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[22th Thread : Is celebrating birthday a Bid& #39;ah?]
This thread seeks to find out if celebrating birthdays are bid& #39;ah in nature & therefore haraam to celebrate.
The idea to write this thread came to my mind when I saw @irenaakbar tweet over celebrating birthdays last month 1/
This thread seeks to find out if celebrating birthdays are bid& #39;ah in nature & therefore haraam to celebrate.
The idea to write this thread came to my mind when I saw @irenaakbar tweet over celebrating birthdays last month 1/
Firstly,the issue is jurisprudential in nature & so is disputed depending which Fiqh school one follows. It& #39;s nothing to do with Theology or Ethics as the term Bid& #39;ah is applied in Fiqh.We need to understand that Fiqh isnt black & white science nor such issues have B&W rulings 2/
A ruling can change based on many factors like عرف(customary usage) or قائدة زمان و مكان(principle of time & place) etc. A ruling can also be changed if it& #39;s موضوع(subject matter) has or its علّة(cause) has changed over time or place. Even in time of Rasulallah, many rulings 3/
have be changed or abrogated. So the idea that we need to follow the & #39;Divine Command theory& #39; ie if
the ruling back then was X so we need to follow it despite the conditions are changed is just bringing harm to oneself & this contradict the Qur& #39;an principle of Ease 4/
the ruling back then was X so we need to follow it despite the conditions are changed is just bringing harm to oneself & this contradict the Qur& #39;an principle of Ease 4/
WHAT IS BID& #39;AH?
Bid& #39;ah can be defined in two ways.
a- (Lexiconal meaning) معنى اللغوى = origination or creation or new invention. Like,
بديع السماوات والأرض...
(Wonderful #originator of the heavens & the earth)... Has no use in Fiqh.
b- معنى الاصطلاحى(Technical meaning) 5/
Bid& #39;ah can be defined in two ways.
a- (Lexiconal meaning) معنى اللغوى = origination or creation or new invention. Like,
بديع السماوات والأرض...
(Wonderful #originator of the heavens & the earth)... Has no use in Fiqh.
b- معنى الاصطلاحى(Technical meaning) 5/
Here, bid& #39;ah is applied in عبادات(acts of worship).Since & #39;ibadat are تعبدى(submissive)in nature(we& #39;ve to perform them regardless of knowing their cause if it& #39;s established by religious texts)so changing anything in them ie doing Bid& #39;ah is haraam.
Bid& #39;ah also has no application 6/
Bid& #39;ah also has no application 6/
in معاملات(social transactions)[2nd aspect of Fiqh] as the rulings about them changes based on evidences or principles.
Having said that, celebrating birthdays is a social construct not an act of worship thus saying it& #39;s Bid& #39;ah is epistemologically incorrect.
Bid& #39;ah are 7/
Having said that, celebrating birthdays is a social construct not an act of worship thus saying it& #39;s Bid& #39;ah is epistemologically incorrect.
Bid& #39;ah are 7/
classified by scholars into many types like good,bad etc like for ex, praying taraweeh is bid& #39;ah tul hasana{good bid& #39;ah}but since Islam is inherently against bid& #39;ah & tarawih is a form of worship,saying it& #39;s good is just based on qiyas & has no religious proof,not in Aahadith 8/
Coming to the topic of birthdays, there are primarily 3 objections raised by ppl & some scholars.
1(a) Rasulullah & sahabah didn& #39;t celebrate himself & so it& #39;s against his Sunnah.
Res :- Something not performed by Rasulullah doesn& #39;t invalidates the act in itself unless it 9/
1(a) Rasulullah & sahabah didn& #39;t celebrate himself & so it& #39;s against his Sunnah.
Res :- Something not performed by Rasulullah doesn& #39;t invalidates the act in itself unless it 9/
goes against his sunnah. Since we don& #39;t have any explicit evidence in sources from him forbidden celebrating birthdays, we can& #39;t apply this analogy.
Moreover, we can apply اصلاة البراءة(which states everything is permitted in absence of any {contradictory} evidences) 10/
Moreover, we can apply اصلاة البراءة(which states everything is permitted in absence of any {contradictory} evidences) 10/
Thus, this principle does not convey any religious obligation when the religious texts are silent(as in case of celebrating birthdays).
b- Some argue using 33:21 verse but it& #39;s nothing to do with our fiqhi aspect of life.
Within the verse, أسوة حسنة apply to morals & ethics 11/
b- Some argue using 33:21 verse but it& #39;s nothing to do with our fiqhi aspect of life.
Within the verse, أسوة حسنة apply to morals & ethics 11/
As this hadith of Rasulallah concede with the verse, إنما بعثت لأتمم مكارم الأخلاق(I& #39;ve only been sent to complete the morals/good manners).
2. It& #39;s the imitation of kuffar
This argument stems from this hadith(من تشبه بقوم فهو منهم) but the context of this hadith is over 12/
2. It& #39;s the imitation of kuffar
This argument stems from this hadith(من تشبه بقوم فهو منهم) but the context of this hadith is over 12/
identity & act specific to kuffar. Therefore,scholars divide the acts into 2 parts.
(Prohibitive imitation)المحرم التشبه - One which explicitly resembles the acts/norms of kuffar.
However, celebrating birthdays don& #39;t fall into this category as it& #39;s based on & #39;urf(common usage)13/
(Prohibitive imitation)المحرم التشبه - One which explicitly resembles the acts/norms of kuffar.
However, celebrating birthdays don& #39;t fall into this category as it& #39;s based on & #39;urf(common usage)13/
& social perceptions. One can argue over & #39;how& #39; but saying it& #39;s forbidden in itself is incorrect. In fact, the Qur& #39;an states about Prophet & #39;isa saying, واسلام على يوم ولدت...signifying the importance of it.
(Permissible imitation) التشبه الجائز
Acts which are permissible like 14/
(Permissible imitation) التشبه الجائز
Acts which are permissible like 14/
wearing a tie.
3.Deification of personalities
2 fallacies in this argument
I.Correlation ≠ causation
II.False equivalence
Celebrating birthdays is fiqhi issue which is socially acceptable act in modern time but deification of personalities stems from theological belief 15/
3.Deification of personalities
2 fallacies in this argument
I.Correlation ≠ causation
II.False equivalence
Celebrating birthdays is fiqhi issue which is socially acceptable act in modern time but deification of personalities stems from theological belief 15/
These are my views on celebrating birthdays in Islam, hope it benefits others as well.
@Fatima_Z0hra @NeoTiger_
@philoabdul @Umm_e_Meeran
@zoyarasul @nazmaaman @NoorainAhmed1 @MallickZ08 @subiism @KhanShirin0 @its_huz @Falak_Kahkashan @Amatur_Rahman1
@Fatima_Z0hra @NeoTiger_
@philoabdul @Umm_e_Meeran
@zoyarasul @nazmaaman @NoorainAhmed1 @MallickZ08 @subiism @KhanShirin0 @its_huz @Falak_Kahkashan @Amatur_Rahman1
