Is it permissible for us to gather on New Year's Eve to remember Allah, offer supplication (du‘aa’) and read Qur'aan?

Is it permissible for us to gather on New Year's Eve to remember Allah, offer supplication (du‘aa’) and read Qur'aan?

This is a message that I have seen a lot on the Internet, but in fact I have not sent it to anyone because I am not sure if it is an innovation (bid‘ah) or not. Is it permissible to spread it and will we be rewarded for doing so, or is this not permissible because it is an innovation? 


“In sha’ Allah, at 12 midnight on New Year's Eve we will all pray two rak‘ahs, or read Qur'aan, or remember our Lord, or offer du‘aa’, because if our Lord looks at the Earth at a time when most of the world is disobeying Him, he will find that the Muslims are still obeying Him. By Allah, you have to send this message to everyone you know, because the more our numbers increase, the more our Lord will be pleased.” 


Please advise me, may Allah bless you.

 

Praise be to Allaah.

You have
done very well not to spread this message which is widespread on many
websites on which uneducated attitudes and ignorance prevail. 

With regard to
those who published this message and want the Muslims to pray and recite
dhikr, we do not doubt that their intentions are good and great, especially
if they want acts of obedience and worship to be done at a time when sins
are being committed. But this good and righteous intention does not make the
actions legitimate, sound or acceptable in sharee‘ah. Rather it is essential
that the action be in accordance with sharee‘ah in terms of its reason,
type, quantity, manner, time and place. For a detailed discussion on these
six categories,
Muslim may distinguish between legitimate and innovated actions. 

We may list
the reasons why this message should not be spread by noting a number of
points, including the following: 

1.

There have
been Jaahili special occasions and special occasions of the disbelievers and
misguided since the time of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) until the present time, but we have not seen any text from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) which encourages us to do
acts of worship and obedience at the time when others are committing acts of
evil and disobedience, or to do prescribed actions at the time when
innovated actions are being done. There is no report of any of the
well-known imams recommending doing such a thing. 

This comes
under the heading of dealing with sin by means of innovation, as happened in
the case of responding to the innovation of mourning on the occasion of ‘Ashoora’,
as done by the Raafidis, by introducing the innovation of spending a great
deal and making a show of joy and happiness. 

Shaykh
al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

As for taking
the days of calamities as occasions for mourning, this is not part of the
religion of the Muslims; rather it is closer to the religion of Jaahiliyyah.
Thus they missed out on the virtue and reward of fasting on this day. Some
other people introduced things on the basis of fabricated hadeeths for which
there is no basis, such as the virtue of doing ghusl on this day, or
applying kohl to the eyes, or shaking hands. These and similar things are
innovations, all of which are makrooh. What is recommended is to fast on
this day. 

There are also
well known reports about spending generously on one's family on this day,
such as the hadeeth of Ibraaheem ibn Muhammad ibn al-Muntashir from his
father, who said: We heard that the one who spends generously on his family
on the day of ‘Ashoora’, Allah will give him in abundance for the rest of
the year. This was narrated by Ibn ‘Uyaynah, but the fact that he said ‘we
heard that…’ and it is not known who said it indicates that the isnaad is
munqati’ (interrupted). It is most likely that this was fabricated because
of the hatred that appeared between the Naasibis and Raafidis. The Raafidis
regarded the day of ‘Ashoora’ as a day of mourning, so the Naasibis
fabricated reports about it which indicated that one should spend generously
on this day and take it as an Eid. Both views are false.

 It is not
permissible for anyone to change anything in Islam for the sake of anyone.
Expressing joy and happiness on the day of ‘Ashoora’ and spending generously
on this day are all innovations that were introduced as a reaction against
the Raafidis. 

Iqtida’ al-Siraat
al-Mustaqeem,
p. 300, 301 

We have quoted

2.

There are
special times for offering du’aa’ and prayers as prescribed in Islam. The
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) encouraged us to offer
du’aa’ at these times, such as the last third of the night, which is the
time when the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, descends to the nearest
heaven. Encouraging people to do that at a time when no saheeh text has been
narrated concerning it is introducing legislation concerning the reason or
the time, and going against sharee’ah with regard to either of them is
sufficient to deem the action to be a reprehensible innovation, so how about
if it has to do with both of them?! 

In the answer
to question number 8375, we
were asked about giving charity to poor families at the time of the
Gregorian New Year, and we replied that it is not allowed. Among the things
that we said there was the following:

If we Muslims
want to give in charity, we can give to those who really deserve it, and we
should not aim to do that specifically on the days of the kaafirs’
festivals. We should do that whenever there is a need, and make the most of
good and great occasions such as the month of Ramadaan and the first ten
days of Dhu’l-Hijjah, and other virtuous occasions when rewards are
multiplied. End quote. 

The basic
principle for a Muslim is to follow (the Sunnah) and not introduce
innovations. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say (O
Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم to mankind):
‘If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic
Monotheism, follow the Qur’aan and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you and
forgive you your sins. And Allaah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’

32. Say (O
Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم): ‘Obey
Allaah and the Messenger (Muhammad صلى الله
عليه وسلم).” But if they turn away, then Allaah does not like the
disbelievers’”

[Aal
‘Imraan 3:21, 32]. 

Ibn Katheer
(may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

This verse
states that everyone who claims to love Allah but is not following the path
of Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is lying in his claim
unless he follows the path or religion of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) in all his words and deeds, as it is proven in
al-Saheeh that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) said: “Whoever introduces an action that is not part of this
matter of ours will have it rejected.”

Tafseer Ibn
Katheer,
2/32 

Shaykh
Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

You should
love the Messenger more than you love yourselves, and your faith is not
complete unless you do that. Do not introduce into his religion anything
that is not part of it. What the seekers of knowledge should do is explain
to the people and tell them: Occupy yourselves with legitimate and sound
acts of worship; remember Allah; send blessings upon the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) at all times; establish regular prayer; pay
zakaah; and be kind towards the Muslims at all times. 

Liqaa’aat
al-Baab al-Maftooh,
35/5 

3.

You are
forgetting to do what you are obliged to do with regard to these sins and
evils, which is enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, offering
sincere advice to those who are going against Islam, and focusing on
individual acts of worship when there are other communal acts of
disobedience and evil which you should not do. 

What we think
is that it is haraam to spread such messages and that it is an innovation to
adhere to these acts of worship on such occasions. It is sufficient for you
to warn against haraam celebrations on occasions of shirk and innovation.
You will be rewarded for that and you will be doing your duty with regard to
these sins. 

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