The Prophet's Birth Anniversary and how to Celebrate it

Introduction:


Dear listeners, I would like to welcome you to this live and good interview insha' Allah. Our guest is His Eminence Dr. Muhammad Rateb An-Nabulsi. On your behalf and mine I would like to extend sincere thanks to His Eminence. Welcome Sheikh and jazak Allahu khairan (may Allah reward you). I ask Allah to raise your rank, He is the Guarantor of all good things.
Dr. Rateb:
 May Allah bless you all and may He make this radio station an Islamic platform. I hope that all those who contribute in establishing and listening to it are greatly rewarded.
 The interviewer:
 Dear listeners, we are blessed these days as the birth anniversary of the Master of all human race, may Allah send His peace and blessings on him, his Family and Companions is coming soon. Thus, we would like to know how we celebrate the birth anniversary of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Today insha' Allah we are listening to His Eminence while he is telling us about the Prophetic Sirah (biography) and the correct understanding of celebrating the birth anniversary of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and how we should remember this event. Welcome to our program.
Talking about the Prophet is part of teaching religion:

Dr. Rateb:
 I welcome you all and jazaka Allahu khairan.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our Master Muhammad, peace be upon him, his good and purified Folks and his Companions, the trustees of his message and the leaders of his army, and be pleased with us and them, O Lord of the Worlds. O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and knowledge, and from the muddy shallows of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.
 The delicate and basic controversial issue among Muslim groups is the ruling on celebrating the birth anniversary of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Actually, there are people who think that celebrating this anniversary is bid'ah (innovation), while other people think that is it essential in Islam, but the truth is in between. Let me mention some Ayat about this point. Allah the Exalted says:
(And all that We relate to you (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) of the news of the Messengers is in order that We may make strong and firm your heart thereby)

[Hud: 120]

Since the heart of the Master of all creations, peace be upon him, and the beloved to Al-Haq (Allah) used to be strong and firm whenever he was informed about the news of a Prophet, peace be upon him, then it is even better for us to fill our heart with faith upon listening to the stories of the Prophets and Messengers, peace be upon them. This Noble Ayah urges us to get to know the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Here is another Ayah:
(Or is it that they did not recognize their Messenger (Muhammad, peace be upon him) so they deny him?)

[Al-Mu'minun: 69]

As if Allah the Exalted urges us to recognize his Messenger. Here is a third Ayah:
(Say (to them O Muhammad, peace be upon him): "I exhort you on one (thing) only: that you stand up for Allah's sake in pairs and singly, and reflect (within yourselves the life history of the Prophet, peace be upon him): there is no madness in your companion (Muhammad, peace be upon him).)

[Saba': 46]

Pay attention to Shahadah "There is no deity worth of worship but Allah Alone and Mohammad is his Messenger". It seems that the second part of the declaration of Islam is to know the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Hence, talking about the noble qualities, the morals, the Sirah, the miracles, the compassion and the justice of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and informing people that he used to be a good husband, a fair ruler and a compassionate father are part of the da'wah to Allah, and part of introducing this great religion to people.
The ruling on celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet PBUH:

The debatable issue is claiming that celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is ibadah (a ritual act of worship). Regarding ibadat (the plural of ibadah), they are based on prohibition, and no ibadah is prescribed unless it is proven to be ibadah by daleel qat'i (definitive proof that is proven in the Noble Quran or Sunnah). All things (deeds, actions and behavior) other than ibadat are originally based on permission, and they cannot be considered haram unless by giving daleel. Thus, nothing can be considered haram unless it is proven (in the Quran or Sunnah) to be so, and no ibadah is prescribed unless it is proven to be ibadah (in the Quran or Sunnah). This means that none on earth whether I, you or any Islamic sect, organization, trend, group or party can innovate ibadah.
Considering the celebration of the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, ibadah is bid'ah. However, understanding that celebrating the birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in order to make people know Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, is part of da'wah is not bid'ah. You can make people know the good morals, the noble qualities, the characteristics, the mercy, the justice, the humbleness of the Prophet, peace be upon him, the way he got married, his policy while dealing with others and the way he used to treat his neighbors and those around him. Doing this is part of da'wah to Allah, provided that you do not consider it ibadah, and that you do that throughout the whole year and not exclusively on the 12th of Rabi' Al-awwal. Informing people about the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is part of teaching them Islam, because we say there is no deity worth of worship but Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger.
This is the first fact about celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him. We can meet in a Al-Masjid or at our homes, why not, and you can invite your closest true friends to spend the evening at your home and invite an honorable scholar who is known for his righteousness and Islamic knowledge in order to make the main point of this good meeting discussing the noble qualities, the good morals, the compassion, the da'wah and the miracles of the Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him. This is essential in Islam, and even it is fundamental in da'wah to Allah. Nevertheless, beware.. beware from saying that it is ibadah ; ibadat are based on prohibition, and they are prescribed only according to the definitive proof in the Quran or Sunnah, while the other things are based on permission, and they cannot be forbidden unless by the definitive proof in the Quran or Sunnah.
 The interviewer:
 This fact about bid'ah is not clear to many people; whenever you tell them that they do something is wrong or bid'ah, they say, "Well, this means that driving a car and riding a bicycle are bida' (plural of bid'ah (innovations) too. They start to confuse general things with ibadat.

Ibadat are based on prohibition:

Dr. Rateb:
There is a ruling on ibadat, and another one on  everything else.
The interviewer:
This means that apart from ibadat, things originally are based on permission, while ibadat are based on prohibition, jazaka Allahu khairan.
Dr. Rateb:
 Ibadat need daleel qat'i to be prescribed, lest Muslims will innovate about million ibadah, and we will have million or even endless complicated and confusing things. Bear in mind that religion is based on prohibition.
 The interviewer:
Your Excellency, what about those who say that the Prophet, used to fast on the day when Allah saved Prophet Musa (Ashura', which is the 10the day of Muharram), peace be upon him, from Fir'aun? Also, what do you say to the people who ask, is not the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, more important than the one when Musa was saved?
Celebrating the prophet's birth anniversary is an Islamic activity:

Dr. Rateb:
I am not against celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, provided that it should not be considered ibadah, but rather an Islamic activity In fact, the birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is very important. Is there a greater person than him? However, the delicate point is that our master Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, made the hijri calendar started with hijrah (emigration from Makkah to Madinah) of the Prophet, peace be upon him, not with his birth. The wisdom behind this is that hijrah is an action and an achievement; it is moving from the land of kufr (disbelief) to the one land of Iman (belief), from the morally deviated society to the morally disciplined one. Man is not evaluated according to his birth, but due to his work. This is really an amazing fact; the hijri calendar does not start with the anniversary of his birth, peace be upon him, but with his hijrah.

The wide meaning of hijrah:

Actually, hijrah has so many wide meanings. Whoever abandons the religiously astray people and joins the people of truth is an emigrant, and whoever abandons sins and performs acts of obedience is an emigrant too, even if he stays at his homeland. This is the wide meaning of hijrah; it is an action., Islam is not passive, but rather it is active. Thus, if you do not give other people or deprive them for the Sake of Allah, if you are not pleased with other people or get angry with them for the Sake of Allah, if you do not make ties with people or severe ties with them for the Sake of Allah, if all your actions or stills are not based on piety, obedience and acting upon the Divine Method, you are not a believer.
Hence, the issue is all about moving in accordance with the Method of Allah. Starting with this point, let me tell you that man is an active being, but do you know what makes him act? It is his need for food and drink, his need for marriage, his need for self-assertiveness. Thus, man is an active being and his actions should be according to the Method of Allah the Exalted.
Glorification is useless if not accompanied with action:

Celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upo0n him, should be part of da'wah to Allah and part of introducing Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, to other people in order to follow his example. If a father of someone is a great scientist, and his son spends his whole life talking about his father and his knowledge, yet he is illiterate, then in this case if he keeps talking about his father 100 years without following his example in seeking knowledge, his speech about his father makes no difference to his illiteracy. Boasting about the father may make the son believe that he will be blessed by his father's knowledge. I am not denying the fact that we are blessed with having the Prophet, peace be upon him, sent to us, but believing in this is not enough at all. For instance, will the illiterate office keeper of a prominent man who has got many scientific degrees and has his good impact on and impressive imprints in life be promoted if he sits at the desk of this man when he is absent? No, he will not, not even one rank. However, if he begins to study starting with going to the primary school, he will follow his boss's footsteps.

You will be elevated if you follow the example if the person you glorify, because glorification is useless as long as it is not hand-in-hand with following the footsteps of whoever you admire. If all Muslims all over the world celebrate the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, daily and all year round, but their household, income, spending, habitual activities and traditions are not Islamic, celebrating this day is worthless even if they celebrate it all their life, since it is not accompanied with following the example of the Prophet, peace be upon him. There are significant words which should be written on a tablet: Follow the example of other people, and never innovate, be humble to other and never consider yourself superior to them and be pious so that you will not accept false information and illusions.
The interviewer:
Your Excellency, can we dedicate the time let for us to discuss how we can follow other people, I mean how can following other people be a priority? We may put it in mathematical terms; to love the Prophet, peace be upon him, is to follow him.
Loving Allah is bound to following the Prophet (PBUH):

Dr. Rateb:
(Say (O Muhammad, peace be upon him, to mankind): "If you (really) love Allah then follow me)

[Aal-'Imran: 31]

Allah has connected loving Him with following the Prophet, peace be upon him:
(Say (O Muhammad, peace be upon him, to mankind): "If you (really) love Allah then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic Monotheism, follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah), Allah will love you and forgive you of your sins)

[Aal-'Imran: 31]

Ibn Al-Qayyim said, "It is oddly enough to know Him (Allah) but not love him, and it is oddly enough to love Him, but not obey Him. The sign of love is to follow (whom you love), and the sign of following (Whom you love) is to obey Allah the Exalted."
I would like to make it clear to the listeners that I do not forbid the celebrations, but they are not enough. Considering these celebrations enough is really a serious problem. If we just celebrate the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and forget about following his example, then what we do is pointless, and it makes such celebrations folklore. In some cases religion is turned into folklore and traditions.
The interviewer:
 I would like to add a simple point, and I would like you to comment on it. If we celebrate our father's birthday, but we are undutiful in the whole year, I don't think that he will be pleased with us at the birthday party.
Dr. Rateb:
 On the contrary, he will think that we are making fun of him.
 The interviewer:
 How can we glorify the Sunnah of the Prophet, peace be upon him, particularly, in this country (non-Islamic country)?
How we should glorify the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH):

Dr. Rateb:
 By Allah, when you believe that you belong to the Master of the Prophets and Messengers, peace be upon them, and that the Method of the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him, is the directions of the Creator, and so you follow it since you are keen on your safety and happiness, you glorify him. If you receive an expensive and complicated device which is beneficial financially speaking, you will notice that its manual is more important than it if the manufacturing company forget to send it to you, because you will not be able to turn it on without the manual which contains the instructions of running and maintenance.
Assume that the doctor asks the patient to have about ten blood tests, he can have the conventional test in laboratories, but if there is a modern computer-like machine, it can give you the accurate results of many complicated and delicate blood tests when a drop of blood is put on a certain place in this machine in order to be tested. Such a computer-like machine costs millions lira, but if the manufacturing company forgets to send you the manual, don't you think that the operating instructions are more important than the machine itself? If you use the computer without following the instructions you may damage it, and if you keep it aside without using it, you won't benefit from it. Thus, the instructions are more important than the computer-like machine. This explains why Allah says:
(The Most Beneficent (Allah)* Has taught (you mankind) the Qur'an (by His Mercy)* He created man.)

[Ar-Rahman: 1-3]

One may ask, "O Allah, how can we be taught the Quran before being created?" Well the answer is that such order is not chronological, but rather it has to do with the priority. It means that your existence is meaningless without having a method to follow. Notice how the life of the westerners is full of trouble, although they can enjoy cheap pleasures. They do not enjoy a happy life, because happiness requires that you know Allah and act upon His Method. If you follow His Method you shall be safe, and if you get closer to Him you shall be happy. In fact there is a big difference between safety and happiness. If the money you make is halal, if d you stay away from zina (adultary), if you are honest, if your wife is a believing Muslim, if your household is Islamic and if your children are raised according to the Islamic teachings, but you have never performed a good deed, you will stay safe; you do not have problems, destruction or devastating catastrophes:

((No man is scratched by a thorn, or stumbles, or has a twitching in a vein, except for a sin, and what Allah forgives is greater.))

[Ibn Asaker, narrated by Al-Bara']

When you keep upright, you stay safe, but happiness is something different; you will not be happy unless you do a righteous deed. Allah says:
(And the righteous deeds exalt it (the goodly words i.e. the goodly words are not accepted by Allah unless and until they are followed by good deeds)

[Fatir: 10]

You, as a human were created with the instinct to love your existence, and the safety, perfection and continuity of your existence. The safety of existence is maintained through obeying Allah, the perfection of existence is gained from getting closer to Him through doing righteous deeds, but the thing (the continuity of your existence) is quite perplexing; the continuity of your existence is maintained by raising your children properly. If you raise them according to the Islamic teachings, they will be your successors, and their deeds, the deeds of their children, the deeds of their grand-children and the deeds of the children of their grand-children which will be performed until the Day of Resurrection will be added to your Record (Sahifah).
Hence:
(And those who believe and whose offspring follow them in Faith, to them shall We join their offspring,)

[At-Tur: 21]

The scholars of tafsir (the interpretation of the Quran) said, "It means that to them shall We join their offspring's deeds."
Celebrating the prophet's birth anniversary is an activity of da'wah:

The ruling on celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is that it should be an activity of da'wah, through which we inform people about the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Allah said to the Prophet, peace be upon him, himself:
(And all that We relate to you (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) of the news of the Messengers is in order that We may make strong and firm your heart thereby)

[Hud: 120]

Since the faith in his heart used to increase in faith upon listening to the story of another Prophet, whose rank is not as high as his, then it is more appropriate for us to have the faith in our hearts increased upon listening to the story of the Master of all Prophets and Messengers, peace be upon them. We can call what I have discussed so far concerning celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, the ideological cover (protection), if we may use the contemporary terminology, which means the theological one. Celebrating the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him, can be wherever and whenever; all year round. Also, celebrating it does not mean ibadah, but rather it is merely an activity of da'wah.
 The interviewer:
 This is what you mean by following Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him. The previous point we discussed was about following him and glorifying Sunnah. The next point we would like to discuss is how to deal with Sunnah.
How we should deal with the Noble Sunnah:

Dr. Rateb:
 Before I move to the following point, I would like to draw your attention to this Ayah:
(And Allah would not punish them while you (Muhammad, peace be upon him) are amongst them)

[Al-Anfal: 33]

 The Ayah begins with:
(And Allah would not)

Would not in Arabic is "wa ma kana", which is considered according to linguists the strongest form of negation. The linguists of Arabic language say, "This has to do with negating someone's action not an event." It is related to the rank of people. For instance, if we ask someone (Allah forbid), "Are you hungry?" He says, "No. I am not." Unlike this ordinary man, if you ask someone who occupies a high social position and has exalted morals, "Are you a thief?" He considers such a question a deadly mistake. Believe it or not, he will not answer saying, "No, I am not", but rather he will say, "I would not steal" This form of negation is the strongest in Arabic language.
Allah says:
(And Allah would not punish them)

Meaning that Allah would never ever punish Muslims as long as the Sunnah of the Prophet, peace be upon him, lives among them. Certainly, the meaning of the Ayah in the context of the time when the Prophet was among Muslims is clear. The Prophet is no more among us. Yet, the same Ayah in the context of our present time means that as long as the Sunnah of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is implemented in Muslims' households, in their work, in their sad occasions and happy ceremonies, in their earnings and spending, in bringing up their children, in their relationships, in their disputes, while they are in their homeland, in their travels and in divorce and marriage, they are secured from the Punishment of Allah. This entails that the hardships we have in our daily life is the effect of abandoning the implementation of the Sunnah of Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him. I would like to comment on this Ayah: you are granted the blessing of obeying the Prophet, peace be upon him:
(And Allah would not punish them while you (Muhammad, peace be upon him) are amongst them)

There is another blessing, which is making istighfar (seeking Allah's Forgiveness):
(nor will He punish them while they seek (Allah's) Forgiveness.)

[Al-Anfal: 33]

Thus, following the Prophet, peace be upon him, is a blessings from Allah the Exalted.
(And Allah would not punish them while you (Muhammad, peace be upon him) are amongst them)

 The interviewer:
 I ask Allah the Exalted to make us among those who follow the Sunnah of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Your Eminence, how can we spread these ideas amongst our children? You've just said it is difficult to do so in this country as people in here seek their worldly life and leave their religion behind, so how can we make the Prophet, peace be upon him, the role model for our children?
Faith-based upbringing is what makes our children and us happy:

Dr. Rateb:
 By Allah, I keep repeating the famous saying, "A man can do no more than he can".. The father who wants to make his children familiar with the facts that I have mentioned up till now, is supposed to be a believer, a knowledgeable father and an educator, because the father whose faith is weak, who lacks Islamic knowledge and who is not willing to guide his child to Allah, normally his household will be morally deviated. Having an Islamic household is a great ambition, so the father who has Islamic knowledge, who is understandable, who has an effective personality and has the will to guide his son, he has a daily meeting with his children in order to tell them about Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, but when the father neglects his children, he will discover that something serious has been happing in his household, but it will be too late then.
In the first years of his marriage, the father is usually busy with making a living, busy with fulfilling the basic needs or is so compassionate to his wife, but when he has a son, he does not care much about him. According to the precise information that I have, raising the child begins the very day he was born until he is seven, and after this age, raising him becomes something really hard. His habits, experiences and talents are established in the first seven years of the child's life, so if he is neglected in these years, the father will be in a big trouble. Thus, we should know how to raise our children according to the Islamic teachings. This upbringing can be the reason of their happiness, and in turn the reason of ours.
 The interviewer:
 Your Eminence, regarding raising children, there are some facts which are unseen (ghaib), and the child may not be able to imagine, so if we inform them about these facts, they may tell their friends at school about them. How can we make these pieces of information about the Prophet, peace be upon him, clear enough to them? Some people over-simplify them, making their children look like idiotic. Should we talk to our children assuming that they do understand what we say?
The greatest achievement is having your son as you wish him to be:

Dr. Rateb:
 By Allah, I, the humble servant before you, have two series about raising children in Islam, and by the Grace of Allah they are widely promoted. As I remember some radio stations in Lebanon repeated these series twelve times. Also, they have been broadcasted frequently in the satellite channels such as Ar-Risalah and Iqra'. These series can be found on my website, and they are 64 lessons about raising your son religiously and then I moved to the scientific education of the son, the psychological education, the sociological education, the physical education and finally the sexual one. Each chapter contains lengthy studies all derived from the Quran and Sunnah. You may be surprised when you know that the science of raising children in its highest degrees is present in the Islamic religion. Raising children this way is very delicate. I have taught this series almost twice.
As a father, start raising your children religiously by using the characteristics, tools and methods of the religious education. Let the religious education be accompanied with the scientific education, the physical education, the psychological education, the sociological education, and the sexual one. While doing this, you have to know how to give your son some notes and know how to teach him, how to get the results of your teaching from him, how to chat to him and how to discuss things with him. There are about thirty tools to deliver knowledge in this series, and I wish that every father who cares for his children read it. You can download it from the internet for free, by visiting my website and opening the page on Islamic education/ children education. Million people visit my website daily, and they can download whatever they want. According to the latest statistic I received four days ago, more than one million files are downloaded every day. Just type children education into the search box and you will find the lessons. The son is very precious, and your value is estimated according to your children. Thus, the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((The best thing man gains in life is his child))

[At-Tabarani, narrated by Abi Burdah]


 The Hadith indicates that the greatest achievement ever is having your son as you wish him to be. I said the following words while I was in the USA at Almaya Conference ( an Islamic conference) in Los Angeles, "If you occupy the position of president Clinton,, have as much wealth as the one of Onassis and have scientific knowledge as the one of Einstein, but your son is not as you wish him to be, then you are the most miserable person." This is a fact.
 The interviewer:
 Perhaps many people consider you a role-model, so would like to tell us how you celebrate the anniversary birth of the Prophet, peace be upon him?
How Dr. Nabulsi celebrates the prophet's birth anniversary:

Dr. Rateb:
 By Allah, I do not consider it ibadah fearing that I may fall into bida', but, I celebrate it by giving lectures about the Prophetic Sirah, which are given constantly in the Masjid. Personally, I celebrate it from time to time throughout the year. Whenever I have the chance to meet my fellow brothers in the Masjid or my relatives at home, I talk about the mercy of the Prophet, peace be upon him. The Prophet, peace be upon him said:
((The first one who opens the gate of Paradise is me…))

It means that the first person to open the gate of Jannah (Paradise) is the Prophet, peace be upon him.
((The first one who opens the gate of Paradise is me, but there will be a woman who struggles with me to enter Paradise before me. Then I said, "O Jibril, who is she?" He said, "She is a woman whose husband died and left children behind, so she refused to remarry because of her children (she prefers to raise up her children to getting married)."))

[Al-Adab Al-Mufrad, by Al-Bukhari]

When a woman raises her children properly she fulfills the greatest job ever, because she presents to the society a person who is honest, trustworthy, faithful and virtuous; she presents a righteous individual. Allah says:
(she said: "O my Lord! I have delivered a female child,)

[Aal-'Imran: 36]

 What was the reply from Allah?
(and Allah knew better what she delivered)

[Aal-'Imran: 36]

She delivered a female baby, and when she grew up she gave birth to Prophet Isa, peace be upon him.
The interviewer:
Your Eminence, so far you have been talking about the mercy of the Prophet, peace be upon him. May you mention to us Hadith that is about the mercy of the Prophet, peace be upon him, so that we can conclude this meeting with it insha' Allah, as our brothers outside are calling you and waiting for you? I think that this is the last meeting we have with Your Eminence.
The mercy of the Prophet (PBUH):

Dr. Rateb:
((Whoever is not merciful to others will not be treated mercifully.))

[Ziyadat Razin, narrated by Jabir bin Abdullah]

Read the following Ayah attentively:
(And by the Mercy of Allah, you dealt with them gently)

[Aal-'Imran: 159]

It means "Because of the mercy (Allah settled) in your heart O Muhammad you have been gentle with them, and so they have gathered around you".
(And had you been severe and harsh-hearted, they would have broken away from about you)

[Aal-'Imran: 159]


 This means "Had you been detached from Us, your heart would have been full of harshness which in its turn would have made you severe, and so people would have broken away from you." This Noble Ayah can be considered the rule of making people gather around you and break away from you. This rule should be applied by the father, the mother, the teacher, and whoever occupies the highest position in the country. Everyone needs to apply this rule to his daily life; if he occupies a leading position and is connects with Allah, his heart will be full of mercy which will be reflected in his gentleness while dealing with people, and so people will gather around him. However, if this person is disconnected with Allah, his hear will be full of harshness which will be reflected on his severity and rudeness while dealing people, and so people will break away from him.
The interviewer:
O noble Sheikh, may you make Du'a to Allah for the Muslim Community in here before you leave?
Dr. Rateb's Du'a for the Islamic Community in Australia:

Dr. Rateb:
 By Allah, I make Du'a to Allah for this Community to be successful in raising their children, because raising children is the most serious problem the Community faces. Whenever I meet a father whose son is not as he wishes him to be, the father expresses his deep and unbearable pain. Hence, raising children properly is the most important advice I give the parents. This beautiful country looks like Paradise to the retina of the eye as, but to the brain it is Hell.
If man raises his children (according to the Islamic teachings), if he works on making his home an Islamic one and if he wins the hearts and minds of his children, his children will belong to this great religion and to the Ummah which Allah has chosen to carry His message and deliver it, and the father will be a successful one. On the other hand, if the father aims at achieving his financial interests in this country, which is beautiful, and where the incomes are huge, the cars are wonderful, the food is good, the journeys are exciting, and he does not care about his children, he will discover after a while that they are not Muslims or even have no religion, and so he will start having problems. I would like to repeat that what I wish for this Community is to be successful in raising their children.
The interviewer:
 May you make Du'a for the humble servants?
Dr: Rateb:
O Allah, grant success to those who are around me and who are listening to me in doing that which You love and are pleased with. O Allah, protect Iman of this Community and that of their families and children. O Allah, protect their well-being insha' Allah, their wealth and their religion. This is the best Du'a I can make for this Community which honors me by inviting me to come to this country.
Conclusion and farewell:

The interviewer:
 I ask Allah the Exalted to prolong your life and bless it, and to increase your knowledge. We hope that next time when we meet insha' Allah, we will be in a better situation insha' Allah. O noble Sheikh, jazaka Allahu khairan for accepting our invitation, and I ask Allah to bless you.
Dear listeners, until we meet you again in our next meeting insha' Allah, we wish you all the best.
Assalamu Alaikom wa rahmatu Allah wa Barakatoh
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of Creations, and peace and blessings be upon our Master Muhammad, the faithful and the honest. O Allah, increase us [in Your Blessings] and do not decrease us, honor us and do not humiliate us, give us [from Your Gifts] and do not deprive us, be in favor of us and not against us, and make us satisfied and be satisfied with us.
O Allah, send Your peace and blessings on our Master Muhammad, the illiterate Prophet, his Family and his Companions.