'They compared you to a date palm growing in a barren piece of land', he said

والصَّلَاةُ والسَّلاَمُ عَلَى سَيّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ أَشْرَفِ اْلمُرْسَلِيْنَ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ الطَّيّبِيْنَ الطَّاهِرِيْن

The season of the Prophet’s birth is a time during which narratives regarding the birth of the Prophet ﷺ are recited. Often, many of these reports have weak chains of transmission, and sometimes they may even be fabricated and baseless. 

Thus, we deemed it appropriate to discuss the narrations that have been transmitted concerning his birth, peace and blessings be upon him, and related matters. Some of these reports are authentic (sahih), some are good (hasan), some are disputed but have been authenticated by certain scholars (huffadhs), and some are weak yet still fall under principles of the Shari^ah and do not contradict established hadiths. They are further supported by other narrations and pieces of evidence, strengthening them, and their mention in biographies is not considered objectionable. Nor is their narration in matters of virtues subject to criticism, nor are they regarded as a weakness that exposes them to the attacks of the innovators.

In other words, it is often the case that the people of innovation, who object to the mention of the noble Mawlid, criticise those who recite such accounts, asserting that many of the reports related to this event are unfounded and that those who engage in their recitation rely on weak narrations unworthy of transmission.

However, by the will of Allah, we shall not partake in such practices. Instead, every report we present in these sessions will either be authentic, sound, or weak but reinforced by corroborating evidence, thereby rendering it acceptable and beyond any form of criticism.

Ad-Duriyy narrated from Imam ‘Ahmad that he allowed leniency in narrating weak hadiths in matters such as military expeditions and similar topics, provided certain conditions were met.

That is because ‘Ahmad was asked about narrating from Muhammad ibnu ‘Ishaq, who was known for frequent tadlis (concealing the identity of narrators) and was criticised by some of the hadith scholars (huffadhs). ‘Ahmad replied, 'As for his narrations in military expeditions and similar topics, they may be recorded, but when it comes to matters of the lawful and unlawful, we require something like this,” stretching out his hand and closing his fingers together, meaning that in matters of lawful and unlawful, one cannot be lenient in transmitting such reports.

The scholars have agreed on the permissibility of acting upon weak hadiths in matters of virtuous deeds, just as they have agreed on the permissibility of narrating them in biographies, military expeditions, and similar topics, provided the necessary conditions are met. We will not delve into these conditions now.

I shall now begin by mentioning two narrations that gave glad tidings of the birth of the Prophet and his mission. The first of the two reports is what Ad-Dinawariyy al-Malikiyy mentioned in his famous book, Al-Mujalasah. He narrated from Khalifah ibnu ^Abdah al-Minqariyy, who said: "I asked Muhammad ibn ^Adiyy ibnu Suwā’ah ibn Jusham ibnu Sa^d: 'How did your father name you Muhammad?'" [This name was not common in the pre-Islamic period, yet his father named him Muhammad, so he was asked how his father gave him this name.]

He said, "I asked my father about this matter just as you have asked me, and he informed me that he set out with three others from the Bani Tamim: Sufyan ibnu Mijāl, Yazid ibnu ^Umar, and ‘Usamah ibnu Malik. They journeyed to the lands of Ash-Sham, seeking Ibnu Jafnah al-Ghassaniyy." Ibnu Jafnah al-Ghassaniyy was a king from the Ghassanid dynasty, and the Arabs would travel to them in hopes of receiving gifts. He said, " When we arrived in Ash-Sham, we halted along the way at a pond [a body of water that gathers after rainfall] beside a cluster of small trees. There, was a small abbey inhabited by a Christian monk. When the monk heard our speech, he appeared to us, as our language was not that of the people of those lands. [At that time, the people of the region spoke Syriac, while they conversed in Arabic]. He said, 'This language is not of the people of this land.' We responded, ‘Yes, we are a people from Mudar.’ He asked, ‘From which branch of Mudar do you hail?’ They replied, ‘From Khindif.’ He then said, ‘Indeed, a prophet will soon be sent. Hasten to him and follow him. Secure your share of his guidance, and you shall be rightly guided, for he is the Seal of the Prophets, and his name is Muhammad.'"

He continued, "Upon returning from our meeting with him and after visiting Ibnu Jafnah, we eventually went back to our families. Each of us had a son born during that time, and each of us named our son Muhammad, hoping that he would be the awaited prophet. This is the first account that foretells the coming of our Prophet Muhammad.

The second report is narrated by Hafidh Al-Bayhaqiyy, may Allah have mercy on him, in his book Dalāʾilu n-Nubuwwah. He narrated from ^Umar ibnu Qatadah, who was from the ‘Ansar, that he said, "The elders among us [he elderly from the ‘Ansar] told me: ‘Before the Messenger of Allah was entrusted with prophethood, there was no one among the Arabs more knowledgeable about him than we were. We were the most informed of the Arabs about him.’" Why was this the case? They explained: 'We had Jews living among us, who claimed adherence to a book, while we worshipped idols. Whenever we overpowered them in matters they despised [i.e., our idol worship], they would say: "A prophet is about to be sent, and his time is near. We will follow him, and we will destroy you with the annihilation of ^Ad and Iram.’ Then, when Allah sent His Messenger Muhammad, we believed in him, but they rejected him. So, Allah revealed concerning them:

﴿يَعْرِفُونَهُ كَمَا يَعْرِفُونَ أَبْنَاءَهُمْ﴾

“They recognize him as they recognize their own sons"

This is what has been conveyed regarding the glad tidings of his coming. Now, we shall proceed to discuss his noble lineage. He was born into the tribe of Quraysh, as he himself explicitly stated. Al-Bayhaqiyy narrated in Dalāʾilu n-Nubuwwah that some people from Banu Kindah claimed, "Muhammad be upon him, is from us." The Prophet replied, ‘No, this was merely a claim made during the pre-Islamic period by Al-^Abbas and ‘Abu Sufyan when they visited Medina, in order to avoid potential harm from certain tribes there.’ The Prophet continued: ‘We shall not disown our ancestors; we are from the lineage of Banu n-Nadr ibnu Kinanah.'

He declared: 'I am Muhammad, the son of ^Abdu l-Lah, the son of ^Abdu l-Muttalib, the son of Hashim, the son of ^Abdu Manaf, the son of Qusayy, the son of Kilab, the son of Murrah, the son of Ka^b, the son of Lu’ayy, the son of Ghalib, the son of Fihr, the son of Malik, the son of An-Nadr, the son of Kinanah, the son of Khuzaymah, the son of Mudrikah, the son of ‘Ilyas, the son of Mudar, the son of Nizar. And whenever people were separated into two groups, Allah placed me among the better one, and I was born from a legitimate marriage and not from illicit relations. From Adam to my parents, I am the best among you in lineage. ‘ It is well established that Nizar is the son of Ma^add, son of ^Adnan and that ^Adnan's lineage traces back to ‘Isma^il, the Prophet of Allah, son of ‘Ibrahim, the Prophet of Allah.

The nobility of his lineage is further evidenced by what Imam Al-Bukhariyy narrated from Abū Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: " I was sent forth from the finest generations of the children of ‘Adam until I emerged in the very generation that I was destined to be part of."

Additionally, the nobility of this lineage is affirmed by what Imam At-Tirmidhiyy reported in his Jami^ from Al-^Abbas ibnu ^Abdi l-Muttalib. He said: "I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, Quraysh gathered and discussed their lineages among themselves [meaning each person would boast about his lineage within Quraysh]. They compared you [O Muhammad] to a date palm growing in a barren piece of land, [implying that while his status is high, his lineage was perceived as lacking]."

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ responded: " Allah created humanity and placed me in the most distinguished of their lineage, and among these lineages, He distinguished two groups, placing me in the most esteemed of them. Then He favoured the tribes, placing me in the noblest of them, and finally selected the households, placing me in the most honourable of them. Thus, I am the most noble among them and the best in terms of lineage."

It is understood from this that there was no illicit or unlawful lineage in his ancestry from him back to 'Adam. Instead, his lineage was solely through legitimate marriage. This is consistent with what Al-Bayhaqiyy reported in his Sunan from Ibnu ^Abbas that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "I was not born from the illicit relationships of the people of Jahiliyyah; I was born solely from legitimate unions, akin to those in Islam."

In summary, after the time of Noah, humanity was divided into communities. Allah placed the Prophet’s lineage in the finest of these communities. As they separated further into tribes, He placed the Prophet in Quraysh. And when Quraysh itself divided into clans, He placed him in the noblest of them, the clan of Banu Hashim. May Allah's blessings be upon him, and may He honour and elevate his rank. Allah, tabaraka wa ta^ala, knows best.