Hadith of Law laak - الحديث: لولاك

('If not for you (O Muhammad!) I would not have created creation')

لولاك لولاك ما خلقت الأفلاك - “Law laaka law laaka maa khalaqtal aflaak”. Which book is this hadith in? Is the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) the reason for creation or not? Are there other ahadith that support this narration?

Answer: Indeed the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) is the reason for the creation of Adam ‘alaihis salam and the universe. If the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) was not in existence, then the ‘Arsh and Kursi, Lawh and Qalam, the Skies and the Earth, Heaven and Hell, the trees and stones and all other creatures would not exist.

And while the lafdh in question is not considered an authentic wording from the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam), it is, as Mullah al-Qaari said, "Though al-Saghanee says this is mawdu even so I say its meaning is saheeh (authentic) even if it is not a hadith.” Please read about Ibn Taymiyyah and his discussion of the hadith law laaka in Majma` Fataawa Ibn Taymiyyah.

 There are many ahadith to this effect.

Hadith 1: al-Hakim in his Mustadrak, Baihaqi in Dalail an-Nubuwah, Tabarani in his Kabeer, Abu Na’eem in his  Hilya and ibn Asakir in Tarikh Damishq report from Sayyiduna Ameer al-Mu’mineen 'Umar ibn al-Khattab Farooq al-A’dham (radiyallahu ta'ala anhu) that:

The Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) said: “Allah said: When Adam made the mistake, he asked: O Allah! I ask you for the sake of Muhammad to forgive me. Allah said: O Adam! How do you recognise Muhammad when I have not yet created him? Adam said: O Allah! When you created me and blew into me the spirit, I lifted my head and saw written on the ‘Arsh ‘La ilaaha illallah Muhammadur rasoolullah’. So, I got to know that you would only join your name with him who is most beloved to you. Allah said: O Adam! You have spoken the truth. Indeed Muhammad is more beloved to me than anything and when you asked me for his sake, I pardoned you. If Muhammad was not in existence, I would not have created you” (Also from Imam Subki in Shifa as-Siqam and Shihab in Naseem)

Please read about Ibn Taymiyyah and his discussion of the hadith of Adam's forgiveness in Majma` Fataawa Ibn Taymiyyah.

Hadith 2: Hakim in Mustadrak and Abu as-Shaykh in Tabaqaat al-Isfahani’ in a report from Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas (radiyallahu ta'ala anhuma) that:

“Allah revealed to Prophet ‘Isa ‘alaihis salam that: O ‘Isa! Have faith (imaan) in Muhammad and order your ummah to do the same. If Muhammad was not in existence, I would not have created Adam nor would I have made heaven or hell”. (Also from Shaykh Taqi ad-Din Subki in Shifa as-Siqam and Shaykh al-Islam al-Bulqini in his Fatawa and ibn Hajar in Afdal al-Qur’an).

Hadith 3: Dailami in Musnad al-Firdaus reports from Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas (radiyallahu ta'ala anhuma) that:

“the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) said that Jibra’il came to me and said that Allah says: If you were not created, I would not have made the heaven or hell”.

Hadith 4: ibn Asakir reports from Salman al-Farsi (radiyallahu ta'ala anhu) that:

“Jibra’il came to the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) and said that Allah says: I have not created anyone who is more honoured to me that you. I have created the world and all that is therein so that they may know the rank that you possess. I would not have created the world if I had not created you”.

Hadith 5: Imam Shihab ad-Din ibn Hajar ‘Asqalani says:

“These reports say that if Muhammad (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) were not created then Allah would not have made the skies nor the Earth, neither heaven nor hell, neither the sun nor the moon”.

There are many other ahadith on this subject which have been collected by Imam Ahmad Rida Khan Barelwi in his brilliant ‘Tajalli al-yaqeen baana nabiyyina sayyidil mursaleen’ and it is without doubt that the righteous ‘ulama have addressed the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) as the “Reason for the creation of Adam and the universe”. If the sayings of our ‘ulama are collected, this would cover a voluminous book. A few are noted below.

Hadith 6: see the discussion of the very important hadith of Jaabir.

Excerpt 1: Imam Saif ad-Din Abu Ja’far bin Umar al-Humairi al-Hanafi in his ‘al-Durr al-tanzeem fee mawlid al-nabi al-kareem’ says:

“When Allah made Adam He revealed to Adam to ask Him: O Allah! Why have you made my kuniyah as ‘Abu Muhammad’? Allah said: O Adam! Lift you head. He lifted his head and saw the noor (light) of the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) on the ‘Arsh. Adam asked: O Allah! Whose is this noor? Allah said: It is a Prophet from your progeny. His name is Ahmad in the skies and Muhammad on the Earth. If he were not created, I would not have created you or the skies and the Earth”.

Excerpt 2: Sayyidi Abul Husain Hamdooni Shadhili writes in his Qasida Daaliyah that:

“The dear Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) is the essence of the universe and is the reason for all creation. Had he not have been, then nothing would have come into existence”.

Excerpt 3: Imam Sharaf ad-Din Abu Abdullah Muhammad Busiri writes in his Qasida Burda that:

“If it was not for the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) then the world would not exist”.

Excerpt 4: Imam Shaykh Ibrahim Baijuri writes in the commentary of Imam Busiri’s poem:

“If the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) had remained non-existent, then the universe would not have come to be. Allah said to Adam: If Muhammad had not existed, I would not have created you. Adam is the father of all men and whatever is in the Earth has been created for man. So when Adam was created due to the existence of the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam), then it is obvious that the whole world was created due to him. Hence, the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) is the cause and the reason for all existence.

Excerpt 5: ‘Allama Khalid Azhari, commenting on the Burda, says:

“It is because of the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) that the world was bought from non-existence to existence”.

Excerpt 6: Imam Mulla Ali Qari writes:

“If it were not for the blessing and the generosity of the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam), then the whole world would not have existed and apart from Allah, nothing would exist.

Excerpt 7: ‘Allama Abul Ayash Abdul Ali Lakhnawi writes in his ‘Fawatih al-Rahmoot Sharh Musallam al-Thuboot’ that:

“If the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) were not in existence, then the blessings of Allah would not have blessed the creation”.

Only an ignoramus will argue against the authenticity of the subject matter, that is, that the Prophet of Allah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) is the reason for creation. It is due to him that Allah, the Almighty, created the Universe.

(This answer has been translated by Muhammad Aqdas from Mufti Zafar ad-Din al-Bihari al-Ridawi’s (rahimahullah) collection of fatawa ‘Naafi’il bashar fee fatawa zafar’. It is a question asked by Shaykh Rahim Bakhsh of Rawalpindi received by Mufti Zafar ad-Din on 15th Rajab, 1324 AH. Mufti Zafar ad-Din was one of the foremost students of Imam Ahmad Rida Khan Barelwi (rahimahullah). [source at www.aqdas.co.uk] and slightly modified by ASFA staff [grey text]