Answered by Dr. Abdullah bin Bayyah | Translated by Suhaib Webb
Background:
The
celebration of the birthday of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) is an issue of controversy amongst the scholars.
Thus, there were some who considered it a disliked innovation, a few
even saying it reached the level of prohibition, and there were others
who considered it a praiseworthy innovation.
This difference is
traced back to a divergence concerning the division of innovation
(bid’ah). Some scholars recognized the validity of such innovations and
this was, primarily, the school of Imam Al-Shafi’i (May Allah have mercy
upon him) and the head of this thought was Al-’Izzi Adin Abdul Salam
(May Allah have mercy upon him). In addition, Imam Al-Qarafi (May Allah
have mercy upon him) who was a Maliki, carried this same opinion, giving
it great attention , explaining it in an exhaustive manner. In his
discussion Al-Qarafi (ra) expanded the concept of innovation to included
innovations that were commendable, highly recommended, obligatory and a
disliked nature. Thus, he divided innovation into five parts:
(obligatory, recommended, permissible, disliked and forbidden).
There
were some scholars who failed to accept this division contending that,
“Any innovation, if it appears, then it is repulsive in nature.” They
did this by restricting the statement of ‘Umar (ra), regarding the
tarawih prayers, “This is a good innovation” to its linguistic meaning.
There was a large body of scholars who held this opinion such as Taqi
al-Din Ahmad Ibn Taymiyyah, Al-Shatibi, in his book Al-’Itisam, and many
scholars from the Maliki and Hanbali schools (may Allah have mercy upon
all of them).
Finally, there were scholars who wrote in support
of celebrating the Mawlid such as Al-Suyuti (May Allah have mercy upon
him) and, at the same time, there were others who wrote against it.
Thus, in my opinion, there is no need to drag this discussion out, nor
continue to argue about it any longer.
The Ruling:
Whoever
wants to celebrate the Prophet’s (sa) birthday should celebrate it and
avoid doing any action contrary to Islamic Law. This act should be done
with an intention that it is not a sunna nor an obligatory act. If these
conditions are observed, and one is careful not to contradict Islamic
Law, out of sincere love for the Prophet (Peace and blessing of Allah
upon him), then, Allah willing, there is nothing wrong with this action
and this person will be rewarded.
Commenting on this, the Shaykh
of Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (May Allah have mercy upon him) said, “Indeed,
such a person will be rewarded because of his intention.” Likewise, for
the one who shuns this celebration, seeking to cling to the sunna out of
fear of falling into innovation, then this person will also be
rewarded, Allah willing. It is important to note that this is not a big
issue. Nor is it necessary to give it more attention then it deserves.
The Methodology:
Our
attention towards this issue is directed towards uniting the Muslims
and curbing these differences. We base this understanding on
facilitation (for both sides) and ease. This ease is not founded on an
empty premise, but is referenced directly back to the Quran, traditions
of the Prophet (sa), the fundamental objectives of Islamic law, and the
order of the Prophet (sa) to work towards unity between others. If a
contentious issue arises pertaining to a matter, we exercise great
consideration and respect for both sides. This consideration is not
simply an act of being overly accommodative, as some contend, or
attacking those who hold weak opinions. But, this respect and
consideration for differences is guided by the fact that both opinions
are based on proofs from Islamic Law. In some regards these proofs are
clear, and in other regards the opposite holds true. Thus, some
(scholars) have provided evidences for these acts’ legitimacy, and
others hold proofs for the opposite. In conclusion, our stance is that
both are on goodness, Allah willing, as long as this act is not mixed
with some type of evil and the intention is correct.
Allah knows best.
[ Courtesy:
http://www.suhaibwebb.com/islam-studies/on-celebrating-the-prophet%E2%80%99s-birthday-sa-sheikh-abdullah-bin-bayyah/ ]