“Those who participate in the celebration of Mawlid an-Nabawi are of different types;
- Some simply gather on the occasion and read the story of birth, give speeches and recite poems.
- Some prepare food and sweets, and distribute it to the attendees.
- Some commemorate the celebration in the mosques while others in the houses.
- Some do not limit themselves to the above, they add to it prohibited actions of mingling between men and women, dancing, singing or acts of Shirk like invoking and calling upon Allah's Messenger (sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam), etc.
With all its various forms and intentions of those who celebrate it, commemoration of Mawlid an-Nabawi is indisputably a prohibited innovation...” [end of excerpt from the book]
About the BookIn this book, Shaikh Saleh al-Fawzan has enumerated several reasons behind the prohibition of celebrating the Mawlid, and explicitly clarified the major doubts raised up by the proponents of Mawlid; and this includes the claims that …
Celebration of Mawlid is honouring the Prophet.
Mawlid is celebrated by a large number of people in many towns and cities
Commemorating Mawlid renews the memories of the Prophet
Mawlid is a Bidah Husna (good innovation) because it is a means of showing gratitude towards Allah for sending the Prophet.
The saying of Umar, ‘What a good Bidah is this?’
Celebration of Mawlid an-Nabawi is out of love for the Prophet and an expression of one's love, which is permissible.
Additional quotes by Shaikh Muhammad ibn Ibraheem Aal-Shaikh have been added to further clarify these issues.
The booklet has two valuable appendixes
Appendix 1:
An explanation of the Hadeeth, “He, who establishes/initiates a Sunnah Husna (good Sunnah) in Islam, he will have the reward of those who perform it after him until the Day of Judgment.”, in the words of Shaikh Saleh al-Fawzan (hafidhahullah) and Shaikh Saleh al-Uthaimeen (rahimahullah). And this hadeeth is often brought forth in defense of innovations.
Appendix 2:
A Dialogue between Shaikh al-Albaani (rahimahullah) and a proponent of Mawlid concerning, “Is the celebration of Mawlid a good deed (Khayr)?”
I ask Allah to make us amongst those who follow the Qur’an and the Sunnah upon the understanding of the Sahabah (radiallahu anhum). Ameen
Shawana A. Aziz
