Text Box: بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Friday Sermon HAZRAT KHALIFATULLAH AL-MASSIH AL-MA’OUD Munir Ahmad Azim 17 June 2011 ~ (15 Rajab 1432 Hijri) (Summary of Friday Sermon) After having greeted everybody with the Salutations of Peace, the Messiah (Massih’ullah) read the Tashahhud, Taouz and Surah Al Fatiha and recited the following verses: وَأَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ ۝ وَسَارِعُواْ إِلَى مَغْفِرَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ ۝ الَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاء وَالضَّرَّاء وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ وَاللّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ ۝ Wa ‘atii-‘ullaaha war-Rusuula la-‘allakum turhamuun. Wa saari-‘uuu ‘ilaa maghfiratim-mir-Rabbikum wa Jannatin ‘arduhas samaawaatu wal-‘ardu ‘u-‘iddat lil-Muttaqiin. ‘Allaziina yunfiquuna fissarraaa-i waddarraaa-‘i wal-kaazimiinal-ghayza wal-‘afiina ‘aninnaas: wallaahu yuhib-bul-Muhsiniin. And obey Allah and the Messenger that you may be shown mercy. And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth, prepared for those who those who are mindful of their duty to Allah, Those who spend in prosperity and in adversity, and those who curb their anger and forgive people; and Allah loves those who do good.” (3:133-135) Today I shall talk about moral training (Tarbiyyat) which is closely linked with our present times. If the present generation does not get a proper moral training (and upbringing); therefore the future generations also shall not benefit from such a good training. And if you are unable to do the moral training of your own generations, therefore you shall not be able to do the moral training of the people of your surroundings and others also. There are people who in their houses ill-treat their wives and children and act unjustly towards them and deprive them of their rights. And if in the matters of their moral upbringing (and training) you act severely with them, then you become like those who neither do the moral training of their own household, nor that of others. Therefore, this can bring about dangerous reactions, that is, not only they shall be deprived from the positive aspects of moral training (and upbringing), but they shall also develop its negative aspects. The duty of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam is not only to do the moral training of our wives and children, and it does not mean that we only give them good treatment. This in fact are such matters which we have to begin at home, which we learn at home. Thereafter, we give it to others, be it in our surroundings and the world as a whole. It is in this way that the foundation of moral training of future generations will be laid, but it must be that this foundation be laid today so that we can build buildings upon it tomorrow! (that is to say, that the foundation must be laid and rendered solid so that all moral training and upbringing of the present generations be reflected in the good moral conduct and training of the future generations). The subject of moral training with which this has been linked is through Obedience to Allah and Obedience to His Messenger. Allah says to Obey Him (Allah) and His Messenger that you may be shown mercy, that you may receive His divine favours. Most of the time the subject underlying Obedience to Allah, and Obedience to His Messenger has been closely linked with Taqwa (fear of Allah) or success. As there was to be the receipt of the relevant teachings pertaining to the favours (and mercy) of Allah, therefore Allah says to Obey Him (Allah) and Obey His Messenger that you may be shown mercy. After obeying Allah and His Messenger, then what type of mercy (and favours) will you receive? In the next verse, Allah says: ‘And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth’ – the price of this paradise is equivalent to the value of both the heavens and earth reunited. And this paradise is linked with that God and Messenger, wherein reside the subject of mercy for the whole universe. It is the Grace of Allah which is spread over the whole universe, for which He created the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and therefore Muhammad (peace be upon him) became the mercy for the universe as a whole. Now, when you shall obey the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), then you shall definitely attract the mercy and favours of Allah upon you. Therefore, if you obey Allah and His Messenger, then you shall participate in the absolute graciousness of Allah. But if you turn your back to this obeisance, therefore you shall be deprived from these favours and mercy to the same degree of your reject of this divine instruction. Thus, the picture issued forth from these two verses, that is, of paradise which is said to be equal to both the heavens and earth (valued together), then certainly it is a mercy which is greater than the goodwill that you bestow upon your wives and children. There is also a connection which resides in these two verses whereby, on one hand we make ourselves become responsible enough to take care of our wives and children, while the Holy prophet (peace be upon him) has been made to become responsible for the caring of the whole universe. And for him (peace be upon him), Allah already decided and told him that there has been no failings in the accomplishment of his responsibilities. We have been bestowed small responsibilities, responsible for smaller circles (of duties), and therefore if we do not accomplish our small duties (compared to the greater responsibilities of the Holy Prophet), then how sinful it shall be for us? It shall be a great privation (for us – when we neglect such small duties), for we have been given responsibilities according to our capacities, according to our status. The mercy of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was spread to the whole universe, and this is why his accountability (to Allah) shall be relevant for the whole universe; and in this connection, through this verse, Allah is exonerating him from all blames. If this was not to be like this, therefore Allah would not have mentioned the subject of Obedience to Allah and Obedience to His Messenger that you may be shown mercy. If the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was not to accomplish all these mercies, then how could Allah have said that, if you obey the Messenger, therefore you shall obtain the favours (and mercy) of Allah that you have to right to obtain? Therefore, this verse comes as a witness over the fact that the apostleship of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was a perfect one and also was completely accomplished successfully, whereby he accomplished beautiful his duties of being a mercy (for the whole universe). If you obey him (peace be upon him), then you should also know that his mercy is limitless. It is equivalent to the greatness of the heavens and earth. Therefore, if in this life we use the mercies of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a means to accede to the other world, as a means to continue to spread these mercies, then this is the meaning of Obedience to Allah, (demonstrated) in many ways. But to obtain this mercy directly from the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), then it is only through the propagation (of this obedience) to others, feeding them with the nectar of these mercies. And it is the people who continue this practice (of spreading these mercies) who really show obedience and they accomplish (beautifully) their duty of obeisance. Thus, the subject of obedience is spread into several types, into several forms. When Allah used the word “Muttaqi” (mindful of their duty to Allah, fearing Allah) here, it means that it is upon the “Muttaqi” that mercy shall be bestowed and it is only them who shall partake of the mercies (of Allah, and that of His Messenger). The subject as a whole has been wrapped together as one (beautiful) bouquet. Now, what are the details therein which are involved? As Obeisance is connected to mercy, that is why in the third verse, details have been given. Allah is saying that those who spend whatever they have, be it in prosperity or adversity (difficult times) – therefore we get the notion that this mercy is also a material one. And that these material mercies also are like those of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Allah is saying that those who spend (of their available means) be it in times of abundance and in times of difficulty (or poverty) also, therefore it is to make known that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) lived these two periods of life (that is poverty and abundance), but it has never occurred to him (peace be upon him) to show himself either spendthrift or avaricious. Be it in good times or bad ones, he never cease to give away to others (in charity) or in the way of Allah. People think that to spend in easy times is easy indeed. In fact it is their narrowness (of mind) which speaks. It is only people who understand well the human natures who can understand this subject well. In human nature there is the presence of greed, and as a result of this greed, numerous times whenever wealth accumulates, people’s avaricious natures awaken (and increase). Thereafter they become negligent on the small expenses to be made on the poor (in charity) which they could have done (according to their means). It is as if the (avaricious) person has surrounded himself with egoism and separated himself from the other worlds (not related to his own greedy world). Therefore, it is wrong to think that it is easy to spend even in times of comfort (prosperity). But for a true believer, be it in times of abundance or dire times, to him there is no difference. He spends like he has the habit of spending (on the poor, in the way of Allah). Those who accomplish their duty of obeisance to Allah and His Messenger, therefore in this very material life itself, they make themselves become deserving of the mercy of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in the sense that when they receive little, they do not stop making efforts to relieve the pain (and sufferings) of their fellow brothers who are facing hard times - which means: like water comes from a high level (and from the sky) to lower grounds, likewise a person who is facing a difficulty must cast a look at those who are in lower levels than him, having much more difficulties than him (instead of looking at those above him who are enjoying lesser problems or living in ease). If he is a true slave of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), therefore he must have a special regard for the poor and needy, and he must seek the ones who are in greater difficulties than him, and spend on them. When we say that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) spent even in dire times, this means that he used to spend on those who were facing greater difficulties than him. It also means that despite he was facing hard times; he did not neglect to spend (on the needy and poor). Someone who is truly rich is someone whose ego’s is rich (that is, inflated). The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to tender to the needs of those who used to be in better conditions than him, despite that he was himself facing difficulties. This shows the great quality (of character) of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which makes him obtain such a greatness which fills up the universe as a whole. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was of a different nature (compared to other people) and we see that not only did he used to help those below him, but also those above him (mundanely speaking – in times of material possessions). These are the excellent qualities of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which have been mentioned in these verses (of the Holy Quran) and it is necessary (for each one of you) to understand this well because it is him (peace be upon him) who used to spend in times of prosperity as well as in times of straitness. If not, then why Allah would have given this reference, to Obey Allah and His Messenger that you may be shown mercy? In fact, this is the picture described of the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which has been taken from these verses. And it is towards this way of life that (Allah) is calling humanity. Thus, Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam which is under the instructions of Allah has taken the responsibilities to redress the morals of people: it (the Jamaat) does not any other way to take except that you adopt the slavery of the way of living of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) – that is to say that you follow his example and becomes his slaves (by following his example and the way he lived his life) – and therefore, through the grace of Allah, you shall obtain the opportunity to do the moral training of both those who are above you and those who are below you. The reason is that when you shall witness ease, then naturally you shall (come to) help those who are in need (greater need) than you. But by following the example laid in this way of life (that of the Holy Prophet of Islam), there shall be therefore no obstacle and you shall be able to help also those who are (socially) above you; like water comes from a height to the ground, this time also, water shall go heavenwards after being from a lower level. This is therefore the picture of the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which has been clearly defined in these verses. Afterwards, Allah continues the subject forward and says: ‘those who curb their anger and forgive people.’ – verily anger and severity cannot go together with affection and love, and this subject-matter has a connection with the problem at hand (anger versus love). It is a fact that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to be merciful even to those people who use to act in enmity towards him and these people used to incite his anger. Now, this subject has been extended to another circle. Now, it is no more the subject of those who make financial sacrifice, but now it is the question of excellent moral quality. Allah says that it is people who when others harm them, when others are persecuting them and doing injustice to them, it is to these people that Allah makes understand that they have a right to be angry, but verily, despite the right they have, but they do not use it, and instead they control their anger with God’s grace, and they do not stop to do good to people, and this goodness (good treatment) which they do makes them deserving of receiving mercy. People who are not used to forgive others, then they cannot become persons who can control their anger. In our everyday life there are mistakes which are made. If someone cannot disregard and forgive errors (which others have made against him), therefore he shall be counted among those who keep on counting the errors of others (and not forgiving them). These types of people all the time destroy their own lives (through their own fault), instead of becoming a source of mercy for the people. They become instead a kind of hell for these other people. And when they shall behave (negatively) like this, they think (in their own way) that they are doing the reform (of these other people – by not forgiving them). But verily nobody can do a reform by distancing him from the (way of) life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). If you distance yourselves from this way of life, then you shall not have the opportunity to do this reform. Thus, you must well understand this situation; so long as you do not have a profound knowledge of these excellent moral qualities, therefore it shall not be easy for you to put it into practice. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was gifted with the natural quality of forgiving others. These qualities manifested naturally from within him. But to control anger, this demands a special effort, to combat it. And therefore it is only people who have the habit of forgiving a hot matter (wherein anger could have been manifested) who successfully have a control over their anger, and they know how to extinguish it. Therefore, one must let go of errors made, the little faults of our everyday lives. Faults or errors which people make, verily nobody is independent from them (that is, faults). Nobody is free from faults. These kinds of people (who forgive others) are not interested to dissect the tiny faults of others, even if grievous faults come to their attention. Here again, they disregard them and make as if nothing has happened. But (you must bear in mind that) despite having a control on your anger, you encourage injustice and rebellion, therein therefore is great destruction. Allah says in another verse that believers are harsh towards the infidels while being tender (and caring) among themselves (that is, the circle of believers). Verily Allah is saying that when believers are harsh towards the infidels, this does not mean that they are without manners, severe or hard; No! It is because of the mercy they have (towards these people) that they are harsh to them (the infidels), because if they do not show themselves harsh to these infidels, then there cannot be any reform. Evils would increase. If harshness is not adopted, then there would not be any mercy being shown on these people who are creating problems and there would not be a manifestation of mercy also on the victims of the people who are creating such problems and havoc. Therefore, this is the subject-matter involving control of anger and forgiving others which has been opened before us in reference with these others verses. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was personally like this also, and he made his companions follow his example. These companions were harsh towards the infidels and caring among themselves. Therefore, any part of the Quran you choose to enter (read), verily you enter the gardens (of paradise) which greatness extend to the heavens and earth. All these have been mentioned in the Quran and each verse therein forms a fundamental basis. There is no contradiction between the verses. On the contrary a verse helps you to understand the other. Thus, understand well that the act of forgiving (in this sense) and the opportunity which you get to do moral training (of others, including your own family), therefore by the grace of Allah it would become such moral training which shall benefit the world as a whole. To give these moral training to the world, you must have also a universal character, and without your affinity with this universal prophet (that is, the Holy Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him), and without learning moral training from him, therefore you shall not be deserving to do moral training which is of universal character. Thus, for moral training you shall be in need of a universal reference and this universal reference is none other than the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). After Allah, it is verily the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who had manifested all these divine attributes on earth. He became like a personification of the divine attributes, and he was someone who guided (others) towards Allah. He was not Allah but when one looked at him, it was then as if he was seeing Allah. Because of this, it is therefore obligatory to obey him (the prophet) for if not, and if we have to obey Allah only, then it would have been a very difficult affair. If Allah commanded us to obey Him (Allah) alone, then how would we have known how to obey Him? Each one of us would have obeyed Allah according to our own character (and perception). But the Quran has been careful on this subject and has always exhorted the people on it; that is, wherein always whenever there has been the mention of Obeisance to Allah, there has also been the mention of Obeisance to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). And if you do not ponder over his qualities, and without his references, therefore you shall not understand at all the subject of Obedience to Allah. Therefore, we must learn from (the example of) the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and follow him, and thereafter all subjects shall be rendered clear; be it the subject of Taqwa (righteousness, fear of Allah) or Rahmah (mercy) or the relations between people – In whatever circle you may cast a look upon, be it the subject of severity or the subject of love and affection. All subjects shall be rendered clear for you if you look at it from the perspective of (with reference to) the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The pleasure of good deeds is found in doing them only for the pleasure of Allah. If once you taste of the love of Allah, then you shall be ever ready to accept whatever (Allah tells you to do) so as to be able to obtain that love. That is why the Quran talks about the believers and say that if they are benevolent on someone and if he thanks them, then they have the duty to tell this person not to thank them, because they did not do this benevolence to them to obtain any reward or thanks. ‘We have done this only to seek the love and pleasure of Allah.’ If your objective is the love of Allah, then the thankfulness which shall come, you shall not be able to prevent it. It shall come, come what may and nobody shall be able to prevent this thanks from coming (from the person who would be doing such kindness), because in another place in the Quran, Allah gave instructions to the people that they may be thankful. Therefore, one cannot prevent thankfulness from coming one’s way. On the contrary, one has been taught to thank (others), but what is forbidden is to accept those thanks, for in acceptance of thanks, his ego would be manifesting – He shall become pompous, arrogant (thinking that he deserve such thanks). At that moment, this creates dots of blackness on the purity of his intentions and thereafter he becomes more interested in receiving thanks, he becomes accustomed to it and takes pleasure in it when people thank him. There is a saying which says, do good deeds and put it in the sea; do good deeds, and forget it; do good deeds in such a way that when after doing it, you make it drown in the sea and you never know where it has gone. Sometimes there are people who after drowning, are never found. Now, where shall you retrace good deeds (which you do) after drowning it? When you are benevolent to someone, do it without waiting for something more in return, and do it without the desire that Allah gives you more in this world, and do it without waiting that the one to whom you are being benevolent to thank you. When you shall do it with a clear conscience – without expecting anything in return – therefore you shall obtain tranquillity of the heart (and peace of mind). You must not expect that when you are giving something with one hand, to receive something else with the other hand. Thus, verily the subject-matter of thankfulness does not have connection with the doing of good deeds for the pleasure of Allah. That is why also, in the field of humility, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) obtained the highest of status. All that he did, he did it for the pleasure of Allah and in return, he received so many rewards that, all that he did seemed as if he did nothing. And it is because of this love that the difficulties which they caused him appeared to be simple and easy to bear. That is why that whenever the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) prayed during the night, and asked of Allah for forgiveness, people did not understand the degree of love he had (for Allah) and the humility he possessed. All that he did, he did it for the love of Allah, and Allah rewarded him so much in return that it was as if his whole life was spent in the lap of Allah. The Promised Messiah (upon him be peace) also talked about this subject in this sense: O Allah, it is as if I have never left Your lap. The miseries that the infidels have caused me are as if nothing has happened to me. And if it were to happen, then this would not harm me, because of the fact that I am in Your lap. They continued to cause me difficulties, but O Allah, Your love change these harms into Mercy. Therefore, if each of us understands these subjects which I exposed before you really well, therefore he shall make advancement in this path and all his difficulties shall be eased for him and he shall continue to benefit from rewards for each of his difficulty (without him being behind the pursuit of rewards). We must continue to tread on the right path, the path of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him); and we also have to learn one by one how to adopt his moral qualities. The Quran and Hadiths mentioned all these in details. May Allah help each of us to understand this teaching well and put it into practice. Insha-Allah. Ameen.