Praise be to Allah. May peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and upon his family, Companions, and those who followed his guidance.
I read an article published by AlMadinah Newspaper, issue of Monday 28/12/1401 A.H, in which Jamal Muhammad AlQadi wrote that he watched an episode of Abna' AlIslam (Children of Islam) broadcast by the Saudi television and was about birthday celebrations. Jamal was asking whether birthday celebrations are permitted in Islam or not, etc.
A: Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) replaced the festivals of Jahiliyyah (preIslamic time of ignorance) with two `Eids (festivals) for Muslims to gather and recite Adhkar (invocations) and perform Salatul`Eid (the Festival Prayer), namely `EidulFitr (the Festival of Breaking the Fast) and `EidulAdha (the Festival of the Sacrifice). Moreover, Allah has prescribed other festivals including types of Adhkar and acts of worship, such as Fridays and Days of Tashriq (11th, 12th and 13th of DhulHijjah). Allah has not prescribed birthday celebrations, be they for the Prophet (peace be upon him) or of any other person. In fact, evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah (whatever is reported from the Prophet) indicates that birthday celebrations are a form of Bid`ah (innovation in Islam) and an imitation of the Jews, the Christians, and others. Accordingly, Muslims are obligated to abandon such celebrations, condemn those who hold or participate in them, and stop publishing or broadcasting anything that may encourage people to hold these celebrations or give them the false impression that they are permissible whether on radio, television, or in the press.
Whoever introduces something into this affairs of ours that is not of it, it is to be rejected.
Whoever performs an act which is not of our Shari'ah, it is to be rejected.
And then, the best of the speech is embodied in the Book of Allah, and the best of the guidance is the guidance given by Muhammad. And the most evil affairs are innovations; and every innovation is an error.
Whoever imitates any people is one of them.
You would follow the ways of those who came before you step by step to such an extent that if they were to enter a lizard's hole, you would enter it too. They said: O Messenger of Allah, (do you mean) the Jews and the Christians? He said: Who else?
There are other Hadith all indicating that it is obligatory to be careful of imitating the enemies of Allah in their celebrations. The best of mankind, our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), did not celebrate his birthday during his lifetime, nor did his Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet) after his death, or the Tabi`un (Followers, the generation after the Companions of the Prophet) during the first best three generations. If it had been a commendable act to celebrate the Prophet's birthday or any person's birthday, these grand people would have hastened to celebrate birthdays and the Prophet (peace be upon him) would have instructed and urged his Ummah (nation) to do so, or would have celebrated such occasions himself. Since neither of these took place, we have deduced that celebrating birthdays is a Bid`ah that should be abandoned and avoided as a way of obeying the commandment of Allah (Glorified be He) and His Messenger (peace be upon him).
Some Muslim scholars said that the first to originate birthday celebrations were the Fatimid Shi`ah (Shi'ites) in the fourth century of the Hijrah after whom some people of AhlulSunnah (those adhering to the Sunnah) imitated them out of ignorance and imitation of them and of the Jews and the Christians. Later, this Bid`ah spread among the people. Muslim scholars are required to clarify the ruling of Shari`ah (Islamic law) on such a Bid`ah and to reject and warn against it because of the great evil it incurs and because it results in the spread of other Bid`ahs and the disappearance of commendable acts. Also, practicing this Bid`ah involves imitation of the Jews, the Christians, and other disbelievers who are used to attend such celebrations. Muslim scholars, past and present, wrote about this issue and explained the ruling on these Bid`ahs; may Allah reward them the best and make us of their followers in righteousness.