nabī ﷺ is prohibited (harām) and considered an innovation (bidʿah). The Qur’an, Sunnah, and statements of jurists clearly forbid such practices.
❖ Ḥadīth: Curse Upon Sacrifice for Other Than Allah
Sayyidunā ʿAlī رضي الله عنه narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
لَعَنَ اللَّهُ مَنْ ذَبَحَ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ …
Allah’s curse is upon the one who sacrifices for other than Allah…
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1978; Sunan al-Nasāʾī: 4427)
Lesson: Sacrificing for anyone other than Allah is a cursed act. Offerings at Mawlid gatherings or shrines fall under this prohibition.
❖ The Fly Incident: The Consequence of Shirk
Sayyidunā Salmān رضي الله عنه said:
A man offered even a single fly to an idol and was cast into Hell. Another refused to sacrifice for anyone besides Allah and was killed, yet he entered Paradise.
(Kitāb al-Zuhd by Imām Aḥmad, no. 84; Ḥilyat al-Awliyāʾ 2/262)
Lesson: Even a seemingly trivial act, if done for other than Allah, leads to Hell. Mawlid offerings resemble this.
❖ Qur’anic Prohibition
① Surah al-Baqarah (2:173):
وَمَا أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ بِهِ
…and that upon which the name of other than Allah has been invoked.
② Surah al-Māʾidah (5:3):
وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى النُّصُبِ
…and that sacrificed on stone alters (for idols).
Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله explains:
Even if Allah’s name is mentioned, if the intention is to honor other than Allah, it is forbidden.
(Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr 2/475)
❖ The Buwānah Incident: Ruling on Nadhar in Places of Shirk
A man vowed to slaughter camels at Buwānah. The Prophet ﷺ asked if it was a place of idol-worship or festivals of Jāhiliyyah. When told no, he permitted the vow, saying:
لا وفاء لنذر في معصية الله
There is no fulfillment of a vow made in disobedience to Allah.
(Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 3313; Ibn Mājah: 2131)
Lesson: If a vow is linked to a place or practice of shirk or bidʿah, it is not permissible to fulfill it. Mawlid offerings fall under this.
❖ Scholarly Verdicts
◈ Fatāwā ʿAzīzī:
Consensus of scholars: whoever sacrifices for other than Allah is an apostate, and his slaughter is like that of an apostate.
◈ Baḥr al-Rāʾiq:
If slaughter is done for honoring a person, it is harām, even if Allah’s name is mentioned.
◈ Jāmiʿ al-Rumūz:
Slaughtering upon the arrival of a ruler or dignitary is harām.
Final Ruling
- Offering rice, sweets, or food as niyāz in the name of Mawlid al-Nabī ﷺ is harām.
- Such vows are invalid and sinful.
- This practice is a bidʿah, and a resemblance to shirk, carrying the curse mentioned in authentic texts.
- No such example is found from the Companions رضي الله عنهم or the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥīn.
Supplication
اَللّٰهُمَّ اجعَلنا مِنَ المُوحِّدينَ الخالِصينَ، وَحَبِّب إلَينا الإيمانَ، وَكَرِّه إلَينا الشِّركَ وَالعِصيانَ. آمین یا رب العالمین!
