Food for thought (EP 2): Duties of a Muslim towards the Prophet ﷺ

Allah sent Prophet Muhammad ﷺto us, as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner against His punishment. As Muslims, to this prophet we owe some obligations and I am going to mention some of them here:

• Put his love above other things

The Prophet ﷺsaid: “None of you will have faith until he loves me more than his father, his children and all mankind.”  (Bukhari)

• Invoke Salawat upon him

When the Prophet’s ﷺname is mentioned, make Salawat (Sallallahu Alayhi Wa Sallam- peace and mercy of Allah be upon him) for him. The Prophet said: “The miser is the one in whose presence I am mentioned, and he does not send blessings upon me.” (Sahih Jami’-2878). In the same vein, we should also invoke a lot of Salawat upon him, especially on Fridays.

• Confirm the authenticity of the hadiths attributed to him.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺsaid in a hadith, “Whoever ascribes to me what I have not said then let him occupy his seat in Hell-fire.” (Bukhari-106). We should clear the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺfrom all sorts of unfounded words and issues attributed to him.

• Practise his sunnah as much as you can

Allah says: “اتَّقُوا اللَّه مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ”(So fear Allah as much as you are able). This applies to working on the sunnah that relates to morality, worship, etc. The Prophet mentioned in a hadith, “All my followers will enter Paradise except those who refuse.” They said, “O Allah's Messenger, who will refuse?” He said, “Whoever obeys me will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys me is the one who refuses (to enter it).” (Bukhari)

• Spread his sunnah

As we practice the sunnah, we should also try to spread it among the people in the best manner. The noble Prophet ﷺcommanded in a hadith “Convey from me, even if it is one verse”.

• Defend his sunnah

The sunnah of the Prophet must be defended against all forms of ridicules and attempts to destroy it.  We live in a time when a lot of Muslims will not tolerate ridiculing of their lineage or ethnicity but are fine with people speaking against the sunnah. Undoubtedly, this is a sign of weakness in our relationship with the Prophet ﷺ. 

• Don’t go beyond limit in his regard

A Muslim should not, out of his love for the Prophet ﷺ, go beyond the limits by ascribing to him divine attributes, or worshipping, making dua and oath in his name. He should, however, believe that he is the best of mankind. Allah says indicating to the Prophet “قُلۡ إِنَّمَاۤ أَنَا۠ بَشَرࣱ مِّثۡلُكُمۡ” (Say, "I am only a man like you). (Kahf: 110). In the same vein, a Muslim should believe that the Prophet is dead.

• Refer to his sunnah when there is a dispute among you.

Allah says “فَإِن تَنَازَعْتُم فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ” (And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger). The verse means that when there is a dispute on a matter, the Qur’an and the sunnah should be referred to. However, it’s saddening that when people dispute on issues, they prefer to resort to blind following or their whims and caprices.

• Believe in His virtues

A Muslim should believe that the Prophet ﷺis the most virtuous creature and that he is the last of the prophets after whom no other will come. He should also believe that Isa (as) will descend to the earth as a part of the ummah of Muhammad ﷺin the End Times.

• Obey his commands without hesitation

Allah says “يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ اسْتَجِيبُواْ لِلّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُم لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ” (O you who believe! Answer Allah (by obeying Him) and (His) Messenger when he calls you to that which will give you life). Imagine how the companions rush to obeying the Prophet ﷺwithout any hesitation!

• Do not make noise when his hadith is being read

Allah says “لَا تَرْفَعُوا أَصْوَاتَكُمْ فَوْقَ صَوْتِ النَّبِيِّ” (O you who believe! Raise not your voices above the voice of the Prophet).

Some other things we should take note are:

• Reading about his life and taking lessons from it.
• Knowing his companions and loving them
• Loving the people who uphold his sunnah
• Not accommodating any form of opposition against his path
• Not giving preference to anyone’s word over his.