36th Annual International Mawlid-un-Nabi ﷺ Conference 2019

The 36th International Mawlid-un-Nabi ﷺ Conference was held at the Greater Iqbal Park under the banner of Minhaj-ul-Quran International in Lahore during the intervening night of the 11th and 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal. Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri delivered his keynote speech on the occasion. Dr Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, Chairman of MQI Supreme Council and Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, President of MQI, participated in the Conference along with hundreds of thousands of people who came from different cities and towns of the country. A large number of women were also part of the spiritual congregation for whom separate seating arrangements were in place.

Provincial Minister Auqaf and Religious Affairs Sahibzada Sayyid Saeed-ul-Hassan Shah Gillani, Member Provincial Assembly of the Punjab Sayyid Sumsam Ali Shah Bukhari, Sajjada-Nasheen Ajmer Sharif Sayyid Bilal Hussain Chishti, Dr SM Shahzad, Dr Ishaq Bhatti from Australia, renowned compare Sahibzada Tasleem Ahmed Sabri including distinguished people belonging to different walks of life and the faith leaders attended the spiritual gathering. A large number of religious scholars and Mashaykh were also in attendance.

MQI Secretary General Khurram Nawaz Gandapur, who was the chief organizer of the International Mawlid-un-Nabi ﷺ Conference, welcomed the delegates and participants to the Conference.

Internationally renowned Naat khawan and Qaris had the honour of reciting the verses from the Holy Quran and Naats in their melodious voices. Dr Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, Khurram Nawaz Gandapur, Brig. (r) Iqbal Ahmad Khan and other central leaders received the guests on their arrival at the Conference. There was a splendid firework on display as a mark of celebration of Mawlid-un-Nabi (peace and blessings be upon him) with the result that the whole sky was lit with different lights. Pigeons and balloons were released in the sky and the thousands of the participants continued showering rose petals on one another out of deep emotions of love of the 12th of Rabi-ul-Awwal. The atmosphere reverberated with the slogans. The youth belonging to MSM and MYL performed the security duties. Hundreds of members of the social media teams and Social Media Council kept the people informed of the proceedings of the Conference through live broadcasting and postings on the cyberspace. They launched a special hashtag of the Conference, which became a top twitter trend in Pakistan.

The speakers congratulated Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri and MQI on holding the mega event of Mawlid-un-Nabi (peace and blessings be upon him) every year in such a fantastic fashion. Shaykh-ul-Islam addressed the International Conference on the video link.

Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri congratulated Khurram Nawaz Gandapur, Jawad Hamid and office holders of all forums of the MQI on making excellent arrangements for the Conference.

Addressing the 36th International Mawlid-un-Nabi ﷺ Conference on the subject of 'the Holy Quran & Respect of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), MQI founding leader Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri said we are heading towards anarchy and disaster by the day because we have deviated from the 'Sira' of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He said the negative things such as ill-gotten wealth, deceit and fraud have become the criterion of respect and status in society; vice has replaced the good and the lies are being traded in all walks of life be it politics, society, government, or culture. He said the Muslim community should move forward on the path of achieving excellence in science and technology and resort to their elders to achieve excellence in manners in order to regain the lost glory of the olden times. He said the blend of the action and the knowledge of classical and contemporary sciences represents the best way forward for Muslims.

He said the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) brought about educational, cultural, political, moral, spiritual and economic revolution during his 23 years of prophetic life, particularly during the ten years of Madni life. He said as a result of the revolution, those members of the medieval Arab society who would take each other's life became the personification of loyalty and protection. It appeared as if they were reborn. He said the Arab society became a hub of peace and tranquility as a result of the blessings of the Prophet's ‘Sira’ (peace and blessings be upon him). It was rid of such vices as revenge, prejudices, and enmity. He said every moment of the pious 'Sira' and blessed life of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is there before us and it is due to our inability to act upon it that we have been bogged down in a pit of degradation and decline.

Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri said the 'Sira' of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is another name of adopting spiritual values of love, tolerance, moderation, loyalty, the excellence of mannerism, kindness towards all and higher human rights. He regretted that we have turned these prophetic values and standards upside down. He said the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) set the benchmarks for relationships and conduct with friends, neighbours, relatives and between the citizens and state, stating that these standards were based on the touchstone of justice, purity, and sincerity. He said those values were grounded in the spirit of sacrifice and the pleasure of Allah Almighty. He bemoaned the fact that we separated these benchmarks from our collective and individual lives, adding that chastity, truth, and truth have been replaced by indecency, lies and dishonesty and falsehood respectively. He said we are living our lives contrary to the teachings of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and asked in the same breath as to where the internal and external peace of mind will come from?

Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri said if we want to get back our peace of mind and explore the purpose of our lives, we will have to mend and revive our disconnected relationship with the pious ‘Sira’ of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and tread on the path indicated to us by our beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He said we would have to hold on to truth, differentiate between what is permissible and what is forbidden, stand by the oppressed instead of the oppressors and replace the hatred with human compassion. He said we need to enlighten our lives with internal purification, get rid of moral degradation and take solace in the happiness of others. He said when these values and benchmarks will become part and parcel of our lives, we will become deserving of Allah's support and we will be able to successfully fight all challenges. He said every believer should know that the success in this world and the world hereafter lies in showing utmost reverence to and obedience of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).

Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri further said in his address that the first, second and third phases that marked the success of the prophetic mission were the establishment of the State of Madina, conquest of Makkah and the Last Sermon respectively. He said Allah Almighty blessed the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with this honour that he (peace and blessings be upon him) accomplished the Divine mission of moral and spiritual character building and welfare of humanity during his physical life. He said the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) founded such revolutionary values and traditions of mutual respect, morality, and conduct as made the powerful protectors of the weak, made men extend respect to women and encouraged the elderly to be kind towards the children. He said the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent to the world as the Prophet of mercy and peace. He said the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) relentless ideological, moral, spiritual and scholarly struggle not only led to the establishment of peace in the Arabian Peninsula but the whole of humankind was blessed with peace and tranquility.

Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri further said the State of Madina was founded on the higher values of justice and became a core of the Islamic system of governance due to the prophetic wisdom. He said after the publication of the Quranic Encyclopedia that consists of 8 volumes and covers more than 5000 topics, God willing, the Encyclopedia of Hadith consisting of 40 volumes will soon be available to quench the scholarly thirst of all and sundry. He congratulated the participants of the International Mawlid-un-Nabi ﷺ Conference and also appreciated all the administrative committees that made arrangements for the mega event.