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:

Asalamualekum,

Brother i would like to know if it is right to say that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is not alive. & Is it right to ask Allah to give us something or forgive us for the sake of His beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Please guide me.

Masalama

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Answer:

Pm alive and wasila

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.

Your Question: Brother i would like to know if it is right to say that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is not alive

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 255:

255 Allah! There is no god but He (Alone), The Ever-Living, The Self-Subsisting Eternal.

One of the Noble and Exclusive Attributes of Allah Subhanah is that He Alone is the Ever-Living. It is the inherent nature of all creation, and I repeat, all creation without exception, that they shall perish one day!

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 28 Surah Qasas verse 88:

88 And call not besides Allah on another god. There is no god but He. Everything (that exists) will perish, except His Own Face. To Him belongs the Command and to Him will ye (all) be brought back.

Regardless of whether one in the creation is Prophet of Allah or anyone else, if one believes that there is someone in creation who is ever-living, one would have dared to share an Exclusive Attribute that belongs to Allah Subhanah with one in creation; and that would be a manifest form of the abomination of ‘shirk’!

Allah is our witness, the Prophets of Allah were human beings and Allah’s slave-servants who were sent with a Mission and a Message from their Lord; and once their mission was accomplished, like all human beings, they met with their appointment of death as Decreed and Determined by Allah Subhanah. Like all human beings who have tasted death, they too will only be raised up again on the Day of Resurrection.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 39 Surah Zumar verse 30-31:

(O Prophet) YOU SHALL DIE, and they too shall die! Then on the Day of Resurrection, you all will present your disputes before your Lord.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 3 Surah Ale Imraan verse 144:

Mohamed is no more than a Messenger. Other Messengers have already died before him. If then, he (saws) also dies or is slain, will you turn about on your heels? Remember, he who turns about on his heels, will do no harm at all to Allah. Of course, Allah will duly reward those who live as His grateful servants.

It is reported from Aisha that Allah's Messenger (saws) died while Abu Bakr was at a place called As-Sunah (Al-'Aliya). Umar stood up and said, "By Allah! Allah's Messenger (saws) is not dead!" Umar (later on) said, "By Allah! Nothing occurred to my mind except that." He said, "Verily! Allah will resurrect him (saws) and he will cut the hands and legs of some men." Then Abu Bakr came and uncovered the face of Allah's Messenger (saws), kissed him and said, "Let my mother and father be sacrificed for you, (O Allah's Messenger (saws)), you are good in life and in death. By Allah in Whose Hands my life is, Allah will never make you taste death twice." Then he went out and said, "O oath-taker! Don't be hasty." When Abu Bakr spoke, Umar sat down. Abu Bakr praised and glorified Allah and said, “No doubt! Whoever worshipped Muhammad, then Muhammad is dead, but whoever worshipped Allah, then Allah is alive and shall never die." Then he recited Allah's Statement.: "(O Muhammad) Verily you will die, and they also will die." (39.30) He also recited:

“Mohamed is no more than a Messenger. Other Messengers have already died before him. If then, he (saws) also dies or is slain, will you turn about on your heels? Remember, he who turns about on his heels, will do no harm at all to Allah. Of course, Allah will duly reward those who live as His grateful servants.” (3.144)

In light of the above aayahs from the Quran and the authentic and established narrations, it is proved beyond any doubt that the Last Messenger of Allah and the Mercy and Rahmah of Allah unto mankind, Mohamed ar Rasool Allah (saws) tasted the element of death as Decreed for all in creation by Allah Subhanah.

Allah Says in the Glorious Quran Chapter 3 Surah Ale Imraan verse 185:

Every soul shall have a taste of death: and only on the Day of Judgment shall you be paid your full recompense.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) died a natural death and was buried in Hadrat Aisha’s house adjacent to the Prophet’s (original) mosque in Medina. Thousands of companions witnessed his death, and prayed the ‘janaaza’ over his dead body! All the scholars of Islam, of all schools and sects, are absolutely unanimous in their opinion that the Messenger of Allah (saws) is dead, and the Quranic aayahs and the above narrations prove this truth beyond any doubt whatsoever.

Any who insists that the Messenger of Allah (saws) is not dead, but only in a state of ‘sleep’, must be asked to present his evidence from the Quran and the Sunnah for his theory or belief. If the person is unable to present his evidence or proof from the Quran and the Sunnah, and Allah is our witness there is absolutely nothing in the Quran or Sunnah which even remotely substantiates such a belief, then one should know with conviction that the theory or belief that the Prophet (saws) is alive in his grave is absolutely unsubstantiated, baseless and absolutely against the guidance of the Quran and Sunnah.

Your Question: Is it right to ask Allah to give us something or forgive us for the sake of His beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 134:

They were a people who passed away. They shall receive the reward of what they earned, and you shall have the reward of what you will earn. And you will not be questioned as to what they did.

Dear and beloved brother, the principle or ‘usool’ in Islam is that neither can one be punished for the sins of another; nor can one be rewarded for the good deeds of another….each soul shall enjoy the fruits of one’s own toil.

Dear and beloved brother in Islam, it is neither lawful nor an approved practice in Islam to make supplication to the Lord Most High and implore Him to give one something for the sake of someone else. Never ever did the Messenger of Allah (saws) implore or beseech Allah Subhanah to give him something for the sake of the Noble Prophets or anyone else who went before him; nor did the noble companions of the Prophet (saws) ever make supplication to the Lord Most Gracious to grant them something or forgive them their sins for the sake of their beloved Prophet Mohamed (saws) or anyone else; nor did the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever advocate or propagate this form of making supplications.

Although it is not permissible in Islam to beseech Allah Subhanah to give them something or forgive them their sins for the sake of someone else; what is permitted in Islam when making supplications to the Lord is that one invoke their Lord Most Gracious by referring to some amongst their own good or best deeds…..it is expected that such supplications will find acceptance with the Lord Most Merciful.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 3.472 Narrated by Abdullah bin Umar

I heard Allah's Messenger (saws) saying, "Three men from among those who were before you, set out together till they reached a cave at night and entered it. A big rock rolled down the mountain and closed the mouth of the cave. They said (to each other), nothing could save you from this rock but to invoke Allah by giving reference to the righteous deed which you have done (for Allah's sake only).' So, one of them said, 'O Allah! I had old parents and I never provided my family (wife, children etc.) with milk before them. One day, by chance I was delayed, and I came late (at night) while my parents had slept. I milked the sheep for them and took the milk to them, but I found them sleeping. I disliked to provide my family with the milk before them. I waited for them and the bowl of milk was in my hand and I kept on waiting for them to get up till the day dawned. Then they got up and drank the milk. O Allah! If I did that for Your sake only, please relieve us from our critical situation caused by this rock.' So, the rock shifted a little but they could not get out."

The Prophet (saws) added, "The second man said, 'O Allah! I had a cousin who was the dearest of all people to me and I wanted to have sexual relations with her but she refused. Later she had a hard time in a famine year and she came to me and I gave her one-hundred-and-twenty Dinars on the condition that she would not resist my desire, and she agreed. When I was about to fulfill my desire, she said: ‘It is unlawful for you to outrage my chastity except by legitimate marriage. So, I thought it a sin to have sexual intercourse with her and left her though she was the dearest of all the people to me, and also I left the gold I had given her. O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present calamity.' So, the rock shifted a little more but still they could not get out from there."

The Prophet (saws) added, "Then the third man said, 'O Allah! I employed few laborers and I paid them their wages with the exception of one man who did not take his wages and went away. I invested his wages and I got much property thereby. (Then after some time) he came and said to me: ‘O Allah's slave! Pay me my wages.’ I said to him: ‘All the camels, cows, sheep and slaves you see, are yours.’ He said: ‘O Allah's slave! Don't mock at me.’ I said: ‘I am not mocking at you.’ So, he took all the herd and drove them away and left nothing. ‘O Allah! If I did that for Your Sake only, please relieve us from the present suffering.’' So, that rock shifted completely and they got out walking.’

If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws), one 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), one 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 alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan