Adapted from Shaykh Amin’s Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī Lessons
Sayeed Siddiqui
Allah Himself blesses the best of His creation, His Prophet. He informs us that the angels do as well, in the meaning of praying for him, and then commands the believers to do so.
“Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O believers! Invoke [Allah’s] blessings upon him, and salute him with peace, abundantly.” (Surah al-Ahzab, 56).
The Companions, out of their great love for the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, then asked him the details of how to carry out this command.
Abū Ḥumayd al-Sāʾidī, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that [the Companions] asked, “O Messenger of Allah, how should we send peace upon you?” The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said, “Say: O Allah, send peace upon Muhammad and his wives and offspring, just as You sent peace on the family of Ibrahim. And bless Muhammad and his wives and offspring, just as You blessed the family of Ibrahim. Indeed you are Most Praiseworthy and Glorious.”
The question that immediately comes to mind is: why include Ibrahim, and the families of the two venerable prophets? In every prayer, why are we commanded to join these figures along with the Prophet Muhammad himself, Allah bless him and give him peace?
Ibrahim is included because of his major contributions in Islamic civilizational values. He is the prototype of the ummah. He is described as an ummah unto himself, and Allah commands us to follow the millah of Ibrahim eight times in the Qur’an. Millah is variously translated as religion, faith, way, or community. In fact, millah encompasses all of this. It is the sum total of all the civilizational values required to create an ummah. Ibrahim represents these values, across the spectrum from monotheism and sacrifice to hygiene and Hajj, and is thus the blueprint for our civilization on a moral level.
We are thus the ummah of Muhammad, and follow the millah of Ibrahim. This is demonstrated in the two Eids. Eid al-Fitr is for the ummah, as we complete our Ramadan fasts together. Eid al-Adha is for the millah of Ibrahim. The Companions asked the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, about sacrifice on that day. He said, “It is the practice [sunnah] of your father Ibrahim” (Ibn Majah, Ahmad). So we follow him in his willingness to sacrifice his beloved son; it is a global representation which connects us to the Abrahamic legacy shared, to a lesser extent, by Jews and Christians as well. We represent Muhammad, Allah bless him and give him peace, first, then the People of the Book, which includes us as well.
We say to the other People of the Book in interfaith interaction: we are the true heirs of Ibrahim, in that we preserve many rituals of Ibrahim: we represent him in our rituals to the extent that prayer is not complete without sending blessings on him, whereas you have not preserved anything. Allah says, “Ibrahim was not a Jew nor a Christian; rather, he was an upright Muslim, and was not a polytheist. Indeed, those most worthy of Ibrahim are those who followed him: this Prophet, and those who believe [with him]” (Surah Ali ‘Imran, 67-68).
This is Ibrahim. Next, we ask, why are the wives and progeny of the two prophets included? It would make sense to include the Companions, given their service and sacrifice, but including family smacks of nepotism. In fact, the inclusion of both the families of Muhammad and Ibrahim, Allah bless them both and give them peace, is merit-based. Hajar cared for her son alone in the wilderness, relying on Allah; Ismail was willing to give up his life, and helped build the Ka’bah. Similarly, the wives of Muhammad, Allah bless him and give him peace, sacrificed their worldly aspirations and preserved and taught the Sharia, especially that of domestic matters. His son-in-law ‘Ali, and his grandsons Hasan and Husayn gave their lives in the causes of jihad, justice, and unity of the ummah.
What further clarifies this is that the Prophet’s family does not receive favoritism in the Sharia; in fact, they have more stringent treatment. Zakah is not to be given to them, since it is the purification of people’s wealth and thus does not befit their station. The Prophet’s wives had many strict rulings specific to them. They were excluded from social participation: it was prohibited for the ummah to be private with them in that they could not see them or talk to them except behind a partition. They were not allowed to marry again. ‘A’ishah, among others, was still a young woman in her prime; so this was a major restriction. This social and financial exclusion was so that they would not be accused of exploitation. They would not take favors, and would not mix and mingle like others. The wives were also held to a higher standard of piety. Allah says, “O wives of the Prophet! If any of you were to commit blatant misconduct, the punishment would be doubled for her. And that is easy for Allah. And whoever of you devoutly obeys Allah and His Messenger and does good, We will grant her double the reward, and We have prepared for her an honorable provision” (Surah al-Ahzab, 30-31).
Ultimately, singling out the Prophet’s family is due to merit. One of the most awe-inspiring Prophetic miracles is the creation of a household and a generation of Companions with the highest level of piety and moral character that the world has ever seen. They received the distribution of Prophetic light in its fullest, and it is only through them that we then receive the light. We recognize this in every prayer.
