Answered by Shaykh Amjad Rasheed
What is the wisdom behind reciting the blessings upon the Chosen One (may Allah bless him and give him peace) – while he is the best of creation and the most beloved to Allah?
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate
May His blessings and peace be on His Beloved Prophet, the best of creation, and his family, companions, and followers
First: The recommended recital of the blessings upon the Prophet- may Allah bless him and give him peace- is one of the rulings of Allah (Glory be to Him). Every Divine ruling has wisdoms and merits that we may or may not comprehend. As Muslims who acknowledge the deity of Allah and who believe that He is the wisest of the wise, we should obey His commands even if we fail to see the wisdom behind them.
Second: The reward and grace with which Allah endows His beloved friends exceed all boundaries. Above every degree Allah grants to someone, there is another degree higher than it. Although prophets share the greatest station; namely, prophethood, Allah has preferred some prophets above others. He, for example, preferred the Messengers of High Resolve (Ulu al-`azm) above other prophets. Likewise, He preferred our liegelord, the Chosen One- may Allah bless him and give him peace- above his other brothers, the Messengers of High Resolve.
The Prophet – may Allah bless him and give him peace- is continually rewarded as people become believers or when Muslims do righteous deeds, for the guide to the good has the same reward as the doer of it, and there is no good we enjoy in this religion besides what has emerged from the Prophetic message.
Thus our faith and righteous deeds raise the rank of the Prophet – may Allah bless him and give peace- and this is why our Shafi`i scholars state that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) benefits from the blessings we recite upon him.
However, scholars say that it is not proper manners (Adab) to mention this in other than the context of teaching; nor is it proper manners for the reciter to even observe it. Rather, one should bless the Prophet- may Allah bless him and give him peace- out of love for him and out of the desire to draw closer to him.
Third: Although the Prophet – may Allah bless him and give peace- benefits from the blessings we recite upon him, one must know that the true beneficiary is he who needs the Divine grace and reward which are obtained through blessing the Prophet = may Allah bless him and give him peace.
As for the Prophet- Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him- the Divine grace has been guaranteed to him and he has been raised to the praiseworthy station (al-Maqam al-Mahmood) by his Beloved such that lack of blessings does not harm him. The true lover reaches his beloved with every blessing without waiting for a reason, and Allah has better right to such a love, for He is the Most Merciful of the merciful and He is the Most Generous of the generous. If He forgives the disobedient without a reason except His enormous mercy and His great grace and largess, how then should He treat His Chosen Beloved, the scrown of creation? Your lord shall give you, and you shall be satisfied ( Quran 93:5).
Fourth: There are many merits obtained by the reciter of the blessings upon the Prophet – may Allah bless him and give him peace- and every Muslim should look these merits up in the books that record them such as Ad-Durr il-Mandud by Ibn Hajar al-Haytami who mentions about 40 merits therein.
May Allah guide us to every good.
– Amjad Rasheed
(Translated by Abu Muhammad al-Rahil)