Hijra
by Arshad Gamiet 18th February 2005.
“As-salámu 'alaikum
wa rahmatul láhi wa barakátuh!”
“A-úthu billáhi minash shaytánir rajeem. Bismilláhir rahmánir 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-Alláh, wahdahoo laa shareeka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan
‘abduhoo warasooluh”
All Praise is due to Alláh, 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
Alláh, he 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 Alláh, the Only One
without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad, sws, is His servant, and
His messenger.
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, - Fear Allah, as He should be feared, and die not except as
Muslims.
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 take Allah and His prophet
as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory..
My dear
respected brothers and sisters
Today’s
khutbah is about Al-Hijra. Last
week, we entered a new Islamic Year, 1426 years after the Hijra. It would
be appropriate for us to reflect a while on the significance of this important
event in the history of Islam.
The
widely used Gregorian calendar is based on the date Christians believe to be the
birthday of Prophet Isa Alayhis Salaam, Jesus, peace be upon him. Why then, did
the Muslim calendar begin with Al Hijra, the migration of Prophet
Muhammad sws from Makka to Madinah? What was so significant about this event, that the history of Islam
should be measured from this date?
The
more you read about the Hijra and the more you reflect on what it means, the
more you realise that there are 2 kinds of Hijra: the physical Hijra and the
spiritual Hijra. That is, the physical migration and the spiritual migration.
When our beloved Prophet Muhammad sws undertook the physical migration
from Makka to Madinah, it was a journey from danger to safety, from oppression
to freedom. We must remember that
Prophet Muhammad sws could have remained in Makka, he could have sought an
accommodation with the Quraish tribe, who offered him many incentives to give up
his mission. They felt threatened by his teaching that spoke of One unseen God,
rights for women and slaves, and justice for the poor. They even tried to bribe
him by offering him wealth and status in the tribe. He could have enjoyed a
peaceful and comfortable retirement in his mother city. But in a famous Hadith,
he said,
“If
they gave me the sun on my right hand and the moon in my left hand, I will not
give up my mission until Allah gives me success, or I die in my efforts.”
Prophet
Muhammad sws was unwavering in his obedience to Allah. But he was not going to
migrate to Madinah without being tested again and again. In another Hadith,
Rasul Allah told us,
"Shaytaan
sits in the path (of every good action) that the son of Aadam (may try to take).
He sat in front of him when he took the path to Islam and told him, ‘how could
you leave the religion of your fathers and your fore-fathers?’ But he
disobeyed him and became Muslim. Then Shaytaan sat in front of him in his path
to Hijrah and said, ‘How could you leave your land and your sky?’ But he
disobeyed him and migrated (from Makkah). Then he sat in front of him in his
path of Jihaad and said, ‘Why should you do Jihad? It will only exhaust your
wealth and body. You’ll be killed, your wife will marry someone else, and your
wealth will be divided (to others).’ But he disobeyed him and went for
Jihad." Rasul Allah then said, "Whoever does this, it is a duty upon
Allah that He shall enter him into Jannah!"
Once
in Madinah, Prophet Muhammad sws did not settle down to an easy life. He
continued the struggle to establish justice, to remove oppression, to guide his
new community and to create role models for future generations...
Prophet
Muhammad had left behind his tribe, his home, his family, his city, his
financial and emotional security for something much more important. He had to
build the foundations of an Ummah, the worldwide family of Believers. For
the first time in the history of mankind, a nation was born, that had nothing to
do with race, or language, or tribe or skin colour. This was the first
ideological community: the first nation to be defined by a simple belief that
there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad sws is the messenger of Allah. Here
in Madinah, Prophet Muhammad sws could demonstrate in practice, how to combine
matters of body and spirit, dunya and akhira, in a complete and
harmonious, holistic lifestyle. Here he showed us how to relate to other
communities like Jews Christians, how to protect the rights of non-Muslims
within the Islamic state. Here was the first ever written Constitution that
guaranteed the rights of minority communities. Until the end of time, the
Madinah model will be the template for a balanced way of living, a perfect way
of life.
Brothers
and sisters, let us not lose the relevance of the prophetic Hijra to our
own lives: If you live in a place where your faith and your very life is in
danger, move away. We are told in the Holy Quran, that when the angels of death
question those who sinned, they will accept no excuses. Was Allah’s earth not
wide enough for you to move away from a sinful environment? They will ask.
At
a deeper level, we can make Hijra as a spiritual migration. If our lives are too
much concerned with material things, with your own personal vanities, our likes
and dislikes, our comfort and amusement, then we need a to make a spiritual
Hijra, spiritual migration. We need to re-organise our priorities in life. We
need to re-focus our heart, our emotions and our desires on something higher and
nobler than ourselves. Material things should never be the main goal in life.
Our main concern should be, to seek the good pleasure of Allah in everything we
do. If, in the process, wealth and good fortune does come our way, we should
consider it as a by-product of serving Allah. Hold onto these things lightly, at
arms’ length, not close to the heart. It should be a bonus, not the main
agenda. There is a very beautiful verse in Sura Al Baqara that reminds us,
"14.
Fair in the eyes of men is the love of things they covet: Women and sons;
Heaped-up hoards of gold and silver; horses branded (for blood and excellence);
and (wealth of) cattle and well-tilled land. Such are the possessions of this
world's life; but in nearness to Allah is the best of the goals (To return to).
And,
the next verse goes on:
15.
Say: Shall I give you glad tidings of things far better than those? For the
righteous are Gardens in nearness to their Lord, with rivers flowing beneath;
therein is their eternal home; with companions pure (and holy); and the good
pleasure of Allah. For in Allah.s sight are (all) His servants,-
16.
(Namely), those who say: “Rabbanaa in-nanaa aaman-naa fagh-fir-lanaa,
thunooban-naa, waqina athaaban-naar.” "Our Lord! we have indeed
believed: forgive us, then, our sins, and save us from the agony of the
Fire;"-
17.
Those who show patience, Firmness and self-control; who are true (in word and
deed); who worship devoutly; who spend (in the way of Allah.; and who pray for
forgiveness in the early hours of the morning.
Dear
brothers and sisters, we all know how the [Gregorian] New Year is celebrated
here in the West: lots of merriment, fireworks and alcohol. Let us mark our
Islamic New Year with personal introspection, reflection and re-dedication. Let
us refocus our attention on pleasing our maker, and achieving that noble status
that He has assigned for us. Let us make a fresh start, to steer our lives from
where we are, to where Allah wants us to be. There cannot be a more important
journey in our lives.
“Alhamdu lillahi
Rabbil ‘Aalameen. Was-salaatu was-salaamu alaa Khairil mursaleen.
Muhammadin-nabeey-yil Ummiy-yee, wa-‘alaa aalihee, wasah-bihee, aj-ma’een.
All praise is due to Alláh, the Lord of all the
Worlds; may the greetings and peace be upon the best messenger, Muhammad, the
unlettered prophet; and upon his family and upon all of his companions.
Ammaa ba’ad:
Innalláha wa
malaaikata yusallúna alan nabi. Yá ay yuhal latheena ámanu sallú alayhi
wasalli mú tas leema.
Behold, Alláh and his angels shower blessings on
the Prophet. O you who believe! Ask for blessings on him, and salute him with a
worthy greeting.
Allahumma salli alá Muhammad, wa ala áli Muhammad, kama
salayta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali Ibrahim. Allahumma barik ala Muhammad, wa alaa
áli Muhammad, kama barakta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali ibrahim. Fil ála meen,
innaka hameedun majeed.”
O Alláh! Send your greetings upon Muhammad and his
family, just as you sent your
greetings on Ibraheem, and his family. O Alláh, send you blessings on Muhammad
and his family, just as you blessed Ibraheem and his family. In both worlds, you
are praiseworthy and exalted.
Second Khutbah:
Sub’ hanallahi wal hamdu lillah, wala hawla wala quwwata illah
billah yu althi yual theem.
My
Respected brothers and sisters in Islám,
Brothers
and Sisters
How
many of us have personally helped to prepare a dead person for burial? Those of
us who have never done so, may even cringe at the thought. But seriously, this
is an important experience, and I will strongly recommend that if you are ever
asked to help wash and ghusl a deceased brother or sister, do not refuse.
Go ahead and accept. Overcome your fear and hesitation. This can be a profoundly
moving experience. It can be a life changing, or rather, life-improving
experience. Preparing a dead body for burial does in a very dramatic way,
confront us with the question, How well-prepared are we, to face our Maker? What
preparations have we made, for our own death? Certainly, we need to constantly
re-arrange our life’s priorities….
Two
weeks ago, the officials at Englefield Green Cemetery, just round the corner
from here, asked for help with a Muslim burial. It was wonderful to see how at
short notice, 5 brothers from our community, and several students from the
Islamic Society at Royal Holloway University, did the ghusl and janaazah
. None of them even knew the deceased, who was a Maths teacher at the American
School. Alhamdulillah, our students and the wider community are quick to
help anyone in need. Here was a total stranger, who died and was buried by his
brother Muslims. May Allah allow us all to have such dignity and care when our
bodies are returned to the earth, insh-Allah. Where death and burial is
concerned, this has been a big learning experience for all of us.
Allah
says, in The Holy Qur'an: "Kullun
nafsun thaa ikatul mawt."
"Every
soul will have a taste of death."
"Wherever
you are, Death will find you, even if you are in towers built strong and high."
And
in another verse:
“No-one
knows what he will earn tomorrow, and in which land he will die.”
Dear
brothers and sisters, Let us not forget that in the noonday of life, we walk in
the shadow of death. In the peak of our prosperity, we are just a few paces away
from poverty and in the prime of our good health, illness lurks in the shadows
nearby.
We
will, insh-Allah, come back to the subject of death in the future khutbahs. In
the meantime, let us pray to Allah, that He will give us time enough to complete
our Hijra, our migration, from where we are now, to where Allah wants us to be,
where we ought to be, totally and completely in submission to His Will.
May
Allah allow us to complete the best of our deeds, before our death, And once we
have received true guidance, may Allah strengthen us so that we do not backslide
and our hearts do not deviate.
“Rabbana latuzigh quloobana, ba’da idh hadaitanaa,
wahab lanaa min ladun-ka Rahmah, innaka antal wah-haab.”
“Rabbi
‘ja’alni muqeemas-Salaati wamin Thur-riyyati, Rabbanaa wata qabbal du’aa.
Rabbigh-firlee, wali-waali-dayya, walil mu’mineena yawma yaquoomul hisaab.”
“O
my Lord, make me one who establishes regular Prayer, and also, my offspring. Our
Lord, accept my prayer. O our Lord, cover us with Your Forgiveness, me, my
parents and all Believers, on the day of Reckoning.”
May Allah accept our prayers, Ameen! Aqeemus salaah!
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