A Christian asks how the Lord of Islam, the angels and the believers pray for the Prophet

 

Praise be to Allah as befits the majesty of His countenance and the greatness of His power, and prayers and peace be upon the one after whom there is no prophet. Now then: Sending blessings upon the Prophet - may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him - has a great status in the heart of every Muslim, so we will talk briefly about the jurisprudential rulings related to it, and we say, and Allah is the Grantor of success: Allah - the Most High - said in His Noble Book: {Indeed, Allah confers blessings upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessings upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace.} [Al-Ahzab: 56] Ibn Kathir - may Allah have mercy on him - said: “The meaning of this verse is that Allah informed His servants of the status of His servant and prophet with Him in the highest assembly, that He praises him before the angels, and that the angels pray for him. Then He - the Most High - commanded the people of the lower world to pray for him and greet him so that the people of both worlds, the upper and the lower, would all praise him.” [Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Vol. 3, p. 514]. An important benefit: Why were the believers singled out for peace, not Allah and the angels? Answer: Because peace is the submission of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to that which harms him, so when this verse came after mentioning that which harms the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “And it is not for you to harm the Messenger of Allah or to marry his wives after him, ever. Indeed, that would be in the sight of Allah an enormity.” [Al-Ahzab: 53], and the harm is from humans, so it was appropriate to specify them and emphasize it, and this is what is indicated by what was mentioned after it. [Al-Futuhat Al-Ilahiyyah by Al-Ajili, Vol. 3, p. 454]. The meaning of sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): Abu Al-Aaliyah said: “The blessings of Allah are His praise of him before the angels, and the blessings of the angels are supplication - that is, the angels ask Allah to increase His praise of the Prophet.” Ibn Abbas said: “They pray: they bless” - that is, they ask for blessings for him - [Bukhari - Book of Interpretation - Chapter 10]. Al-Hulaimi said: “The meaning of praying for the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - is to glorify him. So the meaning of our saying: O God, pray for Muhammad is: glorify Muhammad.” Ibn Hajar said: “What is meant is to glorify him in this world by raising his mention, manifesting his religion, and preserving his law, and in the hereafter by generously rewarding him and interceding for his nation, and showing his virtue with the praised station.” He also said: “The meaning of God’s prayers for his Prophet is His praise and glorification of him, and the prayers of the angels and others is asking God Almighty for that for him, and what is meant is asking for more, not asking for the basis of the prayer.” [Fath Al-Bari, Vol. 11, p. 16] Ibn al-Qayyim said: “The meaning of sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is to praise the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), to take care of him, and to show his honor, virtue, and sanctity. Our sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) means that we ask Allah to increase His praise of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), to show his virtue, honor, and respect, and to bring him closer to Him.” [Jala’ al-Afham, pp. 261-262] The meaning of sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “As-Salam: It means peace, which is one of the names of Allah - the Most High - and the meaning of As-Salam also is: May you not be devoid of goodness and blessings, O Muhammad, and may you be safe from misfortunes, calamities and shortcomings. So when we say: O Allah, grant peace to Muhammad, it means: O Allah, write for Muhammad in his call, his nation and his remembrance safety from every deficiency, so that he increases in elevation over the days, his nation increases in multiplication, and his remembrance increases in elevation.” [The Virtue of Sending Prayers upon the Prophet by Sheikh Abdul Mohsen Al-Abbad, p. 88] The ruling on sending prayers upon the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace: Sending prayers upon the Prophet - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - is obligatory upon every sane adult Muslim, once in a lifetime, and other than that it is a recommended Sunnah. [Al-Shifa by Al-Qadi Iyad, Vol. 2, p. 62] The virtue of sending blessings upon the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace: There are many hadiths about the virtue of sending blessings upon the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - and we will mention some of them: 1- Muslim narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of God - may God bless him and grant him peace - said : ( Whoever sends blessings upon me once, God will send blessings upon him ten times, ten sins will be erased from him, and he will be raised ten degrees). [Sahih Hadith: Sahih Al-Nasa’i by Al-Albani, Vol. 1, p. 415] 3- Al-Nasa’i narrated on the authority of Ibn Mas’ud that the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - said: (God has angels who travel around the earth and convey to me the greetings of my nation). [Sahih Hadith: Sahih Al-Nasa’i by Al-Albani, Vol. 1, p. 410] 4- Al-Tabarani narrated on the authority of Abu Al-Darda’ that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Whoever prays for me ten times in the morning and ten times in the evening, my intercession will reach him on the Day of Resurrection.” [Hasan Hadith: Sahih Al-Jami’ by Al-Albani Hadith 6357] 5- Al-Tirmidhi narrated on the authority of Ubayy ibn Ka’b who said: “When two-thirds of the night had passed, the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would stand up and say: ‘O people, remember Allah, remember Allah. The first earthquake has come, followed by the second. Death has come with what it contains. Death has come with what it contains. Ubayy said: So I said: O Messenger of Allah, I pray for you a lot, so how much of my prayers for you should I dedicate to you? He said: Whatever you wish. I said: A quarter? He said: Whatever you wish, and if you increase it will be better for you. I said: Half? He said: Whatever you wish, and if you increase it will be better for you. I said: Two-thirds? He said: Whatever you wish, and if you increase it will be better for you.’ I said: Should I dedicate all of my prayers for you? He said: “Then your worries will be taken care of and your sins will be forgiven.” [Hasan Hadith: Sahih Al-Tirmidhi, Al-Albani, Hadith 1999] Al-Mundhiri said: His statement: “How much of my prayers should I devote to you?” means: I supplicate a lot, so how much of my supplication should I devote to you?” [At-Targheeb wa’t-Tarheeb, Vol. 2, p. 389] Al-Mubarakfuri said: His statement: “I devote all of my prayers to you” means that I devote all of my supplications to praying for you for myself. His statement: “Then your worries will be taken care of” means that if you devote all of your supplications to praying for me, you will be given the best of this world and the next. [Tuhfat Al-Ahwadhi, Vol. 7, p. 129, 130] Warning against intentionally abandoning sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): 1- At-Tirmidhi narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “May the nose of a man in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send blessings upon me be rubbed in the dust.” [Authentic Hadith: Sahih Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2870] In spite of one’s nose: meaning stuck to the ground in humiliation and disgrace. 2- Al-Tirmidhi narrated on the authority of Ali bin Abi Talib thatThe Prophet , may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “A miser is one who, when I am mentioned, does not send blessings upon me.” [Authentic Hadith, Sahih Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2811] 3- Al-Tirmidhi narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - said: (A group of people do not sit in a gathering in which they do not mention God and do not send blessings upon their Prophet, except that it will be a cause of regret and remorse for them. If He wills, He will punish them and if He wills, He will forgive them.) [Authentic Hadith: Sahih Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2691] Description of sending blessings upon the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace: We will mention the most authentic forms of sending blessings upon the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - below: 1- Al-Bukhari and Muslim narrated on the authority of Ka’b bin Ujrah who said: ( The Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - came out to us, and we said: O Messenger of God, we know how to greet you, but how do we send blessings upon you? He said: Say: O God, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon the family of Abraham, for You are Praiseworthy and Glorious. O God, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You blessed Abraham, for You are Praiseworthy and Glorious.) [Bukhari Hadith 6357, and Muslim Hadith 406] 2- The two sheikhs narrated on the authority of Abu Hamid Al-Sa’idi who said: They said: O Messenger of Allah, how do we send blessings upon you? He said: (Say: O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon his wives and his offspring, as You sent blessings upon the family of Abraham, and bless Muhammad and upon his wives and his offspring as You blessed Abraham, for You are Praiseworthy, Glorious) [Bukhari Hadith 2369, and Muslim 407] 3- Al-Nasa’i narrated on the authority of Zaid bin Kharijah that the Messenger of Allah - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - said: (Send blessings upon me and strive in supplication, and say: O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad). [Sahih Hadith: Sahih Al-Nasa’i, Vol. 1, p. 414] Situations in which it is recommended and desirable to send blessings upon the Prophet : 1- Before supplication: Fadalah bin Ubaid said: The Prophet heard a man supplicating in his prayer but he did not send blessings upon the Prophet , so the Prophet said : {This man is in a hurry!} } Then he called him and said to him and others: {When one of you prays, let him begin by praising and thanking Allah, then send blessings upon the Prophet, then let him supplicate after that for whatever he wishes} [Narrated by Abu Dawud and Al-Tirmidhi, who said it is a good and authentic hadith. Ahmad narrated it with a sound chain of transmission, and Ibn Hibban and Al-Hakim authenticated it, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him]. It was mentioned in the hadith: {Supplication is veiled until the supplicant sends blessings upon the Prophet } [Narrated by Al-Tabarani in Al-Awsat, and his men are trustworthy]. Ibn Ata’ said: (Supplication has pillars, wings, causes, and times. If it matches its pillars, it is strong, and if it matches its wings, it flies in the sky, and if it matches its times, it wins, and if it matches its causes, it succeeds. Its pillars are: presence of heart, tenderness, submission, humility, attachment of the heart to Allah, and cutting off causes. Its wings are truthfulness, its times are the pre-dawn hours, and its causes are prayers upon the Prophet ). 2- When he is mentioned and his name is heard or written: He said: {Despite the nose of a man in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send blessings upon me} [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi who said it is a good and strange hadith from this source and Al-Hakim, and Al-Albani said its chain of transmission is sound and its men are the men of Sahih]. 3- Increase in sending blessings upon him on Friday: On the authority of Aws bin Aws, he said, the Messenger of Allah said: {The best of your days is Friday, so increase in sending blessings upon me on it, for your blessings are presented to me..} [Narrated by Abu Dawud with a sound chain of transmission and Ahmad included it and Ibn Hibban and Al-Hakim authenticated it and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him]. 4- Sending blessings upon the ProphetIn letters and what is written after the Basmalah: Judge Iyad said: (And among the places of prayer that the nation has practiced and has not denied: It was not in the early days, and it was introduced during the rule of Banu Hashim - the Abbasid state - so the people’s practice continued in all parts of the world. And among them are those who also conclude books with it.) 5- When entering the mosque and when leaving it: On the authority of Fatima, may God be pleased with her, she said: The Messenger of God said: {When you enter the mosque, say: In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, and peace be upon the Messenger of God. O God, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and forgive us and make the doors of Your mercy easy for us. And when you finish, say that, except for saying: And make the doors of Your bounty easy for us.} [Narrated by Ibn Majah and Al-Tirmidhi, and authenticated by Al-Albani with his supporting evidence]. How to send blessings and peace upon the Prophet : Allah the Almighty said: {Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet. O you who believe, send blessings on him and salute him with a worthy salutation.} [Al-Ahzab: 56] So it is better to combine the blessings and peace together in response to Allah the Almighty, as this is what is sufficient in the description of sending blessings and peace upon him. On the authority of Abu Muhammad ibn Ujrah, he said: The Prophet came out to us and I said: O Messenger of Allah, we know how to send blessings upon you, so how should we send blessings upon you? He said: {Say: O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon the family of Abraham. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy and Glorious.} [Agreed upon]. On the authority of Abu Hamid Al-Sa`id, he said: They said: O Messenger of Allah, how do we send blessings upon you? He said: {Say: O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon his wives and offspring as You sent blessings upon Abraham, and send blessings upon Muhammad and his wives as You sent blessings upon Abraham. Indeed, You are Praiseworthy and Glorious.} [Agreed upon]. These two hadiths indicate the complete nature of sending blessings upon the Prophet . The virtue of sending blessings upon the Prophet and peace be upon him: On the authority of Omar, he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah say: {When you hear the muezzin, say what he says and send blessings upon me, for whoever sends blessings upon me once, Allah will send blessings upon him ten times. Then ask for intercession for me, for it is a position in Paradise that is not appropriate for anyone but one of Allah’s servants, and I hope that I am that one. Whoever asks for intercession for me, my intercession will be granted to him.} [Narrated by Muslim]. He said: {Whoever sends blessings upon me ten times in the morning and ten times in the evening, my intercession will reach him.} [Narrated by al-Tabarani in al-Kabeer and classed as hasan by al-Albani.] He also said: {Whoever sends blessings upon me once, Allah will send blessings upon him ten times.} [Narrated by Muslim, Ahmad and the three]. On the authority of Abdur-Rahman ibn Awf, who said: I came to the Prophet while he was prostrating, and he prolonged his prostration. He said: {Gabriel came to me and said: Whoever prays for you, I will pray for him, and whoever greets you, I will greet him. So I prostrated in gratitude to Allah} [Narrated by Al-Hakim, Ahmad and Al-Jahdhami. Al-Hakim said: It is authentic, although they did not include it. Al-Albani said: It is authentic due to its chains of transmission and supporting evidence]. On the authority of Ya`qub ibn Zayd ibn Talhah At-Taymi, who said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: {Someone came to me from my Lord and said: There is no servant who prays for you but that Allah prays for him ten times.} A man stood up and said: O Messenger of Allah, shall I dedicate half of my supplication to you? He said: {If you wish}. He said: Shall I not dedicate a third of my supplication? He said: {If you wish}. He said: Shall I not dedicate all of my supplication? He said: {Then Allah will suffice you against the concerns of this world and the Hereafter} [Narrated by Al-Jahdhami. Al-Albani said: This is a mursal with a saheeh chain of transmission]. On the authority of Abdullah bin Masoud, on the authority of the Prophet , he said: “God has angels who travel around and convey to me the greetings of my nation.” [Narrated by Al-Nasa’i and Al-Hakim, who authenticated it, and Al-Dhahabi agreed with him. Al-Albani said: Its chain of transmission is authentic and its men are the men of Sahih.] He said: “Whoever sends blessings upon me once, Allah will send blessings upon him ten times, erase ten sins from him, and raise him ten degrees in status.” [Narrated by Ahmad, Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad, Al-Nasa’i, and Al-Hakim, and authenticated by Al-Albani.] It was narrated on the authority of Ibn Mas’ud, with a chain of transmission traceable to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, that he said: “The people closest to me on the Day of Resurrection will be those who send the most blessings upon me.” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi, who said it is hasan gharib. Narrated by Ibn Hibban.] It was narrated on the authority of Jabir ibn Abdullah, who said: The Prophet , may Allah bless him and grant him peace , said : “Whoever says when he hears the call to prayer: ‘O Allah, Lord of this perfect call and the established prayer, grant Muhammad the means and excellence and raise him to the praised station which You promised him,’ intercession will be permitted for him on the Day of Resurrection.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih]. Condemning the one who does not send blessings upon the Prophet : On the authority of Abu Hurairah, who said: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: {May the nose of a man in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send blessings upon me be rubbed in the dust. May the nose of a man in whose presence Ramadan comes and then passes before he is forgiven be rubbed in the dust. May the nose of a man in whose presence his parents live to see him in old age and they do not admit him into Paradise be rubbed in the dust.} Abd al-Rahman, who is one of the narrators of the hadith, said Abd al-Rahman ibn Ishaq, and I think he said: {or one of them} [Narrated by al-Tirmidhi and al-Bazzar. Al-Albani said in Sahih al-Tirmidhi: Hasan Sahih]. And on the authority of Ali ibn Abi Talib, who said: {The miser is the one in whose presence I am mentioned and he does not send blessings upon me} [Narrated by al-Nasa’i and al-Tirmidhi, and al-Albani authenticated it in Sahih al-Jami’]. On the authority of Ibn Abbas, on the authority of the Prophet , {Whoever forgets to send blessings upon me has missed the path to Paradise} [Sauthenticated by al-Albani in Sahih al-Jami’]. Abu Hurairah said: Abu Al-Qasim said: “Any people who sit in a gathering and then disperse before mentioning Allah and sending blessings upon the Prophet, Allah will punish them if He wills, and if He wills, He will forgive them.” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi and authenticated by Abu Dawud]. Abu Isa Al-Tirmidhi narrated from some of the scholars that he said: “If a man sends blessings upon the Prophet once in a gathering, whatever happened in that gathering will suffice for him.” Benefits and fruits gained from sending blessings upon him: Ibn Al-Qayyim mentioned 39 benefits of sending blessings upon the Prophet, including: 1- Obeying the command of Allah, the Most High. 2- Receiving ten blessings from Allah upon the one who sends blessings once. 3- Ten good deeds are written for him and ten bad deeds are erased from him. 4- He is raised ten degrees. 5- It is hoped that his supplication will be answered if he presents it before Him, as it ascends the supplication to the Lord of the Worlds. 6- It is a reason for his intercession if it is accompanied by asking for a means to intercede for him, or if it is done alone. 7- It is a reason for the forgiveness of sins. 8- It is a reason for Allah to suffice him in what is most important to him. 9- It is a reason for the servant to be close to Him on the Day of Resurrection. 10- It is a reason for Allah to send prayers upon the one who prays and the angels to send prayers upon him. 11- It is a reason for the Prophet to return the prayers and peace to the one who prays. 12- It is a reason for the gathering to be pleasant and for it not to return as a regret to his family on the Day of Resurrection. 13- It is a reason for eliminating poverty. 14- It eliminates the name of (stingy) from the servant if he prays upon him when he is mentioned. 15- It is a reason for Allah, the Almighty, to bestow good praise upon the one who prays upon him among the people of heaven and earth, because the one who prays asks Allah to praise His Messenger and honor him and glorify him, and the reward is of the same kind as the work, so the one who prays must obtain some of that. 16- It is a reason for blessing in the person praying, his work, his lifespan, and the causes of his interests, because the person praying is calling upon his Lord to bless him and his family, and this supplication is answered and the reward is of the same kind. 17- It is a reason for the name of the one praying upon him to be presented and mentioned before Him, as mentioned previously in His statement: {Indeed, your prayers are presented to me} and His statement: {Indeed, Allah has assigned angels to my grave to convey to me the greetings of my nation}. It is enough nobility for the servant to mention his name with goodness before the Messenger of Allah. 18- It is a reason for establishing the footing on the path and crossing it, according to the hadith of Abdur-Rahman bin Samurah, which was narrated by Saeed bin Al-Musayyab in the dream of the Prophet , in which it says: {And I saw a man from my nation crawling on the path, sometimes crawling and sometimes clinging, and his prayers upon me came to him and made him stand on his feet and saved him} [Narrated by Abu Musa Al-Madini, who based his book in “Al-Targheeb wa Al-Tarheeb” on it, and he said: This is a very good hadith]. 19- It is a reason for the perpetuation of the love of the Messenger, its increase and multiplication. This is a contract of the contracts of faith that cannot be completed without it, because the more the servant mentions the beloved and brings him to mind in his heart and brings to mind his virtues and meanings that bring about his love, his love for him will increase and his longing for him will increase, and it will take over his entire heart. If he turns away from mentioning him and bringing to mind his virtues, his love will decrease from his heart. Nothing is more pleasing to the eye of the lover than seeing his beloved, nor is it more pleasing to his heart than mentioning his virtues. The increase and decrease of that will be according to the increase and decrease of love in his heart, and the senses bear witness to that. 20- It is a reason for the guidance of the servant and the life of his heart, because the more he prays for him and remembers him, the more his love takes over his heart, until there remains in his heart no opposition to any of his commands, and no doubt in anything that he brought, rather what he brought becomes written and recorded in his heart and he acquires guidance, success and various types of knowledge from it. So the people of knowledge who know his Sunnah and his guidance and follow him, the more they increase in what he brought of knowledge, the more they increase in his love for him and knowledge of the reality of the prayer required of him from Allah. And may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet and his family and companions all together. Rulings related to the topic : The ruling on the muezzin reciting prayers upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) out loud after the call to prayer: Many of the muezzins reciting prayers upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) out loud after the call to prayer is an innovation that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not do , nor did the muezzins during his time. The Companions, the Rightly-Guided Caliphs and the Followers did not do it, despite their knowledge of the virtue of sending prayers upon the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and their eagerness to perform acts of worship. If that were good, they would have preceded us in doing it. It is well known that the words of the call to prayer are an act of worship based on divine revelation, and it is not permissible to add to or subtract from them. Al-Bukhari narrated on the authority of Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever introduces into this matter of ours something that is not part of it will have it rejected.” [Al-Bukhari 2697] Imam Malik ibn Anas said: “Whoever introduces an innovation into Islam that he sees as good has claimed that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) betrayed the message. Because Allah - the Most High - says: {This day I have perfected for you your religion, completed My favor upon you, and have approved for you Islam as religion} [Al-Ma’idah: 3]. So what was not a religion then, is not a religion today. [Al-Ahkam fi Usul Al-Ahkam by Ibn Hazm, Vol. 6, p. 225] The ruling on praying for someone other than our Prophet Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace -: We will discuss this issue from several aspects very briefly: First: Sending blessings upon the prophets and messengers: Ibn al-Qayyim said: “All the prophets and messengers are to be prayed upon and given peace.” [Jala’ al-Afham, p. 627] Al-Bayhaqi narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Pray upon the prophets and messengers of Allah, for Allah sent them as He sent me.” [Hasan Hadith: Sahih al-Jami’ by al-Albani, Hadith 3782] Second: Sending blessings upon the family of our Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, all together, meaning that we say: O Allah, send blessings upon the family of Muhammad. Ibn al-Qayyim said: “The family of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, are to be prayed upon without disagreement among the ummah.” [Jala’ al-Afham, p. 636] Third: Is it permissible to send blessings upon the family of our Prophet Muhammad individually? Meaning that one of them is mentioned alone, and it is said: O Allah, send blessings upon Ali, or O Allah, send blessings upon al-Hasan or al-Husayn or Fatimah, and so on. And is it permissible to send blessings upon any of the Companions or those who came after them? Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said when answering these two questions: “The correct view, which is that of the majority, is that it is reprehensible, because it is the slogan of the people of innovation, and we have been forbidden from their slogan.” [al-Adhkar by al-Nawawi, p. 159] Ibn al-Qayyim said: “When the Rafidah mention their imams, they pray for them by name, and they do not pray for anyone else who is better than them and more beloved to the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), so they should differ in this slogan.” [Jala’ al-Afham, p. 640] Important benefit: Imam al-Nawawi said: “The scholars agreed on the permissibility of making other than the prophets subordinate to them in prayer, so it is said: O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad and his companions and wives and offspring and followers, due to the authentic hadiths on that, and we have been commanded to do so in the tashahhud, and the early generations continued to do so outside of prayer as well.” [Al-Adhkar by Al-Nawawi, p. 160] The ruling on saying: So-and-so - peace be upon him -: The scholars differentiated between peace and prayer, and said: Peace is prescribed for every believer, living and dead, present and absent. You say: Convey my peace to so-and-so, and it is the greeting of the people of Islam, and thus it is permissible to say: So-and-so - peace be upon him. As for prayer, it is one of the rights of the Messenger - may God bless him and grant him peace -, and thus the one praying says: Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of God, and he does not say: Prayers upon us and upon the righteous servants of God. [Jalaa Al-Afham, pp. 639, 640] And I, Abu Osama Al-Masry, said after I had conveyed the words of the scholars - - that the prayers of Allah upon the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, are to clarify and confirm his great favor and the loftiness of his honor over all other creatures. Therefore, our Lord, the Almighty, the Majestic, commanded the angels to pray upon him so that praise from Allah and the angels in the highest assembly would be gathered for him and he would attain the status that our Lord, the Almighty, the Majestic, had decreed for him over all other creatures. Likewise, He commanded the believers to pray and greet him so that praise from the people of the earth and the heavens would be gathered for him. This favor is not known to anyone else among the creation. - And I say that the prayer of the believer upon him is a mercy from Allah the Almighty for the believer because it is the fulfillment of the least of his right over every Muslim and through it the Muslim is elevated with all other acts of obedience and attains his intercession, peace and blessings be upon him, and enters the gardens with the permission of his Lord and his sins are forgiven. This is from the great favor of Allah, His mercy and His honor for this nation. I collected it, wrote it, transmitted it and arranged it from the words of the scholars in the hope of reward and benefit. May Allah make us and you among those who pray a lot. Peace be upon the most honorable of messengers, may God bless him and grant him peace, and upon his family and companion