“Had the Blessed Sandals of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ been placed upon my head, then I would proclaim that I, too, am a fully crowned king.”
Ala-Hazrat (Radhi Allahu Anhu)
The Blessed Sandals
The Na’l Shareef of the Prophet ﷺ
Scholars of all ranks — from the East and West, Arabs and non-Arabs — have drawn images of the blessed shrine and sandals (na’al) of the Prophet ﷺ, and have kissed them and placed them upon their eyes and heads, and have ordered others to do so.
‘Allama Abu’l Yuman ibn ‘Asakir, Shaykh Abu Ishaq Ibrahim bin Muhammad bin Khalf Salami, and others wrote books purely on this subject. Fath al-Muta’al fi Madh Khayr al-Na’al of Allama Ahmad Maqtari is comprehensive in this regard. May Allah grant them a good recompense and peace by virtue of the blessed sandals — Ameen.
The Words of the Scholars
O the one who looks at the blessed sandals of the Prophet ﷺ — kiss this image without any pride.
— ‘Allama Abu’r Rabee‘ Sulaiman bin Salim Kala‘i · Jawahir al-Bihar, 3:163
The one who touches the image of the blessed sandals of the Prophet ﷺ will receive unmeasured goodness on the Day of Judgement, and indeed he will live in utmost pleasure.
— Qadi Shams al-Din Saif Allah Rashidi
There is such blessing in the image of the blessed sandals of the best of creation ﷺ that, if you place it on your face with a pure intention, you will be granted your desire.
— Sayyid Muhammad Musa Husaini Maliki
The Place of the Depiction & its Baraka
The depiction of the noble Prophetic sandals has held a special place in the hearts of Muslims, since it points to one of the needs of their tremendous Prophet ﷺ, and since it inspires in them the utmost humility towards his high rank. Because of this, they took care to record this depiction and to draw it — sometimes even placing it beneath their turbans, to feel their complete subservience to the tremendousness of this most noble Messenger ﷺ. They also hung this depiction in their houses, seeking baraka from it.
The Companions & the Noble Sandals
The attention given to the noble sandals is not an innovated matter. Rather, the first generations — the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ — were the first to give them attention and importance. It has been reported by Ibn Sa’d that Anas (may Allah be well pleased with him) was the keeper of the sandals of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Imam al-Sālihī reported in Subul al-Huda wa’l Rashād (8:318) that ‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) used to rise as soon as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sat down, take off his sandals, and place them under his own arms; then, when the Prophet ﷺ would get up, he would put them on him.
Imams Who Honoured the Sandals
A number of Imams gave the noble sandals particular attention, authoring complete works in describing and praising them, among them:
- Imam Abu Ishāq Ibrahīm ibn Muhammad ibn Khalaf al-Sullamī (Ibn al-Hājj)
- Imam & hadith master Abū al-Yumn ‘Abd al-Samad Ibn ‘Asākir of Damascus — author of Timthālu Na‘l al-Nabiyy ﷺ
- The great mujtahid Imam Sirāj al-Dīn ‘Umar ibn Raslān al-Bulqīnī
- Imam Shams al-Dīn Muhammad ibn ‘īsa al-Muqri‘ — Qurrat al-‘Aynayn fī Tahqīq Amr al-Na‘layn
- Imam Abū al-‘Abbās al-Maqqarī of Tilmisān — Fath al-Muta‘āl fī Madh al-Ni‘āl, the most expansive work on the subject
Great Shaykh and Mujaddid of the 13th century, Imam Ahmad Rida Khan al-Qadiri said: ‘The one who received two morsels from where You leave Your shoes becomes so great that an entire kingdom would survive on his mere spittle.’