Juloos-e-Mohammadi Has Taken the Form of a Sectarian Event, Promoted by Sectarian Clerics

By New Age Islam Staff Writer

18 September 2023

Barelvi Sect Has Been Promoting Juloos-e-Mohammadi and The Deobandi and Ahl-e-Hadith Sects Consider It as Bidat

Main Points:

1.    Prophet's birthday has become a major festival of Muslims.

2.    It was started by Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind in Kanpur before Independence

3.    It wa participated by both Hindu and Muslim leaders including Gandhiji.

4.    Juloos-e-Mohammadi was revived by sectarian clerics.

5.    Participation in the Juloos is considered as a show of love of the prophet.

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The prophet's birthday on 12th day of the Islamic month of Rabiul Awwal has recently turned into a major Islamic festival in the Indian sub-continent. In India, the birthday of the prophet of Islam was observed as Barawafat and it was a low-key affair until the 80s. Late Rajiv Gandhi's government declared the prophet's birthday a holiday. Since then, it gained prominence. But the tradition of taking out Juloos-e-Mohammadi was started only 20 years ago. Now Juloos-e-Mohammadi is the main event marking the prophet's birthday. Without it, the occasion is considered incomplete.

The preparation of the Juloos starts with the sighting of the moon of Rabiul Awwal. The Barelvi sect has been promoting the event and the Deobandi and Ahl-e-Hadith sects consider it as Bidat (innovation in faith). For the Barelvi sect, participation in the Juloos is a demonstration of the love of the prophet while the Deobandis and Ahl-e- Hadith say that the love of prophet can be demonstrated by following his path (sunnah) and not by merely participating in a procession taken out in his name. Nowadays, the clerics supporting the Juloos-e-Mohammadi have, adopted an aggressive stand. According to them, those who do not participate in the Juloos do not have love for the prophet pbuh in their heart. The Juloos-e-Mohammadi has become a ploy to draw more and more Muslims into their fold. Hence, they deliver lectures before Friday prayers stressing the significance of the day and the rewards of participating in the Juloos. Those opposing the tradition as Bidah are labelled as lacking the love of the prophet pbuh. This kind of sectarian campaigns vitiate the atmosphere. The Barelvi sect tries to creates the impression that the tradition of Juloos-e-Mohammadi has been started by them because they love the prophet more than other sects. But the truth is that the Juloos-e-Mohammadi was started by Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind before Independence in Kanpur. It was a procession against the British government's ban on holding rallies in the army cantonment Maidan. Since the day of the procession was coincidentally the 12th Rabiul Awwal, the Jamiat named the procession Juloos-Mohammadi. However, it was not a religious procession but a procession to defy the ban. Therefore, the profession was participated by both Hindu and Muslim leaders including Gandhiji.

After the Independence, the Juloos was revived and it took the form of religious procession. But the Jamiat distanced it because the pre-independence procession was political in nature while post-independent procession was religious and since observing the prophet's birthday by taking out a procession had no precedence in Islam, the Jamiat distanced from it. However, the Barelvi sect adopted it and made it a major religious event to show their respect to the prophet pbuh.

In West Bengal, the procession was first taken out in the Muslim majority district of Matiabruz adjacent to Kolkata around twelve years ago. Since then, the tradition of taking out Juloos-e-Mohammadi has spread to other towns of the state. Streets are decorated and big banners greeting the coming of the prophet are put up on the streets. Naats are played in full sound on loudspeakers the whole day for ten days. Currently, the cassettes of Naats have provocative slogans against those who oppose Juloos-e-Mohammadi between the Naats They are called Gustakh. Therefore, a festival to commemorate or observe the prophet of Islam has turned into a sectarian event.

On Friday, a Muslim leader of TMC from Rishra in Hooghly district of West Bengal, Shakir Ali protested against this sectarian campaign and distributed pamphlets among the Muslims asking them not to indulge in sectarian mudslinging in the name of the prophet because the prophet pbuh belonged to all the Muslims not to a particular sect. He also lashed out at the so-called ulema who promote sectarian differences and hatred of one another. He aid that loudspeakers were misused to vitiate the atmosphere.

The tradition of Juloos-e-Mohammadi evoked a negative reaction among the Hindus. They saw it as a show of strength by the Muslims and they started Shobha Yatras in addition to Ramanavami akharas in different towns of West Bengal. Gradually, Shobha yatras spread to more and more towns and managing and controlling these yatras became a challenge for the administration. Since, Juloos-e-Mohammadi was also taken out in other states, Shobha yatras were also started in other states. These religious processions became law and order problems in many towns in Madhya Pradesh, New Delhi, Haryana, West Bengal and Maharashtra. Participants in these Shobha Yatras carry weapons and shout provocative slogans against other communities.

These religious processions have been increasing in number. The Bajrang Dal has announced that it will take out Shobha yatras before Durga Puja in the entire West Bengal in four phases. It will definitely cause communal tensions in West Bengal on the eve of Durga Puja which till now is observed peacefully.

The Muslim clerics have promoted Juloos-e-Mohammadi because on that day they lead the Juloos. They feel elated to see lakhs of Muslims walking behind them. Therefore, to enjoy one day of leadership, they have promoted a tradition that has proved counterproductive for the whole community. Islam has always discouraged pomp and show. The Muslims have adopted the path that is discouraged by the Quran and Hadith and have suffered. Still they do not learn a lesson and continue to indulge in false show of strength in the name of Juloos-e-Mohammadi.

 

URL:    https://newageislam.com/islamic-society/juloos-mohammadi-sectarian-clerics/d/130702

 

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