Prophet-King
or
Slave Messenger

By Al-Hâfidh Ibn Rajab al-Hanbalî (d.795H) [1]

The Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam chose the station of al-’ubûdiyyah (slavery and servitude) over and above the station of kingship. Once - on the day of the conquest of Makkah - a man stood-up (out of reverence) for the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam, who, being shocked, said to him: “Do not trouble yourself! Indeed I am not a king. Rather I am merely the son of a Qurayshî woman who eats dry meat.” [2]

It has also been authentically reported from the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam that he said: “Do not over praise me as the Christians over-praised ’Îsâ son of Maryam. Indeed, I am only a slave. So call me the Slave of Allâh and His Messenger.” [3]

Imâm Ahmad - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - reports from Muhammad ibn Fudayl, from ’Amârah, from Abû Zur’ah who said: I do not know this except from Abû Hurayrah - radiallâhu ’anhu - who said: Jibrîl was sitting with the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam looking towards the sky, when he saw an angel. So Jibrîl - ’alayhis-salâm - said to him: Indeed, this angel has never descended before today. So when the angel had descended, he said: O Muhammad! I have been sent by your Lord (to inquire) whether He should make you a Prophet-King or a Slave-Messenger. [4]

And in a mursal narration from Yahyâ Ibn Kathîr - rahimahullâh that the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam said: “I eat as a slave eats, and I sit as a slave sits. Since indeed I am a slave.” [5] This has been related by Ibn Sa’d in at-Tabaqât.

There is also a narration related by Abû Ma’dhr from al-Maqburî from ’Âishah - radiallâhu ’anhâ - that the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam said: “An angel came to me and said: Allâh sends blessings upon you and says: If you wish you may be a Prophet-Kin or a Slave-Messenger. So Jibrîl - ’alayhis-salâm - indicated to me that I should humble myself: So I said: A Prophet-Slave.” So ’Âishah said: So after that day, the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam never ate whilst reclining, saying: “I eat like a slave eats and I sit like a slave sits.” [6]

And from the mursal narrations of az-Zuhrî -rahimahullâhu ta’âla - who said: we were informed that an angel came to the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam, who had never come to him before. Accompanying him was Jibrîl - ’alayhis-salâm. So the angel spoke, and Jibrîl - ’alayhis-salâm - remained silent, so he said: Your Lord inquires whether you wish to be a king or a Prophet-Slave. So the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam looked towards Jibrîl - ’alayhis-salâm - as if he was seeking his advice. So Jibrîl indicated that he should be humble. So Allâh’s Messenger sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam said: “A Prophet-Slave.” Az-Zuhrî said: So it is said that from that day onwards, the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam never ate whilst reclining, until he departed from this world. [7]

And it is related in the Musnad, or in the Sunan of at-Tirmidhî, from Abû Hurayrah radiallâhu ’anhu, from the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam who said: “My Lord - the Mighty and Majestic - gave me the choice that the valley of Makkah be filled with gold, but I said: No! O Lord. However, grant food to me one day, and hunger the day after. So when I am hungry I humble myself before You and remember You, and when I am full, I am grateful to You.” [8]

Some of the knowledgeable people have said: Whoever claims al-’ubûdiyyah (slavery and servitude to Allâh), but desires still remain with him, then he is lying in his claim. Indeed, al-’ubûdiyyah will only be true for the one who annihilates his desires and establishes the will of his Master, where his name is what He called him (i.e. ’ibâdur-Rahmân: the Slaves of the Most Merciful).

Al-Hâfidh Abû Nu’aym - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - relates in the book: Asmâ‘us-Sabâbah, by way of Shaykh Abû Sulaymân ad-Darânî (d.215H) - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - who related from ’Alqamah ibn al-Hârith al-Azdî, from his father, from his grandfather who mentioned the saying of Luqmân the wise when he said to his son: “I have gathered my wisdom for you in six sentences: Work for this world in proportion to how long you shall remain in it, and work for the Hereafter in proportion to how long you shall remain in it. Commit acts of sin in proportion to how much you can endure it. Act for Allâh in accordance to how much you are in need of Him. Commit acts of disobedience in accordance to how much you can endure the punishment. Do not ask except from the One who is in need of no one. And when you intend to commit a sin against Allâh, then do it in a place where He cannot see you.”

Ibrâhîm al-Khawwâs - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - said: “The cure for the hearts is in five things: reciting the Qur‘ân with reflection and contemplation; emptying the stomach (i.e. frequent fasting); praying at night; humbling oneself in the early hours of the morning; and being in the company of the sâlihîn (righteous).”

Ibrâhîm ibn Adham (d.160H) - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - said in an admonition, when he was asked (by some people) about the saying of Allâh - the Most High -: “Call upon Me and I will respond to you.” [Sûrah Ghâfir 40:60] (They said): We call upon Him, but He does not respond to us. So he said to them: “You know Allâh, yet you do not obey Him. You recite the Qur‘ân, but you do not act according to it. You know Shaytân, but still agree with him. You claim to love Allâh’s Messenger sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam, yet you abandon his Sunnah. You claim to love Paradise, yet you do not work for it. You claim to fear the Fire, yet you do not stop sinning. You say: Indeed death is true, yet you have not prepared for it. You busy yourselves with the faults of others, but you do not look at your own faults. You eat the sustenance that Allâh provides for you, yet you are not grateful to Him. You bury your dead, but you have not heeded its lesson.”

We ask Allâh to grant us the ability to please Him and to bestow upon us His mercy.

References

1. He is the Imâm, the hâfidh, the zâhid (abstainer from this world), the admonisher Abul-Faraj ’Abdur-Rahmân ibn Ahmad Rajab as-Salamî better known as Ibn Rajab al-Hanbalî. Ibn Fahd said about him: “The Imâm, the hâfidh, the hujjah (proof), the knowledgeable Scholar, the dependable one. He was one of the Scholars who shunned the world, and one of the Imâms and worshippers. He was an instructive Scholar from the Scholars of Hadîth - and an admonisher of the Muslims.” Ibn Fahd also said: “He - rahimahullâhu ta’âla - was a pious Imâm who shunned the world. Hearts inclined towards him with love, and the different sects accepted him. His sittings for advising the general people were of great benefit and used to open up the hearts.” As-Suyûtî said about him: “The Imâm, the hâfidh, the Scholar of Hadîth, the admonisher ’Abdur-Rahmân ... ” He learnt from some of the major Scholars of his time, such as Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, al-Hâfidh al-’Irâqî, Ibn an-Naqîb and others. He authored many books in the field of tafsîr, hadîth, biography and history, raqâ‘iq (heart-affecting matters) and also in fiqh. He is enumerated as one of the great scholars of Fiqh of the Hanbalî madbhab - as is proven by his excellent book: al-Qawâ‘idul-Kubrâ fil-Furû’ - about which Ibn Muflih said: “It is a proof about his complete knowledge of the madhhab.” And al-Hâfidh Ibn Hajar also spoke with similar praises about the book. He - rahimahullâh - died in the year 795H.
For a complete biography, refer to: Inbâ‘ul-Ghamr bi Anbâ‘il-‘Umar (3/175-176) and ad-Daururul-Kâminah (2/321-322) of Ibn Hajr, Dhayl Tabaqâtul-Huffâdh (p.532) of as-Suyûtî and Luhdhul-Labâdh (pp.180-182) of Ibn Fahd al-Makkî. This article has been taken from the last chapter of his book: Al-Khushû’ fis-Salâh (pp.57-62).
2. Sahîh: Related by Ibn Sa’d in at-Tabaqât (1/23) in mursal form. However, it has been related in connected form by Ibn Mâjah (no.3312) and al-Hâkim (3/47) from Abû Mas’ûd radiallâhu ’anhu. Shaykh al-Albânî authenticated it in as-Sahîhah (no. 1876).
3. Related by al-Bukhârî (6/345), ad-Dârimî (2/320) and others, from ’Umar ibn al-Khattâb radiallâhu ’anhu.
4. Related by Ahmad (2/321), al-Bazzâr (no.4262) and al-Haythamî in al-Majma’ (9/18-19) where he said: “It has been narrated by Ahmad, al-Bazzâr and Abu Ya’lâ, and its initial narrators are all the narrators of as-Sahîh.”
5. Sahîh: Related by Ibn Sa’d in at-Tabagât (1/371) and Shaykh al-Albânî authenticated it in Sahîhul-Jâmi’ (no.8). Refer also to Takhrîjul-Ihyâ (2/4) of al-Hâfidh al-’Irâqî.
6. Hasan: Related by al-Baghawî in Sharhus-Sunnah (no.4683) and Abush-Shaykh in Akhlâqun-Nabî (no.213), and al-Haythamî authenticated it in al-Majma’ (9/19).
7. Although this is a musal narration, it does however, have support from those narrations that have already preceded, and it has a further witness from the narration of Ibn ’Abbâs - which is related by al-Baghawî (no.3684) and Abush-Shaykh (nos.213.214).
8. Da’îf Jiddan: Related by Ahmad (5/254) and at-Tirmidhî (no.2348), from Abû Umâamah radiallâhu ’anhu. It was declared weak by Shaykh al-Albânî in Da’îful-Jâmi’ (no.3704).

Ma’rifah: The Heart Knowing Allâh

Al-Bukhârî (d.256H) said in his Sahîh (1/88):
“Chapter: The saying of the Prophet sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam: “I have more knowledge of Allâh than you all.” And that ma’rifah (realisation and knowledge) is an action of the heart, about which Allâh - the Most High - says: “But He will call you to account for what your hearts have earned.” [Sûrah al-Baqarah2:225] ”

Al-Hâfidh Ibn Rajab - rahimahullâh - said in Jâmi’ al-’Ulûm wal-Hikam (p.120): “So hearts will not be corrected until the ma’rifah of Allâh - being in awe of Him, loving Him, fearing Him, hoping in Him, relying and trusting in Him - is not firmly implanted in them. This is the reality of Tawhîd and the meaning of the saying: Lâ ilâhâ ilallâhu (None has the right to be worshipped except Allâh). So hearts cannot be corrected until Allâh is made the ilâh (deity) to be known, loved, feared and hoped for; and that He becomes the only ilâh (deity) worthy of this - without associating any partner to Him in this ... So know that the world - whatever is above and whatever is below in the waters - will not be corrected, except when the actions of its people are all for Allâh’s sake. Since the action of the body follows on from the actions and intentions of the heart, then when the heart’s actions and intentions are directed to and for Allâh alone, then it is corrected, and all the actions of the body will likewise be corrected. However, if the actions and intentions of the heart are directed to or for other than Allâh, then it is corrupted, and likewise, all the actions of the body will be corrupted in proportion to how much the heart has been corrupted.”