Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

In the mosques under the influence of Beralwi school of thought, they say Salat-o-Salam before calling Azan. Some of them are very strict about this act of saying Salat-o-Salam before Azan and they would not let anyone calling azan without performing this action. Further they also recite the first Kalma three or more times after finishing the Fard prayers and are very paticular about it. Is this also inovation in Islamic teachings? Can such a action be called a Sin?

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Salaam before Adhaan

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 33 Surah Ahzab verse 21: There is indeed the best example for you to follow, in the Messenger of Allah, for every such person looks forward to Allah and the Last Day, and remembers Allah much.

No created being who ever walked on this planet earth, worshipped Allah Subhanah in a better and more perfect manner than the Messenger of Allah, Mohamed ar-Rasool Allah (saws). Thus in every act of worship, it is absolutely incumbent upon the true believers to follow the example of the Messenger of Allah (saws). If the Messenger of Allah (saws) did an act of worship, one may do it without hesitation; if one determines that the Messenger of Allah (saws) did not do an act of worship in the manner being propagated, then either the person who does it is implying that the Messenger of Allah (saws) did not worship Allah Subhanah in a perfect manner, or that he has more knowledge than the Messenger of Allah (saws) on how to best worship the Lord!!!

To the best of our knowledge there is absolutely no evidence in the authentic Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) or even his noble companions that they would ever declare the ‘salat-o-salaam’ before the Adhaan, or that they would recite the ‘first’ (is there more???) kalima three or more times immediately after finishing the fard prayers! And when there is no evidence that the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever himself did these acts, or endorsed these acts; then these will be included as innovations in the deen brought by Prophet Mohamed (saws)! Innovations have absolutely no place in this deen of Truth, and every innovation is a grave sin in the sight of the Lord.

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 4515 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

That the Prophet of Allah (saws) said: “If anyone introduces an innovation (in religion), he will be responsible for it. If anyone introduces an innovation or gives shelter to a man who introduces an innovation (in religion), he is cursed by Allah, by His Angels, and by all the people.”

Sahih Muslim Hadith 1885 Narrated by Jabir ibn Abdullah

That the Prophet of Allah (saws) said in a sermon: “The best speech is that which is embodied in the Book of Allah, the Al Quran; and the best guidance is the guidance given by me, Mohamed (saws). The most evil affairs are the innovations, and every innovation is an error.”

Dear and Beloved Brother in Islam, the problem today is that if you try and tell the people that the reciting of the ‘salaat-o-salaam’ before every adhaan, or the reciting of the kalima after every fard prayer is an innovation and thus a grave sin in Islam; they will immediately challenge you and ask since when did the recitation of the durood or the kalima become sins in Islam???

Thus one must approach such issues with extreme wisdom and patience, and try to instill in these people that one may recite the durood or kalima all day if one wills, and these are indeed great recitations worthy of much reward from Allah Subhanah; but to make the durood a ritual or a pre-condition when reciting the adhaan, or make it a ritual or obligatory condition of reciting the kalima after every single fard prayer is not from the authentic tradition and Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws); and it the making of them a ritual or a condition which is the innovation and thus a grave sin!

Every single such innovations which have unfortunately crept in the deen of Islam; from the gathering and public recitation of the Quran at the opening of a house or a office, to the tasbih of the Exclusive Names and Attributes of Allah Subhanah for a particular number of times, to the gathering and recitation of the Quran in numbers at one death, etc.; are all innovations and thus a grave sin in Islam. These and all such innovations have unfortunately been made an integral part of the deen, so much so that the people will defend these innovations at all costs; and when one sincere brother tries to tell them that such rituals are not from the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws), they immediately get excited and angry, declare him an ignorant fool, and call him a ‘wahhabee’ and other such names, and in some cases even get physical with the brother!

Thus my dear and beloved brother, be extremely careful and try not to start a fight or a fitnah amongst the believing society; but one by one, with extreme patience and wisdom and knowledge try to instill the Truth of the Quran and Sunnah amongst them; and with extreme love, and wisdom, and patience bring them back to the Straight Path as followed by the Messenger of Allah (saws) and his noble companions.

If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of never ever being misled; but if one believes, obeys and follows any other guidance, other than that of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of being led astray.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan