Praise be to Allaah.
Many false and fabricated ahaadeeth have been narrated that say similar things. For example:
“Were it not for you, I would not have created the universe.”
This was quoted by al-Shawkaani in al-Fawaa’id al-Majmoo’ah fi’l-Ahaadeeth al-Mawdoo’ah (p. 326). He said:
Al-San’aani said: (it is) mawdoo’ (fabricated).
Al-Albaani said in al-Silsilah al-Da’eefah (282): (it is) mawdoo’.
Another example is the hadeeth narrated by al-Haakim according to which Ibn ‘Abbaas said:
“Allaah
revealed to ‘Eesa (Jesus, peace be upon him): ‘O ‘Eesa, believe in
Muhammad, and tell whoever you meet of your ummah to believe in him.
For were it not for Muhammad, I would not have created Adam, and were
it not for Muhammad, I would not have created Paradise and Hell. I
created the Throne over the water and it would not settle until I wrote
on it, Laa ilaaha ill-Allaah Muhammad Rasool Allaah (There is no god
but Allaah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah).”
Al-Haakim
said: its isnaad is saheeh! But al-Dhahabi commented on that and said:
I believe it is fabricated and falsely attributed to Sa’eed.
Meaning,
Sa’eed ibn Abu ‘Aroobah (one of the narrators of this hadeeth). This
hadeeth was narrated from him by ‘Amr ibn Aws al-Ansaari, who is the
one who is accused of fabricating it. Al-Dhahabi mentioned him in
al-Meezaan where he said: “He produced a munkar report,” then he quoted
this hadeeth, and said, “I believe that it is mawdoo’ (fabricated).”
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar agreed with him, as it says in al-Lisaan.
Al-Albaani said in al-Silsilah al-Da’eefah (280): There is no basis for it.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked:
Is
the hadeeth which some people quote – “Were it not for you, Allaah
would not have created the Throne or the Kursiy or the earth or the
heavens or the sun or the moon or anything else” saheeh or nor?
He replied:
Muhammad
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is the leader of the sons
of Adam, and the best and noblest of creation, hence some people say
that Allaah created the universe because of him, or that were it not
for him, Allaah would not have created the Throne or the Kursiy or the
earth or the heavens or the sun or the moon.
But
this hadeeth that is narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) is neither saheeh (sound) nor da’eef (weak), and it
was not narrated by any scholar in a hadeeth from the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Neither was it known from the
Sahaabah. Rather it is the words of one who is unknown.
Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 11/86-96.
The Standing Committee was asked:
Can
it be said that Allaah created the heavens and the earth for the
purpose of creating the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him)? What is the meaning of the hadeeth, “Were it not for you the
universe would not have been created,” and does this hadeeth have any
basis?
They replied:
The
heavens and the earth were not created for the sake of the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), rather they were created
for the purpose which Allaah mentions (interpretation of the
meaning):
“It
is Allaah Who has created seven heavens and of the earth the like
thereof (i.e. seven). His Command descends between them (heavens and
earth), that you may know that Allaah has power over all things, and
that Allaah surrounds all things in (His) Knowledge”
[al-Talaaq 65:12]
As
for the hadeeth mentioned, it is falsely attributed to the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and has no sound
basis.
Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 1/312
Shaykh Ibn Baaz was asked about this hadeeth and said:
The
answer is that this was transmitted from the words of some of the
common people who have no understanding. Some people say that the world
was created for the sake of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) and were it not for Muhammad the world would not have been
created and mankind would not have been created. This is false and has
no basis, and these are corrupt words. Allaah created the world so that
He would be known and worshipped. He created the world and He created
mankind so that His names and attributes, His power and knowledge,
would be known and so that He alone would be worshipped with no partner
or associate, and so that He would be obeyed – not for the sake of
Muhammad or for the sake of Nooh or Moosa or ‘Eesa or any other
Prophet. Rather Allaah created the universe so that He alone would be
worshipped, with no partner or associate.
Fataawa Noor ‘ala al-Darb, 46.
And Allaah knows best.