The Dispute Over the Salvation of the Prophet’s ﷺ Father

Question

In the book Shari‘at ya Jahalat (“Shari‘a or Ignorance”) a hadith from Sahih Muslim is cited: a man said to the Prophet ﷺ, “Where is my father?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “In the Fire.” The narrator reports that, upon hearing the Prophet’s ﷺ answer, the man turned to leave, and the Prophet ﷺ called him back and said: “My father and your father are both in the Fire.” Some object to this hadith: how can the father of the Prophet ﷺ be in the Fire? Is this hadith sound or weak?

Answer

This hadith is reliable. ‘Allamah Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti wrote several treatises on this question and stated that after this conversation the Prophet ﷺ was informed of the salvation of his noble father. From certain narrations it appears that his noble father was brought back to life and believed in him ﷺ.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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