Commonly Recited Wordings in the Post-Adhan Du'a: "waldarajata al-rafi'a&q

Answered by Shaykh Gibril F Haddad

Question:
A few days back [someone] defaced a dua on the wall of the mosque, claiming that it contained bid'aat. This was the very postazan dua, in which the words "wad-darajat al-rafi'a" and "wa[r] zukna shafa'atuhu yaum al-qiyama" were found objectionable].... This caused quite a stir in the mosque, as even the imam ... seemed implicated in the move, citing ahadith to establish that these words were alien to the sunnah and added by unscrupulous malbelievers. ... Although non-scholars, it seems highly improbably to us that the jumhur should have been so wrong and for so long. Could you please provide the references and contextualization urgently needed?

Answer:
There are two contested wordings here : wal-darajat al-rafa and wa-rzuqn shafatahu yawmaal-qiyma. 1. As for the wording wal-darajat al-rafa: the sound wording of the post-adhn du does not contain the words wad-darajat al-rafa but only al-waslata wal-fadla. This is found in the two Sahhs of al-Bukhr (see Arabic text immediately below) and Muslim, the four Sunan, the Musnad of Imm Ahmad, and others. The hadth states, as narrated from Jbir ibn Abd Allh *# , that the Prophet r said: Whoever says, upon hearing the call [to prayer]: Allhumma rabba hdhihi aldawati al-tmmati wal-salti al-qima, ti Muhammadan al-waslata walfadlata wa-bathhu maqman mahmdan al-ladh waadtahu O Allh! Lord of this perfect call and everlasting prayer, give Muhammad the Means and the Eminence,

and raise him to a glorious station which you have promised him my intercession takes place for him the Day of Resurrection.

(Also correct is the wording: found in al-Nas.) The Prophet said, as narrated from Ab Sad al-Khudr by Ahmad and Isml alQd in Fadl al-Salt al al-Nab r (p. 48) with a fair chain according to al-Fayrz bd in al-Silt wal-Bushar (p. 74) that the Wasla or Means was a level (darajatun) in the Divine presence above which there was no higher level (laysa fawqah daraja). Similarly, the fadla also precisely means the exalted level, i.e. thedaraja rafa. So the words wal-darajata al-rafa are in fact a gloss that became interpolated into the text of the dua, as found in Imm Ab Abd Allh al-Jazls book Dalil al-Khayrt (which is by the agreement of the Umma one the Signs of Allh Most High in the science of invoking blessings and salutations upon our Prophet r) and other devotional literature. Does it change the meaning? No, it clarifies it. Does it constitute an addition to the text of the hadth? Yes, its technical name being mudraj or interpolated discourse. Is it alien to the Sunna and/or does it constitute a bida? No! It is in essence like saying: al-waslata wal-fadla, meaning, waddarajat al-rafa. Which wording is better? The one reported in the Sahhayn and Sunan. This said, al-Tabarn narrated in al-Mujam al-Kabr (8:237 #7926) from Ab Umma al-Bhil t the following wording:

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Meaning: From Ab Umma t : The Prophet r said: Whoever supplicates with these words or supplications after every obligatory prayer, my intercession will take place for him on the Day of Resurrection: Allhumma ti Muhammadan al-waslata wa-jal fl-mustafayni mahabbatahu wafl-lna darajatahu wafl-muqarrabna drahu O Allh! Give Muhammad the means [of nearness to You], and place love of him among the [deeds of the] Elect, and his level in the highest, and his abode among those brought near [to You]!

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Al-Haytham in Majma al-Zawid (10:112) said it is narrated with a chain containing Muttarih ibn Yazd who is weak. However, the hadth Masters and the great Jurists and major authorities of Usl al-Fiqh concur that it is permissible to put into practice weak hadths in meritorious deeds not bearing on the hall and the harm as long as [1] the meanings of such a weak hadth are firmly confirmed by principles already established in the Law, [2] the hadth is not excessively weak, such as containing someone accused of forgery in its chain, and [3] one does not hold that the Prophet r said or did it for sure. The above hadth meets all the above criteria, hence Imm alMundhir retained it in his manual of recommended acts titled al-Targhb walTarhb (1997 ed. 2:300 #2473) as did the hadth Master Abd al-Ghan al-Maqdis as stated by Zayn al-Dn Shabn ibn Muhammad al-thr (d. 828) in his epistle alKhayr al-Kathr fl-Salt wal-Salm al al-Bashr al-Nadhr (in his Khamsat NussIslmiyya Ndira, Dr al-Gharb al-Islm ed. p. 57) although the latter refers it through Ibn Masd t. 2. As for the wording wa-rzuqn shafatahu yawma al-qiyma: it too is not contained in the sound narration cited above. However, it is found in weak narrations that meet the criteria of permissible use in the Shara, and Allh knows best. Among these narrations: First, the narration from Ibn Abbs *# in al-Tabarns al-Mujam al-Kabr (12:85 #12554) that the Prophet r said: Whoever hears the call to prayer then says: Ashhadu an l ilha ill-Llh wahdahu l sharka lah, wa-anna Muhammadan abduhu wa-rasuluh; Allhumma salli alayhi wa-ballighhu darajata al-waslati indak, wa-jaln f shafatihi yawma al-qiyma I bear witness that there is no God but Allh alone, without partner, and that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger; O Allh! bless him and bring him to the level of means to You, and place us in his intercession the Day of Resurrection: my intercession will be guaranteed for him. Its chain contains Ishq ibn Abd Allh ibn Kaysn who is slightly weak while the rest of its narrators are highly trustworthy as per al-Haytham inMajma alZawid (1:333). Al-Mundhir adduces it in al-Targhb wal-Tarhb (1997 ed. 1:117 #400).

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Second, the narration from Ab al-Dard t by al-Tabarn in al-Awsat (4:78-79 #3662) that the Prophet r would say, upon hearing the call to prayer, Allhumma

rabba hdhihi al-dawati al-tmmati wal-salti al-qima, salli al abdika waraslika wa-jaln f shafatihi yawma al-qiyma O Allh! Lord of this perfect call and everlasting prayer, bless Your servant and Messenger, and place us in his intercession the Day of Resurrection; [and that] the Messenger of Allh r said: Whoever says this upon [hearing] the call [to prayer], Allh will place him in my intercession the Day of Resurrection. Its chain contains Sadaqa ibn Abd Allh alSamn whom al-Haytham said some weakened while others declared trustworthy.

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Third, the narration from Jbir t by Ibn Wahb (125-197) in his Jmi adduced by Shaykh al-Islm Shams al-Dn al-Qastallni in his masterpiece, Maslik alHunaf (p. 279) in which the Prophet r says: Whoever says, upon hearing the call to prayer: O Allh! Lord of this perfect call and everlasting prayer, bless Muhammad, Your servant and Messenger, and give him the means and intercession on the Day of Resurrection: my intercession takes place for him.

Fourth, the narration from Ibn Umar *# by Isml al-Qd in Fadl al-Salt al al-Nab r (p. 49) in which the Prophet r said: Whoever invokes blessings upon me or asks the wasla for me, my intercession takes place for him on the day of resurrection. Al-Fayrz bd in al-Silt wal-Bushar (p. 68) said its narrators were trustworthy and it is confirmed by the hadth of the Sahhayn and Sunan already cited. Al-Qastalln also adduces the two reports (p. 284) already mentioned from Ibn Abbs and Ab al-Dard. In addition, he mentions (p. 227-228) two explicit Prophetic reports that support the fundamental creed that invoking blessings on the Prophet r leads to obtaining his

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intercession: [1] Whoever invokes blessings upon me, I will be his intercessor the Day of Resurrection. Narrated from Ab Bakr al-Siddq by Ibn Ab Dwd and al-Hasan ibn Ahmad ibn al-Bann with a good chain according to al-Fayrz bd in al-Siltu wal-Bushar (p. 34) as stated in Ibn al-Qayyims Jal and Sirj al-Dns al-Salt (p. 141). [2] Whoever invokes blessings upon me ten times in the morning and ten times in the evening, my intercession will include him on the Day of Resurrection. Narrated from Bakr ibn Abd Allh al-Muzan by al-Tabarn with a good mursal chain according to al-Sakhw in al-Qawl al-Bad (p. 116) and al-Haytham inMajma alZawid (10:120) and Ab Sad al-Wzal-Naysbr in his book al-Waf f Sharaf al-Mustaf according to Fayrz bd in the Silt (p. 87). In the matter of du the Prophet r gave leeway to his Umma to invoke in the manner, quality, and quantity one desires, without being restricted to a particular wording. This is especially true when invoking blessings on him, which he stressed and encouraged even if it replaced all other dus one might make. Following such a Prophetic recommendation never contradicts the Sunna, even if the most superior wordings are those that are conveyed from him, such as the Salt Ibrhmiyya in the second tashahhud. In fact, the variegation of formulas of invocation of blessings on the Prophet r is a desirable thing when invoking much blessings upon him as we are ordered to do, because such variegation helps us to obey this command and replenish our energies without becoming bored. In addition, practicing Salawt on the Prophet r causes unlimited benefits, openings of spiritual meanings such as seeing the Holy Prophet r in dream or awake! and progress in the path to Allh Most High and His good pleasure. Hence the Ulema competed in recording the hadths on the merits of invoking blessings on the Prophet r as well as whatever formulas of blessings and peace Allh inspired them. These hadths and devotions were recorded in the following books among others: [I have marked the volumes I have read in part or in whole with an asterisk] * Imm Isml al-Qd al-Mlik (d. 282): Fadl al-Salt al al-Nab r Imm Ab Nuaym al-Asbahn (d. 430): al-Salt al al-Nab r Imm Muhammad al-Numayr al-Gharnt (d. 544): al-Ilm bi-Fadl al-Salt al Khayr al-Anm r Imm Ibn Bashkuwl al-Andalus (d. 578): al-Qurbatu ill-Lh bil-Salti al alNab r

* Imm Shams al-Dn Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751): Jal al-Afhm f Fadl al-Salt walSalm al Sayyidin Muhammadin Khayri al-Anm r Shaykh al-Islm Taq al-Dn al-Subk (d. 756): al-Salt al al-Nab r * Imm Majd al-Dn al-Fayrz bd (d. 817): al-Siltu wal-Bushar fl-Salti al Khayr al-Bashar r * Imm al-Jazl (d. 870): Dalil al-Khayrt wa-Shawriq al-Anwr f Dhikr alSalt al al-Nab al-Mukhtr r * Imm Shams al-Dn al-Sakhw (d. 902): al-Qawl al-Bad fl-Salti al alHabb al-Shaf r and al-Manhal al-Bad fl-Salt al al-Habb al-Shaf r * Shaykh al-Islm Shams al-Dn al-Qastalln (d. 923): Maslik al-Hunaf il Mashri al-Salti al al-Nab al-Mustaf r Shaykh al-Islm Ibn Hajar al-Haytam (d. 974): al-Durr al-Mandd fl-Salt walSalm al Shib al-Liw al-Maqd r * Sayyid al-Shaykh al-Tayyib ibn Krn (d. 1227): Sharhal-Salt al-Mashshiyya * Mawln al-Shaykh Khlid al-Baghdd (d. 1242): Jliyat al-Akdr wal-Sayf alBattr fl-Salt al al-Mukhtr r * Qd Yusuf ibn Isml al-Nabhn (d. 1350): Sadat al-Drayn fl-Salti al Sayyid al-Kawnayn r * Shaykh al-Islm Abd Allh Sirj al-Dn (d. 1422): al-Salt al al-Nab r * Shaykh Abd Allh ibn Muhammad al-Siddq al-Ghumr: al-Nafhat al-Ilhiyya fl-Salt al Khayr al-Bariyya r * Shaykh Mahmd Muhammad al-Durra: Bahjat al-Arwhfm Yashghafu al-Qalba bil-Habbi al-Mustaf Kanzi al-Arbh r M Nusikha Zillu al-Ahzn bi-Shamsi alAfrh (The Happiness of Spirits in what Fills the Heart with Fond Love for the Beloved Elect One, the Treasure of All Gains, Allh Bless and Greet Him for as Long as the Shadow of Sadness Will be Overwhelmed by the Sun of Joys) The upshot of the above discussion is that the words wal-darajat alrafa and wa-rzuqn shafatahu yawma al-qiyma are neither alien to

the sunnah nor the handiwork of unscrupulous malbelievers. One that claims such a thing not only commits ghuluw exaggeration but risks dire consequences in his Religion by dismissing and bad-mouthing meanings that were certainly meant and wordings that may well have been used by the Prophet r, and were certainly used by numerous major Masters of Hadth and others of the early and later Salaf and Friends of Allh. And Allh knows best. May Allh protect us from the slip of the tongue; cure any sickness in our hearts with regard to the Holy Prophet Muhammad upon him and his Family blessings and peace; protect us from a bad end; grant His Prophet the highest rank; and grant us his intercession! mn. Hajj Gibril Shabn 1423