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The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Wakfs decided in the face of the controversy between the craftsmen and the opponent of the Mawlid by legitimizing this celebration because it is dedicated to the praises of the Prophet Mohammed (may salvation be on him).
As the Mawlid Ennabaoui approaches, the commemoration of the birth of the Prophet Mohammed the usual controversy did not fail to resurface. Each year, it feeds discussions within society, between those who defend the legitimacy of this celebration and those who, on the contrary, assimilate it to a condemnable religious innovation.
To cut short these recurring debates, the ministry published, within the framework of its doctrinal series entitled “Spring of the Enlightenment”, a text which illuminates the question and recalls the spiritual depth of this commemoration. According to the institution, “the celebration of the Mawlid should not be perceived as an isolated or questionable practice”, but “as a manifestation of love and praise to the Prophet of Islam”.
The ministry explained that to understand the legitimacy of the Mawlid, it is necessary to distinguish between “origin” and “its effects”, specifying that “the origin is the love of the prophet and the recognition of its central place in the Muslim faith”. This attachment, underlined the department, is firmly anchored in the Koran and in the Sunnah.
The effects, on the other hand, are the different forms by which this love can be manifested, like the example of spiritual rallies, religious songs, collective invocations, SIRA recitations, decorations and festivities. “All these expressions do not require specific textual evidence,” said the Department of Religious Affairs.
To better understand its reasoning, the institution has multiplied the examples, citing the veneration of the Holy Quran, which results in gestures as kissing, flavoring it or protecting it by a decorated cover. She explained that nowhere is mentioned, in the texts, these specific practices, but they are unanimously considered as legitimate, because they arise from a universal principle, that of “the sacredness of the divine word”.
Likewise, filial piety has inspired believers of attitudes of great nobility. The children kiss their parents’ hands, watch over their comfort, cover their bodies during their sleep. These gestures were not dictated by a specific text, but they have imposed themselves as natural extensions of the duty of love and respect for parents, a duty inscribed in the very foundations of faith.
However, the ministry warned that any effect that would contradict the origin would immediately lose its legitimacy and fall into the area of the prohibition. In other words, if a form of celebration came to move away from the spirit of respect and veneration of the prophet Mohammed (may salvation be on him), she would cease to be acceptable.
Through this reading, the institution judged that the controversy around the Mawlid is poorly posed. Thus, the question is not whether a text specifically orders the celebration, but to understand that the Mawlid is an effect, an extension of the love of the Prophet. “Now, this love is one of the pillars of faith,” recalled the ministry, while giving the example of the predecessors who had multiplied the forms of devotion and respect, far from being frozen in a single model.
Thus, reducing the love of the prophet Mohammed (may salvation be on him) to a single expression would amount to ignoring the richness of the Muslim tradition. On the contrary, the forms of attachment can be renewed over time and adapt to contexts, provided that they do not betray the foundations of Islam.
The ministry also noted the educational and spiritual dimension of the Mawlid, affirming that this celebration is above all a privileged opportunity to renew the spiritual bond with the Prophet, to recall his life, his message and his mission, and to transmit to the young generations the light of his Sira Ennabaouiya.
Through the recitations, prayers and lessons given in this context, a whole collective memory is reviving. The celebration then becomes a tool for religious pedagogy, a moment when families, mosques and associations are mobilizing to highlight the exemplary dimension of the life of the Prophet Mohammed.