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Etiquette with the Beloved (Prophet Muhammad)
Author : Mufti Hani Al-Abid
Date Added : 31-07-2025

 

Etiquette with the Beloved (Prophet Muhammad)

 

Among the greatest etiquettes that a Muslim must possess is etiquette with the Prophet (peace be upon him). A Muslim whom Allah Almighty has honored with the sweetness of faith cultivates the culture of etiquette with His Messenger (peace be upon him) in his heart and mind, a culture that the Holy Quran called upon Muslims to embody.

Let us reflect on Surah Al-Hujurat to understand the importance of showing proper etiquette to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Allah Almighty says {what means}: "O you who have believed, do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet or be loud to him in speech like the loudness of some of you to others, lest your deeds become worthless while you perceive not. Indeed, those who lower their voices before the Messenger of Allah - it is those whose hearts Allah has tested for righteousness. For them is forgiveness and a great reward. Indeed, those who call you from behind the private chambers - most of them do not reason. And if they had been patient until you came out to them, it would have been better for them. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." [Al-Hujurat/2-5].

It is authentically narrated from Anas ibn Malik that he said: When this verse was revealed: "O you who have believed, do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet..." [Al-Hujurat/2] to the end of the verse, Thabit ibn Qays sat in his house and said: "I am from the people of the Fire." He then refrained from coming to the Prophet (peace be upon him). So the Prophet (peace be upon him) asked Sa'd ibn Mu'adh, saying: "O Abu Amr, what is the matter with Thabit? Is he ill?" Sa'd replied: "He is my neighbor, and I have not known him to be ill." Sa'd then went to him and mentioned to him the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Thabit said: "This verse was revealed, and you all know that I am among those with the loudest voices to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), so I am from the people of the Fire." Sa'd then mentioned this to the Prophet (peace be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Rather, he is from the people of Paradise" [Sahih Muslim]. In some narrations, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him: "You are not among them; rather, you will live in goodness and die in goodness."

Based on these verses, scholars have deduced the prohibition of raising one's voice near his noble grave (peace be upon him) and when reciting his hadith (peace be upon him), as a sign of etiquette with the Prophet (peace be upon him), because his sanctity after his death is like his sanctity during his lifetime.

There is another etiquette that we need to be reminded of – especially during the occasion of his birthday (peace be upon him) – which I direct to those in the field of Islamic da'wah (preaching), including writers and researchers. It is not befitting for someone writing about the biography of the Beloved (peace be upon him) to offer prayers upon the Prophet in a symbolic form, such as the letter (ص) or (صلعم). The scholarly literature of Islamic scholars, who dedicated themselves to serving the Shari'ah, has warned against writing the salutations upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) in an abbreviated form. Ibn Kathir, in "Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith," quoted Ibn al-Salah as saying: "And let the prayers and salutations be written in full, meaning completely without abbreviation or symbol. He said: And do not suffice with saying: (عليه السلام - 'alaihis salam'), meaning: Rather, let (صلى الله عليه وسلم - salla Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) be written clearly and completely" (Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith, Ibn Kathir/P.165).

This etiquette is something that the Shari'ah has called for and the Chosen One (peace be upon him) has affirmed. It is narrated in a hadith from Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: "I was the scribe of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) on the Day of Hudaybiyyah. He wrote: 'This is what Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, and Suhayl ibn Amr have agreed upon.' Suhayl said: 'If we knew he was the Messenger of Allah, we would not have fought him. Erase it.' I said: 'By Allah, he is the Messenger of Allah, even if your nose is rubbed in dust! No, by Allah, I will not erase it.' The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: 'Show me its place.' So I showed him, and he erased it" (Al-Sunan al-Kubra by Al-Nasa'i). The action of our master Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was a display of etiquette, as his soul would not allow him to erase the phrase "Messenger of Allah" after he had written it.

Qadi Iyad said in "Al-Shifa": "Know that the sanctity of the Prophet (peace be upon him) after his death, and his veneration and glorification, are as obligatory as they were during his lifetime. This applies when he (peace be upon him) is mentioned, and when his hadith and Sunnah are mentioned, and when his name and biography are heard, and in dealing with his family and descendants, and in glorifying his household and companions. Abu Ibrahim al-Tujibi said: 'It is obligatory upon every believer, whenever he is mentioned or mentioned in his presence, to humble himself, show devotion, reverence, calm his movements, and adopt the awe and veneration for him as he would for himself if he were in his presence, and to observe the etiquette with which Allah has taught us'" (Al-Shifa, Qadi Iyad Vol. 2/P.28).

Qadi Iyad, in "Al-Shifa," also presented wonderful examples from the pious predecessors [Salaf] that demonstrate the existence of these refined sensibilities and noble etiquette in dealing with the legacy of our master Muhammad (peace be upon him). It is narrated that Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib (may Allah have mercy on him) was approached by a man asking him about a hadith while he was reclining. He sat up and narrated it to him. The man said: "I wished you had not troubled yourself" (meaning, by sitting up while he was ill). He replied: "I disliked narrating about the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) while reclining." And Malik ibn Anas, whenever he went out to teach the noble hadith, would perform ghusl (ritual bath), apply perfume, and wear new clothes. He would sit with humility, and incense (oud) would continuously be burned – a sweet scent filling his gathering – until he finished narrating the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).

O Allah, make us observant of proper etiquette with Your Beloved, who guided us to You (peace be upon him), and inspire us with our rightful guidance, O Almighty, O Wise.

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Summarized Fatawaa

The Jurisprudential Significance of the Ḥadīth: "Whoever says, at the conclusion of the Fajr Prayer, while crossing his legs, before speaking..."
"Whoever says, at the conclusion of the Fajr prayer, while crossing his legs, before speaking: 'Lā ilāha illā Allāh, waḥdahu lā sharīka lah, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-ḥamdu yuḥyī wa yumītu wa huwa ʿalā kulli shayʾin qadīr' ten times — ten good deeds will be recorded for him, ten bad deeds will be erased from him, he will be raised ten levels, he will spend that day in protection from everything disliked and guarded from the devil, and no sin will be able to befall him on that day except associating partners with Allah" — does this noble ḥadīth apply to the imam, and what is meant by "extraneous speech"?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is recommended for both the imam and those praying behind him to recite, immediately after the final salām, the specific remembrance reported in the sunnah to be said before turning away from one's place of prayer. The imam then leaves his praying spot, and the act of "turning" is fulfilled when the imam faces the congregation — even without physically leaving his spot — by positioning his right side toward them and his left side toward the qiblah, and this applies even while he is engaged in supplication.
Al-ʿAllāmah Ibn Qāsim al-ʿAbbādī states in his Ḥāshiyah ʿalā al-Tuḥfah (Vol.2/P.105): "It is most virtuous for the imam, once he has given the salām, to rise from his place of prayer immediately afterward." He adds that an exception must be made for the remembrances that are specifically required to be recited before he turns away. He then notes, citing Sharḥ al-ʿUbāb: "Yes, an exception to this rising immediately after the salām applies to the Fajr prayer, due to the authentic report that the Prophet ﷺ, when he prayed Fajr, would remain seated until the sun rose." He further cites, from al-Khādim, the ḥadīth concerning one who recites, at the conclusion of the Fajr prayer while still in the position of crossing his leg to rise: "Lā ilāha illā Allāh, waḥdahu lā sharīka lah..." and the rest of the well-known ḥadīth. He comments that this makes explicit that this particular remembrance is to be recited before the worshipper turns his legs to leave, and the same applies to Maghrib and ʿAṣr, as reported in those contexts as well.
What is meant by "speech" in the relevant ḥadīth is extraneous worldly speech that is not called for after the prayer and for which there is no legitimate excuse. The remembrances reported to be recited upon concluding the prayer, however, do not fall under this category of extraneous speech, since they are themselves required by the sharīʿah.
Al-ʿAllāmah ʿAlī al-Shabrāmalsī states in his Ḥāshiyah ʿalā al-Nihāyah (Vol.1/P.551): "If someone greets a person with salām while he is occupied with reciting this remembrance [i.e., 'Lā ilāha illā Allāh...'], should he return the greeting — without this causing him to forfeit the promised reward, since he is engaged in an obligatory matter — or should he delay returning the greeting until he finishes, this being a legitimate excuse for the delay?" He continues: "I say: the more likely view is the former, and the prohibition on speech is to be understood as applying to extraneous speech for which there is no legitimate excuse. Based on this, should the worshipper give precedence to this remembrance ('Lā ilāha illā Allāh...') or to reciting Sūrat al-Ikhlāṣ ('Qul huwa Allāhu aḥad')? This requires consideration, though it is not unlikely that the remembrance takes precedence, given that the Lawgiver urged hastening to it through his words 'while crossing his leg.' This is not considered ordinary speech, since it is not extraneous to what is required after the prayer."
Accordingly, it is recommended for both the imam and those praying behind him to recite this remembrance and to give it precedence over the other remembrances of the prayer, ensuring it is said before they move from their place. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

Are school exams a valid excuse for breaking the fast in Ramadan?

School and university exams are not considered a valid excuse for breaking the fast, as most students take their exams while fasting without experiencing extreme hardship. Fasting does not conflict with exam preparation, and a Muslim seeks strength in obedience to Allah for both worldly and spiritual matters.

What is incumbent upon the one offering the sacrifice if, after slaughtering the animal, they discover that one of its internal organs is damaged or diseased?

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
The presence of disease or defect in the internal organs of a sheep does not affect the validity of the sacrificial animal, unless the disease leads to the animal becoming emaciated and its meat becoming corrupted.
 
It is stated in al-Iqnā' (2/590) by Imam al-Shirbīnī: "The third disqualifying condition: an animal with a manifest illness — meaning one whose illness visibly results in emaciation and corruption of its meat. However, if the illness is minor and does not produce such effects, it doesn`t affect the validity of the sacrificed animal." And Allah Almighty knows best.

Where should a woman following her husband or another man in prayer stand?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
If a single woman prays with a man—whether she is his wife or a non-mahram (Ajnabiyyah)—the Sunnah is for her to stand behind the Imam and be shielded by him. If the Imam is leading both a man and a woman, the man should stand to the Imam's right, and the woman should stand behind the male follower (Muqtadi). In this way, she is shielded from the Imam by the male follower and remains at a distance from the follower and his line of sight. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

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