The first thing created by Allah was the light (nùr) of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him). Then He blessed him with Prophet-hood, the process of Durood Sharif began. Angles were created who participated in Durood and Salam. When that nùr (light) became manifest in this world men also became part of this process. If we ponder upon this process we will realise that this too is a stylistic form of proclaiming and establishing a joyful celebration. Allaho Akbar!

The Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) came into this mundane world on Monday. As a mark of gratitude for this day, he used to take fast on every Monday. When asked, he replied, "I was born on this day and the revelation too commenced on Monday". According to some traditions, the date of birth of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) is 12th Rabi-al-Awwal 569 A.D. which is corroborated by proofs dating back almost four thousand years. Hence Monday 12 Rabi-al-Awwal is specially connected to the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) and it is these connections which are a means of attaining moral and spiritual elevation.

"Allah Almighty has shown great favours and grace to the Muslims by sending the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him). Favours are conferred so that they may be remembered, never to forget them. In addition, Allah Almighty has commanded us to celebrate this joyful occasion.

Hazrat Isa (peace be upon him) spoke this to Allah: "Oh our Lord, send us from heaven a table spread with food, that it may be an Eid (feast) for us, for the first of us and for the last of us. Ponder over this: if for the coming down of the "table spread with food" Hazrat Isa can celebrate it as a day of festivity (Eid), should we not then celebrate the day when Almighty Allah sent the very heart and essence of the bounty? The night on which the Holy Qur�an came down can be declared as better than a thousand months then Imagine the greatness and loftiness of the night on which the living Qur�an (the Holy Prophet, Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) came down. If the Night of Reverence (Laylah al-Qadr) can be celebrated annually, then why can not the night on which the pride of creation was born, be celebrated each year! Says Allah Almighty: "Proclaim and publicise the bounty of thy Lord". Imam Bukhari says that the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) is the greatest bounty of Allah Almighty, hence he should become the object of most publicity. The Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) himself spoke about his blessed birth from the pulpit. On his instruction some of his noble companions too described and publicised the Holy Prophet�s (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) most excellent qualities. In the year 9 A.H (630 A.D.) on the occasion of returning from the Battle of Tabuk, Hazrat Abbas (Allah be pleased with him), the uncle of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) offered a poem on the birth of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) in his presence. The Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) himself spread a sheet on a platform on which Hazrat Hassan bin Thabit (Allah be pleased with him) stood and sang an ode in his praise for which the Messenger of Allah (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) blessed him with a special prayer. All these true incidents are recorded in books of traditions (Ahadith).

Whenever Hazrat Malik bin Anas (Allah be pleased with him) would speak about charming words of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him), he would make special preparations for it, just as it is seen nowadays when learned scholars (ulema) and pious sages hold such august gatherings. On the eleventh of each month Hazrat Shaykh Abd al-Qadir Jilani (Allah be pleased with him) would offer gifts in the name of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) and this practice is being perpetuated till today. Ibn Taymiyyah too gives glad tidings to devotees who hold milad gatherings of receiving abundant blessings and rewards.

Milad gatherings are not something new, they have been perpetuated for many centuries. The origin of these gatherings can be traced right to the auspicious period of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him). Hazrat Shah Abd al-Rahim, father of Hazrat Shah Waliyullah Muhaddith Dehlavi (may Allah be pleased with them) would hold milad gatherings annually and on such blessed occasions would prepare and distribute meals to the poor. Even the practice of Shah Waliyullah and his learned son, Shah Abd al-Aziz Muhaddith Dehlavi (may Allah be pleased with them) on every 12th of Rabi-al-Awwal used to invite the people to their Milad gatherings in which they would speak about the auspicious events of the Holy Prophet�s (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) birth and would terminate them by distributing foods and sweetmeats. Once Hazrat Shah Waliyullah (may Allah be pleased with him) attended a Milad gathering in Makkah al-Mukarramah in which he saw manifestations of light pouring like a cascade. Haji Imdadullah Muhajir Makki (may Allay be pleased with him) the mentor (murshid) of Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, would hold Milad gatherings each year as a means of obtaining salvation and would recite salat and salam in a standing position. On the 12th Rabi-al-Awwal of each year the grand Mufti, Shah Muhammad Mazharullah Dehlavi (may Allah be please with him) would hold Milad gatherings in great splendour which continue from Isha prayer right until Fajr prayer. Salat-o-Salam would be recited in a standing position after which food and sweetmeats would be distributed. Some selected Angles are at all times reciting salat and salam in a standing position which means that this is the practice of the angles. In Madinah at the funeral bed of Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) the angles, men and women, even the children offered Salat-o-Salam in groups for hours in an standing position. Seven hundred years ago, the celebrated scholar Imam Taqiyuddin Subki (may Allah be please with him) was in the gathering of the learned ulema in which the Hassan of that time, Imam Sarsari�s verse (fervently urging the audience to stand at the time of the Holy Prophet�s (peace be upon him) august remembrance) was being recited. On hearing the verse all the ulema stood in reverence. In the light of these facts reciting salat and salam is the practice of pious angles, companions of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) and sages of the Muslim ummah. Hazrat Shaykh Abd al-Haq Muhaddith Dehlavi (may Allah be pleased with him) would recite salat and salam in a standing position and would regard it as a means of acceptance of his deeds and prayers.

The Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) said. "Anything which is regarded as good by Muslims is regarded likewise by Allah". Furthermore, the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) also stated: "Whosoever introduces a good practice in Islam shall not only receive reward for it, but the reward of those who act upon it. He also commanded that at all times remain under the banner of the Sawad-i-Azam which is the majority. Therefore organizing and celebrating the blessed birth of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) is the practice of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him), the noble companions, the tabi�in, the followers of the tabi�in and the pious sages as proved from their actions.

It is an inherent quality of love that a lover feels tremendous joy on hearing the praise of his beloved. Nay, but his heart yearns that his beloved should be praised and remembered at all times. One will never see a lover who will take offense at a person for remembering his beloved. This is against the nature of love. The truth of the matter is, genuine celebration lies in acting upon the sunnah of our Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) in every fields of our lives, at all times. Then each year express boundless joy at the auspicious birth of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) in accordance with the practice of our illustrious predecessors who had championed the cause of Islam. Hazrat Shah Abd al-Ghani Muhaddith Dehlavi, the teacher of Rashid Ahmad Gangohi rightly said; "In celebrating the birth of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) lies the complete felicity of a man".

May Allah Almighty bless us with the love of the Holy Prophet (Allah�s Grace and Peace be upon him) which would automatically mould us in the frame of sunnah so that we could become the beacon light for others. Amin!