Is it better to say in our prayer Sayyiduna Muhammad (our master Muhammad)?

Question

Praise be to Allah.

Firstly:

Undoubtedly referring to the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) as “sayyid (master)” is quite valid, for he
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is our master, and indeed
the master of all of mankind. Muslim (2278) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “I will be the master (or leader) of
he sons of Adam on the Day of Resurrection.” And al-Tirmidhi (3615) narrated
that Abu Sa’eed (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “I will be the
master (or leader) of the sons of Adam on the Day of Resurrection and I am
not boasting. In my hand will be a banner of praise and I am not boasting.
There will be no Prophet that day, Adam or anyone else, but he will be
beneath my banner. I am the first one for whom the earth will be split open
and I am not boasting.” Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh
al-Tirmidhi.

Secondly:

It must be noted that acts of worship are based on following,
and nothing can be added to any act of worship as it was prescribed by the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This
is one of the signs of a person’s love for Allaah, may He be glorified and
exalted. Allaah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say (O Muhammad
صلى الله عليه وسلم to mankind):
‘If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic
Monotheism, follow the Qur’aan and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you and
forgive you your sins. And Allaah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful’”

[Aal ‘Imraan 3:31]

Following means doing it as he did it, and saying it as he
said it, refraining from that which he refrained from, and not adding
anything to it or subtracting anything from what he did.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: “Whoever does an action that is not part of this matter of ours
(Islam) will have it rejected.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2697) and Muslim
(1718).

What is narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) in the tashahhud in prayer is: “Wa ashhadu anna
Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu (and I bear witness that Muhammad is His
slave and Messenger)”. And what is narrated with regard to sending blessings
on him is: “Allaahumma salli ‘ala Muhammadin … Allaahumma baarik ‘ala
Muhammadin (O Allaah, send blessings upon Muhammad … O Allaah, bless
Muhammad).” It is not narrated at all that he taught us to say “Sayyidana”,
so we should not add to what the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) enjoined us to say and taught us. This is undoubtedly better.
How can it be better to go against the teaching of the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him), when he (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used to say every Friday in his khutbah, and announce it
from the minbar: “The best of speech is the Book of Allaah and the best of
guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him).” Narrated by Muslim (867).

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked:
Is it better to say, when sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), “sayyidana” because it is an apt
description of him, or not to say that because it is not narrated in the
reports?

He replied:

Following the phrases that have been narrated is better, and
it should not be said that he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) refrained from saying that out of humility but his ummah is recommended
to say that every time he is mentioned, because we say: If that was correct,
it would have been narrated from the Sahaabah then from the Taabi’een, and
we have not found anything in the reports from any of the Sahaabah or
Taabi’een to suggest that he said that, even though there are so many
reports on this topic.

Then he quoted some reports from some of the Sahaabah and
Taabi’een, and from Imam al-Shaafa’i, in which the word “Sayyidana” is not
mentioned … Then he said:

This issue is well known in the books of fiqh. The point is
that none of the fuqaha’ who discussed this issue used the word “sayyidana”.
If this addition had been recommended, it would not have been unknown to
them and they would not have ignored it. All goodness is in following and
Allaah knows best. End quote.

Quoted from him by al-Albaani in his book Sifat al-Salaah
(The Prophet’s Prayer Described), p. 153-155.

The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked: Is it
permissible for us to say when speaking of the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “Sayyiduna Muhammad (our master
Muhammad)” in contexts other than those which are narrated in texts such as
al-salaah al-Ibraheemiyyah (sending blessings upon the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in the prayer) etc?

They replied:

With regard to sending blessings on the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in the tashahhud, there is
no report – as far as we know – in which the word “sayyiduna” is mentioned,
i.e., “Allaahumma salli ‘ala sayyidina Muhammad (O Allaah, send
blessing upon our master Muhammad)” etc. The same applies to the adhaan and
iqaamah, in which the word “sayyiduna” is not used because it is not
mentioned in the saheeh ahaadeeth in which the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) taught his companions how to send blessings
upon him, and how to say the adhaan and iqaamah. Acts of worship are
tawqeefi (i.e., they are to be done exactly as described in the texts) and
nothing is to be added to them that has not been prescribed by Allaah. As
for saying this word in other contexts, there is nothing wrong with it,
because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“I will be the master of the sons of Adam on the Day of Resurrection and I
am not boasting.” End quote.

Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah
(7/65).