This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Muhammad Farooq's book Issues of the Two Eids.
There is no evidence from the Quran and Sunnah for raising hands and making a collective supplication after the Eid prayer or Eid sermon; such an act is an innovation and a result of incorrect reasoning from general hadiths. The method transmitted from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) negates the practice of collective supplication on Eid.
Evidence:
1. Abu Saeed Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
كان النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم يخرج يوم الفطر والأضحى إلى المصلى، فأول شيء يبدأ به الصلاة، ثم ينصرف فيقوم مقابل الناس، والناس جلوس على صفوفهم، فيعظهم ويوصيهم ويأمرهم، فإن كان يريد أن يقطع بعثا ويوصيهم ويأمرهم، فإن كان يريد أن يقطع بعثا قطعه، أو يأمر بشيء أمر به، ثم ينصرف قال أبو سعيد: فلم يزل الناس على ذلك.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) would proceed towards the Eidgah on the days of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, and the first thing he would begin with was the prayer. After completing the prayer, he would stand facing the people, while they remained seated in their rows. He would then give them admonition and advice and issue various commands. If he intended to send an army on an expedition, he would dispatch it, or if he wanted to give any order, he would issue that order. Then he would return. Abu Saeed Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) stated that the people (the Rightly Guided Caliphs, etc.) continued to follow this practice.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of the Two Eids, Chapter: Going out to the Musalla without a Minbar: 956, Sahih Muslim, Book of Eid Prayers: 889
2. It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with both of them), who said:
فصلى ثم خطب ثم أتى النساء ومعه بلال فوعظهن وذكرهن وأمرهن بالصدقة، فرأيتهن يهوين بأيديهن يقذفنه فى ثوب بلال، ثم انطلق هو وبلال إلى بيته
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) performed the Eid prayer (upon reaching the Eidgah), then delivered the sermon to those present. Afterwards, he came to the women, while Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) was also with him. He gave them admonition and advice and commanded them to give charity. I saw the women lowering their hands towards their jewelry and placing the jewelry into Bilal’s garment. Then the Prophet and Bilal proceeded towards their home.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of the Two Eids, Chapter: Knowledge about the Musalla: 977, Sahih Ibn Hibban: 2823
Benefits:
➊ The hadiths of this chapter discuss the prayer and sermon at the Eidgah, so if congregational supplication were Sunnah and prescribed after the prayer and sermon at the Eidgah, it would definitely have been mentioned.
The absence of mention of raising hands for congregational supplication in the hadiths is evidence of its negation.
➋ There is no authentic hadith that clearly proves congregational supplication after the Eid prayer, so extracting a preferred meaning from the hadiths is not befitting for any Muslim.
➌ Here the objection is raised that the absence of mention of congregational supplication in these hadiths does not necessarily mean its negation, so how is congregational supplication negated? This is an unfounded objection. If there were a clear text for congregational supplication, denial would be possible, but when there is no proof at all, its definite negation follows from the absence of mention.
➍ There is consensus on the negation of congregational supplication after the Eid prayer. The first hadith, in which Abu Saeed Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) said فلم يزل الناس على ذلك, is evidence that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him), the Rightly Guided Caliphs, and even Marwan ibn al-Hakam followed the practice of not performing congregational supplication after the Eid prayer, so there is consensus on the non-performance of congregational supplication after the Eid prayer.
False reasoning from the Prophetic Hadith:
❀ Umm Atiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates:
كنا نؤمر أن نخرج يوم العيد، حتى نخرج البكر من خدرها، حتى نخرج الحائض فيكن خلف الناس، فيكبرن بتكبيرهم ويدعون بدعائهم
We women were commanded to proceed to the Eid prayer ground on the day of Eid, to the extent that (we were even ordered) to bring out the unmarried girl from her private place and to bring the menstruating women as well (to the Eid prayer), and they would sit behind the people, making takbirs along with the people's takbirs and making du'a along with their du'a.
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of the Two Eids, Chapter on Takbeer on the Days of Mina and When Going to Arafah: 971, Muslim, Book of the Two Eid Prayers: Chapter on Permissibility of Women Going Out on the Two Eids: 890
The words of another narration are:
فأما الحائض فيعتزلن الصلاة ويشهدن الخير ودعوة المسلمين
Menstruating women should stay away from the prayer area and participate in the goodness and the du'a of the Muslims.
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of the Two Eid Prayers, Chapter on Mentioning the Permissibility of Women Going Out on the Two Eids to the Prayer Ground: 890, Jami` at-Tirmidhi, Book of Prayer, Chapter on What Has Been Related About Women Going Out on the Two Eids: 540, Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayers, Chapter on What Has Been Related About Women Going Out on the Two Eids: 1307
From these hadiths, the proof for the collective du'a after Eid is taken, but this reasoning is incorrect in many respects.
➊ These hadiths do not clearly state that the du'a mentioned here refers to the collective du'a after the Eid prayer; rather, they instruct the attendees to engage in takbirs and du'a before the Imam arrives at the Eid prayer ground, to keep menstruating women away from the prayer area, and to encourage the attendees to engage in takbirs and du'a like on Eid. The Eid prayer and the Eid sermon begin with the arrival of the Imam. Since these hadiths do not mention the time after the Imam's arrival, how can they be used as proof for the collective du'a after the prayer?
The evidence for this is that the people present at the Eid prayer ground engage in takbirs before the Imam arrives and stop this practice upon the Imam's arrival.
Since it is established that the men and women present at the Eid prayer ground engage in takbirs before the Imam's arrival, the time for the du'a is also before the Imam's arrival. Moreover, since the practice of takbirs is not established after the Eid sermon and prayer, how can the time for the du'a be after the Eid sermon?
➋ From the repetition of the words of takbirs narrated from Salman al-Farsi (may Allah be pleased with him), the practice of takbirs and du'a is established. Also, the action of the companion indicates that on the day of Eid, the place for takbirs and du'a at the Eid prayer ground is before the Eid prayer and the Imam's arrival.
Reference: See, p. 9:89 titled: Because at the Eid prayer ground, the attendees stopped the takbirs and du'a upon the Imam's arrival, for details see: p. 70
Fatwa of Hafiz Sanaullah Madani:
Question: Is it an innovation to make a collective supplication after the Eid prayer? If not, should the supplication be made after the prayer, after the sermon, or during the sermon? And should the hands be raised or not?
Answer: There is no evidence for a collective supplication after the Eid prayer or the sermon. Obviously, something that is not proven is not free from the risk of being an innovation, and making a collective supplication after the prayer or sermon is not established.
Reference: (Reference: Risalah Muhaddith June 2002)
Statement of Sahib Mar'aat al-Mafatih Ubaidur Rahman Mubarakpuri:
واستدل بقوله دعوة المسلمين على مشروعية الدعاء بعد صلاة العيد كما يدعى دبر الصلوات الخمس، وفيه نظر لأنه لم يثبت عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم دعاء بعد صلاة العيدين ولم ينقل أحد الدعاء بعدها، بل الثابت عنه صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه كان يخطب بعد الصلاة من غير فصل بشيء آخر، فلا يصح التمسك بإطلاق قوله دعوة المسلمين ، والظاهر أن المراد بها الأذكار التى فى الخطبة وكلمات الوعظ والنصح فإن لفظ الدعوة عام.
From your statement دعوة المسلمين, the legitimacy of collective supplication after the Eid prayer is derived, just as collective supplication is made after the five daily prayers. There is a flaw in this reasoning because it is not established from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) that he supplicated after the Eid prayers, nor has any companion narrated supplication after the prayer. Rather, it is established that immediately after the Eid prayer (i.e., without any interval for another act), he would deliver the Eid sermon. Therefore, it is not correct to derive the proof of collective supplication from this statement دعوة المسلمين, but rather it refers to the remembrance, admonition, and words of advice in the sermon, because the word دعوة is general.
Reference: Mara'at al-Mafatih: 331/3
