This is the translation of the Khutbah delivered by Professor Ahmad Ibrahim Maqary, Imam of the National Mosque, Abuja, on Friday, May 5, 2023:
We need to designate a motto and a mantle of calling to mind the etiquette of dealing with our master, the Messenger of God, in this time when man has moved away, more than any time in the past, from the Fitrah (the pattern on which Allah has made mankind).
We are in dire need to learn the etiquette of dealing with everything related to the Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family. Allah Almighty used to train the Companions, including the mothers of the believers, with this Adab in their coexistence with His beloved, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family.
How is their sitting posture during a session in his presence? Jibril (Gabriel) came from on high with a lesson on that. How is the conversation in his presence, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family?:
O ye who believe! Lift not up your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor shout when speaking to him as ye shout one to another, lest your works be rendered vain while ye perceive not. (Al-Jujuraat: 2)
How do we respond to a dinner invitation to his residence?:
- O ye who believe! Enter not the dwellings of the Prophet for a meal without waiting for the proper time, unless permission be granted you. But if ye are invited, enter, and, when, your meal is ended, then disperse. Linger not for conversation. Lo! that would cause annoyance to the Prophet, and he would be shy of (asking) you (to go); but Allah is not shy of the truth. And when ye ask of them (the wives of the Prophet) anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain. That is purer for your hearts and for their hearts. And it is not for you to cause annoyance to the messenger of Allah, nor that ye should ever marry his wives after him. Lo! that in Allah’s sight would be an enormity. (Al-Ahzaab:53)
How do we converse with him Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family?:
Make not the calling of the messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knoweth those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them. (An-Nuur:63)
Adab with him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is Adab with Allah, as observing the right etiquette with the Messenger is as observing same with the One who sent him. Moreover, obedience to the Messenger, sallaahu alayhi wa sallam is obedience to Allah Almighty, as Allah said:
Whoso obeyeth the messenger obeyeth Allah, and whoso turneth away: We have not sent thee as a warder over them. (An-Nisaa:80)
His love, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is inconceivable with bad manners with him, Sallallahu alayhi wa Sallam. Hence Ibn Taymiyyah said:
The observance of praise, laudation to him, and reverence for him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is the establishment of religion in its entirety, and the absence of that is the obliteration of all religion.”
THE SECOND KHUTBAH
Adab with him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family, is manifested through three levels:
First: Heartfelt Adab:
It is the pinnacle of all morals, and the basis of belief in him – Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam – and his belief in him, his love, glorification and reverence for him, with the belief in his preference, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, over the worlds and not allowing any negative thought in
the heart touche his person, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family. Allah said:
Lo! We have sent thee (O Muhammad) as a witness and a bearer of good tidings and a warner, That ye (mankind) may believe in Allah and His messenger, and may honour Him, and may revere Him, and may glorify Him at early dawn and at the close of day. (Fath: 8-9)
The corollary of the belief in his preference, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is the feeling of his prestige, the majesty of his standing, the evocation of his status and rank, his morals and virtues, and everything that makes the heart remember his right of reverence and glorification; and the heart controls other organs, so when the adoration of the Beloved, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is settled in the heart, then effects of it will appear on entire limbs.
Secondly: Verbal Adab:
It is related to the tongue, which is the guide of the heart, and the believer exhibits Adab with the Messenger of Allah, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, with his heart, he as well displays Adab in his words by not calling him as one of us calls his brother because he, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is not like any one of us: Allah said:
- Make not the calling of the messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knoweth those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them. (An-Nuur)
Also, part of verbal Adab with him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is to avoid raising of voices above his voice, for it is a reason for deeds to become vain. The Almighty said:
- O ye who believe! Lift not up your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor shout when speaking to him as ye shout one to another, lest your works be rendered vain while ye perceive not. (Al-Hujuraat)
Of being forward in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family is raising voices above his voice by presenting an opinion, saying or action against what was mentioned in his Sunnah, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family. All that occasion the rendering of works to be vain.
Dead or alive, the inviolability of the Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is unchangeable!
Among this Adab with him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his family, is asking blessings on and saluting him frequently, as Allah Almighty commanded:
Lo! Allah and His angels shower blessings on the Prophet. O ye who believe! Ask blessings on him and salute him with a worthy salutation. (Al-Ahzaab:56)
Asking blessings on and saluting him, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is one of the best acts of worship, deferred deeds, and among the manifestations of his love and Adab with him. In the Saheehain on the authority of Ubayy b. Ka’b said he told God’s Messenger that he frequently invoked blessings on him and asked how much of his prayer* he should devote to him. He replied that he might devote as much as he wished, and when he suggested a quarter, he said, “Whatever you wish, but if you increase it, that will be better for you.” He suggested a half, and he replied, “Whatever you wish, but if you increase it, that will be better for you.” He suggested two-thirds, and he replied, “Whatever you wish, but if you increase it, that will be better for you.” He then suggested devoting all his prayer to him, and he replied, “Then you will be freed from care, and your sin will be expiated.”
Third: Practical Adab:
It is related to the action of the limbs, as well as observing his Shari’ah, following his Sunnah, outwardly and inwardly, adhering to it and being keen on it, calling to it, judging by what he brought – Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam – in all matters, striving to manifest his religion, supporting what he brought, and obeying him in, and avoiding what he commanded.
Al Qady Iyyad said:
Know that whoever loves something prefers it and whatever pertains to it otherwise he was not sincere in his love and was an impostor. Then, the sincere in his love of the Prophet, Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is he in whom the manifestation of that appears, and the first of which is following his example and using his Sunnah, following his words and actions, complying with his orders and avoiding his prohibitions, and being polite with his etiquette in prosperity and in adversity, in what pleases him or what he dislikes. And this is affirmed by the Most High:
- Say, (O Muhammad, to mankind): If ye love Allah, follow me; Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. (Aali Imraan).
