THE SPIRITUAL MESSAGE OF SALAWAT ON THE FIVE NABAWI SILVER DIRHAM

1 Ramadan 1441 / 24 April 2020

Allah Almighty says in Surah al-Ahzab (33), verse 56 in the Holy Qur’an:

“Verily Allah and His Angels shower blessings on the Prophet (peace be upon him). O Believer! Send blessings upon him and salute him with a worthy salutation.”

Allah Almighty has commanded the Believers to ask for blessings upon His Messenger (peace be upon him) because Allah Almighty and His Angels continuously send blessings to the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him). This is the utmost honour for Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa-sallam) who is the Seal of the Prophets and the most beloved of Allah Almighty.

This verse of the Qur’an starts with the word “inna,” which places more stress and emphasis. Whenever a verse starts with the word “inna,” it implies the continuity and perpetuity of an act. Therefore Allah Almighty and His Angels perpetually shower blessings upon the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).

In one of his published works, Rūḥ al-Bayān (the Spirit of Elucidation), Shaykh İsmail Hakkı Bursevî, (Ismāʿīl Ḥaḳḳī al-Brūsawī), a 17th-century Ottoman Turkish Muslim scholar says: “To shower blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) by Allah Almighty means to honour him for his Praised Station: … which is the Office of Intercession … . And for the Angels to send blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) means to pray for the raising of his position and to pray for pardon from Allah Almighty for his followers; and for us to ask for blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) is actually to praise him for his excellent qualities and to follow his ways with love and sincerity.”

In a Hadith recorded by Imam at-Tabrani on the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas: Abu Hurairah reports that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Whoever recites the following Salawat eighty times immediately after Asar prayers on Friday, before standing up from his place, Allah will forgive him eighty years of sins and grant him the reward equivalent to eighty years of worship.”

(Allahumma salli ‘alaa muhammadinin nabiyyil ummiyyi wa ‘alaa aalihi wasallim tasleema)

“O Allah, bestow Your Blessings upon Muhammad, the Prophet of the Highest Eminence, and upon his Household and grant them the Utmost Peace.”

With such importance placed upon this salutation to the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) and his noble family, we at 24 Qirats humbly decided to engrave this Salawat on the Five Nabawi Silver Dirham as silver is a noble metal that does not degrade over time and thus will serve as a reminder to us all and for generations to come inshaAllah. Ramadan is the best time for self-reflection as we pray and seek forgiveness from Allah Almighty. May the spiritual impact of this Salawat be etched forever in our hearts and may we all be accepted as the ummah of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a result of it, especially when we most need his Intercession on the Day of Judgment…