Question posed to me:
Is it true that there’s really nothing that one can do to see the Prophet ﷺ in a dream ?
My Reply:
Basic Beliefs of the Ahlus Sunnah
The first point to clarify is our belief in the reality of seeing Allāh’s Messenger.
من حديث أنس رضي الله عنه قال: قال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من رآني في المنام فقد رآني، فإن الشيطان لا يتخيل بي
ʾAnas narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said, “He who sees me in a dream has indeed seen me, for Satan cannot imitate my form.” [ʾal-Bukhārī & Muslim]
The second point is that such dreams are personal matters. The mission of Muḥammad ﷺ and his religion is complete. The ʿUlamā are clear that any claim of a new Sharʿī command from dreams e.g. perennial chain letters or to even present the words of the dream as a new Ḥadīth is not accepted. Whoever claims otherwise is ignorant at best, and likely a charlatan and liar with pretensions. The preface of Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim and its commentaries are useful in regards this doctrine.
The Desire to See him is natural but not for all
عن أبي هريرة؛ أن رسول الله قال "من أشد أمتي لي حبا، ناس يكونون بعدي، يود أحدهم لو رآني، بأهله وماله
Abū Hurayrah (may Allāh be pleased with him) narrated that Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ said, “Amongst the most intense in their love for me amongst my followers will be people who will come after me. Each of them would love to see me, even if he had to sacrifice his family and wealth.” [Muslim]
Thus the burning desire to gaze on the blessed face of Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ is a sign of true faith and is not an absurd fancy. At the same time the wording of the Ḥadīth indicates that this vision is not for everyone. The Arabic word “law” is an indication of improbability as opposed to the possibility of the word “in”. Then also on the general principles of Islām there is no mechanism for sacrificing your family. Rather the converse is true and known. ʾUways ʾal-Qarnī sacrificed the opportunity to see Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ due to service to his mother, and for that he was praised. In fact those who did see Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ were instructed to seek the supplications of he who did not see Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ . He had understood that obedience to the beloved takes precedence over one’s own wishes, even if it is the sincere wish to glimpse the beloved but once.
Please get to the Point – Is there Nothing I can Do?
Alright, first accept that we do not command the master. It is unseemly that there should be a specific set of words or acts which would in effect summon him. Even during his earthly life the Qurʾān reprimanded the Bedouins as “lacking in intelligence” for summoning him out of his private chambers [ʾal-Ḥujarāt: 4]
Accept that there is the possibility of a dream but not all receive this.
Certain saintly people may have mentioned deeds which they found beneficial. Their personal experience may not be applicable to all. I shall therefore mention ʾAhādīth which have a general bearing for all Muslims, which have an indication in regards seeing Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ .
Muʿāẓ Departs for Yemen
The various narrations, when strung together, paint a very emotional scene of Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ walking alongside Muʿāẓ bin Jabal (may Allāh be pleased with him) as he leaves ʾal-Madīnah. He advises the young man on how to act in Yemen, but there is more to say, which he knows Muʿāẓ will find difficult to bear. Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ will try to soften the blow, but it remains a blow which will break the young Companion’s heart into pieces.
As a student I noticed the fond way many Companions narrated Ḥadīth, personalising the experience as far as possible, e.g. “I heard with my ears…”. Whereas Muʿāẓ is so devastated, he narrates as if this happened to someone else…
عن معاذ بن جبل - رضي الله عنه - قال : لما بعثه رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - إلى اليمن ، خرج معه رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - يوصيه ، ومعاذ راكب ورسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - يمشي تحت راحلته ، فلما فرغ قال : " يا معاذ ! إنك عسى أن لا تلقاني بعد عامي هذا ، ولعلك أن تمر بمسجدي هذا وقبري " فبكى معاذ جشعا لفراق رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - ثم التفت فأقبل بوجهه نحو المدينة ، فقال : " إن أولى الناس بي المتقون ، من كانوا وحيث كانوا "
Muʾāẓ, may Allāh be pleased with him, narrated: When Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ sent him to Yemen, Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ went out with him, giving him advice. Muʿāẓ was riding while Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ walked beneath his camel. When he finished he said, “O Muʿāẓ! It may be that you will not meet me after this year of mine. You may instead pass by this masjid of mine or my grave.” So Muʿāẓ wept in grief at separation from Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ . So Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ turned his face away and looked in the direction of ʾal-Madīnah and said, “Verily the closest people unto me are those of Taqwā (awareness of Allāh), whosoever they may be and wheresoever they may be.” [ʾAḥmad]
- The very first item you would have to inculcate is Taqwā, you would have to clean your heart if you wish to enter the presence of Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ .
- The Ḥadīth indicates a link between one who visits the Masjid and visiting Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ .
- The three advices given to Muʿāẓ were to establish the Shahādatayn – so establish this with all its requirements and recite frequently.
- Then Ṣalāh [prayers]
- Then charity.
There are some whom he wishes to see
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَتَى الْمَقْبُرَةَ فَقَالَ " السَّلاَمُ عَلَيْكُمْ دَارَ قَوْمٍ مُؤْمِنِينَ وَإِنَّا إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ بِكُمْ لاَحِقُونَ وَدِدْتُ أَنَّا قَدْ رَأَيْنَا إِخْوَانَنَا " . قَالُوا أَوَلَسْنَا إِخْوَانَكَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ " أَنْتُمْ أَصْحَابِي وَإِخْوَانُنَا الَّذِينَ لَمْ يَأْتُوا بَعْدُ " . فَقَالُوا كَيْفَ تَعْرِفُ مَنْ لَمْ يَأْتِ بَعْدُ مِنْ أُمَّتِكَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ " أَرَأَيْتَ لَوْ أَنَّ رَجُلاً لَهُ خَيْلٌ غُرٌّ مُحَجَّلَةٌ بَيْنَ ظَهْرَىْ خَيْلٍ دُهْمٍ بُهْمٍ أَلاَ يَعْرِفُ خَيْلَهُ " . قَالُوا بَلَى يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ . قَالَ " فَإِنَّهُمْ يَأْتُونَ غُرًّا مُحَجَّلِينَ مِنَ الْوُضُوءِ وَأَنَا فَرَطُهُمْ عَلَى الْحَوْضِ أَلاَ لَيُذَادَنَّ رِجَالٌ عَنْ حَوْضِي كَمَا يُذَادُ الْبَعِيرُ الضَّالُّ أُنَادِيهِمْ أَلاَ هَلُمَّ . فَيُقَالُ إِنَّهُمْ قَدْ بَدَّلُوا بَعْدَكَ . فَأَقُولُ سُحْقًا سُحْقًا "
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to the graveyard and said: “Peace be upon you! The abode of the believing people and we, if Allāh so wills, will join you. I would love that we see our brothers.”
They said, “Are we not your brothers, O Messenger of Allāh?
He replied, “You are my companions, and our brothers are those who have not yet come.”
They said, “O Messenger of Allāh, how would you recognise those persons of your followers who have not yet [been born]?”
He replied, “Imagine a man having horses with white blazes on foreheads and legs among horses which were all black, tell me, would he not recognise his own horses?”
They said, “Definitely, O Messenger of Allāh.”
He continued, “They will come with white faces and arms and legs because of ablution, and I will arrive waiting at the Pond before them. Some people will be driven away from my Pond as the stray camel is driven away. I will call out to them, Come here! Come here!” but it will be said, “They changed after you”, and I will say, “Get out of my sight! Get out of my sight!” [Muslim]
The Ḥadīth gives further hope, that not only are there those desirous of seeing him, there are those whom Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ wishes to see.
- My sixth advice is to remain in a constant state of Wuḍū. I in no way claim this to be a sure way of meeting Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ , but as it is mentioned in the above context, has immense spiritual benefits and is a practice of the pious, it will assuredly benefit one on the spiritual path. It may be noted that when Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ wished to be in this state without any intention of performing a deed requiring Wuḍū he would make a gesture of Tayammum on his wall, i.e. solely for the spiritual benefit, not for prayers etc.
- The people of innovation will be rejected. Do not compromise on the Sunnah. Sunnah includes belief, character, attitude and practices. The hallmark of the Sunnah is moderation and a balance between emotion and knowledge. The hallmark of every heretical sect is exaggeration and loss of balance. For the example, the Shīʿah exaggerate their love for ʿAlī, may Allāh be pleased with him, and there is a dearth of knowledge and logic in their system. The Muʿtalizah, Khawārij and their contemporary modernist counterparts emphasise knowledge and logic and their dead hearts display a shocking lack of respect towards Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ . You who have written to me and posed the above question show a tendency to blazing emotion and uttering words without sufficient knowledge. You are sincere, but if you do not rectify this imbalance soonest, I fear that there may be regret later in life.
Salutations
عن ابن مسْعُودٍ أنَّ رسُول اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ: أَوْلى النَّاسِ بِي يوْمَ الْقِيامةِ أَكْثَرُهُم عَليَّ صَلاَةً رواه الترمذي
ʾIbn Masʿūd (may Allāh be pleased with him) narrated: Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ said, “The closest of people unto me on the Day of Resurrection will be those who recited the most salutations (Ṣalāh ʾalan Nabī) upon me.” [ʾat-Tirmiẓī]
- Recite Ṣalāh ʾalan Nabī not only during your special time you set for personal devotions, but in free wasted seconds during your daily life, e.g. how much can be recited from the time you walk from your bed to the bathroom. You may be going to perform ablution for compulsory prayers but in just those seconds you will eventually accumulate so much if done daily. Consciously use these precious moments throughout the day and you will have mountains to present on the Day of Resurrection.
Much more can be said, but I hope the above gives a sufficient overview without information overload. May Allāh accept you and grant your heart’s desire when the time is appropriate.
سليمان الكندي
@sulayman_kindi
