This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri's book Aamad Mustafa ﷺ.
Eid Milad
There is no evidence for Eid Milad in the Quran, Hadith, and consensus of the Ummah; if there were proof, the Companions of the Prophet (may Allah be pleased with them) and the pious predecessors (may Allah have mercy on them) would have known about it and certainly practiced it.
◈ Allama Fakhr al-Din al-Fakihani (may Allah have mercy on him, died 734 AH) says:
إن عمل المولد بدعة مذمومة .
"Eid Milad is a blameworthy innovation."
Reference: (Al-Hawi lil-Fatawa by Al-Suyuti: 190/1, 24)
◈ He also says:
لا أعلم لهذا المولد أصلا فى كتاب ولا سنة، ولا ينقل عمله عن أحد من علماء الأمة الذين هم القدوة فى الدين المتمسكون بآثار المتقدمين، بل هو بدعة أحدثها البطالون وشهوة نفس اعتنى بها الأكالون .
"I have found no evidence for Milad in the Book and Sunnah; this practice is not transmitted from our predecessors and the trustworthy scholars of the Salaf. Rather, it is an innovation invented by the false worshippers; it is the result of carnal desire, embraced by the indulgent."
Reference: (Al-Hawi by Al-Suyuti: 190/1–191)
◈ Allama Al-Shatibi (may Allah have mercy on him, died 790 AH) also declared Eid Milad an innovation.
Reference: (Al-I'tisam: 39/1)
◈ Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him, died 728 AH) says:
كذلك ما يحدثه بعض الناس إما مضاهاة للنصارى فى ميلاد عيسى عليه السلام وإما محبة للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وتعظيما، والله قد يثيبهم على هذه المحبة والإجتهاد لا على البدع من اتخاذ مولد النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم عيدا، مع اختلاف الناس فى مولده، فإن هذا لم يفعله السلف، مع قيام المقتضي له وعدم المانع منه لو كان خيرا، ولو كان هذا خيرا محضا، أو راجحا لكان السلف رضي الله عنهم أحق به منا، فإنهم كانوا أشد محبة لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وتعظيما له منا، وهم على الخير أحرص .
"Similarly, some people have invented Eid Milad in imitation of the birth of Jesus (peace be upon him) or out of love and reverence for the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). May Allah reward them for their love and effort for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), but they will not receive reward for Eid Milad. Moreover, there is disagreement about the exact day of the Prophet’s birth.
This was not done by the pious predecessors (may Allah have mercy on them), even though the requirement (to honor the Messenger) was present and there was no obstacle. If this act were entirely good or more good, the predecessors (may Allah be pleased with them) were more deserving to practice it than us, because they loved and honored the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) more than we do and were more eager for good deeds."
Reference: (Iqtidā’ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm, p. 295, and in another copy: 123/2)
Sheikh-ul-Islam and Eid Milad:
This statement of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, was not understood by some people, and they attributed the permissibility of the Mawlid celebration to the Shaykh, may Allah have mercy on him, whereas this is absolutely not the case. He clearly declares it an innovation (bid’ah). His intention was only that those who do this out of love for the Prophet ﷺ will receive the reward for the love they held for the Noble Prophet ﷺ, but when they turned this love into the form of the Mawlid festival, it became an innovation.
◈ The exact meaning of this statement of Shaykh al-Islam, may Allah have mercy on him, is:
تعظيم المولد، واتخاذه موسما، قد يفعله بعض الناس، ويكون له فيه أجر عظيم لحسن قصده، وتعظيمه لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم .
“Some people have made a festival out of honoring the birth of the Noble Prophet ﷺ; they will receive great reward due to their good intention and respect for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.”
Reference: (Iqtidā’ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm li-Mukhālafat Aṣḥāb al-Jaḥīm: 126/2)
As for Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah’s statement that they will receive reward due to their love for the Prophet ﷺ, this is his error. Every innovation in the world is motivated by good intention or respect for the Prophet ﷺ, so does every innovation carry both sin and reward? The pious predecessors, may Allah have mercy on them, never said such a thing; rather, they considered innovation only a source of calamity. They condemned both the innovation and the innovator. No one has presented such a rare view that the same act can be both an innovation and a cause of reward simultaneously. May Allah forgive his error.
◈ Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 852 AH), says:
أصل عمل المولد بدعة لم تنقل عن أحد من السلف الصالح من القرون الثلاثة .
“The Mawlid is an original innovation. This practice is not transmitted from any of the pious predecessors of the three (best) eras.”
Reference: (Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā li-Suyūṭī: 196/1)
◈ Allama Ibn al-Hajj, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 737 AH), says:
فإن خلا منه وعمل طعاما فقط ونوى به المولد ودعا إليه الإخوان، وسلم من كل ما تقدم ذكره، فهو بدعة بنفس نيته فقط؛ لأن ذلك زيادة فى الدين وليس من عمل السلف الماضين، واتباع السلف أولى، ولم ينقل عن أحد منهم أنه نوى المولد، ونحن تبع فيسعنا ما وسعهم .
“If the Mawlid is free from singing, and only food is prepared with the intention of Mawlid, and friends and relatives are invited to the meal, even if this act is free from the mentioned defects, it will still be an innovation solely because of the intention of Mawlid, as it is an addition to the religion. The pious predecessors did not practice this. Following the pious predecessors is the only worthy practice. It is not transmitted from any of the pious predecessors that anyone did anything with the intention of Mawlid. We are followers of the pious predecessors. Their practice is sufficient for us.”
Reference: (Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā li-Suyūṭī: 195/1)
◈ Hafiz Sakhawi, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 902 AH), writes:
لم يفعله أحد من القرون الثلاثة، إنما حدث بعد .
“No one among the three eras (the Companions, the Followers, and the Followers of the Followers) did this. It was invented later.”
Reference: (Jā’ al-Ḥaqq by Na‘īmī: 1/236)
◈ Hafiz Suyuti, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 911 AH), says:
أول من أحدث فعل ذلك صاحب إربل الملك المظفر أبو سعيد كوكبري بن زين الدين على بن بكتكين .
“The first person to invent it (in Mosul) was the king of Arbil, Muzaffar Abu Sa‘id al-Kubra ibn Zayn al-Din Ali ibn Baktakin.”
Reference: (Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā: 189/1, 24)
◈ Allama Abu al-‘Abbas Ahmad ibn Yahya Wansharisi, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 914 AH), writes:
سئل سيدي أحمد القباب عما يفعله المعلمون من وقد الشمع فى مولد النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم واجتماع الأولاد للصلاة على النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم ويقرأ بعض الأولاد من هو حسن الصوت عشرا من القرآن وينشد قصيدة فى مدح النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم ويجتمع الرجال والنساء بهذا السبب فأجاب بأن قال: جميع ما وصفت من محدثات البدع التى يجب قطعها ومن قام بها أو أعان عليها أو سعى فى دوامها فهو ساع فى بدعة وضلالة، ويظن بجهله أنه بذلك معظم لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قائم بمولدم، وهو مخالف سنته مرتكب لمنهيات نهى عنها صلى الله عليه وسلم، متظاهر بذلك محدث فى الدين ما ليس منه، ولو كان معظما له حق التعظيم لاطاع أوامره فلم يحدث فى دينه ما ليس منه، ولم يتعرض لما حذر الله تعالى منه حيث قال: فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ .
My Shaykh Ahmad Qabbas, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked about lighting candles on the occasion of the Prophet’s ﷺ birth, gathering children to recite blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ, having children with good voices recite ten verses of the Qur’an, reciting a poem in praise of the Messenger ﷺ, and men and women gathering for this purpose. He replied: All these are innovations whose elimination is necessary. Whoever does this, assists in it, or strives to continue it, his effort is innovation and misguidance. He considers celebrating the Mawlid as honoring the Prophet ﷺ out of ignorance, whereas he is opposing the Sunnah and committing forbidden acts. He is promoting acts in the religion that are not part of it. If he truly honored the Noble Prophet ﷺ, he would follow his commands and prohibitions, would not innovate in the religion, nor would he become subject to Allah’s warning:
فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
“Those who oppose the command of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) should beware lest a calamity befall them or they be seized by a painful punishment.”
Reference: (Al-Mi‘yār al-Mu‘rib: 48/12)
From the clarifications of the scholars, it is clear that the Mawlid festival is not established from the pious predecessors, may Allah have mercy on them, but is a later invention.
◈ Ibn al-Hajj, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 737 AH), said very well:
السعيد السعيد من شد يده على امتثال الكتاب والسنة والطريق الموصلة إلى ذلك وهى اتباع السلف الماضين رضوان الله عليهم أجمعين، لأنهم أعلم بالسنة منا إذ هم أعرف بالمقال وأفقه بالحال .
“How fortunate is the person who acts upon the Book and Sunnah and firmly holds the path that leads to the Book and Sunnah. The path that leads to the Book and Sunnah is the path of the pious predecessors, may Allah have mercy on them, because they knew the Sunnah better than us. They were more knowledgeable of the sayings of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, well aware of matters related to the religion, and better understood the circumstances of their time.”
Reference: (Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā li-Suyūṭī: 195/1)
◈ Allama Ibn Rajab, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 795 AH), also rightly wrote:
أما ما اتفق على تركه فلا يجوز العمل به لأنهم ما تركوه إلا على علم أنه لا يعمل به .
“If the pious predecessors agreed to abandon a certain act, then acting upon it is not permissible, because they abandoned it knowing that it should not be practiced.”
Reference: (Faḍl ‘Ilm al-Salaf ‘alā ‘Ilm al-Khalaf p. 31)
It is understood that any act which the pious predecessors agreed to abandon is not permissible to perform. The Mawlid festival, standing for the mention of the birth, and other such innovations and superstitions are absolutely not established from the pious predecessors, may Allah have mercy on them, the Imams of Ahl al-Sunnah, may Allah have mercy on them, and the early scholars, may Allah have mercy on them. Therefore, these matters are evil innovations and reprehensible acts.
Allama Ibn al-Jazari, may Allah have mercy on him, and Eid Milad
◈ Allama Sakhawi, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 902 AH), narrates from Ibn al-Jazari, may Allah have mercy on him:
إذا كان أهل الصليب اتخذوا ليلة مولد نبيهم عيدا أكبر فأهل الإسلام أولى بالتكريم وأجدر .
"When the People of the Book have made the birth of Jesus, peace be upon him, a great festival, then the Muslims have even more right to make the birth of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, a festival."
Reference: (الأجوبة المرضية فيما سئل السخاوي عنه من الأحاديث النبوية: 1117/3)
◈ Mulla Ali Qari Hanafi (d. 1014 AH) writes in his continuation:
قلت: مما يرد عليه إنا مأمورون بمخالفة أهل الكتاب .
"I say that to refute them, it is sufficient that we have been commanded to oppose the People of the Book."
Reference: (المورد الروي في المولد النبوي: 30، 29)
