REMEMBERING ALLAH IN HARD TIMES.
“A-úthu billaahi minash shaytaanir rajeem. Bismillaahir rahmaanir raheem
Al hamdu lillahi nahmaduhu wanasta’eenahu, wanastagh-firuhu, wanatoobu ilayhi, wana’oothu Billaahi min shuroori an-fusinaa, wamin sayyi aati a’maalinaa. May- Yahdillahu fa huwal muhtad, wa may- yudlill falan tajidaa lahu waliyan murshida. Wa ash-hadu an Laa ilaaha ill-Allah, wahdahoo laa shareeka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhoo warasooluh”
All Praise is due to Allah, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds. Anyone who is guided by Allah is indeed guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, peace and blessings on him, is His servant, and His
messenger.
يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَََّّ حَقَّ تُق اتِهِ وَلََ تَمُوتُنَّ إِلََّ وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem! Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, haqqa tuqaatihee wala tamu tun-na, il-la wa antum Muslimoon.”
O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, with correct awareness, an awe-inspired awareness, and die not except as Muslims.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَََّّ وَقُولُوا قَوْلًَ سَدِيدًا يُصْلِحْ لَكُمْ أَعْمَالَكُمْ
وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَََّّ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ فَازَ فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا
Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, wa qooloo qawlan sadeedaa. Yuslih-lakum a’maalakum wa yaghfir lakum thunoobakum, wamay yu-til-laaha warasoolah, faqad faaza fawzan atheemaa.”
O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, and speak a straightforward word. He will forgive your sins and repair your deeds. And whoever takes Allah and His Prophet as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory.
In the opening verse of Sura An-Nisaa’, Allah says:
“O mankind! Show reverence towards your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate and from the two of them scattered (like seeds) countless men and women;― Be conscious of Allah, through Whom ye demand your mutual (rights) and (show reverence towards) the wombs (that bore you): for surely, Allah ever watches over you.”
My Dear Sisters and Brothers,
In Sura Bani Isra’eel (Chapter 17: verse 70) we read:
“We have honoured the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of our creation.”
Then we also read, in Sura Ruum, The Romans, (Chapter 30;v41):
“Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by [reason of] what the hands of people have earned so He (Allah) may let them taste some of [the consequence of] what they have done (so) that perhaps they will return [to right behaviour].”
Let us consider these two verses, in the light of what is happening in right now in the world today.
On the one hand, our generous Life-Giver has honoured all human beings with the means to travel vast distances across the planet earth and even into space. Allah has also given us abundant crops and animals for good and wholesome food.
Besides this, Allah has given the human species many special gifts that other creatures do not have: the enormous power of the human brain, for example.
But how have we responded? How has humanity shown its gratitude for the gifts from heaven? Have we offered thanks to Allah in the way that Allah deserves?
We must admit that for most of us, our response has not been sufficient. Right now, we human beings face an existential crisis: Our reckless lifestyles have driven a climate emergency that is near tipping point. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread far more widely and quickly because of clumsy leadership. Unscrupulous and shameless politicians and their friends in the media spread blatant lies to foster fear and hate. Endless wars are killing, maiming and displacing millions of people around the world. How did we get into this mess?
The simple answer is that some of us have forgotten where we’ve come from, where we’re going to, and why we’re here. We’ve forgotten our Generous Life-Giver. We’ve forgotten that Allah is the Owner and Guardian of everything. We are only tenants in His property.
The way out of our difficulty is to remember Allah, our Generous Landlord, with gratitude. Not just on special occasions, and not just when we’re in trouble. We must remember Allah constantly, especially when life is safe and easy.
“Remember Allah and you will find Him in front of you. Remember Allah in times of ease, and Allah will recognise you in times of distress” says a well known Hadith narrated by Ibn Abbas. “What hit you could not have missed you. What missed you could not have hit you. Remember that victory comes with patience, relief comes with suffering and ease comes with hardship.”
Those who are closest to Allah are the people of Dhikrullah. These are people whose lips are constantly moistened by Allah’s remembrance. Dhikr is not only reciting Allah’s praises, but turning those praises into big and small acts of kindness to others.
We are forgetful by nature. Remembering Allah takes constant effort and practice until it becomes a habit. We should make a good habit of remembering Allah with every action we take. “Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem” should precede everything we do. This is our protection from Shaitan’s temptations.
Allah warns us that those who withdraw themselves from the remembrance of the All-Merciful will have a Shaitan to accompany them. Any manifestation of Islam that lacks mercy becomes a serious danger, as Allah warns us in Sura 43: Al Zukhruf, The Inner Apartments: (43:36):
“And whoever turns himself away from the remembrance (dhikr) of al-Rahman (The Compassionate), We appoint for him a shaitan (a satan), so he becomes his close companion (and associate). And most surely they (the satans) turn them away from the path, though they (the people) persistently imagine that they are rightly guided….”
My dear brothers and sisters let’s be cautiously aware of Allah at all times. Let’s be merciful towards each other and to everyone else. Let’s try to become the friends, the awliyaa of Allah, not the friends, the awliyaa of Shaitaan.
InnAllaha wa malaaikata yusallúna alan nabi. Yá ay yuhal latheena ámanu sallú alayhi wasalli mú tas leema. Allahumma salli alá Muhammad, wa ala áli Muhammad, kama salayta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali Ibrahim. Allahumma barik ala Muhammad, kama barakta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali ibrahim. Fil ála meen, innaka hameedun majeed.
Second Khutbah:
Sub’ hanallahi wal hamdu lillah, wala hawla wala quwwata illah billah yu althi yual theem
Glory to Allah! Praise to Allah! There is no power and no strength except from Allah!
My dear respected sisters and brothers,
Nelson Mandela was once described by one of his admirers, as a modern day saint. His humble reply was; “A saint is just another sinner who keeps on trying to better himself.”
We can only better ourselves by purifying our hearts with Dhikr, constant remembrance of Allah. Apart from beginning every action with “Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem,” we can also repeat some of Prophet Muhammad’s صلى الله عليه وسلم favorite adhkaar:
“Soob haanal Laah” (Glory to Allah)
“Al hamdu lil-Laah” (Praise to Allah)
“Allahu Akbar!” (Allah is Greatest)
“La ilaha il-lal-Laah” (There is no god but Allah)
“La hawla wala quw wata illah bil-Lah” (No power and no strength except for Allah)
We can also acknowledge our good fortune by saying:
“Ma sha Allah. La quwwata il-Lah bil-Lah.”
“This is the Will of Allah. There is no power and no strength except from Allah.”
Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم also loved to repeat this prayer:
“Ya Muqallibul quloob. Thabbit ‘ala deenik.”
“O Turner of hearts, turn my heart towards Your Religion.”
It is only through constant remembrance of Allah that our hearts will find ease from all the stresses of our time. Sura Ra’d (Thunder) v. 28 reminds us where real, lasting peace of mind and heart can be found:
“Al-latheena aamanu wa tat ma-innul quloobuhum bi thikril-Laah. Alaa bi thikril-Laahi+
“Those who believe, and whose hearts find peace in the remembrance of Allah. Surely, only in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find peace.”
Dear sisters and brothers,
Now that President Joe Biden is in office, let us pray to Allah to help him fulfil the promises he made during his inauguration day. May Allah guide him and his team, to heal America’s wounds, and to put right the many injustices at home and abroad.
Brothers and sisters, to conclude our khutbah:
“Surely Allah commands justice, good deeds and generosity to others and to relatives; and He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, so that you may be reminded.”
Allah says: “and remember Me: I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not reject faith.” “and without doubt, Remembrance of Allah is the Greatest Thing in life, and Allah knows the deeds that you do.”
InnaAllaha, Yamuru bil adel, wal ihsaan, wa eetaa-i zil qurba; wa yanha anil fuhshaa-i, wal munkari walbaghi; ya-idzukhum lallakum tathak-karoon. (Sura 16:90),
Fadth kuroonee adth kurkum, wash kuroolee walaa tak furoon [2:152].
wala thikrul-Laahi akbar, Wal-Laahu ya’lamu maa tasna’oon.” [29:45].
Ameen.
Arshad Gamiet
20th January 2021
Source: Khutbahbank
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