[Q 449] Were the Prophet’s ﷺ Parents Muslims? Response to the Hadith “My Father and Your Father in Hellfire”, Proofs for the Faith of the Prophet’s ﷺ Parents

QUESTION:

What is the proof that the father of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was a Muslim?
Many people present the hadith in which the Prophet ﷺ said to a companion: “Your father and my father are in the Hellfire.”
What is the response to this hadith, and what is our proof that the Prophet’s ﷺ father was a Muslim?

ANSWER:

Our belief regarding the blessed parents of the Prophet ﷺ (Walidayn Mustafa رضي الله تعالى عنهما) is that they were Muwahhid (believers in Tawhid, monotheists), Muslims, and dwellers of Paradise. This is the view of the majority of Mufassireen (commentators of Qur’an) and the Ahl al-Sunnah.

As for the narration mentioned in the question, it does not prove that the noble parents were non-believers. In the Hadith, the word “ab” (father) does not always mean one’s biological father, but can also mean uncle. This usage is established in the Qur’an itself, where the uncle of Sayyiduna Ibrahim عليه السلام, Azar, is called “ab”:

وَ اِذۡ قَالَ اِبۡرٰہِیۡمُ لِاَبِیۡہِ اٰزَرَ
“And when Ibrahim said to his father Azar…”

(Surah al-An‘am 6:74)

In Tafsir Sirat al-Jinan, it is explained that the word “ab” here refers to “uncle.” This is also affirmed in Qamus, which records that Azar was indeed the uncle of Sayyiduna Ibrahim عليه السلام. Likewise, Imam Jalaluddin Suyuti رحمۃ الله تعالی in Masalik al-Hunafa also affirms this. Calling an uncle “father” is common across cultures, especially among the Arabs, and examples of this are found in Qur’an and Hadith.

For example, in Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, the Prophet ﷺ said:

“Ruddu ‘alayya abī” – “Return my father to me,”
Here the reference was to Sayyiduna ‘Abbas رضي الله تعالى عنه, who was the uncle of the Prophet ﷺ.

Proofs of the Faith of the Prophet’s ﷺ Parents:

Sayyidi A‘la Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan رحمۃ الله تعالی narrates the Hadith recorded by Bayhaqi and Ibn ‘Asakir through Malik → al-Zuhri → Anas رضي الله تعالى عنه:

“ما افترق الناس فرقتين إلا جعلني الله في خيرهما، فأخرجت من بين أبوين فلم يصبني شيء من عهد الجاهلية، وخرجت من نكاح ولم أخرج من سفاح من لدن آدم حتى انتهيت إلى أبي وأمي، فأنا خيركم نفساً وخيركم أباً، وفي لفظ: فأنا خيركم نسباً وخيركم أباً.”

Translation: “Whenever mankind was divided into two groups, Allah placed me in the best of them. I was sent forth from such parents that nothing of the Age of Ignorance reached me. I was born from a pure marriage, not from fornication, from Adam until I reached my father and mother. I am the best of you in soul and the best of you in father. In another wording: I am the best of you in lineage and the best of you in father.”

In this Hadith, the Prophet ﷺ first made a general negation that no trace of Jahiliyyah (idolatry or ignorance) ever entered his noble lineage. This itself is sufficient proof.

Allah Almighty says:

اللّٰهُ اَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهٗ
“Allah knows best where to place His Prophethood.”

(Surah al-An‘am, 6:124)

This verse proves that Allah chose the most honored and purest of places and lineages for His Prophethood. Since Prophethood is never placed in degraded or accursed lineages of disbelief and shirk, the parents of the Prophet ﷺ were believers.

Disbelievers are places of divine wrath and curse, while the deposit of Prophethood requires places of divine mercy and acceptance.

(Fatawa Ridawiyyah, Vol. 30, pp. 282–283, Raza Foundation)

For more detailed evidences, see Shumool al-Islam li Usul al-Rusul al-Kiram by Imam Ahmad Raza Khan رحمۃ الله تعالی in Fatawa Ridawiyyah Vol. 30. Imam Jalaluddin Suyuti رحمۃ الله تعالی also authored several treatises on this subject.

Answered by: Mubashir Attari (AskMufti Scholar)
Verified by: Mufti Sajid Attari
Translated answer
Date: 6th September 2025