used to go to the Eid prayer viaone route and come back via a
different route. Whatis the reason for that?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Al-Bukhaari (986) narrated that Jaabir ibn 'Abd-Allaah (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said:On the day of Eid, the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) would vary his route, i.e., he would
go viaone route and come back via a different route.
The believer is required tofollow the example of theProphet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) even if he doesnot know the reason
why the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did
something.Allaah says (interpretationof the meaning):
"Indeed in the Messenger of Allaah (Muhammad) you have a good
exampleto follow for him who hopes for (the Meeting with) Allaah and
the Last Day, and remembers Allaah much"
[al-Ahzaab 33:21]
Ibn Katheer said (3/756): This verse points to an important principle,
namely following the example of the Messengerof Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) in word and deed.
The scholars differed greatly as to the reason for this (i.e.,
returning via a different route).
Al-Haafiz said:
The scholars differed greatly as to the reason for this. I have
collected more than twenty different opinions, which Ihave summed up
and highlighted those that areweak. Al-Qaadi 'Abd al-Wahhaab
al-Maaliki said: Several opinions have been mentioned concerning that,
some of which are likely to be correct but most of which are
far-fetched.
For example:
1- He did that so that the two routes would bear witness for him,
or it was said: so that their inhabitants, jinns and humans, would
bear witness for him
2- It was said that it was so as to make them equal because they
are blessed by his passing through.
3- It was said that his route to the prayer-place was to his
right, and if he came back the same way he would be coming to the
left, so he went back by a different route. This requires evidence.
4- It was said that it was to make manifest thesymbols of Islam on
both routes, or to make manifest the remembrance of Allaah.
5- It was said that it was to annoy the hypocrites or the Jews, or
to alarm them by showing the large number of those who were with him.
Ibn Battaal thought this was most likely to be correct.
6- It was said that it was a precaution against the plots of the
two groups, or one of them. This needs verification.
7- It was said that he did that in order to make more people happy
or bring blessing to them by his passing through or by their seeing
him, and so that he might attend to their needs, answer their
questions, teach them, give them charity, greet them with salaam, etc
8- It was said that it was in order to visit his relatives and
uphold the ties of kinship.
9- It was said that it was in order to have a change of scene.
10-It was said that that when he went he gave charity and when he
cameback he had nothing left, so he came back via a different route so
that he would not have to refuse anyone who asked of him.This is a
very weak view as well as one that requires proof.
11-It was said that that route by which he went was longer than the
routeby which he came back, and he wanted to increase his reward by
taking more steps to get there, but on the way back he was hastening
to go home. This is the view favoured by al-Raafi'i, but he stated
that it requires evidence and that the reward for taking steps also
applies to the way back, as was proven in thehadeeth of Ubayy ibn
Ka'bwhich was narrated by al-Tirmidhi and others.
12-It was said that the angels stand on the roads and he wanted two
groups of angels to bear witness for him.
Ibn al-Qayyim mentioned some of these reasons in Zaad al-Ma'aad
(1/449), then he said:
The most correct view is that he did this for these and other reasons.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen said: If it is said, what is the reason for
coming back by a different route?
The answer is: to follow the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him).
"It is not for a believer, man or woman, when Allaah and His Messenger
have decreed a matter that they should have anyoption in their
decision. And whoever disobeys Allaah and His Messenger, he has indeed
strayed into a plain error"
[al-Ahzaab 33:36 – interpretation of the meaning]
This is the reason… Then he mentioned some of the reasons quoted
abovefrom al-Haafiz.
Majmoo' Fataawa Ibn 'Uthaymeen,
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