The imam began the reminder this week with the 164th
ayat of Sura Al-Imran which is translated to say:
Certainly did Allah confer
favor upon the believers when He sent among them a Messenger from themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom, although they had been before in manifest error.
Dear brothers and sisters, Muslims and non-Muslims alike
have remarked on our teacher and the best of creation. Despite the negative
portrayal in the media, those who have studied our beloved Prophet SAWS have commented
on how much of a positive impact he had on humanity.
In fact, the famous book and Time Magazine article by
Professor Michael Hart has him as the most influential human being that ever
lived, such is the reverence given by the non-muslims on our beloved Prophet SAWS.
Our beloved Prophet SAWS is the is the biggest favour that Allah SWT has given us. The favour
of what we have been taught by our prophet, how we have been guided and from
ignorance to knowledge and wisdom.
He is the practical
example of mercy as his life and his prayers were for his people.
Allah SWT
speaks of this in the 128th ayat of Sura Tauba in which it says:
There has certainly come to you a
Messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; [he is]
concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful.
As well as
Sura Al-Anbiya, ayat 107 which says:
And We have not sent you, [O
Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.
It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of
Allah (ﷺ) went out to the graveyard and said: “Peace be upon you, abode of
believing people. If Allah wills, we shall join you soon. Would that I had seen
our brothers.” They said: “O Messenger of Allah, are we not your
brothers?” He said: “Rather, you are my Companions. My brothers are those
who have not come yet. And I will reach the Hawd (the “drinking lake”) before
them.”
Dear brothers and sisters, let this be a reminder of the
love our Prophet SAWS had for us. We were not merely his Ummah just, but we
were referred in such a loving way.
Remember this, our Prophet SAWS prayed for us without ever
having met us. He prayed for us more than we pray for ourselves. This is the
amount of love the Prophet SAWS had for each and every one of us.
And so, we ought to reciprocate that love back in honouring
the rights of our beloved teacher and the best of all creation.
The reminder concludes with practical steps in which we can
do this:
- To love him, glorify him, respect him and
support him. We must realize that our love for the Prophet SAWS comes only
second to our love for Allah SWT. It must overtake the love we have for
anything or anyone in this life of ours. This is the role of his Ummah and a
responsibility on each and every one of us.
- To follow his lead in words and action. We must
remember that the Quran is the word of Allah SWT but the practical application
of the Quran is through the life of the Prophet SAWS. And so it becomes a
necessity to study his life, his mannerisms and his actions so that we can
follow in his footsteps. Only by doing this will we truly do justice to the
love that he had for each of us.
- To remember him. We must be mindful at all times
as to the true intention of our short life before death. It is to worship Allah
SWT, to remember Allah SWT and to follow in the footsteps of the Prophet SAWS.
We can only do this last part if the Prophet SAWS is kept in our thoughts. We
can practically do this through reminders of the life of our beloved Prophet or
through consistent sending of Salaam upon him. Place a daily alarm if you need
to get the habit formed, do what it takes to bring yourself closer to the
remembrance of him.
Dear brothers and sisters, it is a condition for our actions
and good deeds to count that we have love for the Prophet SAWS. However, we
shouldn’t think of the reward as a reason for remembering him. By simply
studying his life, his mission and recognizing the immense love and mercy he
had for us all will automatically make you want to return that love in the way
described in today’s reminder.
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Dear brothers and sisters, each and every one of us loves the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and would want to be of those closest to Him in Judgement day.
I think it is fair to say that there isn’t anyone that wouldn’t want to be the most beloved to Him?To have that closeness to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon Him, on that day is the closeness to being in Paradise.So, what does one need to do in order to be a part of this rank?
The answer, dear brothers and sisters, may surprise you. It isn’t about huge amount of fasting, or going Hajj, or being extreme in dissociating with worldly affairs, neither is having a huge amount of knowledge of being of powerful build, or power and money.
What then what could it be?Dear brothers and sisters, the answer lies in having good manners and hence the topic of this week’s khutba.
The Prophet peace and blessings be upon him said, according to a hadith:
It is of the most beloved to me and the closest to me in Judgment day are those with the best of manners.Dear brothers and sisters, Allah SWT has sent the best of Prophets, Mohamed, Peace and blessings be upon him, to teach us the best of manners.
He is reported to have said according to Hadith:
I have been sent to complete the best of MannersDear brothers and sisters, Our Prophet peace and blessings be upon him had the most complete of manners, as Allah SWT has described him in the Quran in Sura Qalam, ayat 4:You are of great Manners
So, dear brothers and sisters, how do we emulate that so that we can be of the rank spoken of earlier?
Well, having good manners is to be following in the footsteps of our beloved Prophet SAWS. And therefore the traits mentioned in the remainder of this khutba come from accounts of his manners SAWS.So therefore it is to be generous and helpful. It is to be such that one does not hurt others.It is to try and correct mistakes, and to forgive others, be quiet about others errors and mistakes, and to try and get the hearts closer to each otherGood manners is also about the challenge to maintain your relationships with family in particular; and to give those who need, and to forgive those who have oppressed you, to look after the old and to be merciful on the young, and to give each person their rights.
How appropriate is this reminder in particular with the oppression we see against Muslims, almost on a daily basis in our media.And when Aisham, may Allah be pleased with her was asked, what would the prophet peace and blessings be upon him do in his house, she said (He would do in his household what would not require others to service him, but when prayer was called he would leave for the prayer).
Dear brothers, this one is particularly for you because good manners is doing your fair share of the housework and the chores. Chauvinism doesn’t exist in our faith and good manners confirms this.The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was very generous, good with gatherings.Uthman May Allah be pleased with him said according to hadith:We have by Allah accompanied the Prophet peace and blessings be upon him while travelling and while home, and he would visit the ill, attend the funeral, would come with us into battles, and would be with us with small and large.
Dear brothers and sisters, this tells us that we need to be generous not only with the obvious but also with our time and our efforts.The prophet peace and blessings be upon him would be smiling a lot; Jareer may Allah be pleased with him said:The Prophet peace and blessings be upon Him did not see me except was smiling.Dear brothers and sisters, this is telling us that his demeanour was always a happy one. It tells us that optimisim, hope, happiness and contentment is synonymous with good manners. A smile, they say, is contagious and is also a form of charity and what sweeter charity is there to give than a smile?The Prophet peace and belssings be upon him was the most forbearing and patient, Aisha may Allah be pleased with her said
The Prophet, peace and blessings be Upon Him, did not hit anything with his hands, not a woman or a servant except when in battle for sake of Allah
Dear brothers and sisters, good manners comes with having patience, tolerance and an acute understanding that this life is a test. Things will get to us. We aren’t robots and we do have feelings. Sometimes people will cause us to be hurt or angry but the key to having good manners is to show patience and to not lose it as is more and more the norm these days. And lastly, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was the most forgiving; His people hurt him, and the Angels of the mountains asked Him if He wanted the two mountains to come together and crush those who hurt Him, He refused.
Dear brothers and sisters, good manners is knowing that even if you are wronged, you should forgive. Even if you are hurt, the manners is to forgive. Life is short and life is a test. Show mercy to fellow creations of Allah SWT so that He may be able to show mercy to you on the Day of Judgement.T
his khutba and its translation can never do justice to the vast examples of impeccable manners that were demonstrated by the Prophet SAWS. However, we must strive to learn more about his life and how he lived it so that we can learn to imitate and hopefully inherit the manners of our beloved Prophet SAWS.
May Allah SWT teach us good manners. May Allah SWT enable us to absorb examples of good manners and may Allah SWT reward us on our good manners.
Alhamdullilahi Rabilalameen.
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The greatest man ever to walk on the face of the earth, who gave respect and rights to all. A beautiful personality, who raised high the status and rights of women, children and even animals.
A man who showed mercy to all, such mercy which knew no bounds. A most humble man who forgave those who wronged him, who taught others how to live a life of simplicity and love. A man who Allah SWT called a ‘mercy upon creation’.
He took people out of ignorance and showed them the beauty of the light He bought with him. Gentle in composure, merciful in character, beautiful in manners, elegant in speech, and most compassionate and forgiving.
He was affectionate towards children and the weak, tolerant to those who oppressed him, generous to the poor and needy.
Dear brothers, this is the introduction to our Beloved Prophet Muhammed SAWS. Allah SWT mentions him in the Glorious Quran and in this khutba, reference is made to Sura An-Najm:
Your companion has not strayed nor has he erred.
Nor does he speak from his own inclination.
It is not but a revelation revealed.
Dear brothers, if we ponder over the translation of these ayats, we can see that the Prophet SAWS was sent by Allah SWT for us all. And knowing this, if we then study the life of the best of creation, we can see what a mercy he was for us all.
And to put this in perspective, we can think of it in such a way:
Around 1400 years ago he loved us. We weren’t even born yet but still he cried for us, asking Allah SWT for our forgiveness. He wanted nothing less than Jannah for each and every one of us. Despite having never met us. He had wives, children, friends and family who adored him, but it was his repetition of ‘Ya ummati, ya ummati’ in his duas that is the definition of true love. This was his dua to Allah SWT. This was the love he had for us all.
Dear brothers, we are living in a life where role models are being made of the worst of people. Pop singers, atheletes and film stars have followers in the millions. But as muslims, we don’t need to look to these people.
As Muslims, our role model is Muhammed SAWS and we need to strive to discover what that means.
Yes, it is true that the effort required in knowing him, his life and his ways is not as easy as watching the current-day role models on TV or on the internet.
However, this is where our test lies in the current age. We need to make that effort to find out who he was and why he commands our love with the manners, words and actions he displayed in his life.
In the current age, where the image of Islam is one of intolerance, we need to educate ourselves and others around us that the message of Islam and the one portrayed by our Prophet SAWS is one of tolerance and forgiveness.
This is mentioned in Sura Al-Imran and is befitting this topic. It is translated as:
So by mercy of Allah, O Muhammed you we lenient with them. And if you had been rude in speech and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from about you.
So pardon them and ask for forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then reply upon Allah. Indeed, Allah loves those who rely upon Him.
Dear brothers, this ayat is one of many that demonstrates how we need to behave in the society that we now find ourselves in. Allah SWT illustrates the compassion and the mercy of our role model SAWS in the ayat. The following Bukhari hadith also illustrates his love and compassion. He said:
When I enter the prayer I intend to prolong it. Then I hear the crying of a child, so I shorten it knowing the difficulty his mother will have with him crying.
Dear brothers, we are obliged to invite others to the correct path. So in today’s day and age, how does one achieve this? The answer to this is simple but the effort is life-long. It is simply to follow in the path of our beloved Prophet SAWS. To emulate his behaviour, his manners and his way of dealing with worldly matters is the best Dawah that we can do in this day and age.
And by following his path, we can become a beacon to the truth for those who are lost around us. We can perform Dawah without ever having to stand up and do a speech on our faith. And alongside that achievement, we will have achieved the best we can In this life and that is to emulate our beloved Prophet Muhammed SAWS.
May Allah SWT give us the will to study the life of our beloved Prophet SAWS. May Allah SWT enable us to follow in the path of our beloved Prophet SAWS. And may Allah SWT reward us for our efforts to emulate the Prophet SAWS.
Ameen wal hamdullilahi rabilalameen.
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Dear brothers, in our current climate, we are faced with the constant barrage of negative news relating to Islam.
In fact, as muslims living in this time and place, we are obliged to keep on our toes with current affairs and educate those who approach us with the misconceptions they see in the media.
As a muslim, in this day and age, how does one reply to a non-muslim asking about the behaviour of muslims that are portrayed by the media? Whether it is in our workplace, our local community or our place of education, we need to be prepared for this question.
Dear brothers, the answer lies in the best of creation. SAWS. When asked about the news on the television, as muslims, we simply respond with the following:
If you want to know about how a muslim should be then study the life of our Prophet Muhammed, peace be upon him.
So, who is our beloved Prophet SAWS?
In answer to the question that will be asked of us. He was born in the year 570. Since his father died before his birth and his mother died shortly thereafter, he was raised by his grandfather and uncle.
As he grew up, he became known to be truthful, honest, trustworthy, generous and sincere. In fact he was so trustworthy that he was referred to as the Trustworthy. SAWS.
Our beloved prophet SAWS was very religious from an early age detested the decadence and idolatry of his society.
After the Quran began to be revealed to the Prophet SAWS, the following ayat from Sura Ibrahim and the ayat from Sura Al Maida are ones that the hadith of the Prophet SAWS is reported to have said frequently:
My Lord, indeed they have led astray many among the people. So whoever follows me – then he is of me; and whoever disobeys me – indeed You are Forgiving and Merciful.
If you should punish them – indeed they are your servants; but if you forgive them –– indeed it is You who is the Exalted in might, The Wise.
Dear brothers, the Prophet Muhammed SAWS is our role model, our teacher, our guide and a mercy upon us all.
So what does it mean to emulate in the footsteps of the greatest of all creation? We all know that to follow in his footsteps is to be in accordance with the Sunnah.
However, with so many examples offered, is there a definitive list of behavioural traits that we can all try to adhere to?
Allah SWT has already blessed us with some of these traits and reference to this is given in Sura Al-Tharyiat:
And on the Earth are signs for the certain in faith, and in yourselves. Then will you not see?
Dear brothers, our aim in life is to emulate the Prophet SAWS in every way possible for our own sakes and for the sakes of those around us. This is because by adopting the habits of our beloved Prophet SAWS, we can become the true signs for those around us that are being bombarded with an misconception of Islam and Muslims.
This khutba concludes then with a list of character traits of the Prophet SAWS which we should all try to emulate. It is titled the Prophet’s lifestyle for those wishing to reference it online at a point in the future. It is to:
Talk softly. To Walk Humbly. To eat sensibly. To breathe deeply. To sleep sufficiently. To dress properly. To interact politely. To act fearlessly. To work patiently. To think truthfully. To behave decently. To believe correctly. To learn practically. To plan orderly. To earn honestly. To spend intelligently. To sacrifice regularly. To serve parents happily. To respect neighbours appropriately. To never hate one another. To never be jealous of one another. To never think ill of one another. To always remain brothers unto each other. And To worship dedicatedly.
Dear brothers, we will be asked how we propagated Islam on the Day of Judgement. Let our behaviour and habits answer that for us. This can only be the case when our habits and our behaviour emulates the Prophet’s SAWS behaviour.
May Allah SWT enable us to understand the importance of good behaviour. May Allah SWT enable us to emulate the behaviour of the Prophet SAWS. And may Allah SWT reward us for emulating the behaviour of the Prophet SAWS.
Ameen wal hamdullilahi rabilalameen.
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Dear brothers, today is a momentous day in the Islamic calendar. Today is the day of Arafat.
Millions of Muslims are gathered today on the mountain plains of Arafat, supplicating to their Lord and thus sealing their Hajj pilgrimage.
Today also marks the day in which millions over the world are stepping up their acts of worship. Many are fasting on this day in order to seek the pleasure and forgiveness of Allah SWT.
Besides the exhilaration that the events of this day brings, there is also a tinge of sadness associated with this day as it is the day that our beloved Prophet SAWS delivered his final sermon to his nation or Ummah.
His final sermon, like everything else in his speech, was full of love and compassion for all. Allah SWT mentions the messenger SAWS in Sura Al Toba:
There has certainly come to you a Messenger from amongst yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; he is concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful.
Dear brothers, we are so blessed to belong to his nation, his ummah. Allah SWT tells us in the Quran how lucky we are in Sura Al-Baqarah. In this ayat, prophet Ismael (peace be upon him), is supplicating to Allah SWT for our Prophet’s arrival:
Our Lord, and send among them a messenger for themselves who will recite to them Your verses and teach them the Book and wisdom and purify them. Indeed you are the Exalted in might, the wise.
Dear brothers, the final sermon by the Prophet SAWS was delivered on this day and shortly before his death and is considered by many to be one of the earliest declarations of human rights in written history.
In this sermon, Muslims find their deep commitment to the universal human values such as sacredness of life and property, equality, justice, peace and more. Upon these high universal values, the religion of Islam was built.
What follows is his final sermon for us all to ponder upon in this blessed day:
“O People, listen well to my words, for I do not know whether, after this year, I shall ever be among you again. Therefore, listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.
O People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Treat others justly so that no one would be unjust to you. Remember that you will indeed meet your LORD, and that HE will indeed reckon your deeds. God has forbidden you to take usury (riba), therefore all riba obligation shall henceforth be waived. Your capital, however, is yours to keep. You will neither inflict nor suffer inequity. God has judged that there shall be no riba and that all the riba due to `Abbas ibn `Abd al Muttalib shall henceforth be waived.
Every right arising out of homicide and blood-killing in pre-Islamic days is henceforth waived and the first such right that I waive is that arising from the murder of Rabi`ah ibn al Harith ibn `Abd al Muttalib.
O people, the Unbelievers indulge in tampering with the calendar in order to make permissible that which God forbade, and to forbid that which God has made permissible. With God the months are 12 in number. Four of them are sacred, three of these are successive and one occurs singly between the months of Jumada and Sha`ban. Beware of the devil, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.
O People, it is true that you have certain rights over your women, but they also have rights over you. Remember that you have taken them as your wives only under God’s trust and with His permission. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Treat your women well and be kind to them, for they are your partners and committed helpers. It is your right and they do not make friends with anyone of whom you do not approve, as well as never to be unchaste…
O People, listen to me in earnest, worship God (The One Creator of the Universe), perform your five daily prayers (Salah), fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your financial obligation (zakah) of your wealth. Perform Hajj if you can afford to.
All mankind is from Adam and Eve. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over a black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves.
Remember, one day you will appear before God (The Creator) and you will answer for your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.
O People, no prophet or messenger will come after me and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand words, which I convey to you. I am leaving you with the Book of God (the Quran) and my Sunnah (the life style and the behavioral mode of the Prophet). If you follow them you will never go astray.
All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly. Be my witness O God, that I have conveyed your message to your people.”
Dear brothers, that concludes the final sermon of our beloved messenger SAWS. May Allah SWT give us the ability to appreciate the words of his final sermon. May Allah SWT enable us to adhere to the guidance given in his final sermon. And may Allah SWT include us in his mercy on this blessed day of Arafat.
Ameen wal hamdullilahi rabilalameen.
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