Mawlid

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Mawlid, Mawlid an-Nabi or Milad un-Nabi (Arabic: مولد النبي‎) is the celebration of the birthday of Muhammad, the final prophet of Islam; also known as "The Seal of the Prophets".

Shi'a and many Sunni Muslims celebrate the Mawlid. Processions are held, homes or mosques are decorated, charity and food is distributed, stories about the life of Prophet Muhammad are narrated, dhikr and poems are recited by children. On Java, it is celebrated with majestic performances by a Gamelan Sekaten.

Sunni Muslims celebrate it on the 12th of Rabi'-ul-Awwal. Shi'a Muslims celebrate this day on the 17th of Rabi'-ul-Awwal, coinciding with the birth date of the sixth Imam, Ja'far al-Sadiq. Wahhabis/Salafis do not celebrate at all as they consider it to be a Bidah against Islam.


Contents

[edit] Terms used for The Birth of Muhammad :

  • Mawlid an-Nabi - The Birth of the Prophet (Arabic)
  • Milaad-un-Nabi - The Birth of the Prophet (Arabic / Urdu)
  • Mevlid Serif - The Blessed Birth (Turkish)
  • Maulood Shareef - The Blessed Birth (Urdu / Persian)
  • Eid al-Mawlid an-Nabawi - Festival of the birth of the Prophet (Arabic)
  • Eid-e-Milaad-un-Nabi - Festival of the birth of the Prophet (Urdu)
  • Mawlid En-Nabaoui - Algerian (North Africa)
  • Yaum an-Nabi - The Day of the Prophet (Arabic)
  • Maulidur Rasul - The Birth of the Messenger of Allah (Bahasa Malaysia / Malay)


Mawalid Plural for mawlid - Arabic). All the above derived from the arabic root w-l-d (waw,laam,daal) meaning to give birth, make, create (walid, maulûd).

[edit] Mawlid in the Gregorian Calendar

Because the day that Mawlid is celebrated on is based on the Islamic calendar, the date on the Western calendar (the Gregorian calendar) varies from year to year due to differences between the two calendars, since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. Furthermore, the method used to determine when each Islamic month begins varies from country to country. (For details, please see Islamic calendar.) All future dates listed below are only estimates:

Dates for Mawlid, 2007-2013
Gregorian Year 12th of Rabi'-ul-Awwal
(Sunni)		 17th of Rabi'-ul-Awwal
(Shi'a)
2007 March 31 April 5
2008 March 20 March 25
2009 March 9 March 14
2010 February 26 March 3
2011 February 15 February 20
2012 February 4 February 9
2013 January 24 January 29

[edit] Early Accounts of Mawlid

Ibn Jubayr’s in his book Rihal ("Travels"), describes his observation of Mawlid in Makkah:

"This blessed place [the house of the Prophet (saws)] is opened, and all enter to derive blessing from it (mutabarrikeen bihi), on every Monday of the month of Rabi` al-Awwal; for on that day and in that month was born the Prophet (saws)."

The 7th-century historians Abul `Abbas al-`Azafi and his son Abul Qasim al-`Azafi wrote in their book Kitab ad-durr al-munazzam about Makkah:

"Pious pilgrims and prominent travelers testified that, on the day of the Mawlid in Makkah, no activities are undertaken, and nothing is sold or bought, except by the people who are busy visiting his noble birthplace, and rush to it. On this day the Ka`ba is opened and visited."

The famous 8th-century historian Ibn Battuta related in his book Rihla:

"On every Friday, after the Jum`uah prayers and on the birthday of the Prophet (saws), the door of the Ka`ba is opened by the head of the Banu Shayba, the doorkeepers of the Ka`ba, and that on the Mawlid, the Shafi`i qadi (head judge) of Makkah, Najmuddin Muhammad Ibn al-Imam Muhyiddin al-Tabari, distributes food to the shurafa’ (descendants) of the Prophet (saws) and to all the other people of Makkah."

The following description consolidates eyewitness accounts by three 10th-century authorities: the historian Ibn Huhayra from his al-Jami` al-latif fi fasl makka wa ahliha; al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Haytami from his Kitab al-mawlid ash-sharif al-mu`azzam, the historian al-Nahrawali from al-i`lam bi-a`lam bayt Allah al-haram. A fourth account by al-Diyarbakri (d. 960) in his Tarikh al-khamis correlates exactly with the following:

"Each year on the 12th of Rabi` al-Awwal, after the evening prayer, the four qadis of Makkah (representing the four Sunni Schools) and large groups of people including the scholars (fuqaha’) and notables (fudala’) of Makkah, shaykhs, zawiya teachers and their students, magistrates (ru’asa’), and scholars (muta`ammameen) leave the mosque and set out collectively for a visit to the birthplace of the Prophet (saws), shouting out dhikr and tahlil (la ilaha illa Allah). "The houses on the route are illuminated with numerous lanterns and large candles, and a great many people are out and about. They all wear special clothes and they take their children with them. Having reached the birthplace, inside a special sermon for the occasion of the birthday of the Prophet (saws) is delivered, mentioning the miracles (karamat) that took place on that occasion. Hereafter, the invocation for the Caliph, the Amir of Makkah, and the Shafi qadi is performed and all pray humbly." "Shortly before the night prayer, the whole party returns from the birthplace of the Prophet (saws) to the Great Mosque, which is almost overcrowded, and all sit down in rows at the foot of the Maqam Ibrahim. In the mosque, a preacher first mentions the tahmid (praise) and the tahlil, and once again the invocation for the Sultan, the Amir, and the Shafi`i qadi is performed. After this the call for the night prayer is made, and after the prayer the crowd disperses."

[edit] See also

[edit] Against Mawlid

[edit] For Mawlid

Muslim holidays and observances
Muslim New Year | Remembrance of Muharram | Day of Ashura | Imamat Day | Arba'een | Mawlid
Imam Musa al Kazim day | Lailat al Miraj | Shab-e-baraat | Ramadan | Laylat al-Qadr | Eid ul-Fitr | Eid ul-Adha
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