The Situation of the Parents of the Prophet

A questioner asked Shaykh Al-Na’san the following: Is it true that the mother of our Master the Messenger of Allāh (peace and blessings be upon him, his family, and his companions) and his father are in the Fire? This is what some people say, using as proof the hadīth of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated by Imām Muslim, where the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked his Lord for permission to seek forgiveness for his mother, but He did not grant him permission. They also cite another hadīth, also authentic (sahih), where a man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked, “O Messenger of Allāh, where is my father?” He replied, “In the Fire.” Then he said to him, “Indeed, my father and your father are in the Fire.” (Muslim). The questioner kept asking about the father of the Supreme Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the mother of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)—may Allāh be pleased with them both and grant them satisfaction—are they in the Fire?

The Shaykh responds:

As for the person who spoke to you, the one diving into this topic, who put him up to this? Does it satisfy him to prove to the Ummah that the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are in the Fire? I mean, is this something that pleases him?

O noble brothers, it is accepted by everyone that it is impossible, a thousand times impossible, for the Mighty Qurʾān to contradict the Noble Hadīth. Because the Noble Hadīth, as our Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) says, is:

Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed.

Surah An-Najm 53:3-4

Is it reasonable or possible for the Noble Qurʾān to contradict the Noble Hadīth? Impossible.

Someone says, “Okay, but these are authentic ahādīth.” Before we talk about these two hadīth reports, let us read the Mighty Qurʾān with reflection. Especially for this person who is going around circulating this, speaking in public gatherings and private meetings claiming the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are in the Fire, and telling people, “If anyone tells you otherwise, his creed (ʿaqīdah) is in danger because the hadīth is authentic.” So, effectively, he is belying the Noble Qurʾān by his own logic. The parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)…what does our Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) say in the Mighty Qurʾān?

Naturally, the noble verse we all memorize comes to mind immediately:

And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.

Surah Al-Isrāʾ 17:15

The father of our Master, the Supreme Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), passed away while the Messenger of Allāh (peace and blessings be upon him) was a fetus in his mother’s womb. His mother (may Allāh be pleased with her and grant her satisfaction) died when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was six years old. My Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) states with a clear declaration that needs no explanation:

And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.

Surah Al-Isrāʾ 17:15

The words are clear. Does it need explaining?

Okay, let us read the saying of Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He): {To warn a people…} The address is to our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)

To warn a people to whom no warner had come before you.

Surah As-Sajdah 32:3

Does this statement need explanation? There was no…no warner for the Arabs before our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

…to whom no warner had come before you that they might be guided.

Surah As-Sajdah 32:3

My Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) says:

And this Qur’ān was revealed to me that I may warn you thereby and whomever it reaches.

Surah Al-Anʿām 6:19

Meaning, whoever the Noble Qurʾān reaches. Did the Noble Qurʾān reach the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)? Decisively, no.

Regarding the people of the Fire, what does my Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) say?

And those who disbelieved will be driven to Hell in groups until, when they reach it, its gates are opened and its keepers will say, “Did there not come to you messengers from yourselves, reciting to you the verses of your Lord and warning you of the meeting of this Day of yours?”

They will say, “Yes.”

Surah Az-Zumar 39:71

The people of the Fire said “Yes.” Now, if this verse were said—Allāh forbid—to the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): “Did there not come to you messengers from yourselves?” Well, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was not there yet.

The saying of Allāh the Exalted:

And they will cry out therein (meaning the people of the Fire) “Our Lord, remove us; we will do righteousness other than what we were doing!”

But did We not grant you life enough for whoever would remember therein to remember, and the warner had come to you?

Surah Fātir 35:37

“Did we not give you long enough lives until the Messenger came, until the bearer of glad tidings and the warner came? {And the warner had come to you?} The Messenger came to you, but you refused nothing but disobedience.” Does this verse apply to the parents of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)?

Our Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) says:

It almost bursts with rage. (meaning the Fire) Every time a company is thrown into it, its keepers ask them, “Did there not come to you a warner?”

They answer, “Yes…”

Surah Al-Mulk 67:8-9

The parents of our Master the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)—Allāh forbid they be of the people of the Fire—would hear this question: “Did there not come to you a warner?” Would they say “Yes”? No warner came to them.

He (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) says:

“By Him in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, no one of this nation, Jew or Christian, hears of me and then dies without believing in that with which I have been sent, but that he will be among the companions of the Fire.”

Sahih Muslim 153

Okay, there are those from this nation who died without hearing of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), how can we judge them to be of the people of the Fire?

All these proofs from the Noble Qurʾān indicate that a servant does not enter the fire of Hell except after the Message reaches him.

Okay, now we have two hadīths. The two hadīths are authentic (sahih), in Sahih Muslim, regarding the father of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the mother of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). On the surface, is there a contradiction or not? On the surface, there is a contradiction. What does this mean? Is this Islām incorrect? What do you think? One says, “I seek refuge in Allāh!” Okay then, what…what are you going to do? In a situation like this, one must interpret the hadīth with a correct interpretation, otherwise we fall into contradiction and fall, God forbid, into denying the Message. And it is impossible, as I said, a thousand times impossible, for the Noble Qurʾān to contradict the Noble Hadīth, especially if it is authentic. So if we find a conflict, who do we blame for the misunderstanding? Ourselves. We are the ones who don’t understand.

My Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) says:

So ask the people of the message if you do not know.

Surah An-Nahl 16:43

This person who mentioned the first and second hadīth, why didn’t he mention the noble verses I cited and reconcile them? He took the hadīth and ruled that the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are in the Fire. Well, brother, come and solve this problem for us. We have the Noble Qurʾān contradicting this statement. That person goes silent, or maybe he still wants to interpret things just to prove the Prophet’s parents are in the Fire.

Look brother, the People of Knowledge have explained the hadīth for us. The two noble parents (may Allāh be pleased with them and grant them satisfaction), our Master ʿAbdullāh and the Lady Āminah (may Allāh be pleased with her and grant her satisfaction), were they from the Ahl al-Fatrah (People of the Interval) or not? They were from the Ahl al-Fatrah, and the call of none of the Prophets (peace and blessings be upon them) reached them. The proof that the call did not reach them is, first, the lateness of their time and the distance between them and the previous Prophets. The last of the Prophets before the mission of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was our Master ʿĪsā (Jesus, peace and blessings be upon him), and the period between them was 600 years. And our Master ʿĪsā (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent to a people specifically designated by our Lord, because no Prophet was sent but to his own people.

Second, the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him, may Allāh be pleased with them) were in the time of Jāhiliyyah (Ignorance). Ignorance had covered the earth, East and West, and those who could teach people the divine laws and convey the Message correctly were gone. I mean, my Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) did not take charge of preserving any of the religions. Neither the religion of our Master ʿĪsā, nor our Master Mūsā (Moses), nor our Master Ibrāhīm (Abraham). Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) did not take charge of preserving them. Who did He entrust their preservation to? To the people, and they wasted it.

When our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent, the people were amazed. His people (peace and blessings be upon him) were astonished, saying, “Has Allāh sent a human messenger?” What is this proof of? It proves they couldn’t imagine that a messenger from Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) could be a human being. If they had knowledge that Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) sent Messengers (peace and blessings be upon them) who were human, they wouldn’t have found it strange, “Has Allāh sent a human messenger?” And Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) said about them:

If Allāh had willed, He would have sent down angels. We have not heard of this among our forefathers.

Surah Al-Muʾminūn 23:24

What is this “Messenger from Allāh”? “We have not heard of this among our forefathers.” If they had knowledge of the sending of Messengers, they would not have denied that.

Perhaps the Arabs thought that our Master Ibrāhīm (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent with the polytheism (shirk) they were practicing. That is why my Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) described our Master Ibrāhīm saying:

Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists.

Surah Āl ʿImrān 3:67

The polytheists imagined that our Master Ibrāhīm was sent—Allāh forbid—with polytheism. They, the Arabs, did not find anyone to convey the law of our Master Ibrāhīm (peace and blessings be upon him) to them correctly, because it had been obliterated and those who knew it were lost. There was no one who knew the message of our Master Ibrāhīm. For was there between them and the time of our Master Ibrāhīm (peace and blessings be upon him) two years? Or three? Or ten? Or… There was between them and our Master Ibrāhīm (peace and blessings be upon him) 3,000 years… 3,000 years! And Allāh did not take charge of preserving our Master Ibrāhīm’s religion. Who was going to introduce the Arabs to the religion of our Master Ibrāhīm (peace and blessings be upon him)?

From this, it becomes clear that the parents of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) were from the Ahl al-Fatrah, and by the testimony of Allāh:

And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.

Surah Al-Isrāʾ 17:15

He says, “The problem still stands. The hadīth! We want the hadīth. You are taking us East and West, bring us back to the hadīth.”

As long as it is established in the Qurʾān that Allāh does not punish the Ahl al-Fatrah, some scholars say that on the Day of Resurrection, our Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) will test the Ahl al-Fatrah. He will test them on that Day; whoever believes is from the People of Paradise, and whoever disbelieves is from the People of the Fire. But who right now can judge anyone from the Ahl al-Fatrah as being from Paradise or the Fire when the test hasn’t happened yet?

Okay, so what about the hadīth? Since we found a contradiction between the Qurʾān and the authentic Hadīth, the hadīth must be interpreted correctly so it doesn’t clash with the Noble Qurʾān.

The hadīth narrated by Imām Muslim from Anas (may Allāh be pleased with him) is that:

A man said, “O Messenger of Allāh, where is my father?”

He said, “In the Fire.”

When the man turned away, he called him back and said, “Indeed, my father and your father are in the Fire.”

Sahih Muslim 203

I ask, does this hadīth imply that the intended “father” is our Master ʿAbdullāh bin ʿAbd al-Muttalib? You are sitting there silent. Someone says, “Well, ‘father’ (ab) means father.” He said, “My father (abī) and your father are in the Fire.” Did he say to him “My biological parent (wālidī) and your biological parent are in the Fire”? There is a difference between al-wālid (the biological parent) and al-ab (the father figure). The word ab is used for the grandfather, it is used for the paternal uncle, and it is used for the biological father.

So, we have now fallen into a contradiction. What do we do? We must carry this Noble Hadīth in a specific way. As long as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) says “Indeed, my father (abī) and your father are in the Fire,” we do not say the biological parent (wālid) of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is in the Fire. His ab is in the Fire. Who is the ab? Since the word ab can apply to the grandfather and the uncle, we must interpret the hadīth in the correct manner: his uncle is in the Fire.

The word ab applies to the grandfather and applies to the uncle, proven by the saying of Allāh recounting the sons of our Master Yaʿqūb (Jacob, peace and blessings be upon him) when death came to him. Our Master Yaʿqūb asked them:

What will you worship after me?

They said, “We will worship your God and the God of your fathers, Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac…”

Surah Al-Baqarah 2:133

How many “father” gods? Many. The grandfather and the uncle, all of these are from…and the great-grandfather, and so on; all are ābāʾ (fathers). {…the God of your fathers, Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac – one God. And we are Muslims [in submission] to Him.} This is even though our Master Ismāʿīl (Ishmael, peace and blessings be upon him) was the uncle of their father, our Master Yaʿqūb (peace and blessings be upon him).

The presence of our Master, the Supreme Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), used the word ab for the grandfather, and not just the close grandfather, but the distant forefather. He (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

“A boy was born to me tonight and I have named him with the name of my father (abī), Ibrāhīm.” (Muslim).

Sahih Muslim 2315

My father Ibrāhīm. So, ab applies to the uncle and applies to the grandfather. Once we know this, the word abī when he said, “My father and your father…Indeed, my father and your father are in the Fire,” applies to the uncle. And if it applies to the uncle, the problem is gone. Who is the uncle?

May the hands of Abū Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he. His wealth will not avail him or that which he gained. He will [enter to] burn in a Fire of [blazing] flame.

Surah Al-Masad 111:1-3

Consoling this man, he said, “My father and your father are in the Fire…” or “Indeed, my father and your father are in the Fire.” “Indeed, my father and your father are in the Fire” refers to the uncle, or specifically to his uncle Abū Tālib.

As Imām Muslim narrated, he (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

“The person of the Fire with the lightest punishment is Abū Tālib.”

Sahih Muslim 212

His uncle, who is in the position of the father, and the uncle is the twin (sinw) of the father. As I said, in the Noble Qurʾān and the Noble Hadīth, the word ab is used for the grandfather and used for the uncle. The hadīth continues: “…He wears two sandals from which his brain boils.” We ask Allāh for pardon and safety.

And Imām Muslim narrated from ʿĀmir bin Saʿd from his father that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combined his parents for him in an oath on the Day of Uhud. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to our Master Saʿd:

“Shoot, may my father and my mother be sacrificed for you (fidāka abī wa ummī)!”

Sahih Muslim 6233

“Shoot, may my father and my mother be sacrificed for you.” If they were of the people of the Fire, he (peace and blessings be upon him, his family, and his companions) would not have offered them as a ransom for him. Because

Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed.

Surah An-Najm 53:3-4

So, regarding the hadīth about the father of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the difficulty is removed. We say it is his uncle Abū Lahab or Abū Tālib. Someone says, “No, no, no, it is the parent of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)!” What is the proof? What is the proof that it is his biological parent? He said, “Indeed, my ab and your ab,” he did not say “my wālid.” He did not say “my wālid.” With that, the difficulty vanishes.

Now for the second hadīth which Imām Muslim narrated concerning his mother (may Allāh be pleased with her and grant her satisfaction). Imām Muslim narrated from Abū Hurayrah (may Allāh be pleased with him) who said:

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) visited his mother’s grave and wept, and caused those around him to weep. He then said: “I asked my Lord for permission to seek forgiveness for her, but permission was not granted to me; and I asked Him for permission to visit her grave, and He granted me permission.”

Sahih Muslim 976b

Does this hadīth prove that the mother of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is in the Fire? Did not the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbid standing at the grave of a disbeliever? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was forbidden from standing at the grave of a disbeliever. It would have been obligatory—had they been, Allāh forbid, disbelievers (may Allāh be pleased with them both)—it would have been obligatory for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to disavow them (barāʾah). To disassociate from them. Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) disavow his parents? Allāh forbid! Far be it from him (peace and blessings be upon him).

This hadīth, “I asked my Lord for permission to seek forgiveness for her, but permission was not granted to me,” contains no proof that the Lady Āminah (may Allāh be pleased with her and grant her satisfaction) is of the people of the Fire, because she was, by agreement, from the Ahl al-Fatrah. And regarding the Ahl al-Fatrah, as we said, Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) stated:

And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.

Surah Al-Isrāʾ 17:15

So, the lack of permission to seek forgiveness for her does not indicate that she is of the people of the Fire. Had she been—Allāh forbid—like that, Allāh (Blessed and Exalted is He) would not have permitted our Master Muḥammad (peace and blessings be upon him) to visit her grave. What is the purpose of visiting the grave if she were of the people of the Fire? What is the purpose of visiting the grave if she were of the people of the Fire? Had he (peace and blessings be upon him) known that she was—Allāh forbid—a disbeliever, he would have disavowed her, sticking to the saying of Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He):

You will not find a people who believe in Allāh and the Last Day having affection for those who oppose Allāh and His Messenger, even if they were their fathers or their sons or their brothers or their kindred.

Surah Al-Mujādila 58:22

He asks, “Then why did he cry? Why did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) cry?” He says he cried because his mother is in the Fire. Who told you this? What is the proof that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) cried because his mother is of the people of the Fire? He (peace and blessings be upon him) cried out of separation from her. Is there one among us whose parents are like the father of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and the mother of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)? No, by the Lord of the Kaʿbah. One of us remembers his father, stands at his father’s grave and cries. Why are you crying? Do you see your father in the Fire? No, out of longing for him. He says, “No, he cried because he wished she were alive to believe in him.” Where did you get this talk from? He brought this statement just to prove that she is of the people of the Fire. Look, who is assigning you this task? Who is burdening you with this job?

There is nothing in the two noble hadīths indicating that the parents of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) were disbelievers—Allāh is our refuge! The very least, the absolute least that can be said of them is that they are of the Ahl al-Fatrah. And it is reported that the Ahl al-Fatrah will be tested on the Day of Judgment. By Allāh, I ask you, on the Day of Judgment, if Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He) tests the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)…and then our Master the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) enters Paradise while his parents are in the Fire?

And he knows that his parents were tested by Allāh and became of the people of the Fire? Through the blessing (barakah) of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), if this test takes place, they will be among the winners. Especially regarding the Lady Āminah; how many glad tidings did she see concerning the mission of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), as the books of biography (Siyar) have told us?

O noble brothers, it is a duty on the Ummah to keep proper etiquette (adab) with our Master the Messenger of Allāh (peace and blessings be upon him), especially in a case like this. Because it hasn’t been proven that they—the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)—it hasn’t been proven that they prostrated to an idol. Far be it from Allāh! Look at the grandfather of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) picking the name of his father. What is his name? ʿAbdullāh (Servant of Allāh). Not “Servant of al-Lāt” nor “Servant of al-ʿUzzā” nor with the names of the polytheists; ʿAbdullāh. And every named person has a share of his name. As for the Lady Āminah: safety and security (amn wa amān).

He (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

“Do not abuse the dead, for you hurt the living.”

Jami’ al-Tirmidhī 1982

Is there not in this talk—”the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are in the Fire”—is there not hurt in it? The presence of our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), when he heard that ʿIkrimah… whose son is this? The son of Abū Jahl. Who is this Abū Jahl? The Pharaoh of this nation. He said:

“ʿIkrimah comes to you as a believer and an emigrant, so do not abuse his father.”

Mustadrak Al Hakim 5055

Don’t say to him, “You are the son of Abū Jahl.” “For abusing the dead hurts the living.” Well, if our Master the Supreme Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was careful with the heart of our Master ʿIkrimah, is this Ummah not going to be careful not to hurt the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)? Has the Ummah been tasked to go and prove, and try their hardest to prove, that the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are in the Fire?

Indeed, those who abuse Allāh and His Messenger – Allāh has cursed them in this world and the Hereafter and prepared for them a humiliating punishment.

Surah Al-Ahzāb 33:57

That is why many scholars mention that for the one who judges the parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to be in the Fire, it is feared that he may lose his faith (īmān). It is an injury to our Master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). You speak without proof. The verses are clear:

And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.

Surah Al-Isrāʾ 17:15

and the questions of the angels to the people of the Fire {Did there not come to you messengers?}—all are clear. The parents of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) are of the Ahl al-Fatrah. Therefore, the least…the least you can do is to hold your tongue on this. Otherwise, we will fall into contradiction between the Qurʾān and the Sunnah, but by the grace of Allāh (Mighty and Majestic is He), there is no contradiction between the Book and the Sunnah.

Peace and blessings be upon our Master Muhammad, who moved from the loins of the pure men to the wombs of the pure women. What does my Lord (Mighty and Majestic is He) say?

And your movement among those who prostrate.

Surah Ash-Shuʿarāʾ 26:219

There was no polytheist in the lineage of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). In the entire lineage of our Master the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), there is no polytheist. Someone says, “But what of the father of our Master Ibrāhīm?” We go back to the point that the “father” of our Master Ibrāhīm

When he said to his father…

Surah Al-Anʿām 6:74

—who is his father? His father is Āzar, and Āzar is his uncle. Therefore, among the fathers of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), there is no polytheist. O Allāh, do not deprive us of the blessing of etiquette (adab) with our Master the Messenger of Allāh (peace and blessings be upon him). This, and Allāh (Blessed and Exalted is He) knows best.

Additional Points of Benefit

In response to this article, a reader expressed surprise at Azar not being the biological father of Ibrahim (peace and blessings be upon him).

Some of the proofs which corroborate this include the du’a of Ibrahim (peace and blessings be upon him):

Our Lord, forgive me, my parents, and the believers on the Day when the reckoning will take place.

Surah Ibrahim 14:41

This du’a was made after the time Ibrahim (peace and blessings be upon him) had children:

And [mention, O Muhammad], when Abraham said, “My Lord, make this city [i.e., Makkah] secure and keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols.

My Lord, indeed they have led astray many among the people. So whoever follows me—then he is of me; and whoever disobeys me—indeed, You are [yet] Forgiving and Merciful.

Our Lord, I have settled some of my descendants in an uncultivated valley near Your sacred House, our Lord, that they may establish prayer. So make hearts among the people incline toward them and provide for them from the fruits that they might be grateful.

Our Lord, indeed You know what we conceal and what we declare, and nothing is hidden from Allāh on the earth or in the heaven.

Praise to Allāh, who has granted to me in old age Ishmael and Isaac. Indeed, my Lord is the Hearer of supplication.

My Lord, make me an establisher of prayer, and [many] from my descendants. Our Lord, and accept my supplication.

Our Lord, forgive me and my parents and the believers the Day the account is established.”

Surah Ibrahim 14:35-41