We continue with our rebuttal to Kunde’s claim https://islamunmasked.com/2016/11/27/no-need-for-mediation-in-islam-refuting-the-repeated-distortion-of-a-muslim-dawagandist-pt-1/.

To further confirm that there is no such thing as Islam without the mediation of Muhammad, Kunde’s prophet is reported to have said that a Muslim’s prayers will not be accepted unless and until s/he prays to and for their messenger:

Saying Salah upon the Prophet before the Supplication

Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi reported the following Hadith and graded it Sahih; An-Nasa’i, Ibn Khuzaymah and Ibn Hibban recorded in their Sahihs that Fadalah bin `Ubayd, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “The Messenger of Allah heard a man making supplication in his prayer when he had not praised Allah or said Salah upon the Prophet. The Messenger of Allah said…

<<This man is rushing.>> Then he called him over and said, to him or to someone else…

<<When any one of you supplicates, let him start by praising and glorifying Allah, may He be exalted, then let him send Salah upon the Prophet, and after that let him make supplication as he wishes.>>” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Q. 33:56 http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1829&Itemid=89; underline emphasis ours)

And:

It is recommended to conclude supplications with Salah upon the Prophet.

At-Tirmidhi recorded that `Umar bin Al-Khattab said: “A supplication remains suspended between heaven and earth and does not ascend any further UNTIL you send Salah upon your Prophet.” This was also narrated by Mu`adh bin Al-Harith from Abu Qurrah from Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib from `Umar, as a saying of the Prophet. It was also recorded by Razin bin Mu`awiyah in his book, where he also attributed it to the Prophet reporting that he said…

<<A supplication remains suspended between heaven and earth and does not ascend any further UNTIL a person sends Salah on me. Do not treat me like a spare water container, send Salah upon me AT THE BEGINNING of your supplication, AT THE END and IN THE MIDDLE.>> Sending Salah upon the Prophet is even more strongly encouraged in the Qunut supplication. Ahmad, the Sunan compilers, Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Hibban and Al-Hakim recorded that Al-Hasan bin `Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “The Messenger of Allah taught me some words to say during Al-Witr…

<<‘O Allah, guide me along with those whom You have guided, grant me health along with those to whom You have granted health, be an ally to me along with those to whom You are an ally, and bless me for that which You have bestowed. Protect me from the evil You have decreed, for verily You decree and none can decree over You. Verily, he whom You show allegiance to is never abased and he whom You take as an enemy is never honored and mighty, O our Lord, blessed and Exalted are You.’>>” In his Sunan, An-Nasa’i has the addition…

<<“and may Allah bless Muhammad.”>> at the end of this Qunut. It is also recommended to say plenty of Salah upon him on Friday and on the eve of Friday. (Ibid. http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1820&Itemid=89; capital and underline emphasis ours)

Muhammad also went so far as to encourage his followers to make their entire prayer for him, promising that their sins would be forgiven if they did so!

The Virtue of saying Salah upon the Prophet

 Another Hadith At-Tirmidhi recorded that Ubayy bin Ka`b said: “When two thirds of the night had passed, the Messenger of Allah would get up and say…

<<O people, remember Allah, remember Allah, the first blast of the Trumpet has come and will be followed by the second blast, death has come with all its horrors, death has come with all its horrors.>>” Ubayy said, “I said, `O Messenger of Allah, I send a lot of Salah upon you, how much of my prayer should be Salah upon you?’ He said…

<<Whatever you want.>> I said, `A quarter?’ He said…

<<Whatever you want, but if you increase it, it will be better for you.>> I said, `Half?’ He said…

<<Whatever you want, but if you increase it, it will be better for you.>> I said, `Two thirds?’ He said…

<<(Whatever you want, but if you increase it, it will be better for you.>> I said, `Should I make my whole prayer for you?’ He said… 

<<This would be sufficient to relieve your distress and earn you forgiveness of your sins.>> Then he said: “This is a Hasan Hadith.” (Ibid. http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1828&Itemid=89; underline emphasis ours)

Another incentive that Muhammad gave for praying for him is that Allah will reward all such prayers tenfold and reckon them as charity to the one performing them:

Another Hadith

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Talhah said that the Messenger of Allah came one day looking happy. They said, “O Messenger of Allah, we see that you look happy.” He said…

<<The angel came to me and told me, “O Muhammad, would it not please you if your Lord, may He be glorified, says: `No member of your Ummah SENDS SALAH UPON YOU BUT I SEND SALAH UPON HIM TENFOLD, and no member of your Ummah sends greetings of Salam upon you but I send greetings of Salam upon him tenfold.’” I said, “Of course.”>> This was also recorded by An-Nasa’i. (Ibid. http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1827&Itemid=89; capital and underline emphasis ours)

There are other reports where Muhammad even warned and outright threatened the Muslims that they would experience humiliation if they did/do not pray for him whenever they hear his name mentioned:

Another Hadith 

At-Tirmidhi recorded that Abu Hurayrah said: “The Messenger of Allah said…

<<May he be humiliated, the man in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send Salah upon me; may he be humiliated, the man who sees the month of Ramadan come and go, and he is not forgiven; may he be humiliated, the man whose parents live to old age and they do not cause him to be granted admittance to Paradise.>>” Then he (At-Tirmidhi) said: “Hasan Gharib.” (Ibid. http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1822&Itemid=89; underline emphasis ours) 

It is obvious that praying for Muhammad is no light matter since a Muslim’s success and salvation depend entirely upon it.

Now as far as praying TO Muhammad is concerned, the fact is that Muslims are obligated to apportion a part of their daily prayers to Muhammad since they are required to speak to him directly, irrespective of where they may be living. Note the following narrations:

Narrated Shaqiq bin Salama :
’Abdullah said, “Whenever we prayed behind the Prophet we used to recite (in sitting) ‘Peace be on Gabriel, Michael, peace be on so and so. Once Allah’s Apostle looked back at us and said, ‘Allah Himself is As-Salam (Peace), and if anyone of you prays then he should say, At-Tahiyatu lil-lahi wassalawatu wat-taiyibatu. As-Salamu ‘ALAIKA aiyuha-n-Nabiyu wa rahmatu-l-lahi wa barakatuhu. As-Salam alaina wa ala ibadil-lah is-salihin. (All the compliments, prayers and good things are due to Allah: peace be on YOU, O Prophet and Allah’s mercy and blessings be on you. Peace be on us and on the true pious slaves of Allah). (If you say that, it will be for all the slaves in the heaven and the earth). Ash-hadu an la-ilaha illa-l-lahu wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa Rasuluhu. (I testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and I also testify that Muhammad is His slave and His Apostle).” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 12, Number 794 http://searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=12&translator=1&start=0&number=794)

Ibn ‘Abbas reported: The Messenger of Allah used to teach us tashahhud just as he used to teach us a Sura of the Qur’an, and he would say: All services rendered by words, acts of worship, and all good things are due to Allah. Peace be upon YOU, O Prophet, and Allah’s mercy and blessings. Peace be upon us and upon Allah’s upright servants. I testify that there is no god but Allah, and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. In the narration of Ibn Rumb (the words are): “As he would teach us the Qur’an.” (Sahih Muslim, Book 004, Number 0798 http://searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=004&translator=2&start=0&number=0788)

There are other narratives which further claim that Muhammad actually hears all the prayers directed to him and even responds back to the suppliant!

Abu Hurayra said that the Messenger of Allah said, “Whenever anyone greets me with peace, Allah will return my soul to me so that I can return the greeting.”

Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shayba mentions that Abu Hurayra said that the Messenger of Allah said, “I will hear whoever blesses me at my grave. If someone is far away and blesses me, that is also conveyed to me.”…

Ibn ‘Umar said, “Do a lot of prayer on your Prophet every Jumu’a. It is brought to him from you every Jumu’a.” One version has, “None of you blesses me but that his prayer is SHOWN to me when he finishes it.”

Al-Hasan ibn ‘Ali said that the Prophet said, “Bless me wherever you are. Your prayer will reach me.”

One of them mentioned that the name of someone who blesses the Prophet is shown to the Prophet when he does it.

Al-Hasan ibn ‘Ali said, “When you enter the mosque, greet the Prophet. The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Do not make my house a place of ‘Id and do not make your houses graves. Bless me wherever you are. Your prayer will reach me wherever you are.'”…

Sulayman ibn Suhyam said that he saw the Prophet in a dream and asked him, “Messenger of Allah, do you recognise the greeting of those who come to you?” He replied, “YES, AND I ANSWER THEM.” (Qadi ‘Iyad Ibn Musa al-Yahsubi, Kitab Ash-shifa bi ta’rif huquq al-Mustafa (Healing by the recognition of the Rights of the Chosen One), translated by Aisha Abdarrahman Bewley’s [Madinah Press Inverness, Scotland, U.K., third reprint 1991, paperback], pp. 262-263; bold and capital emphasis ours)

Thus, not only does Islam exhort Muslims to pray to a dead man, but it also ascribes certain divine attributes to Muhammad such as omniscience, since how else could Muhammad be able to hear over 1 billion Muslims praying to him from all over the world while confined to his grave in Medina?

Last, but not least, Muhammad is reported to have taught that on the Day of Judgment he will save his followers from eternal punishment by interceding for them. Muhammad claimed that people would be taken out of hell on the basis of his intercession:

(It may be that your Lord will raise you to Maqam Mahmud.) meaning, ‘do that which you are commanded to do, and We will raise you to a station of praise and glory (Maqam Mahmud) on the Day of Resurrection, where all of creation will praise you,’ as will their Creator, may He be glorified and exalted. Ibn Jarir said, “Most of the commentators said, ‘This is the position to which Muhammad will be raised on the Day of Resurrection, to intercede for the people so that their Lord will relieve them of some of the hardships they are facing on that Day.’” It was reported that Hudhayfah said, “Mankind will be gathered in one arena, where they will all hear the call and will all be seen. They will be standing barefoot and naked as they were created, and no person shall speak except by the leave of Allah. He will call out, ‘O Muhammad,’ and he will respond… 

<<At your service, all goodness is in Your Hands and evil is not to be attributed to You. The one who is guided is the one whom You guide. Your servant is before You, from You, and to You and there is no salvation or refuge from You except with You. May You be blessed and exalted, Glory be to You, Lord of the House (the Ka`bah).>> This is the position of praise and honor (Maqam Mahmud) which was mentioned by Allah.” Ibn `Abbas said, “The position of praise and honor is the position of intercession.” Ibn Abi Najih reported something similar from Mujahid, and this was also the view of Al-Hasan Al-Basri. Qatadah said, “He is the first one for whom the earth will be opened on the Day of Resurrection, and he will be the first one to intercede.” So the scholars consider this the position of praise and glory to which Allah referred in the Ayah…

(It may be that your Lord will raise you to Maqam Mahmud.) I, Ibn Kathir, say: the Messenger of Allah will have honors in the Day of Resurrection in which no one else will have a share, honors which will not be matched by anyone else. He is the first one for whom the earth will be opened and he will come forth riding to the gathering place. He will have a banner under which Adam and anyone else will gather, and he will have the Hawd (Lake) to which no one else will have more access than he. He will have the right of the Grand Intercession with Allah when He comes to judge between His creation. This will be after the people ask Adam, then Nuh, then Ibrahim, then Musa, then `Isa to intercede, and each of them will say, “I am not able for that.” Then they will come to Muhammad, and he will say… 

<<I can do that, I can do that.>> We will mention this in more detail shortly, if Allah wills. Part of that will be that he will intercede for some people who had been commanded to be taken to Hell, and they will be brought back. He is the first Prophet whose Ummah will be judged, and the first to take them across the Bridge over the Fire, and the first to intercede in Paradise, as was reported in Sahih Muslim. In the Hadith about the Trumpet, it says that NONE of the believers will enter Paradise EXCEPT THROUGH HIS INTERCESSION. He will be the first to enter Paradise, and his Ummah will be the first nation to enter. He will intercede for the status to be raised for people whose deeds could not get them there. He is the one who will reach Al-Wasilah, which is the highest position in Paradise, which befits no one but him. When Allah gives permission for intercession on behalf of sinners, the angels, Prophets and believers will intercede, and he will intercede for people whose number is known only to Allah. No one will intercede like him and no one will match him in intercession. This has been explained in comprehensive detail at the end of the Book of Sirah, in the chapter on the specific qualities. Praise be to Allah. Now with the help of Allah we will mention the Hadiths that were reported concerning Al-Maqam Al-Mahmud. Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn `Umar said: “On the Day of Resurrection, the people will be humbled to their knees, each nation following its Prophet and saying, `O so-and-so, intercede,’ `O so-and-so, intercede,’ until the power of intercession is given to Muhammad , and that will be the day when Allah raises him to a position of praise and glory. Ibn Jarir recorded that `Abdullah bin `Umar said that the Messenger of Allah said…

<<The sun will come close until the sweat reaches halfway up one’s ears. When the people are in that state, they will ask Adam for help, and he will say, ‘I am not the one to do that.’ Then they will ask Musa, and he will say likewise, then they will ask Muhammad, and he will intercede for the people and will go and take hold of the handle of the gate of Paradise, and that will be the Day when Allah resurrects him to a position of praise and glory.>>” Al-Bukhari also recorded it in the Book of Zakah, where he added…

<<That will be the Day when Allah resurrects him to a position of praise and glory, and all the people will praise him.>> Abu Dawud At-Tayalisi recorded that `Abdullah said, “Then Allah will give permission for intercession, and Ar-Ruh Al-Quddus, Jibril, will stand up, then Ibrahim, the close Friend of Allah will stand up, then `Isa or Musa will stand up – Abu Az-Za`ra’ said, `I do not know which of them, ‘ — then your Prophet will stand up and will intercede, and no one after him will intercede as much as he does. This is the position of praise and glory to which Allah referred…

(It may be that your Lord will raise you to Maqam Mahmud.)” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Q. 17:79 http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2796&Itemid=72; bold and capital emphasis ours)

With the foregoing in perspective, how can Muslims like Abdullah Kunde continue spreading this shameless lie that there is no intercessor/mediator/middleman in Islam when the very foundation of the Islamic religion is centered on the person and work of Muhammad?

Hopefully, this will now put this oft-repeated Muslim lie to rest once and for all.

 

 

 

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