No Mercy, No Faith

Arshad Gamiet/Royal Holloway University of London/Date 13 Nov 2009

“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 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 Brothers and Sisters,

In Sura Zukhroof, Ch 43:v36-37 we find a very serious warning from Allah:

“And whoever turns himself away from the dhikr [remembrance] Al-Rahman, the All-Merciful, Allah will appoint for him a Shaitan, to be his intimate friend and companion. Shaitan will lead him astray from the Path, even though he will persistently believe hat he is rightly guarded.”

It’s worth reading this verse over and again reflecting on its meaning. The verse tells us that those who turn away from remembering Allah as the All Merciful, are in serious trouble. If we choose only to remember Allah’s other names that describe His power and might, and we neglect the remembrance of The All Merciful, we are heading for trouble. Certainly Allah as the Al’Azeez, the Almighty, Al Qah-haar, The Compeller, Al Jab-baar, The Irresistible, Al-Muntaqeem, the Lord of Retribution, but let’s not forget, that He is also At-Taw-waab, The Ever Returning, Ever Relenting, Al-‘Afuww, The Pardoner, the Remover of Sins, He is also Al-Lateef, the Subtle, the Kind, Al-Haleem, The Infinitely Forbearing, Al Wali-y, The Protecting Friend, Patron and Helper; Over and above anything else, He is Ar-Rahmaan, the Infinitely Merciful. Throughout His Sacred Book, He refers to Himself as Al Gaffoorur Raheem, the Often Forgiving, All-Merciful, and He instructs us to initiate every action with Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem!… He instructs us begin every action, to sanctify, to make sacred, every action in the Name of Allah, the All Merciful, The All Compassionate! Brothers and Sisters, Allah wants us to be constantly mindful of His Mercy, and to express Mercy in our daily dealings with other people.

When we forget this, either deliberately or carelessly, when we turn away from remembering Ar-Rahman, then something strange happens. Shaitan will silently slip into our lives, even though we will be unaware of it. We will find ourselves doing evil things while believing sincerely that we are doing good. Shaitan will have quietly entered into our hearts, whispering and persuading us to commit grave sins, and we will think we are actually pleasing Allah. Because Mercy has left our hearts, Allah has allowed Shaitan to fill that space. And yet, it happens so quietly that we don’t even know what’s happening!

Brothers and sisters, I’m sure that no-one in his or her right mind wants Allah to appoint a Satan to be an intimate friend and confidante. None of us, I’m sure! Yet if you look at all the wicked things some people do in the name of Islam, you will understand the serious implications of this verse.

Throughout history, misguided people have used their religion as a way of promoting their own agendas. These days, angry militant groups have hijacked our faith, twisted it’s teachings out of context and used it to justify their killing of innocent civilians. Islam is not just another secular political idea that you can force down anyone’s throat. Islam is too good and too beautiful to be misused in this way.

“la ikraha fid-deen…” Let there be no compulsion in religion…” says the Quran [Sura Al Baqara 2:256]

Islam seeks to purify our human substance from within ourselves, from the heart, the qalb. When this happens we become the means through which Allah improves and beautifies the whole society. True Faith is a cleansing process that begins from within and works outward. It cannot be imposed from outside to work inward.

“Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem. Qul: A-oothu biRabbin-naas, malikin-naas, ilaahin-naas;Min sharril was waasil khan-naas; al-lathee yuwas-wisufee sudoorin naas, minal jinnati wan-naas.”

“In the Name of Allah, the Merciful and Compassionate! Say: I take refuge in the Lord of Mankind, the King of mankind, the God of mankind; from the evil whisperer when he whispers into the Hearts of mankind, among Jinns and among human beings”

Brothers and Sisters, be aware that Shaitaan does not go around with a big neon sign on his head saying, “watch out! I want to mislead you to the hellfire!” Shaitan is much more subtle and sophisticated. That’s why Evil often walks the streets respectably clothed. We must be on our guard. Shaitan prefers to slip quietly into our hearts, unnoticed. He prefers to whisper into our innermost thoughts and desires. That’s where we are most vulnerable. The most dangerous trap is to think that we are defending Islam, that we are pleasing Allah, when in reality we are defending your own bruised ego, and we are actually pleasing our lower self, nafs-al-amara-bis-sow.

Let us first look to our own behaviour, before we judge others. How well do we represent the All Merciful? How well do we try to be like Prophet Muhammad (sws) “the Mercy to all the Nations?” If we look in the mirror and all we see is anger and rage, if our neighbours cringe when they see us, if they do not feel safe in our presence, you can be sure that something’s wrong. Maybe we’ve lost our direction somewhere, maybe we’ve lost our moral compass. Maybe we started with the best of intentions, but we forgot to be merciful, generous, big-hearted. Maybe we got distracted from the Straight Path, the sirat al mustaqeem. We didn’t realize our mistake, and we carried on, believing that we were following Allah and His prophet. But really, could be following that fellow downstairs, the one with the evil grin, the big horns and the spiky tail…

Real faith, true iman, is about sincerity. Ikhlaas. Look at the history of our religion, and you will see that in every country that felt the influence of Islam, of true, sincere faith, there was an improvement in the affairs of all people. Compare Arabia, Turkey, Spain, India, West Africa or Indonesia, before and after Islam. Wherever you look, you’ll see that faith beautified every nation. Each country had its ‘golden age’ under Muslim rule. Faith does not enter a human heart without beautifying it. A faithful people do not flourish in any society without beautifying that society. We’re not just talking of cultural beauty here: like art, architecture, craftwork, music, poetry, and so on. We’re also talking about behaviour, personal conduct, ethics and morality. This higher spiritual influence is far more important that the stuff that gets auctioned at Sothebys.  How to live and let others live as civilised human beings, that’s what real faith is all about. Prophet Muhammad (sws) declared

“I have not been sent for any other reason except to perfect adab, that is, good character.”

His mission was to improve human behaviour and to promote noble conduct. This was a universal mission, not only for the Bedouin Arabs. He is our uswatul hasanah, our Grand Exemplar as far as human behaviour is concerned. We must quietly work for the greater good of our society. We must improve moral and ethical values firstly within our own hearts, and then extend it to our families and our communities. Britain desperately needs better behaved citizens, not just better bankers and politicians! We must help to recalibrate the moral compass, and to reset the ethical agenda.  What sort of legacy do we want to leave behind us? When historians of the future write about these times, let’s hope they will find that Muslims in Britain will have left something much more valuable than doner kebabs and chicken tikka!

Brothers and sisters, what are we doing to de-mystify our faith and way of life? Islam is not a spectator sport. It’s not a religion for couch potatoes watching the drama of their own boring lives being played out on high definition plasma screens. Islam is a religion of action: virtuous actions to improve the quality of life for everyone around us. Let’s do good actions to benefit our neighbours.

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.

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 brothers and sisters,

We have to extend a hand of friendship to our neighbours. We must invite others into our homes and our mosques. Our Friday prayers have been open to visitors for many years now. That’s a good start, but we must do more than that. We can invite our neighbours to enjoy a cup of tea and we can listen to their concerns. We must also, as I said earlier, support initiatives that promote the general wellbeing of society. Find out how we can help local charities and voluntary groups. Let’s form partnerships with them. We should be helping out wherever there is youth crime, drug abuse and family breakdowns, where there is poverty and homelessness. This is the real sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (sws). As he spelt out in a famous Hadith:

“Spread Peace, feed the hungry, pray for part of the night. You will enter paradise.”

This was his very first message as he entered Madinah at the end of his epic journey, the Hegira from Makkah.

Where there’s a problem, we must be part of the solution. That’s what it means to be a Muslim, to be a servant of the All Merciful. Surely, when we worship the Lord of Mercy, and we follow His last Prophet, a Mercy to all the Nations, shouldn’t we also, in time, acquire some of that heavenly radiance? Shouldn’t we also cultivate some luminosity of character, shouldn’t our faces reflect some of that radiant spiritual afterglow to illuminate the way for others?

Brothers and sisters, for the benefit of those who missed the beginning of this khutbah, I repeat the warning in Sura Zukhroof, Ch 43:v36-37:

“And whoever turns himself away from the dhikr [remembrance] Al-Rahman, the All-Merciful, Allah will appoint for him a Shaitan, to be his intimate friend and companion. Shaitan will lead him away from the Straight Path, even though he will persistently believe hat he is rightly guarded.”

Let us pray and plead our case to our Lord: O Allah please help us to remember you constantly as Ar-Rahman, the All-Merciful, so that we can fill our lives with your divine Mercy. O Allah, help us all to become Your agents of mercy and indeed Your angels of mercy towards all your creatures.

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),

“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.”

Fadth kuroonee adth kurkum, wash kuroolee walaa tak furoon [2:152].

“and remember Me: I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not reject faith.”

wala thikrul-Laahi akbar, Wal-Laahu ya’lamu maa tasna’oon.” [29:45].

“and without doubt, Remembrance of Allah is the Greatest Thing in life, and Allah knows the deeds that you do.”

Ameen.                   Aqeemus salaah!