Durood & Salaam

Allah’s (The Exalted) name I begin with, The Most Affectionate, The Most Merciful

CHAPTER ONE

SALAWAAT AND SALAAM

Prayers on the Prophet

(may Allah bless him and grant him peace)

All Praise is due to Allah (The Exalted) Countless Salawaat, and Salaams upon His most perfect and highest of creation, the Messenger of Allah (The Exalted) (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).

Firstly, we will begin with sending the Salawaat (blessings) on the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and some of its benefits, Allah (The Exalted) says:

“Surely Allah (The Exalted) and His Angels send blessings on the messenger. O you who believe! Send Blessing (Salawaat) and Salutations (Salaams) on the Prophet with worthy Salutation.” i

Blessings and mercy of Allah (The Exalted) upon you, O Prophet of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). And upon your decedents and companions, O beloved of Allah.

This makes it clear that the quality of being a believer is dependent on and evident by praying on the Prophet. When Allah (The Exalted) sends Salawaat and Salaams upon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), He is blessing His beloved Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). When the Angels and the Muslims send Salawaat and Salaams to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), they are actually showing Allah their respect for the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).

The invocation of blessings on the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), is styled in Arabic as “Salawaat,” in Persian as “Durood,” and in Urdu as “Salawaat-o-Salaam.”

It is recorded that Abi bin Kaab (may Allah be pleased with him) inquired from the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) as to how much time should he dedicate for reading Salawaat. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “As much as you wish.” He then asked, “Should I not dedicate a quarter of my time?” The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “As you wish, if you increase the recitation it would be better for you.” He further asked, “O Master! If it is better, should I not dedicate half my time?” The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “As you wish. If you increase it though, it would be better for you.” The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) Abi bin Kaab (may Allah be pleased with him) then remarked, “O Master! Should I not, therefore, dedicate my entire time in the recital of the Durood?” To this the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “If you do this, then all your obligations will be fulfilled, and all your sins will be forgiven!” ii

From the above hadith we clearly realise the excellence of reading the Salawaat as much as possible. O Allah! (The Exalted) Grant us the strength to increase the recital of the Salawaat. Aameen.

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), said, “He who reads a single Salawaat upon me, Allah (The Exalted), blesses him ten times, ten of his sins are forgiven and elevates him ten times.” iii 2 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

‘Abd-Allah Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) also narrates that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, “On the Day of Resurrection, the closest to me from amongst the people will be those who have sent me the most amount of Salawaat.” iv

‘Abd-Allah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) says that Allah (The Exalted), and His Angels bestow mercies on him seventy times who but once invokes blessings on the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). v

Once there was a Sultan who became very ill. Six months passed by without any cure in sight. A few people went to the Sultan and told him that ‘Abu Bakr Shibli (may Allah be pleased with him) had arrived in the city. The Sultan requested the great Saint to visit and to make supplication (Dua) for his health. ‘Abu Bakr Shibli (may Allah be pleased with him) visited the Sultan on his request for he knew that the Sultan was very generous to his subjects and that he was also a very pious person. When ‘Abu Bakr Shibli (may Allah be pleased with him) sat next to the bed of the Sultan, he assured the Sultan that he would recover very soon. Abu Bakr Shibli (may Allah be pleased with him) then recited a few Salawaat and passed his hands along the body of the Sultan. A few minutes later, the Sultan awoke as if from a dream. He felt as if he had never been sick.vi

‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) reports the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), as saying: “The most miserly is he before whom there is talk about me and he does not invoke blessings on me.” vii

There are many people who are heedless, even when the verse of the Qur’an is recited that “Allah (The Exalted) and His angles send blessings…” people still do not recite Salawaat. How unfortunate are these people!

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) as saying: “That gathering of people will be altogether harmful if Allah (The Exalted) is not remembered there and blessings are not invoked on the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).” viii

A man fell sick and was about to die. He was shivering and fearing the tortures of the grave and the tortures of the Day of Judgement. All of a sudden, a pious man caught hold of his hand and told him be perfectly at ease as the Salawaat he had recited in abundance during his lifetime is certain to come to his rescue. The man, thereafter, died very peacefully. ix 3 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

Forty Hadith on the excellence of reciting Salawaat (blessings) and salaam (salutation)

1. On the day of judgement the closest person to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) will be the one who recited Salawaat the most in this world. x

2. One who recites Salawaat once, Allah (The Exalted) sends ten blessings upon him and eradicates ten of his sins and raises him ten in status. xi

3. You decorate your meetings by Salawaat on me because your Salawaat would (turn out to) be light for you on the “day of judgement.” xii

4. One who recites Salawaat would be bestowed with an amazing light on the bridge of “Pul Sirat,” and the one bestowed with this light would not be from the ones from hell. xiii

5. Undoubtedly on the “day of judgement” the individual who will be able to find himself free from difficulties would be the one who had recited Salawaat in abundance. xiv

6. On the “day of judgement” some groups of people shall come to me at my reservoir (Howdhe Kawthar) whom I will recognise because of their recited Salawaat in abundance. xv

7. One who recites Salawaat once upon me, Allah (The Exalted) blesses him times and one who recites Salawaat ten times Allah (The Exalted) bestows one hundred blessings upon him and the one who recites Salawaat one hundred times, Allah (The Exalted) writes between his two eyes “this person is free from hypocrisy and the fire of hell” and will be kept on the day of judgement with the martyrs. xvi

8. When an individual recites Salawaat once, Allah (The Exalted) blesses him ten times. It is up to an individual whether one recites more or less (in number). xvii

9. One, who recites Salawaat one thousand times daily, would not die until he sees his place in Paradise. xviii

10. One who recites Salawaat ten times, Allah (The Exalted) bestows one hundred blessings upon him, and one who recites Salawaat one hundred times, Allah (The Exalted) bestows one thousand blessings upon him, and one who recites Salawaat more than this with love, I will be his intercessor and witness on the day of judgement. xix

11. One who recites Salawaat once, Allah (The Exalted) writes ten rewards for him, forgives ten of his sins and elevates him by ten grades and this is equivalent to freeing ten slaves. xx

12. As long as an individual recites Salawaat, Allah’s (The Exalted) angels continue reciting Salawaat on him. It is up to you whether you recite Salawaat more or less in. xxi

13. One who recites Salawaat upon me I will intercede for that person on the day of judgement. xxii

14. One who, because of his love for me and inclination towards me recites Salawaat three times every day and three times every night, it is Allah’s (The Exalted) right to forgive that individual’s sins of that day and that night. xxiii

15. One who desires at the time of his being presented to the court of Allah (The Exalted) that He is pleased with him, one should recite Salawaat excessively. xxiv

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16. When you forget something recite Salawaat, Allah (The Exalted) willing, you shall remember. xxv

17. When two friends meet each other, shake hands, and recite Salawaat on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) before they depart all their past and future sins are forgiven. xxvi

18. Reciting of Salawaat upon me would be light for you on the day of judgement in the darkness of the bridge of ‘Pul Sirat.’ And one who desires on the day of judgement he be given compensation in abundance one should recite Salawaat abundantly. xxvii

19. Reciting Salawaat upon me is the protector of your supplications and the reason Allah (The Exalted) being pleased with you and purity of your deeds. xxviii

20. One who writes Salawaat upon me in a book; as long as my auspicious name remains in the book, the angels Keep repenting for him. xxix

21. One who wrote any point of learning from me and with that one also wrote the Salawaat then as long as that book is read he would continue to be rewarded. xxx

22. On the day of judgement Allah (The Exalted) will raise the scholars and the ink will be emitting fragrance. When in the court of Allah (The Exalted), He will say, you had been sending Salawaat to My beloved for a long time. Angels! Take him into paradise.” xxxi

23. One who read the Qur’an, praised Allah (The Exalted) then recited Salawaat upon me, he has found good from its places. xxxii

24. One who recites Salawaat fifty times in a day I will shake hands with him on the day of judgement. xxxiii

25. For everything there is purity. For the purity of the believers hearts are to recite Salawaat upon me. xxxiv

26. One who recited Salawaat abundantly in his life, at the time of his death Allah (The Exalted) will order all his creation to pray for his forgiveness. xxxv

27. On Friday night (i.e. Thursday night) and on Friday meaning recite Salawaat abundantly because your Salawaat is presented to me. xxxvi

28. Recite Salawaat on Friday in abundance as it is the day witness, this day the angles are present. And undoubtedly one who recites Salawaat upon me and before he has finished his recitation, it is presented to me. xxxvii

29. Recite Salawaat on the day of Friday and the night of Friday (Thursday night) upon me in abundance as whosoever does I shall be his witness and intercede on the “day of judgement.” xxxviii

30. When the day of Thursday comes Allah (The Exalted) calls the angels, who have papers of silver and pens of gold. They write names of those who recite the most Salawaat on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace. xxxix

31. One who recites one hundred Salawaat on Fridays, when he comes on the day of judgement; he will have such a light that if distributed amongst the entire creations it would suffice all of them. xl

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32. Recite Salawaat in abundance on Thursday night and Fridays because the rest of the week the angels keep conveying to me your Salawaat but, one who recites Salawaat on Thursday night and Friday I hear it myself. xli

33. One who forgets to recite Salawaat upon me has lost the way to paradise. xlii

34. A miserly person is he who hears my name and does not recite Salawaat upon me. xliii

35. Three types of people will be deprived of seeing me: 1) The “one” who is disobedient to his parents;

2) The “one” who does not follow my Sunnah: and,

3) The one before whom mention of my name was made, (but) did not recite Salawaat upon me. xliv

36. The people who sit in gatherings and do not recite Salawaat, if those people are entered into paradise but they would be over-whelmed with grief when they see the reward. xlv

37. One who mentions my name but did not recite Salawaat upon me will go to hell. xlvi

38. Every type of work done without the remembrance of Allah (The Exalted) and Salawaat upon me remains without blessings and cut off from goodness. xlvii

39. One who recited Salawaat he undoubtedly has opened seventy doors of mercy for himself and Allah (The Exalted) instils love for him in the hearts of others. Therefore, only one who bears grudge against him who has hypocrisy in the heart. xlviii

40. “I pray for all those who recite Salawaat upon me.” The messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, Angels of Allah (The Exalted), showers seventy blessings on a person who recites Salawaat once.

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BENEFITS OF RECITING SALAWAAT ON THE PROPHET

May Allah bless him and grant him peace

• Reciting maximum number of Salawaats alleviates all hardships.
• Anyone who recites Salawaat will overcome all of his or her troubles.
• Ablution (wudhu) is blessed further if Salawaat is recited during or after it.
• The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) stated, “Whoever sends Salawaat to me, when accepted, Allah (The Exalted) forgives seventy years of his (minor) sins.
• With Salawaat and Salaam a person’s (minor) sins are forgiven.
• When one recites Salawaat he becomes closer to the Messenger of Allah (The Exalted), may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
• Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates from the beloved Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) ‘Whoever makes Salawaat a habit will be under the shade of the throne (Arsh) on the day of judgement’.
• Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) states, until you do not recite Salawaat at the beginning and end of your supplication, the supplication remains stationary between the earth and the sky.
• One who recites Salawaat one hundred times in a day, one hundred of his needs will be fulfilled; from them thirty will be fulfilled in this world and seventy in the hereafter.
• One should not write Salawaat in short form as it is forbidden i.e. S.A.W, SAAS, S, or P.B.U.H etc. as there is no meaning to it, however, the Salawaat should be written in full, (SallAllahu ‘Alaihi Wa Sallam or may Allah bless him and grant him peace).xlix

Try and make a habit of reciting Salawaat / Durood 313 times a day. It may take approximately five minutes. If this is too much for you then work up to it, start of with 100. The shortest durood is as follows: Sallallahu ‘Alayhi Wa Sallam.

Rules: To recite Durood once in a life time is obligatory (Fardh) and in every gathering it is necessary (Wajib). If you took the name of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) or heard it from someone else and if the name of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was mentioned many times in a gathering then every time you should recite the Salawaat and if you forgot at that time then recite it when you remember.l

It is desirable to send blessing at the following times: The eve of Jumu’ah (Thursday night), on the day of Jumu’ah (Friday), in the morning and evening, on safa and marwa, in a sermon with emphasis, at the end of the Adhan, at the time of Iqamah, at the beginning of supplication and at the end and in the middle, after dua-e-Qunoot, at the time of Hajj when the Talbiyya has finished, at the time of meeting and departing, at the time of ablution, when you forget something, whilst praying and teaching, especially whilst praying a hadith in the beginning and end when writing a ruling, at the writing, at the time of wedding, when carrying out a big task, after writing the Prophet’s (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) name, some scholars say it is necessary (Wajib).li

You have read the benefits of reciting the Salawaat, now let us practice this virtuous deed as much as possible and gain blessings in our day-to-day lives and please our Beloved Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and our Creator, Insha-Allah.

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i Surah Al-Ahzab; Surah No: ; Verse: 56

ii Mishkaat

iii Mishkat

iv Tirmidhi

v Ahmed

vi Rahhatul Quloob

Durrod-e-Taaj

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon our Leader and Lord, Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), who is sublime, who had ascendancy (to the throne of Allah (The Exalted)), who rode on Buraque (heavenly carrier) and who held high the banner of spiritual eminence.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him who removes the evil forces and plague, famine, disease and all sufferings.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him, whose name has been written, exalted, favoured for intercession and engraved upon the (Divine Tablet) with the (Divine) Pen.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him who is the Leader of Arabs and non-Arabs (Leader of Mankind), whose body is sanctified, scented, pure and radiant (with Divine Light) in the House of Allah (The Exalted) (in Makkah) and the Mosque of the Prophet (in Medina).

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him who is the Bright Sun, the (full) Moon in the dark night, Centre of Elevation, Light of Guidance, Refuge for all Creation and Torch in the dark.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him who is blessed with (exemplary) character, seeker of forgiveness for people of all nations, gracious and generous.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him whose protector is Allah (The Exalted), whose servant is Gabriel, whose mount is Buraque, whose journey is the Ascent (Me’raj), whose position is the Ultimate Point in the Havens, whose desire is Ascendance to the highest spiritual eminence, which is also his goal and purpose and which he attained.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him, the Leader of Apostles, the Last of the Prophets, Intercessor of Forgiveness of Sinners, Affectionate with the Homeless, Mercy for all the Worlds.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him, the Comfort of the Lovers, the Craving of the Devotees, a Sun amongst Knowers of Allah (The Exalted), a Torch for those following the Path of Allah (The Exalted), Guiding Light for those who are Close to Allah (The Exalted).

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him, the Lover of the Poor, the Lowly and the Needy, the Leader of all Human beings and Jinns, the Prophet of the Two Qiblas (Ka’ba and Aqsa), the Leader of Prayers in the Two Qiblas, our Channel of Grace in the Two Worlds.

O Allah (The Exalted) Send Blessings upon him, who has closest proximity to Allah (The Exalted’s) Throne, who is beloved of the Sustainer of the Two Easts and the Two West’s, Grandfather of Hasan and Hussain, Father of Qasim, Muhammad the son of ‘Abdullah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), the Divine Light from the Light of Allah (The Exalted).

O ye, who crave the Divine Light of his grace, pray for Allah (The Exalted’s) blessing upon him, his progeny and his companions and extol him in a befitting manner. 8 www.GardensOfSunnah.co.uk

vii Tirmidhi

viii Muslim

ix Nuzhat-ul-Majalis

x Tirmidhi, kanzul-ummal

xi Mishkat

xii Jame’ah Saghir

xiii Dalailul Khayrat

xiv As-Shifa

xv Kashful-Ghumma

xvi Attarghib-Wattarhib

xvii Alqoul-ul-Badi’

xviii Attarghib-Wattarhib

xix Alqoul-ul-Badi’

xx Attarghib-Wattarhib

xxi Alqoul-ul-badi’

xxii ibid

xxiii Attarghib-Wattarhib

xxiv Kashful-Ghumma

xxv Saadat-ud-Daerain

xxvi Attarghib-Wattarhib

xxvii Saadat-ud-Daerain

xxviii ibid

xxix ibid

xxx ibid

xxxi ibid

xxxii Alqoul-ul-badih

xxxiii ibid

xxxiv ibid

xxxv Nuzhatul Majalis

xxxvi Jameh Saghir

xxxvii ibid

xxxviii ibid

xxxix Saadat-ud-Daerein

xl Dalaya-tul-Khairat

xli Nuzhatul, Majalis

xlii Alqoul-ul-Badi’

xliii Mishkat

xliv Alqoul-ul-Badi’

xlv ibid

xlvi ibid

xlvii Matale-ul-Musarrat

xlviii kashful Ghumma

xlix Bahre Shairat

l Durre Mukhtar, Bahre Shairat etc.

li Durre Mukhtar and Raddul Muhtar