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Acts of worship are justified in the Noble Quran
Dear believing brothers, last lesson, which was last Friday, I discussed some of the rituals of Al-Hajj and we come to ritual of As-Sa'i (making seven rounds between As-Safa and Al-Marwah in Makkah). Before I start with this ritual, I would like to tell you something: The acts of worship, dear brother, are justified in the Noble Quran; the Command of Allah can never be without a reason or a purpose. As for the command of people, it is far above being without a purpose, so how about the Command of the Creator of people, the Lord of all Worlds, the All-Wise the Omniscient, the All-Hearing the All-Seer, the Originator of the heavens and earth? Is it reasonable to have His Command without a noble goal or a great purpose?
(Verily, As-Salât (the prayer) prevents from Al-Fahshâ' (i.e. great sins of every kind, unlawful sexual intercourse, etc.) and Al-Munkar (i.e. disbelief, polytheism, and every kind of evil wicked deed, etc)
The prevention from great sins and evil as long as one performs Salah perfectly is self-prevention. In life there are two things: The first thing is that man-made laws deter man from violating them by punishments, and so they are based on deterrents. For instance, if the policeman is not watching the traffic, man violates the traffic law. Unlike this law, the Divine Commands are based on the internal restrain:
(Verily, As-Salât (the prayer) prevents from Al-Fahshâ' (i.e. great sins of every kind, unlawful sexual intercourse, etc.) and Al-Munkar (i.e. disbelief, polytheism, and every kind of evil wicked deed, etc)
This prevention has to do with the internal restrain. In a big city in America, one night the electricity was cut off, so 200.000 robberies took place in one night. This indicates that the discipline of people is not because of the purity of their souls or their sublimity, but rather because there is a precise punishment which no one can escape. Hence, if the system of life is based on the principle of deterrent, people will set themselves free from the bonds of law, the minute censorship is cancelled. The Divine system, on the other hand, is based on the internal restrain.
Our master Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, once met a nomad man who was grazing his sheep. He told him, "Give me that sheep and take its price." the shepherd said, "It is not mine", but then Umar said, "Tell its owner that the sheep died." He said, "It is not mine." After that Umar said, "Tell its owner that the wolf ate it", but the nomad man replied, "It is not mine". Umar said, "Take its price", to which the shepherd said, "By Allah, I need its price badly, and if I say to its owner that it died or the wolf ate it, he will believe me, because he considers me faithful and truthful, but can I escape the punishment of Allah? This is how Islam should be manifested, and this is the internal restrain:
((What a good servant Suhaib is! If he didn't fear Allah, he would not disobey Him.))
Performing prayers is justified to be for noble purposes:
(Verily, As-Salât (the prayer) prevents from Al-Fahshâ' (i.e. great sins of every kind, unlawful sexual intercourse, etc.) and Al-Munkar (i.e. disbelief, polytheism, and every kind of evil wicked deed, etc)
Fasting is also justified to be performed for noble purposes:
(O you who believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become Al-Muttaqûn- the pious)
You may elevate from the rank of belief to the rank of piety, from the rank of taste to the rank of sight and from stop descending to keep ascending.
As for Zakat:
(Take Sadaqah (alms) from their wealth in order to purify them and sanctify them with it, and invoke Allâh for them. Verily! Your invocations are a source of security for them,)
Salat, Siyam, and Zakat are all justified:
(Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts, etc.). That is purer for them. )
"That is purer for them" is the purpose. There is no Divine Command that is not justified by a noble purpose, sublime salvation, elevation, proximity or happiness for acting upon it.
The symbols of As-Safa, Al-Marwah and standing at Arafah:
Last lesson, we stopped at the ritual of making seven rounds between As-Safa and Al-Marwah. Almighty Allah says:
(Verily! As-Safâ and Al-Marwah (two mountains in Makkah) are of the Symbols of Allâh. So it is not a sin on him who perform Hajj or 'Umrah (pilgrimage) of the House (the Ka'bah at Makkah) to perform the going (Tawâf) between them (As-Safâ and Al-Marwah).)
Al-Imam Muslim narrated that Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said:
((The Prophet, peace be upon him, performed Sa'i between As-Safa and Al-Marwah, and so it has become Sunnah.))
In another narration, Aishah also said:
((By my life, Allah will not complete the Hajj of one who has not circumambulated between As-Safa and Al-Marwah.))
The conditions of performing the running forth and back between As-Safa and Al-Marwah are: To be performed after circumambulation, to be seven Ashawt (rounds) and to start with As-Safa and ends with Al-Marwah. Thus, congratulations to the believer who makes seven rounds between As-Safa and Al-Marwah till his soul gets purified, expressing his humbleness to Almighty Allah, and congratulations to the believer who says while performing Sa'i between As-Safa and Al-Marwah, "O my Lord forgive me and have mercy upon me, You are the Most Mighty and the Most Generous.
On the 8th day of Zul-Hijjah, the pilgrims go to Mina to spend the night there, perform the five prayers and prepare themselves to the day of the great meeting; the day of Arafah. When the sun rises on the 9th day of Zul-Hijjah, pilgrims head towards Arafat, responding to Allah's call, saying Tahlil (La ilaha illa Allah: There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah Alone) and Takbeer (Allahu Akbar: Allah is the Greatest).
Scholars agreed on considering standing at Arafat the greatest symbol of Hajj. At this Mount, the spiritual meeting takes place. Furthermore, at it the believer feels the spirituality of this place, which cleans his heart from evils and forbidden lusts, purifies his soul from stains and worries and elevates him to the highest level. In fact at Arafat, while the pilgrim feels this spiritual atmosphere there is one thing which hurts him most: It is feeling sorry for the days and nights that he wasted in trivial matters and worldly worries. Moreover, the pilgrim feels his humanness and the immortality of his soul in His Lord's sacred place. He feels that the worldly life is not worth a wing of mosquito and "were this world worth a wing of mosquito, He (Almighty Allah) would not have given a drink of water to an infidel.". Also, he realizes the mission for which he was created, the truth of life and that the worldly life is a preparing stage for the Hereafter.
(Verily! Man is in loss,* Except those who believe (in Islâmic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, and recommend one another to the truth (i.e. order one another to perform all kinds of good deeds (Al-Ma'which Allâh has ordained, and abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds (Al-Munkar which Allâh has forbidden), and recommend one another to patience (for the sufferings, harms, and injuries which one may encounter in Allâh's Cause during preaching His religion of Islâmic Monotheism or Jihâd, etc.).
Whoever stands at Arafat lives the meaning of the Hadith Qudsi:
((O son of Adam! Ask for Me and you will find Me, and if you find Me you will have found everything, but if you lose Me you will have lost everything. And I should be dearer than everything to you.))
Besides, when he tastes the sweetness of the meeting with Allah, supplicating Him and of being immersed into the pleasure of His Proximity, the worldly life becomes smaller in his sight,, and it moves from his heart to his hand, his main concern becomes the Hereafter, he seeks a seat of truth (i.e. Paradise), near the Omnipotent King (Allah, the All-Blessed, the Most High, the Owner of Majesty and Honour), he discovers that whatever calamity Allah afflicts him with is due to Allah's pure love and care for him and he comprehends the meaning of the following Noble Hadith:
((Allah protects His believing servant from worldly life like when one of you protects the sick person from harmful food.))
Almighty Allah says:
(It may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you. Allah knows but you do not know.)
In addition to the above mentioned facts, at Arafat, it becomes clear to the pilgrim that the true happiness is only achieved when the human soul turns to its Lord, becomes under His Mercy, gets closer to His Majesty and works on helping his creations. Also, he realizes that all the ritual acts of worship and the transactional ones Almighty Allah has ordained on us are for maintaining this feeling of spirituality and the sweetness of this Proximity. However, you hear pilgrims saying things which make you shocked. For instance, someone said that when he was at Arafat he fell in a deep sleep, because his tent had air-conditioner, someone else said that when he was at Arafat, he ate kinds of foods which he had never eaten before and another pilgrim said that he spent his time listening to music although he is at Arafat! Whoever performs Hajj before having any idea about what Hajj is becomes a burden on the other pilgrims; he embitters and disturbs their Hajj and he distracts them by his mistakes and deviations.
Dear believing brother, if the pilgrim stands at Arafat this means that he has a meeting with Almighty Allah as standing at Arafat is the greatest meeting with Almighty Allah in the worldly life:
(So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.")
Hence, people should have knowledge before performing Hajj since Hajj is one of the acts of worship which needs great preparations. The Prophet peace be upon him, defined Al-Hajj saying:
((Al-Hajj is Arafah.))
You can understand the two interpretations of this Hadith, dear brother. The first interpretation: Standing at Arafat is the major pillar of Hajj, so whoever misses standing at Arafat, his Hajj is invalid.
The other interpretation of it is: Hajj is a spiritual trip whose main purpose is knowing Allah and relieving the soul from the trouble of the worldly life and of the pilgrim's position. The pilgrim could occupy a glorified, envied or served position, but while performing Hajj, he no more occupies his prominent position. Also, he leaves behind his comfortable house, his faithful wife and his good children, and he travels alone to meet with his Lord, to get connected with Him, to get away from the trouble of the worldly life and to turn his back to the worldly life for the purpose of devoting himself to supplicate his Lord. I repeat again:
((Al-Hajj is Arafah.))
If you come back to your country the same person (without having any changes to your soul)you are as if you never perform Hajj.
Dear brother, it is recommended for the pilgrims to make the same Du'a the Prophet, peace be upon him, used to make:
((There is no god but Allah, alone, He has no partners. To Him belongs the dominion and all praise and He has power over all things. O Allah, place light in my heart, my hearing and my sight. O Allah, My Lord bring tranquility to my heart and give me ease in my affair. O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of the grave, the whispering of the devil and from my affairs being in disarray. O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the evil which comes with the day, from the evil which comes with the night and from the evil which the wind carries.))
The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to make the following Du'a repeatedly on the day of Arafat:
((O Allah to You belongs all praise, as we praise You and better than that. O Allah my prayer, worship, life and death are for You, and to You is my return. Everything I possess, my Lord, returns to You.))
Dear brother, it is recommended for those who do not perform Hajj to fast on the day of Arafat, but it is not for those who perform Hajj. The pilgrims are not supposed to fast in order to have energy that will enable them to remember Allah and make Du'a to Him. Also, it is Sunnah to perform Jame' Taqdeem Zuhr with Asr (combining Asr with Zuhr prayers in the time of Zuhr prayer) and to have Al-Khutbah before them both. Moreover, it is Sunnah to leave Arafat before the sunset quietly and solemnly, because the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((O people! Proceed calmly. No virtue lies in rushing.))
The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to walk slowly and gently, but when he found a space between people, he hurried to fill it.
Dear brother, we will continue the rituals of Al-Hajj in the next Khutbah insha' Allah.
The good husband
Dear believing brother, the story which I would like to tell you revolves around the following Hadith of the Prophet, peace be upon him:
((If there comes to you one with whose religion and attitude you are satisfied, then give your daughter to him in marriage, for if you do not do so, fitnah and mischief will become widespread on earth.))
What made people fall in corruption and deviations? It is the difficulties of marriage and the huge expenses that no young man can bear. Listen carefully to this story and learn from the deeds of As-Salaf As-Saleh (the Pious Predecessors).
Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abi Wada': I used to be in the company of Sa'id Ibn Al-Musayyib, and when I was absent from his lessons for a day or two, Ibn Al-Musayyib missed me, so when he saw me, he asked me, "Where have you been?" Ibn Abi Wada' said, "My wife died, and I buried her. I was busy with that." Ibn Al-Musayyib said, "Why did you not tell us to attend her funeral and offer you condolence?" I kept silent, and when I was about to leave, he asked me, "Are you single now? Did you marry again?" I said, "No, I didn't. May Allah have mercy upon you, I am broke. Who would marry me, and all I have is two dirhams or three?" Ibn Al-Musayyib said, "I would; I am Sa'id Ibn Al-Musayyib would like you to marry my daughter." Then I said, "Would you really do that?" He said, "Absolutely." Upon hearing this, he (Ibn Abi Wada') praised Allah and sent blessings on the Prophet, peace be upon him.
Ibn Abi Wada' said, "When I got home after I performed Maghrib prayer, I lighted the lamp and prepared my Iftar as I was fasting. All I had to eat was bread and oil. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. I asked who it was, and he said, "It's Sa'id." All the Sa'ids I know came to my mind except for Sa'id Ibn Al-Musayyib, who for 40 years did not go too far from his home or Masjid. For 40 years, Ibn Al-Musayyib would walk from his home to the Masjid where he calls people to Allah and judges between them, and back, without visiting anyone."
Ibn Wada' said, "I opened the door, and saw Ibn Al-Musayyib. I thought that he changed his mind about the matter of my marriage." I said, "If you had called me, I would have come to you." He said, "You deserve that we come to you." Then I said, "How can I help you?" To which he replied, "You are a good man, so I didn't want you to spend even one night as a single man." Behind him was his daughter, whom he had married off to me. He pushed her towards me, and he shut the door behind him and was gone. I got married to her and she was the most perfect women, the best memorizer of Allah's Book, the most knowledgeable of the Sunnah of Allah's Messenger and the most knowledgeable of the husband's rights upon his wife.
The moral lesson of the story is deduced from these lines:
Sa'id starkly refused to allow for his daughter to become the first lady of the Islamic state, and this was when the Khalifah Abdul Malik wanted to engage her to his son Al-Walid.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((The woman who has the greatest blessings is the one whose dowry is the least))
In another Hadith, the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((The woman who has the greatest blessings is the one whose costs are the least.))
I would like to repeat the Hadith which I've just mentioned: The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((If there comes to you one with whose religion and attitude you are satisfied, then give your daughter to him in marriage, for if you do not do so, fitnah anmischief will become widespread on earth.))
That story indicates the behavior of the Pious Predecessors regarding marriage. Almighty Allah says:
(And among His Signs is this, that He created for you wives from among yourselves, that you may find repose in them, and He has put between you affection and mercy. )
The difficulties of life, the expensive dowries and the demands of the girl's family which are beyond one's scope make it impossible for the young men to get married. As a result, they morally deviate, and the society pays a heavy price because of their deviation.
Dear believing brother, Allah's Shari'ah should be followed:
(And indeed a slave woman who believes is better than a (free) Mushrikah (idolatress, etc.), even though she pleases you. And give not (your daughters) in marriage to Al-Mushrikûn[] till they believe (in Allâh Alone) and verily, a believing slave is better than a (free) Mushrik (idolater, etc.), even though he pleases you)
Whoever marries a woman for her money, Almighty Allah will humiliate him, whoever marries a woman for her beauty Almighty Allah will humiliate him, Whoever marries a woman for her money Almighty Allah will impoverish him and whoever marries a woman for her linage Almighty Allah will make him more inferior, so select the pious, may you be blessed. Almighty Allah has made it a right upon Himself to help whoever abstains from having affairs but in Halal (by marriage). The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((There are three whom it is a right upon Allah to help: one who gets married seeking chastity…))
Dear brother, call yourselves to account before you are called to do so and weigh your deeds before they are weighed against you. You should know that the angel of death has been reaching sh3er and will reach us soon, so pay heed. A wise man is the one who calls himself to account (and refrains from doing evil deeds) and does noble deeds to benefit him after death; and the foolish person is the one who subdues himself to his temptations and desires and seeks from Allah the fulfillment of his vain desires.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.
2nd Khutbah:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, the Guardian of the pious, and I testify that our Master Muhammad is his Slave and Messenger and the final Prophet among all Prophets and Messengers. O Allah, have Your peace and blessings upon our Master Muhammad, his Folks and his Companions.
The greatness of the mother's heart:
Dear believing brother, one of the Sings that indicate Allah's Greatness is the mother's heart. I am not referring to the physical heart which consists of two auricles and two ventricles, arteries and veins, but it is the emotional one. Scholars said, "The strongest motive in mankind is the motive of motherhood." In fact this motive is the strongest not only in mankind but also in all living creatures. The evidences about the mercy of the mother among all living creatures are countless. The Messenger of Allah said:
((Let the person who is undutiful to his parents does whatever he wishes as he will never be forgiven.))
Also, he, peace be upon him, said:
((Let the person who is undutiful to his parents does whatever he wishes as he will never be admitted to Al-Jannah (Paradise).))
Furthermore when the mother died, Almighty Allah says to her child:
((O son of Adam! She has passed away for whose sake we used to honor you. So now do good so that we honor you for it.))
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
((Whoever deserts one of his parents for one hour in the day, he will be one of the people of the Hell till he repents.))
An insect burrows in the wood a rectangular hole, and then it brings the pollen of flowers and some leaves in order to fill that hole with them. After a while, it lays an egg, and then it brings sawdust and makes it as a roof to that hole. As it finishes, it dies. The egg hatches and the larva finds enough food for one year:
(Fir'aun (Pharaoh) said: "Who then, O Mûsa (Moses), is the Lord of you two?"* [Mûsa (Moses)] said: "Our Lord is He Who gave to each thing its form and nature, then guided it a right.")
The female hornet burrows a tunnel in the ground for its little hornets. Then, it searches for a worm in order to sting it and make it numb, and it drags it to the tunnel. When female hornet lays the eggs, it plugs the tunnel up, leaving fresh food for her little hornets for a long time, and then it dies.
Some of the female birds feed their babies more than 1.300 times a day. They keep feeding their little birds from sunrise till sunset.
The she-camel weeps for the loss of her little camels. Similarly, the female dog cries when her puppy is run over by a car. I saw that with my own eyes. The female horse cries for the loss of her foal too, and she never allows anyone to get nearer to it. Also, when it is carried to be buried, she follows it and stays near her foal's grave. Unlike her, when someone is buried, people immediately leave him alone and return to their houses, although the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, ordained us to stay with the deceased for a while in order to reauthor some Ayat to him and to ease his desolation. The female horse not only stays besides the grave of her foal, but also she abstains from eating and drinking.
Dear believing brother, I would like to repeat this point: One of the Sings which indicate Allah's Greatness is the mother's heart, not the humane one but the one of other species.
Supplication:
O Allah, we beseech You to show us the way of righteousness together with those to whom You showed it; and to give us good health together with those whom You have healed; and to be our Protector, as You are of those whom You protect; and to bless what You have bestowed on us; and to save us from the affliction that You have decreed –for You rule with justice and You are never judged.
O Allah, increase us [in Your Blessings] and do not decrease us, honor us and do not humiliate us, give us [from Your Gifts] and do not deprive us, be in favor of us and not against us, and make us satisfied and be satisfied with us.
O Allah, forgive our sins, cover our defects, accept our repentance, set us free, set right our salvation, fulfill the hopes which please You and let the last of our deeds be the best, O Lord of the worlds.
O Allah, conceal our flaws, secure us against our fears, make us secure in our countries and make this country and all other Muslim countries safe and secure.
O Allah, by Your Mercy and Benevolence, raise high the word of truth and this Deen, grant triumph to Islam, dignify Muslims and lead the rulers of Muslims to what pleases You, O Lord of the Worlds, as You are the only One Who is capable over His decreed.
