By Imam Murtadha Gusau
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
All Praise is due to Allah, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds. Anyone who is guided by Allah is indeed guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad (Peace be upon him), is His servant, and His Messenger.
“O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, with correct awareness, an awe-inspired awareness, and die not except as Muslims.”
“O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, and speak a straightforward word. He will forgive your sins and repair your deeds. And whoever takes Allah and His Prophet as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory.”
“O mankind! Show reverence towards your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate and from the two of them scattered (like seeds) countless men and women. Be conscious of Allah, through Whom you demand your mutual (rights) and (show reverence towards) the wombs (that bore you): for surely, Allah always watches over you.”
Dear brothers and sisters! Allah Almighty has said in the Noble Qur’an:
“Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings (Salah) to the Prophet. O you who believe, invoke Salah (blessings) upon him, and send your salam (prayer for his being in peace) to him in abundance.” [Qur’an, 33:56]
Abu Talha al-Ansari (RA) narrates:
“The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) awoke one morning in high spirits with happiness gleaming from his face. They (the Companions) asked: “O Messenger of Allah, you have awoken today in high spirits with happiness gleaming from your face. He (Peace be upon him) replied: “Yes! A messenger came from my Lord and said: ‘Whoever from your Ummah sends Salah (blessings) upon you once, Allah will record ten good deeds for him, erase ten sins from him, raise him (his position) ten degrees in status, and respond to him likewise (i.e. send Salah (blessings) upon him).’” [Ahmad]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“Whoever sends Salah (blessings) upon me once, Allah will send Salah (blessings) upon him tenfold, erase ten sins from him, and will raise him (his position) ten degrees in status.” [Nasa’i]
Ubay (RA) asked the Prophet (Peace be upon him): “O Messenger of Allah, I invoke Salah (blessings) upon you often. How much of my supplications should be dedicated for you?” He (Peace be upon him) replied: “As much as you wish.” Ubay asked: “A fourth?” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied: “As you wish, but the more, the better.” Ubay asked: “A half?” The Prophet replied: “As you wish, but the more, the better.” Ubay asked: “Two-thirds?” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied: “As you wish, but the more, the better.” Ubay asked: “Should I dedicate all of my supplications for you?” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied: “In that case, your needs will be sufficed and your sins will be forgiven.” [Tirmidhi]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“There is no Muslim who sends Salah (blessings) upon me, except that the angels send Salah (blessings) upon him until he continues sending Salah (blessings) upon me. So, let the servant decrease in this or increase.” [Ibn Majah]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“The closest of people to me on the Day of Judgement will be those who send the most Salah (blessings) upon me.” [Tirmidhi]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) once heard a person making Du‘a (supplications/prayers) during prayer. He did not glorify Allah nor invoke Salawat (blessings) upon the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said: ‘He was too hasty.’ He (Peace be upon him) called him and said: ‘When one of you makes Du‘a (prayers/supplications), he should start off with praising and glorifying His Lord, and should then invoke salawat (blessings) on the Prophet. He should then make Du‘a for whatever he wishes.” [Abu Dawud]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“The miser/stingy is the one in whose presence I am mentioned, but he does not send Salah (blessings) upon me.” [Tirmidhi]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“May the man before whom I am mentioned – and he does not send Salah (blessings) upon me – be humiliated.” [Tirmidhi]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“Whoever forgets to send Salah (blessings) upon me, has missed the path to Paradise.” [Ibn Majah]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“Send blessings (Salah) upon me frequently, because Allah has assigned an angel for me by my grave. When a person from my Ummah sends blessings upon me, the angel says to me: ‘Muhammad, indeed so-and-so, the son of so-and-so has just sent blessings upon you.”’ [Dailami]
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“Allah has angels who travel around the earth conveying to me the Salam of my Ummah.” [Nasa’i]
Imam Ibn al-Jawzi said:
“Protect yourself from Allah’s punishment and the hellfire, and lighten the burden of your sins, by sending abundant Salah (blessings) upon the Chosen one, the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).”
All praises and thanks are due to Allah alone, Lord of the worlds. May the peace, blessings and salutations of Allah be upon our noble Messenger, Muhammad, and upon his family, his Companions and his true and sincere followers.
Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and the late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: gusauimam@gmail.com or +2348038289761.