Question:
Someone has sent an image with a salawat and claims that reciting it 21 times and then looking at a certain picture will remove difficulties and bring blessings (barakah) in life. Please explain the ruling on this.
Answer:
they say that the following Salawat (blessing on the Prophetﷺ ) should be recited 21 times, 21 times, and then one should gaze intently at the money mentioned below. They say that if you do this, hardships will disappear from life and blessings (barakah) will increase. A person has sent a message asking for an explanation regarding this, and they also sent an image of a Salawat. What is that Salawat? “Allahumma salli ‘ala Muhammad al-Fatihi al-Malik…” They claim that this Salawat removes all difficulties and hardships from life.
If you ask where this originates, it comes from a Tariqa (Sufi order) group. There is a Tariqa within the Tariqa groups. What is this Tariqa? The person associated with this Tariqa lived around 1230 AH. The Tariqa I am referring to is called the Tijaniyya Tariqa. If you ask what Tariqa means, it is essentially a group that takes someone, calls them a great saint, and says, “If you pledge allegiance to me, you will go to heaven.”
They deceive people. Such deceptive companies are called Tariqas. There are Qadiriyya, etc. What they say does not align with our teachings. It is a group of pure Shirk (polytheism). They deify themselves, consider themselves like the Prophetﷺ.
They prescribe various forms of Dhikr (remembrance) that they claim must be performed. Among these, like the Shadhiliyya, Qadiriyya, there is a Tariqa called the Tijaniyya. Regarding the founder of this Tijaniyya Tariqa, who was he?
They consider him a great saint. He lived around 1230 AH, about 150 years ago. What is his claim? He claimed to have gone to Medina and met Prophetﷺ ﷺ in a dream or vision. He claimed that Prophetﷺ ﷺ came and taught him this Salawat. What does he do? He fabricated this Salawat that he claimed the Prophetﷺ taught him, which is the one you sent the image of. Who taught this Salawat? This devil from 1230 AH claimed that Prophetﷺ ﷺ came and taught him this Salawat that removes hardships. Claiming that Prophetﷺ ﷺ taught him this Salawat…
The Salawat you sent the image of is called Salat al-Fatih. Why is it called that? Because the phrase “al-Fatih” appears in it, meaning “Muhammad al-Fatih” (Muhammad the Opener). That is the name of this Salawat. They call it Salat al-Fatih. The elders of various Tariqas have copied this and claim this Salawat should be recited.
This Salawat contains a lot of Shirk. Scholars have severely criticized it, declaring it false. It is a pack of lies with no basis whatsoever. How should Salawat upon the Prophetﷺ be taught? Prophetﷺ ﷺ taught it. Did he need to teach it through this man? Would the people who lived before 1230 AH have missed out on this blessing? If Prophetﷺ ﷺ had taught it, would he have only taught it to this man in 1230 AH?
Did Prophetﷺ ﷺ exist before that? Would the people who lived earlier have been deprived of this Salat al-Fatih? Would the Prophetﷺ have concealed this part of the religion? Would he not have told them, and only these people told it? They don’t think the Prophetﷺ would have needed it. If they come up with something that no one else said, they claim it as their own, it becomes something unique.
Based on that, they create a fabricated Salawat. What happens by reciting this? Hardships come, and one earns Hellfire. Why? Because of Shirk. First of all, if you ask… I am inventing something that was not said.
Similarly, creating something new. Allah and His Prophetﷺ did not command it. Even though their native language was Arabic, they could have created a Salawat themselves. A verse in the Quran states: “Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophetﷺ . O you who have believed, ask blessings upon him and ask for peace.” (33:56)
The Companions asked the Prophetﷺ , “O Prophetﷺ of Allah, we know how to greet you with Salam, but how should we send Salawat upon you?” He taught them. Those whose mother tongue was Arabic, even if they could have composed a Salawat themselves, what did they do? They asked the Prophetﷺ ﷺ , “How should we send Salawat?” They were afraid of introducing innovation (Bid’ah).
When that is the case, what does this person do? This Tariqa follower says you need to get permission (from the order’s sheikh) and recite it. Only then is it powerful and effective. So, what do they do after getting permission? They prescribe this. In the books written by the Tariqa leaders, they present this elaborately.
First of all, any Tariqa like this… If it is a Tariqa that is upon the path of Allah and His Prophetﷺ, then they would read these things. This is Satanic. So, such a Tariqa is Satanic. Therefore, some person under the name of this Tariqa fabricated this.
What does he do? He says reciting this removes hardships. They print it, make it look grand, put it in books, take it, and spread it on Facebook. “Recite this! This is Salat al-Fatih, a Salawat that brings success.” They spread it. It will not bring success.
What about that question regarding the image? It is also added to this. It might be in that book, we don’t know. They post a picture and say it’s not enough to just recite the Salawat; you must also look at this image. What do they show? They say you must gaze upon the image. If we look at this image, in one corner is Iblis (Satan), the accursed one. On the top right corner, what is there? On the top right, it says “Iblis la’anah” (Iblis, may he be cursed). On the left corner, “Qarun la’anah” (Korah, may he be cursed). Below that, “Haman la’anah” (Haman, may he be cursed), etc. All are cursed.
They write these names and say you must keep looking at this image. Look! They prescribe this. In this religion, did Allah or His Prophetﷺ instruct this? No. They have taken something insane and turned it into a guide. Has he written something against the opponents? If it’s written in Arabic, that’s fine. But because they have made you believe this is the religion, this has come about.
This Salawat is incorrect, and this matter of gazing (at the image) is also imaginary. Overall, they are leading people to Hellfire. If you ask, “If I desire (barakah)?” then recite what Ibrahim ﷺ taught? Start with that. Recite what Allah and His Prophetﷺ commanded. If not, they recite “Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam”. There is evidence for this. There is evidence for all three (the Quranic verse, the Prophetﷺ ‘s teaching, and the Salawat taught by him). What these people say about such Salawat is their own fabrication.
They want to be different within the Tariqa. To say something that no one else says, a devil under the guise of a Sheikh of a Tariqa, whom they venerate as a great saint, what he records as “our devil” is this. If someone claims that the Prophetﷺﷺ came to him, then that person is a devil. Therefore, it is the invention of the devil.
The correct salawat upon the Prophetﷺ is that which was taught by the Companions and transmitted through authentic narrations. Inventing new forms of salawat and claiming special benefits for them is a deviation. Muslims should avoid such practices and adhere to what is established in the Qur’an and Sunnah.
