Not all Muslims celebrate the birthday of their prophet Muhammad and not all who do, celebrate it on the same day. The Shiites celebrate it five days after the Sunnis do. This year the celebrations took place on February 15 and February 20 respectively.
Walking about in Aston it is easy to see which mosques take part in the celebration; they have their facades adorned with strings of little lights. The lights are not simply there to call the attention of passers-by. They have to do with the meaning of the feast itself. Light signifies wisdom and those Muslims who celebrate the birthday of Muhammad consider him 'the best of all creatures', a guiding light of God's wisdom.
They believe more; they also believe that the celebration of Muhammad's birthday brings blessings to those who honour his achievements, his moral conduct and his way of life. They experience the good influence of his eminent example of 'the last and greatest of all prophets', as they call him. It is this belief that makes ordinary faithful hang banners in their windows. They witness to Muhammad's importance in their lives and open themselves up for his benevolence.
Other Muslims frown on this kind of piety. They call the celebration of Muhammad's birthday an 'innovation', which was added to the true faith and deviated from it. What is at stake is the pre-eminence of the Qur'an, the holy book of the Muslims, that came straight down from heaven. Muhammad is just the messenger who passed on the divine words without adding anything of his own. Consequently, the birthday of Muhammad has no importance; after all he received his first revelation only at the age of forty.
The believers in Muhammad are not deterred and they celebrate his birthday with great joy. To them Muhammad is not just a prophet who passed on the divine words to others but he lived them himself to the full. This makes him special, a kind of saint, one who preceded them to where they hope to go themselves.
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