Mawlid: Between History and Practice

MAWLID: BETWEEN HISTORY AND PRACTICE

Prof Dr Mohd Asri bin Zainul Abidin

Islamic history scholars disagree on the exact date of the Prophet's (peace be upon him) birth. Meanwhile, the Prophet's hadith narrated by Imam Muslim only mentions that he was born on a Monday, without mentioning the specific date. Anyone who reads major Islamic history books, such as al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah by Imam Ibn Kathir (died 774H), will see various opinions regarding the date and month of his birth.

For those who believe he was born in the month of Rabi’ul Awwal, they differ in determining the exact date. Some say it was on the 8th, some say the 9th, others say the 12th as commonly believed by many, and some say the 17th or other dates. Beside that, there are also Islamic scholars who state that he was born in the month of Ramadan, each presenting their own arguments.

Whatever the case, the important thing is that historians from the East or West, North or South, have never disagreed on the existence of a man named Muhammad bin ‘Abdillah, who is declared by Muslims as the final messenger sent by God. This is different from Jesus as portrayed in the West, where some of their researchers question the very birth of Jesus himself.

The Importance of the Mawlid

The birth of the Prophet s.a.w. is a very important event because it marks the start of a new chapter for human life as a whole. Determining the exact date or month is not the main factor. Being unable to determine an exact birth date does not mean a person did not exist. There are countless prophets, figures, and individuals whose exact birth dates cannot be traced, yet they existed and shaped history.

The failure of scholars to know the exact day and month of the Prophet's s.a.w. birth was partly because his Companions (sahabah) did not celebrate the date. Although in Islamic history they were the generation that loved the Prophet s.a.w. the most, they did not create a special celebration for his birthday because they never saw him do so.

In fact, Ibn Kathir narrated how Saidina ‘Umar rejected a suggestion to start the Islamic calendar from the birth year of the Prophet s.a.w. Instead, the great Caliph chose the year of his migration (Hijrah) as the starting point. It is not that the birth was unimportant, but the Hijrah was the beginning of success and the history of struggle. The most important thing regarding a messenger is that he is followed, not merely celebrated. Every year, Western Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, but do their lives reflect what Jesus taught?

Mawlid and Politics

Days came and went. The muslim world was shaken by various political crises, which eventually gave rise to different sects (mazhab). Among them was the Shiite sect, which was originally a political group before turning into a religious sect with various sub-streams. Instead of Islam shaping politics, it became a situation where “politics shaped Islam.” Religious understanding was then built upon political blocks, rather than political thinking being guided by Islam.

Thus, power struggles occurred based on political agendas infused with Islamic elements. As a result, the Muslim community became scattered due to the political agendas of various factions. In Egypt, the Fatimid Shiites once held power. Various religious agendas were carried out within the framework of a political sect that had turned into a religion. Various religious celebrations were created to achieve specific political goals.

In Fatawa al-Azhar, it is acknowledged that Islamic historians do not know of anyone who started the celebration of the Prophet’s s.a.w. Mawlid except the Fatimid Shiite Kingdom in Egypt, which organized it on a grand scale. They also celebrated the birthdays of figures from the Ahlil Bait (the Prophet’s family) and the birth of Jesus (peace be upon him). Later, in the year 488H, it was stopped by Caliph al-Musta’la billah, before being revived again later by certain governments and states. That is its history.

Yes, I believe that feeling grateful while remembering the history of the Prophet’s s.a.w. birth—with the spirit of following him—is proper and necessary. At the same time, we must be aware of the facts mentioned above. If this month of Rabi’ul Awwal is said to be the month of the Prophet's s.a.w. birth, then there is nothing wrong with us giving lectures to share the history of his struggles and the principles of Islam he brought. All the more so since almost all historians agree that the Prophet s.a.w. passed away on Monday, 12th Rabi'ul Awwal. Therefore, that event is very important to talk about. Just as when we pass by a historical site, we recall its history.

In Perlis, we make the month of Rabiul Awwal an educational month to remember the history of the Messenger of Allah s.a.w., or what we call The Month of Zikra al-Rasul (Remembering the Messenger). However, we must not become seasonal people who only remember the Messenger and his teachings on certain days, but seem to forget him after that.

In addition, we must realize that if we follow the Prophet s.a.w., we must ensure we do not add things to his teachings that he did not allow. He said:

مَنْ أَحْدَثَ فِي أَمْرِنَا هَذَا مَا لَيْسَ مِنْهُ فَهُوَ رَدٌّ

“Whoever introduces into this matter of ours (Islam) something that is not part of it, it will be rejected.” (Narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim. Text from Muslim).

Since he never taught us any specific act of worship in conjunction with his birth—whether a special prayer, a special fast, or a special recitation—we cannot invent one. The path that should be followed in this matter is the path of his Companions s.a.w.

Prophet's Biography (Sirah) Must Be Authentic

It must be remembered that one of the special features of the Prophet's s.a.w. history is that authentic reports can be distinguished from additions. This is different from the history of other religious founders in the world, where almost their entire history is built upon assumptions or uncertain news. Hadith science—which filters chains of narration (sanad) and texts (matn)—has preserved the historical facts of our Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. Only confirmed history should be our guide, not fabricated stories.

Al-Sayyid Sulaiman al-Nadwi said: "Indeed, for a biography to deserve being followed by people as a good example and high model, it must first be historical (tarikhiyyah). As for a biography built upon myths and superstitious tales unsupported by trustworthy narrations, it is human nature not to be influenced by fabricated personal biographies that history itself does not recognize." (Sulaiman al-Nadwi, al-Risalah al-Muhammadiyyah, p. 41, Saudi: al-Dar al-Sa`udiyyah).

The book Maulid al-Barzanji, which is widely read in our community during feasts or other occasions, has its own contributions. Many authentic historical facts were recorded by its author, Ja’far bin Hasan bin `Abd al-Karim al-Barzanji (died 1187H). However, from the perspective of hadith science, it cannot be denied that there are unauthentic facts in that book.

For instance, he mentioned: “Asia (the faithful wife of Pharaoh) and Maryam (mother of Prophet Jesus a.s.) were present on the night of his (Prophet s.a.w.) birth among a group of women from paradise.” There is not a single authentic narration from the Prophet s.a.w. that confirms such an event.

Because of this, historical researcher Muhammad Muhammad Hasan Syurrab stated: "We must be careful when quoting from sirah books, especially later sirah books. Their narrators added many stories to the biography of the Messenger. They attributed miracles and extraordinary matters to him from birth until his passing without any reliable chain of transmission. It is as if these narrators felt that adding these extraordinary things was meant to give the Messenger a.s. miracles that previous prophets did not have." (Muhammad Muhammad Hasan Syurrab, Fi Usul Tarikh al-`Arab al-Islami, p. 84, Damascus, Dar al-Qalam).

We are all grateful and happy with the birth of Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. However, we must ensure that the way we follow and understand him aligns with true Islamic teachings. Every year, many parties commemorate the history of the Mawlid, but the question is: are Muslims getting closer to him? This is what we need to answer and work on so that remembering his history achieves its true purpose.