Rabi' al-Awwal

Why Rabi’ al-Awwal?

The name Rabi’ al-Awwal means “the first spring” — and for Bohras, it is spiritually as fresh as its name suggests. The month contains what the Dawat regards as the single greatest event in human history: the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) on the 12th of Rabi’ al-Awwal, in the year 53 BH (Before Hijra), approximately 570 CE in the Christian calendar.

The Quran describes the Prophet’s coming in a verse that stands as one of the most celebrated in Islamic literature:

وَمَا أَرسَلنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحمَةً لِّلعَالَمِين “And We have not sent you except as a mercy to all the worlds.” (Quran 21:107)

Rahmatan lil-‘alamin — a mercy to all worlds, not merely to the Muslims of Arabia, not merely to human beings, but to all of creation. The Bohra celebration of Milad un-Nabi is a celebration of this mercy — the recognition that the world was changed, for the better and forever, by the arrival of the Prophet.

The Milad un-Nabi: 12 Rabi’ al-Awwal

Birth in Mecca

The Prophet (SAW) was born in Mecca in the Year of the Elephant (‘Am al-Fil) — a year named for the famous failed military campaign against the Ka’ba, which the Quran commemorates in Surah Al-Fil (105). His birth in this year — when Allah had just miraculously defended the sacred house — is understood as a divine sign: the one who would bring the world the final revelation was born in the very year that the divine protected the house to which all believers would turn in prayer.

He was born into the Banu Hashim clan of the Quraysh, the most respected family of Mecca and the guardians of the Ka’ba. His father, Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib, had died before his birth; his mother, Sayyida Amina, died when he was six years old. He was raised by his grandfather Abd al-Muttalib and then his uncle Abu Talib. See also: Prophet Muhammad, Abu Talib

The Nur of the Prophet

The Bohra tradition holds that the Prophet (SAW) was not simply a human being who later received revelation — his spiritual light (nur) pre-existed his physical birth. This concept, rooted in Hadith literature and Ismaili cosmology, holds that the Nur Muhammadi (Muhammadan Light) was the first thing created by Allah:

“The first thing Allah created was my light,” the Prophet reportedly said. This light passed from prophet to prophet — from Adam to Ibrahim to Ismail to the chain of Prophets — until it reached Abdullah and then illuminated the world in Muhammad’s physical birth.

The celebration of Milad un-Nabi is thus the celebration of this cosmic light’s arrival in the world in its final, complete, and most perfect form.

How Bohras Celebrate Rabi’ al-Awwal

Na’at Programs (Milad Gatherings)

The primary Bohra observance of Milad un-Nabi is the na’at program — a gathering of the community for devotional poetry in praise of the Prophet (SAW). Na’at (from na’t, praise-poem) is a tradition of Bohra and broader Muslim devotional culture: poems in Arabic, Lisan ud-Dawat, and Urdu that describe the Prophet’s beauty, character, and blessing.

Na’at programs in the Bohra community typically include:

Opening with Bismillah and Surah al-Fatiha
Recitation of Quranic verses about the Prophet
Na’at in Lisan ud-Dawat (the Dawat’s traditional language)
Arabic na’at from the classical tradition
Collective salawat (blessings on the Prophet)
Du’a for the Prophet’s intercession

Salawat — Blessings on the Prophet

Rabi’ al-Awwal is a month for heightened salawat recitation. The Quran commands:

“Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who believe, send blessings upon him and greet him with the salutation of peace.” (Quran 33:56)

The specific Bohra salawat formula — which includes “Allahumma salli ‘ala Muhammad wa ‘ali Muhammad” — is used throughout the month, after every salah, and especially in the gatherings of Rabi’ al-Awwal.

Sweet Distributions

The birth of the Prophet (SAW) is an occasion of joy, and the Bohra community marks this joy with the distribution of sweets (meetha) to the community. This sweet distribution is not merely a social gesture but an embodied celebration: sharing sweetness in the community enacts the sweetness of the Prophet’s mercy (rahma) to all worlds.

The Waaz of Rabi’ al-Awwal

Where the Aamil delivers a waaz during Rabi’ al-Awwal, the Sira al-Nabawiyya (the Prophet’s biography) is a major theme — his birth, his character, his struggles in early Islam, his mercy, his family life, his love for Imam Ali (AS) and Sayyida Fatima (AS). The waaz of Rabi’ al-Awwal is deeply personal: not abstract theology but the vivid narration of the human being whose life is the supreme model for all believers.

The Sira al-Nabawiyya — The Prophet’s Life

Rabi’ al-Awwal invites renewed engagement with the Prophet’s biography. Key dimensions the Dawat emphasises:

Character (‘Akhlaq)

The Prophet (SAW) is described in the Quran as “of a great moral character” (68:4). His patience with personal insult, his generosity with personal wealth, his mercy toward enemies, his tenderness with children, his consistent truthfulness — these qualities are held up as the standard for every Bohra to emulate. The greeting of Muhammad Month is to ask: what quality of the Prophet am I going to develop this Rabi’ al-Awwal?

His Love for Ali (AS)

The Bohra tradition — rooted in Ahl al-Bayt walayah — particularly emphasises the Prophet’s declaration at Ghadir Khumm on 18 Dhu al-Hijja: “Whoever considers me their mawla, Ali is also their mawla.” The Prophet’s love for Imam Ali (AS) and his explicit designation of Ali as the first Imam are central to the Bohra narrative of Rabi’ al-Awwal. The Milad of the Prophet and the walayah of Ali are understood as inseparable. See also: Ghadeer E Khum, Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib

His Family (Ahl al-Bayt)

The Prophet’s intense love for his daughter Sayyida Fatima (AS) — whom he called “a piece of my heart” — and for his grandsons Hasan (AS) and Husain (AS) — who he said “are my flowers in this world” — is the emotional heart of Bohra Milad observance. To love the Prophet is inseparable from loving those he loved. See also: Sayyida Fatima Al Zahra, Imam Hasan Al Mujtaba

Rabi’ al-Awwal Throughout the Month

While the 12th is the central date, the Dawat encourages elevating one’s ‘amal throughout the entire month:

Days 1-11: Anticipation — increasing salawat, na’at gatherings, reading Sira
Day 12: The central celebration — na’at programs, sweet distributions, communal waaz
Days 13-30: Continuation — maintaining the spirit of the month through salawat and Sira study

The Prophet (SAW) himself observed special practices on his own birthday: when asked why he fasted on Mondays, he said: “That is the day I was born.” The Bohra tradition reads this as the Prophet modelling his own gratitude for his birth through worship — a lesson that the day of one’s origin is a day for increased worship, not just celebration.

Ta’wil of Milad un-Nabi

The zahir of Milad un-Nabi is the historical event — the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in Mecca in the year of the Elephant.

The batin of Milad un-Nabi is the perpetual arrival of prophetic light (nur Muhammadi) in the world — not a one-time historical event but an ongoing reality. Every waaz in which the Aamil transmits ‘ilm is a renewal of prophetic light. Every mu’min who receives and acts on that ‘ilm is a vessel of prophetic light. The Imam’s living guidance is the prophetic light continuing to illuminate the world from behind the veil of the satr.

Celebrating Milad un-Nabi is thus not merely commemorating the past but recognising an ongoing present: the Prophet’s light has not left the world. It lives in the Imam’s ‘ilm, in the Dai’s waaz, and — through them — in every sincere mumin’s heart.

Rabi' al-Awwal — The Month of Milad un-Nabi