Earthquakes and Boat-People: natural and man-made disasters

Earthquakes and Boat people: Natural and man-made disasters

Arshad Gamiet, Royal Holloway University of London 8 May 2015

 “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, peace and blessings on him, 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, – Be aware of Allah, with correct awareness, an awe-inspired awareness, 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 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,

Apart from the British elections, two big stories have dominated the news headlines in recent weeks: the earthquake in Tibet, and the boat people drowning in the Mediterranean. One is a natural disaster. The other is a man-made disaster. We cannot control earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, droughts and floods. But we can control our response to them. We can either turn our backs, pretend it has nothing to do with us, and carry on with our lives; or we can try to help. How we handle desperate people fleeing war, poverty or corrupt and oppressive regimes is very much a matter of choice, and it is this choice that truly defines our humanity. It tests our capacity to show mercy, and compassion.

One journalist’s remarks were widely reported in the media. She said that we should send out the gunboats to deter other refugees, whom she described as ‘cockroaches’ and ‘scum.’ Her words caused an outrage. Over 200,000 people signed a petition to have her sacked from her job. Here’s an important lesson for everyone. Be careful! Never humiliate or degrade anyone, especially the  poor, the desperate and helpless. Whenever you degrade another person, you also dehumanise yourself. Every human being has a ruuh, a soul, a ‘breath of Allah’ inspired within them. When you humiliate anyone you also offend Allah, and you lose something of your own humanity in the process.

Both man-made disasters and natural disasters bring out the best and the worst in human nature. Newspapers report that an Italian-American couple were on holiday when they saw a jacket floating past their boat. They were so deeply moved by this empty piece of clothing, and what it meant. They went to the bank, withdrew all their life savings and bought a bigger boat so that they could do search and rescue work. Others followed their example. Right now so many private boats are out there searching for refugees in the Mediterranean. While Europe’s politicians are dithering, and some are even scaremongering their voters with anti-immigration rhetoric, this couple has saved 3,000 lives in just 2 months. Soob-haanallah!

Dear brothers and sisters, can you imagine that? The Quran reminds us that if you save one human life it is as if you have saved all of mankind (Sura 5:32). What if you saved 3,000 lives? Amazing! Remember that most of these boat people are poor desperate Muslims, and their rescuers aren’t Muslim, but Allah has put mercy, rahma, and compassion in their hearts! Honestly, I feel quite ashamed that I have done so little for these refugees… They are our brothers and sisters in desperate need. And look at the generosity of some non-Muslims! It just proves that there are many good people out there. We must be very careful not to make crude generalisations about anyone. As Muslims, especially here in Europe where we are a minority at the sharp end of racial and religious bigotry, we should be respectful of others. We should never play into the ‘us’ and ‘them’ mindset. Under the skin we are all the same, and if I may use the metaphor, “We’re all in the same boat.” It may be cramped and leaky like the ones trying to cross the Med, but Planet Earth is the only boat we have. We must all find a way of living together, in peace and justice.

There is a well known Hadith Qudsi (Hadith no. 18). It’s a long one. Our students are writing exams. We have limited time for Jumuah, so I won’t read it word for word. This is a summary of the Hadith. Prophet Muhammad warns us that one the Day of Judgement, Allah will ask us:

“O Son of Adam, I was sick, and you did not visit me; I was hungry and you did not feed me; I was thirsty and you did not offer me  anything to drink. You will reply, O Allah, how should I visit you, feed You, or give you something to drink, when You are Lord of all theWorlds? [Rabbil aalameen]. Allah will say, if you had visited so and so who was sick, or so and so who was hungry, and so and so who was thirsty, you would have found me there.” ]i.e. You would have found your reward from Me, for all these good deeds]

This beautiful Hadith Qudsi tells us simply that Allah is with those who are suffering illness, hunger and thirst. Allah is with those desperate boat people. Allah is with those survivors of earthquakes and other natural disasters. If we truly love, worship and adore Allah, we will become eager to help those in need. We will be eager to find Allah there with them. No question!

If you read the amazing life story of Prophet Muhammad sws you will see that even as a young man, long before he became Allah’s messenger, he worked to relieve suffering. He was a member of the Hilful fudhool, the “Alliance of the Virtuous.” You must remember that in those days there were no nation-states. There were no passports and visas. You couldn’t go to your embassy for help when you found yourself in trouble. Your tribe was everything. Your tribe was your security, your identity, your home, your honour. If you had no tribe you were truly lost. You’d be classified as a stateless person as we know it today. You’d be in a legal limbo. The Hilful Fudool took care of such people.

If we help people who have lost their homes and loved ones, or who are fleeing poverty, cruelty, or corrupt and tyrannical regimes, then we will truly be like the Hilful fudool of olden times. And remember that among the members of the Hilful Fudool were pagans, idol-worshippers who also had a sense of mercy and compassion for others. That’s an important lesson for us. We don’t have to work only with Muslims or for Muslim charities to do good. We can work alongside anyone who tries to relieve poverty and suffering, anyone who seeks to benefit society as a whole. We’d be following the example of Prophet Muhammad sws.

My dear brothers and sisters, another important point: let’s not worry too much about our own situation. Never hesitate to help others in greater need. Let’s not become afraid of poverty when our help is needed. We cannot impoverish ourselves by helping others. That fear itself is just another trick of Shaytaan.

In Sura Al Baqara [2:268] Allah says:

“Shaytaan threatens you with poverty, and commands you to be selfish; Allah promises you forgiveness and abundance; and Allah cares for everyone and knows everything…”

Dear brothers and sisters, we have collection boxes here today, for the Nepal earthquake appeal. Allah has been good to you. Please give generously, out of sheer love and gratitude to Allah. He will be more than generous with you.

“Alhamdu lillahi Rabbil ‘Aalameen. Was-salaatu was-salaamu alaa Khairil mursaleen. Muhammadin-nabeey-yil Ummiy-yee, wa-‘alaa aalihee, wasah-bihee, aj-ma’een.                               Ammaa ba’ad:

“Innalláha 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.”

“Soob’ 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 Sisters and Brothers

This khutbah has dealt with victims of natural disasters and man-made disasters, and how we Muslims should respond. For the time being, we should leave the politics aside, and the question of who is to blame. Right now people are in desperate need. Whether we ignore their pleas or not is now a crucial matter of common humanity. If we cannot see in those desperate people, a reflection of ourselves, if we cannot see that, but for the grace and mercy of Allah, any one of those desperate souls could be me, or you, then there’s something wrong with us. Something’s wrong with our understanding of Islam.

And it’s not just the earthquakes and the boat people. Right here in your own neighbourhood, in your street, there may be people in need. Homeless people, lonely elderly people. There may be young people at risk of drug dealers, gangs and child abusers. Look around you. There are so many people in need. And it’s not just about money. Volunteers are needed. If you don’t have money, volunteer. If you do have money, volunteer as well, if you have the time. You know, faith, imaan, doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Faith must be made visible, through big and small acts of kindness to others. In Sura Al Asr, we read:

“Al laatheena aamanu wa ‘amilus saalihaati…” “Those who have faith, and who do good deeds…”

Throughout the Quran, faith and action go hand in hand. Faith without action is incomplete, and action without faith is not sufficient for Allah. Our faith and actions must be driven by one intention only: to please Allah. How else can we truly show Allah that we are grateful to Him, that we love Him, adore Him and worship Him alone?

We must be careful not to do this for show. We musn’t undermine our good deeds by showing off and seeking praise from people. “Ma sha Allah, brother Yusuf is such a good man. He’s so generous…” Beware of that, my dear brothers and sisters. It’s just another one of Shaytaans’ traps. Allah won’t accept anything that’s divided. Allah deserves nothing less than our undivided loyalty, love and obedience.  Another Hadith Qudsi (no. 6) warns us about the martyr, the scholar and the generous philanthropist whom Allah will cast into the hellfire, because they did good deeds to win praise and admiration from people, not to please Allah exclusively. Although their actions were good, their intentions were selfish. They were only massaging their egos. Beware of that. We must tame the lower nafs. We must rise beyond vanity and conceit. We must dedicate all our good work for Allah alone.

Remember that if we always prioritise others over ourselves,  if we put the needs of others first, believe me, Allah will more than make up for what we want for ourselves. Don’t just take my word for it. Just try it. Fulfil the needs of others, first. I promise you that Allah will take care of your own needs much better than you could have done on your own. I know. I’ve seen it, I’ve tried it and it works!

Brothers and sisters, to conclude our khutbah:

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].

“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.” “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.”        

Ameen.    Aqeemus salaah

(Our khutbahs can benefit by getting feedback. Please send us your comments and suggestions to mail@khutbahbank.org.uk . Thank you. Jazakallah khairan.)