Muslims all over the world love Prophet Muhammad [pbuh] dearly. He is respected not only amongst the Muslims but many non-Muslims have also extolled him for his extraordinary qualities and the message he brought. But perhaps many are not aware of the fact that this love for the Prophet [pbuh] is in fact a necessary part of a Muslim’s faith without which his very belief would be considered incomplete .
Requirement of Faith
Narrated Anas: The Prophet said “None of you will have faith till he loves me more than his father, his children and all mankind.” [Bukhari :: Book 1 :: Volume 2 :: Hadith 14]
Why has this love for Prophet Muhammad [pbuh] been declared a prerequisite of faith? Why must each and every believer love the Prophet [pbuh] more than every other person in the world, even more than his own self?
Because this love for the last Prophet [pbuh] was meant to be the driving force for the believer to act upon each and every word and action of his beloved. This love wasn’t meant to be the selfish, stagnant, self-gratifying, fairytale emotion portrayed in the media but one that would propel a believer into action and change him from within and without. This love had to be stronger than any other love, strong enough for a Muslim to sacrifice his family, his wealth, his life and his own desires for the sake of his beloved.
This very love would not let the Muslims rest in peace until they had fulfilled the mission and conveyed the message that the Prophet [pbuh] had entrusted to them.
Then why is it that we claim to love the Prophet Muhammad [pbuh] yet this love has not brought about the same results in our lives?
Perhaps we need to know what kind of love we are supposed to have for the Prophet [pbuh]? Such an important matter – one that affects one’s faith- necessitates that this love should be the kind desired by Allah and his Messenger [pbuh] and not one based on each person’s own imagination.
Signs of Love For The Prophet [saw]
We should first ask ourselves what kind of love the Prophet [pbuh] approved of and what expressions of love did he reject?
Scholars have stated certain signs of the Prophet [saw]’s love that can be summarized as follows:
1. To have a strong desire to see and to be in the company of the Prophet [pbuh]
2. To be ever-ready to sacrifice one’s life and wealth for the Prophet [pbuh]
3. To obey what the Prophet [pbuh] commanded and abstain from what he forbade
4. To support and favour the Prophet’s Sunnah and to defend the Shariah that was revealed to him
There were certain expressions of love that the Prophet [pbuh] explicitly disapproved of.
He [saw] did not like that people should rise for him when he arrived.
Narrated Abu Umamah: The Apostle of Allah [peace_be_upon_him] came out to us leaning on a stick. We stood up to show respect to him. He said: Do not stand up as foreigners do for showing respect to one another. [Dawud :: Book 41 : Hadith 5211]
Similarly he [saw] discouraged poetry that bordered on Shirk [associating partners with Allah] and raised his status to that of Allah or even higher.
Narrated Ar-Rabi’: (the daughter of Muawwidh bin Afra) After the consummation of my marriage, the Prophet came and sat on my bed as far from me as you are sitting now, and our little girls started beating the tambourines and reciting elegiac verses mourning my father who had been killed in the battle of Badr. One of them said, “Among us is a Prophet who knows what will happen tomorrow.” On that the Prophet said, “Leave this [saying] and keep on saying the verses which you had been saying before.” [Bukhari :: Book 7 :: Volume 62 :: Hadith 77]
He [saw] disliked excessive and exaggerated praise.
Narrated ‘Umar: I heard the Prophet saying, “Do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians praised the son of Mary, for I am only a slave. So, call me the slave of Allah and His Apostle.” [Bukhari :: Book 4 :: Volume 55 :: Hadith 654]
He strongly condemned making his grave a place of worship or other deviant practices.
‘A’isha and Abdullah reported: As the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) was about to breathe his last, he drew his sheet upon his face and when he felt uneasy, he uncovered his face and said in that very state: Let there be curse upon the Jews and the Christians that they have taken the graves of their apostles as places of worship. He in fact warned (his men) against what they (the Jews and the Christians) did. [Muslim :: Book 4 : Hadith 1082]
Sadly, we do all of the above things in the name of love, without realizing that the one whom we claim to love himself forbade these things. Then will this love of ours be acceptable to him [saw] on the Day of Judgment or will he [saw] disown it?
Love Means Obedience
Love means obedience and sacrifice. Allah Ta’ala lays down the criteria for His love in the Quran: following the way of His Messenger [pbuh]
“Say: If you do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you and forgive you your sins, for Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” [Al-Imran: 31]
Abu Huraira [ra] transmits that the Messenger of Allah [pbuh] stated: “All of my followers will enter Paradise except those who have denied.” He was asked “Who has denied?” He stated: “Whoever has obeyed me will enter Paradise. Whoever has disobeyed has denied [and will not enter Paradise].” [Bukhari]
True love, in the Prophet’s [pbuh] eyes was therefore obedience to his Sunnah and following his path. Where is this obedience in our lives today – in our lifestyles, our homes, our weddings, our festivals or deaths?
Can we really think that the love Prophet [pbuh] wanted from us was to decorate mosques and buildings in Rabi-ul-Awwal, to hold gatherings of poetry in his honour once a year on his birthday and that’s all? The Prophet [pbuh] had himself warned against such innovations,
“Whoever has performed a deed which is not in the religion from its inception is rejected [not acceptable to Allah]. [Bukhari and Muslim]
The Companions Who Knew How To Love
These were the people who meant what they said and their actions bore witness to their claims. They proved that they loved the Prophet [pbuh] more than their fathers, their children, their own selves and everything else. This was the first and best generation of Muslims, whose actions are worth emulating.
In his [saw] lifetime, they expressed their love for the Prophet [pbuh] in the form of respectful adoration, unquestioning obedience and mirroring his actions. Whenever the need arose, they competed with each other to sacrifice whatever they could for Allah and His Prophet [pbuh].
Their love for the Prophet [pbuh] meant that even after he died, they sought guidance in his [saw]’s Sunnah. Most did not remain in Madina but spread out to the far corners of the earth to spread the message of the Prophet [pbuh]. Till their departure from this world, they served the cause of Islam in whatever capacity they could, as generals or ordinary soldiers, as caliphs or advisors, as scribes preserving and compiling the Quran and hadith, as students and teachers of knowledge, as victors and martyrs.
They could not tolerate even the slightest deviation or opposition to the Sunnah of the Messenger [pbuh].
Urwa bin Zubair [ra] transmits that Abu Bakr [ra] stated,”I cannot leave a thing which was acted upon by the Messenger of Allah because I fear that if I leave anything from the deeds and the sayings of the Messenger of Allah, I will go astray.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
Abu Bakr [ra]’s Love
The Quraish of Makkah made a plot to murder the Holy Prophet [pbuh]. Allah had given the order for migration to Medina. At night, in the cover of darkness, the Holy Prophet [pbuh] and Abu Bakr [ra] left Makkah and arrived at a cave called Thaur where they decided to take refuge.
The shoes of Abu Bakr [ra] were worn out; some said he used to walk tiptoe in order not to leave a trail behind him. Abu Bakr [ra], first entered to explore the cave and be sure that it was safe, closed all holes with pieces torn off from his clothes, cleaned it and then asked the Prophet [pbuh] to step in. The Prophet [pbuh] went in and immediately laid his head in Abu Bakr [ra]’s lap and fell asleep. Suddenly Abu Bakr [ra]’s foot was stung by a poisonous insect, but he did not stir or move despite the pain, fearing Muhammad might wake up. (The Sealed Nectar)
The Human Shield of Sahaba
It has been reported on the authority of Anas b. Malik that [when the enemy got the upper hand] on the day of the Battle of Uhud, the Messenger of Allah [may peace be upon him] was left with only seven men from the Ansar and two men from the Quraish. When the enemy advanced towards him and overwhelmed him, he said: Whoso turns them away from us will attain Paradise or will be my Companion in Paradise. A man from the Ansar came forward and fought [the enemy] until he was killed. The enemy advanced and overwhelmed him again and he repeated the words: Whoso turns them away, from us will attain Paradise or will be my Companion in Paradise. A man from the Ansar came forward and fought until he was killed. This state continued until the seven Ansar were killed [one after the other]. [Muslim 19:4413]
After the martyrdom of the seventh Ansari in Uhud, two Quraishis were left guarding the Prophet (pbuh): Talha bin Ubaidullah and Sad bin Abi Waqas. These two Sahabas bravely fought the Quraish and used their own bodies as shields to protect Allah’s Messenger (pbuh). Such was their love for him.
Narrated Qais: I saw Talha’s paralyzed hand with which he had protected the Prophet on the day of Uhud. [Bukhari 59:392]
The Prophet [pbuh] was left with Talha bin Ubaidullah and Sad bin Abi Waqas for only a few seconds before other .Sahabas arrived to shield him.
Abu Dujanah [ra] made himself a shield for Allah’s Messenger [pbuh]. Arrows kept on striking his back yet he continued to bend over Allah’s Messenger [saw] [to protect him] and in the end many arrows pierced his back. [Seerat ibn Hisham]
We hear and We obey
Abd al-Aziz b. Suhaib reported: They [some persons] asked Anas b. Malik, about Fadikh [that is, a wine prepared from fresh dates] whereupon he [ra] said: “There was no liquor with us except this Fadikih of yours. It was only this Fadikh that I had been serving to Abu Talha and Abu Ayyub and some persons from amongst the Companions of the Messenger of Allah [may peace be upon him] in our house. When a person came and said: “Has the news reached you?” We said, “No”. He said: “Verily liquor has been declared forbidden”. Thereupon, Abu Talha said: “Anas, spill these large pitchers.” He [the narrator] said: “They then never reverted to it, nor even asked about this after the announcement by that person.” [Muslim 23:4883]
Spending for the sake of love
When Allah’s Messenger [pbuh] announced the preparation for the Battle of Tabuk and called for charities and donations, the Muslims raced to spend for the sake of Allah.
‘Uthman, for instance, who had prepared two hundred saddled camels to travel to Ash-Sham, presented them all with two hundred ounces (of gold) as charity. He also fetched a thousand dinars and cast them all into the lap of the Messenger of Allah, who turned them over and said: “From this day on nothing will harm ‘Uthman regardless of what he does.” [Jami’ At-Tirmidhi 2/211]
Again and again ‘Uthman gave till his charity reached nine hundred camels and a hundred horses, besides the money he paid. [The Sealed Nectar]
Narrated Umar ibn al-Khattab: The Apostle of Allah [pbuh] commanded us one day to give sadaqah. At that time I had some property. I said: Today I shall surpass Abu Bakr if I surpass him any day. I, therefore, brought half my property. The Apostle of Allah [pbuh] asked: What did you leave for your family? I replied: The same amount. Abu Bakr brought all that he had with him. The Apostle of Allah [pbuh] asked him: What did you leave for your family? He replied: I left Allah and His Apostle for them. I said: I shall never compete you in anything. [Abu Dawud 003:167]
Now let us compare our love to that of the Sahaba. Do we hold the Prophet [pbuh] so dear that we can sacrifice our beloved most things for him? Can we lay our comfort, honour, life and wealth on the line in order to safeguard his Sunnah? When his Sunnah is ridiculed or denied, how upset do we feel? Are we as worried for the cause of Islam as we are for our children? Can we give up our desires in order to obey the Prophet [pbuh]? Do we refrain from doing something because the Prophet [pbuh] had forbidden it? Do we love him more than our forefathers and give his Sunnah preference over their customs and traditions? Do we desire the Prophet[pbuh]’s company in Paradise and what are we doing to attain it?
Article by: Hafsa Ahmad
