Denunciation of the movie "Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah"
All praise be to Allah Alone, and peace and blessings be upon the Noblest of the Messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions.
I have read the article published by Kuwaiti Al-Mujtam` magazine, issue no. 162, on 6 Rajab, 1393 under the title "Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah." The article states that the contract of establishing the Arab Film Company for Production and Distribution had been signed in the past days by representatives of governments of Libya, Kuwait, Morocco and Bahrain. This company signed a contract with director Mustafa `Aqqad to produce a movie about the Prophet (peace be upon him), his life, and his teachings in cinemascope and colors. The length of the film is about three hours and it will be presented in twenty international languages, including Arabic.
The story of the film was approved by Al-Azhar and the Supreme Islamic Shiite Council, and written by Tawfiq Al-Hakim, `Abdul-Hamid Judah Al-Sahhar and `Abdul-Rahman Al-Sharqawy. We believe that this matter is unacceptable and dangerous. It entails great harm and belittles the Prophet (peace be upon him). This also exposes his noble character to ridicule and mockery. Therefore, I wanted to take part in condemning this evil and request the four countries, which agreed to produce this film, to stop doing that out of venerating and respecting the Prophet (peace be upon him) as well as keeping his noble character away from disparagement, belittlement, and mockery.
Clearly, it is better for a man to return to truth than persist in falsehood, and this issue was submitted to the Constitutional Council of the Muslim World League in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and concluded that it is prohibited to produce a film about the Prophet (peace be upon him) or personalize the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them).
This was stated in the sixth clause of the decision taken in the 13th session held on 1-13 Sha`ban, 1391 A.H. The clause reads:
1- The Constitutional Council unanimously agrees on the prohibition of producing the film "Muhammad, Messenger of Allah." In doing so, they will personalize the Prophet (peace be upon him) in order to present him, his location, movements and all affairs of his life in details as well as portray some of the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them) in several situations. All these things are prohibited according to Ijma` (consensus of scholars).
2- The Council recommends that the general secretariat of the Muslim World League convey this resolution to all Muslim countries and organizations, religious associations in the Arab and Muslim countries, ministries of information, administration of Al-Azhar, Islamic Research Academy affiliated to Al-Azhar, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in Cairo, the press and the media in the Muslim world.
3- The Council recommends the general secretariat of the Muslim World league to convey this resolution to the director of the film in response to his last request to show the film, and to warn him that the general secretariat of the Muslim World League will take legal actions against whoever tries to violate the sanctity of the Prophet (peace be upon him) or the sanctity of his honorable Companions in any part of the world.
4- The Council recommends the general secretariat of the Muslim World League to release a statement on the prohibition of producing a film about the Prophet (peace be upon him) or his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). The statement should include what the general secretariat of the Muslim World League undertook in this regard, the decisions taken by the Constitutional Council of the League and the rest of Islamic organizations and the relevant decisions and Fatwas issued by the Muslim countries in general. All these should be published and circulated to educate, enlighten, and warn people in the Muslim countries against doing this.
5- The Council applauds the general secretariat of the Muslim World League for the successful efforts they made in this serious issue.
The Council of Senior Scholars in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia concluded that it is not permissible to play the roles of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) or the Prophet (peace be upon him) a fortiori, in plays or movies. This was declared in its resolution no. 13, dated 16 Rabi` Awwal, 1393, which reads:
All praise be to Allah Alone, and peace and blessings be upon the Noblest of the messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, his family, Companions, Tabi`un (Followers, the generation after the Companions of the Prophet) and those who followed them in piety and righteousness until the Day of Resurrection.
The Council of Senior Scholars in the 3rd session held on 1-17 Rabi` Thany, 1393 read the letter no 44/93, dated 1 Muharram, 1393 and submitted by His Royal Highness to the general president of administrations of Scholarly Research and Ifta', Da`wah and Guidance. The letter reads:
We send you a letter we received from Talal ibn Shaykh Mahmud Al-Binny Al-Makky, manager of Beirut-based Luna Film Company, which is going to produce a film about the life of Bilal, Mu'adhin (caller to Prayer) of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). We wish you would raise the issue to the Senior Scholars after reading it to express their opinions on it and inform us of the response. After the Council read the letter of His Royal Highness and what the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta' prepared for discussing the issue, it concluded:
1- Allah (Glorified be He) has praised and set clear the high status of the Sahabah. Therefore, personalizing any of them on stage or on the screen is contrary to this Divine praise and is detrimental to the high status and honor which Allah has bestowed upon them.
2- Personalizing any of them in this way exposes them to mockery and ridicule. Actors are usually people who have no room for righteousness, piety, or Islamic morals in their lives.
Moreover, those involved in this industry aim to earn money. Regardless of attempts of reservations, they will involve some lying and backbiting. Representing the Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) has an effect on their status in the hearts and minds of the Muslims, and paves the way for Muslims to doubt their religion and dispute over the personalities of the Sahabah. It also necessarily implies that one of the actors will play the role of Abu Jahl and other disbelievers. In this case, he will have to utter words insulting Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him), the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the message of Islam that he brought. Undoubtedly, this is a great evil. This act may be targeted to confuse the Muslims about their creed, the Book of Allah and Sunnah of their Prophet (peace be upon him).
3- If it is claimed that this serves the interest of calling people to Islam and spreading noble Islamic morals and etiquettes through showing exact biographies of those Sahabah, it is simply an assumption and wishful thinking. Whoever knows the real nature and aims of the actors will realize that this kind of acting is in sharp contrast to the real nature of the movie stars and their lives, and behaviors.
4- It is basically stated in the principles of Shari`ah (Islamic law) that if a certain matter is absolutely or considerably harmful, it is forbidden. Personalizing the Sahabah may serve some interests but the harm done by this is far greater than any good that might be achieved. Accordingly, to protect those interests and ward off harm, and to preserve the honorable status of the Sahabah of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him), we must not allow it. The Council noticed what Talal said that Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his rightly-guided caliphs are greatly above being represented in characters in this film. This assures that the actors' bold initiative to portray Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) and other Companions emanates from the false belief that Bilal and such Companions are of low status and not of the same level of superiority of the four rightly-guided caliphs. According to the actors, they do not have such a great asset or prestige that disallows portraying and exposing them to mockery and ridicule. This is totally incorrect. Every Companion has his own great virtue, and all of them enjoy the virtue of being Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) though their status varies in the sight of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He). However, the virtue of being the Prophet's Companions that they all share is sufficient to prevent ridiculing them. May Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions.
Therefore, I severely condemn the production of that film due to the previous reasons and the potential ridicule of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). Also, the production of such a film make the biography and actions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) subject to manipulation by the actors and cinema traders to make money. Such mockery and ridicule befalling the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) and hurting Muslim's emotions make me repeat my vehement denunciation of producing such a film.
I also ask all Muslims in the world to denounce it. I hope all Muslim governments and officials will do their best to prevent the production of this film and to highlight the biographies of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) in the ways the Muslims used to adopt from the time of the Prophet until now. This will be effective and good enough instead of producing a film.
I ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) to guide all Muslims and their governments to what leads to their goodness in this worldly life and in the Hereafter. I ask Him to guide them to do what pays the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) their proper veneration approved by the Shari`ah and avoid all that leads to belittling or mocking them. Indeed, Allah is Most Generous. May Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon His servant and Messenger, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and Companions.
Shaykh 'Abdul-'Azeez bin 'Abdullah bin Baaz
Source: www.alifta.net – Fatwas of Ibn Baz, Volume 1.
I have read the article published by Kuwaiti Al-Mujtam` magazine, issue no. 162, on 6 Rajab, 1393 under the title "Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah." The article states that the contract of establishing the Arab Film Company for Production and Distribution had been signed in the past days by representatives of governments of Libya, Kuwait, Morocco and Bahrain. This company signed a contract with director Mustafa `Aqqad to produce a movie about the Prophet (peace be upon him), his life, and his teachings in cinemascope and colors. The length of the film is about three hours and it will be presented in twenty international languages, including Arabic.
The story of the film was approved by Al-Azhar and the Supreme Islamic Shiite Council, and written by Tawfiq Al-Hakim, `Abdul-Hamid Judah Al-Sahhar and `Abdul-Rahman Al-Sharqawy. We believe that this matter is unacceptable and dangerous. It entails great harm and belittles the Prophet (peace be upon him). This also exposes his noble character to ridicule and mockery. Therefore, I wanted to take part in condemning this evil and request the four countries, which agreed to produce this film, to stop doing that out of venerating and respecting the Prophet (peace be upon him) as well as keeping his noble character away from disparagement, belittlement, and mockery.
Clearly, it is better for a man to return to truth than persist in falsehood, and this issue was submitted to the Constitutional Council of the Muslim World League in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and concluded that it is prohibited to produce a film about the Prophet (peace be upon him) or personalize the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them).
This was stated in the sixth clause of the decision taken in the 13th session held on 1-13 Sha`ban, 1391 A.H. The clause reads:
1- The Constitutional Council unanimously agrees on the prohibition of producing the film "Muhammad, Messenger of Allah." In doing so, they will personalize the Prophet (peace be upon him) in order to present him, his location, movements and all affairs of his life in details as well as portray some of the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them) in several situations. All these things are prohibited according to Ijma` (consensus of scholars).
2- The Council recommends that the general secretariat of the Muslim World League convey this resolution to all Muslim countries and organizations, religious associations in the Arab and Muslim countries, ministries of information, administration of Al-Azhar, Islamic Research Academy affiliated to Al-Azhar, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in Cairo, the press and the media in the Muslim world.
3- The Council recommends the general secretariat of the Muslim World league to convey this resolution to the director of the film in response to his last request to show the film, and to warn him that the general secretariat of the Muslim World League will take legal actions against whoever tries to violate the sanctity of the Prophet (peace be upon him) or the sanctity of his honorable Companions in any part of the world.
4- The Council recommends the general secretariat of the Muslim World League to release a statement on the prohibition of producing a film about the Prophet (peace be upon him) or his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). The statement should include what the general secretariat of the Muslim World League undertook in this regard, the decisions taken by the Constitutional Council of the League and the rest of Islamic organizations and the relevant decisions and Fatwas issued by the Muslim countries in general. All these should be published and circulated to educate, enlighten, and warn people in the Muslim countries against doing this.
5- The Council applauds the general secretariat of the Muslim World League for the successful efforts they made in this serious issue.
The Council of Senior Scholars in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia concluded that it is not permissible to play the roles of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) or the Prophet (peace be upon him) a fortiori, in plays or movies. This was declared in its resolution no. 13, dated 16 Rabi` Awwal, 1393, which reads:
All praise be to Allah Alone, and peace and blessings be upon the Noblest of the messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, his family, Companions, Tabi`un (Followers, the generation after the Companions of the Prophet) and those who followed them in piety and righteousness until the Day of Resurrection.
The Council of Senior Scholars in the 3rd session held on 1-17 Rabi` Thany, 1393 read the letter no 44/93, dated 1 Muharram, 1393 and submitted by His Royal Highness to the general president of administrations of Scholarly Research and Ifta', Da`wah and Guidance. The letter reads:
We send you a letter we received from Talal ibn Shaykh Mahmud Al-Binny Al-Makky, manager of Beirut-based Luna Film Company, which is going to produce a film about the life of Bilal, Mu'adhin (caller to Prayer) of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). We wish you would raise the issue to the Senior Scholars after reading it to express their opinions on it and inform us of the response. After the Council read the letter of His Royal Highness and what the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta' prepared for discussing the issue, it concluded:
1- Allah (Glorified be He) has praised and set clear the high status of the Sahabah. Therefore, personalizing any of them on stage or on the screen is contrary to this Divine praise and is detrimental to the high status and honor which Allah has bestowed upon them.
2- Personalizing any of them in this way exposes them to mockery and ridicule. Actors are usually people who have no room for righteousness, piety, or Islamic morals in their lives.
Moreover, those involved in this industry aim to earn money. Regardless of attempts of reservations, they will involve some lying and backbiting. Representing the Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) has an effect on their status in the hearts and minds of the Muslims, and paves the way for Muslims to doubt their religion and dispute over the personalities of the Sahabah. It also necessarily implies that one of the actors will play the role of Abu Jahl and other disbelievers. In this case, he will have to utter words insulting Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him), the Messenger (peace be upon him) and the message of Islam that he brought. Undoubtedly, this is a great evil. This act may be targeted to confuse the Muslims about their creed, the Book of Allah and Sunnah of their Prophet (peace be upon him).
3- If it is claimed that this serves the interest of calling people to Islam and spreading noble Islamic morals and etiquettes through showing exact biographies of those Sahabah, it is simply an assumption and wishful thinking. Whoever knows the real nature and aims of the actors will realize that this kind of acting is in sharp contrast to the real nature of the movie stars and their lives, and behaviors.
4- It is basically stated in the principles of Shari`ah (Islamic law) that if a certain matter is absolutely or considerably harmful, it is forbidden. Personalizing the Sahabah may serve some interests but the harm done by this is far greater than any good that might be achieved. Accordingly, to protect those interests and ward off harm, and to preserve the honorable status of the Sahabah of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him), we must not allow it. The Council noticed what Talal said that Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his rightly-guided caliphs are greatly above being represented in characters in this film. This assures that the actors' bold initiative to portray Bilal (may Allah be pleased with him) and other Companions emanates from the false belief that Bilal and such Companions are of low status and not of the same level of superiority of the four rightly-guided caliphs. According to the actors, they do not have such a great asset or prestige that disallows portraying and exposing them to mockery and ridicule. This is totally incorrect. Every Companion has his own great virtue, and all of them enjoy the virtue of being Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) though their status varies in the sight of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He). However, the virtue of being the Prophet's Companions that they all share is sufficient to prevent ridiculing them. May Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions.
Therefore, I severely condemn the production of that film due to the previous reasons and the potential ridicule of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). Also, the production of such a film make the biography and actions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) subject to manipulation by the actors and cinema traders to make money. Such mockery and ridicule befalling the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) and hurting Muslim's emotions make me repeat my vehement denunciation of producing such a film.
I also ask all Muslims in the world to denounce it. I hope all Muslim governments and officials will do their best to prevent the production of this film and to highlight the biographies of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) in the ways the Muslims used to adopt from the time of the Prophet until now. This will be effective and good enough instead of producing a film.
I ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) to guide all Muslims and their governments to what leads to their goodness in this worldly life and in the Hereafter. I ask Him to guide them to do what pays the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) their proper veneration approved by the Shari`ah and avoid all that leads to belittling or mocking them. Indeed, Allah is Most Generous. May Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon His servant and Messenger, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and Companions.
Shaykh 'Abdul-'Azeez bin 'Abdullah bin Baaz
Source: www.alifta.net – Fatwas of Ibn Baz, Volume 1.