From the lamp of prophethood Little Girl and salah

From the lamp of prophethood

Little Girl and salah

Translated by Alamgeer Usmani.

Praise belongs to Allah, we praise Him, and we ask Him for help and forgiveness. We seek protection in Allah from the malice of our souls, and the evil of our actions. Whom Allah guides, no one can lead him astray, and whom He makes astray, no one can lead him back to the right path. I bear witness that there is no other deity but Allah alone who has no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and messenger.

“O you who believed! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except as Muslims.” [Aali ‘Imran ­ 3:102].

“O mankind, fear your Lord who created you from a single soul, and from it, He created its match, and spread many men and women from the two. Fear Allah in Whose name you ask each other (for your rights), and fear (the violation of the rights of) the womb-relations. Surely, Allah is watchful of you". [Al-Nisa:01].

“O you who believe, fear Allah and speak in straightforward words. If you do so, Allah will correct your deeds for your benefit, and forgive your sins for you. Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger achieves a great success”. [Al-Ahzab:70-71].

To proceed,

The truest of word is the Book of Allah and best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The worst of things are those that are newly invented; every newly-invented thing is an innovation and every innovation is going astray, and every going astray is in the Fire. To proceed:

Servants of the Most Merciful,

The Prophet’s biography is an inexhaustible fountainhead which has countless lessons in it. Here is a prophetic stance:

Abu Qatada Al-Ansari reported that: Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was praying and he was carrying Umama the daughters of Zainab, the daughter of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and she was the daughter of 'As bin Rabi`a bin `Abd Shams. When he prostrated, he put her down and when he stood, he carried her (on his neck). Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim.

More details came in a narration recorded by Abu Dawood:

Abu Qatadah, a Companion of the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ), said:

While we were waiting for the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) for the noon or afternoon prayer, and Bilal had already called him for prayer, he came upon us with Umamah daughter of Abu al-As and daughter of his daughter on his neck. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) stood at the place of prayer and we stood behind him and she (Umamah) (all this time) was in her place. He uttered the takbir and we also uttered. When the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) intended to bow, he took her and put her down, and then he bowed and prostrated till he finished his prostration. He then got up and took her and returned he to her place. The Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) kept on doing that in every rak’ah until he finished his prayer. May peace be upon him.

Let us reflect on some points of this prophetic stance:

1- This scene shows how the Messenger of Allah PBUH used to live his life simply and spontaneously as he goes out of his house to pray in a gathering of people in the mosque, holding a little girl on his shoulders, who is his daughter’s daughter.

In this scene, it can be observed that he is far from exhibiting of formal dignity and the rituals of artificial prestige.

And it is quite clear that he used to live a human life in very simple manners bearing human feelings, yet his simplicity did not decrease anything from his majesty.

Servants of the Most Merciful,

2- In this scene, the little girl is traveling on the shoulders of the Prophet PBUH, as she caught him tightly with her two small hands clinging to his head, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him,

It reveals that this scene is an extension of a scene that was before it, inside the house of prophecy, and suggests that he, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him, in his house, was cuddling and playing with this child, and when he wanted to go out to pray, she was at the peak of her attachment to him, so she did not let him go out, and he, PBUH, did not let her cry, then he took her on his shoulders, and came out with her in a human scene which was full of paternal feelings and the overwhelming prophetic mercy.

3- Among the lessons is that the one who carried the daughter of his daughter in his prayer puts her down when he prostrates and carries her when he gets up. He is the one who said: “And the comfort of my eyes has been provided in prayer,”.

And along with it, this shows an aspect of the ease of Sharia.

May Allah benefit me and you with the His Book and the Sunnah and the guidance and mercy that they contain, and ask Allah’s forgiveness, for, He is Forgiving.

Second sermon

Praise be to Allah.

Afterwards,

Among the lessons of the previous prophetic stance:

4- This tenderness and mercy for this little girl is a circle of righteousness and goodness. And it expands and includes her mother, Zainab, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah who had been quite happy knowing that her daughter has a status before the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.

5- The righteousness with girls will transcend to righteousness with their sons and daughters, so its circle expands and its effects continue.

6- Among the reflections on this prophetic stance in which the Prophet PBUH came out with a girl child on his shoulders is that the respect for femininity in this scene is multiplied, as she is the daughter of his daughter, then he comes out with her in front of the worshipers and prays while she is on his shoulders. He PBUH did that to provide a practical lesson that we must give warm welcome to the girls, and he did that to terminate the concept of ignorance that they used to honour boys and disrespect the girls:

﴿ وَإِذَا بُشِّرَ أَحَدُهُمْ بِالْأُنْثَى ظَلَّ وَجْهُهُ مُسْوَدًّا وَهُوَ كَظِيمٌ * يَتَوَارَى مِنَ الْقَوْمِ مِنْ سُوءِ مَا بُشِّرَ بِهِ أَيُمْسِكُهُ عَلَى هُونٍ أَمْ يَدُسُّهُ فِي التُّرَابِ أَلَا سَاءَ مَا يَحْكُمُونَ ﴾ [النحل: 58، 59].

“When one of them is given the good news of a female child, his face becomes gloomy and he is choked with grief. He hides himself from people because of the (self-presumed) bad news given to him (and wonders): Shall he keep it despite the disgrace (he will face in the society), or put it away into the dust? In fact, evil is what they decide”.

How much there is difference between those who hide from the people because they were given good tidings of the female, and between the one who goes out to the people holding the female child on his shoulder.

يا من تُحب محمدًا وتريده لك شافعًا يوم الخلائقِ تحشرُ صلِّ عليه وآلِه فلربما تحظى بسُقيا من يديه وتظفرُ

(O you who love and desire Muhammad.

He is an intercessor on the Day when whole mankind will be gathered

Send blessings upon him and his family, perhaps

You will be watered by his hands and you will succeed).