Khutba on Keeping Dunya from the Heart

الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي جعل الساعة قريبة، وإن رآه أغلبية البشر بعيدة، نحمده تعالى ونستعينه، ونشكره تعالى ونستغفره ونستغيثه، نعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا ومن سيئات أعمالنا، من يهد الله فهو المهتد ومن يضلل فلن تجد له وليا مرشدا، ونشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك و له الحمد، يحيي ويميت، بيده الخير، وهو على كل شيء قدير،  ونشهد أن سيدنا و مولانا محمداً عبده ورسوله، وحبيبه وصفيه، بلغ الرسالة وأدى الأمانة ونصح الأمة، النبي الأمي الذي أرسله الله بالهدى والدين الحق، بشيرا ونذيرا بين يدي الساعة، صلى الله عليه وسلم وعلى آله وأصحابه ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.
أما بعد! فيا عباد الله اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمون. يأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله وقولوا قولا سديدا يصلح لكم أعمالكم ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم. ومن يطع الله ورسوله فقد فاز فوزا عظيما. اتقوا الله فيما أمر وانتهوا عما نها عنه وزجر. قال الله تعالى في كتابه الكريم: إِنَّ زَلْزَلَةَ السَّاعَةِ شَيْءٌ عَظِيمٌ يَوْمَ تَرَوْنَهَا تَذْهَلُ كُلُّ مُرْضِعَةٍ عَمَّا أَرْضَعَتْ وَتَضَعُ كُلُّ ذَاتِ حَمْلٍ حَمْلَهَا وَتَرَى النَّاسَ سُكَارَى وَمَا هُمْ بِسُكَارَى وَلَكِنَّ عَذَابَ اللَّهِ شَدِيدٌ
        
         Allah says in His Noble Book, the translation of which is, “Mankind, have taqwa of your Lord! The quaking of the Hour is a terrible thing. On the day they see it, every nursing woman will be oblivious of the baby at her breast, and every pregnant woman will abort the contents of her womb, and you will think people drunk when they are not drunk; it is just that the punishment of Allah is so severe.”
         Allah’s Book abounds with descriptions of the Day of Rising and warnings of the horrors that await, especially for those who have turned away from their Lord in this world. And Allah reminds us throughout that this day is not some distant thing, far away in the future, but is near. So near that it could come upon us at any moment. It could be our generation that it falls upon, not some future one. And even if it comes at some later time, still we will be witness to it. We, and every human being, indeed every living creature, will be raised from our graves and gathered together. There is no escape,
إِنَّ السَّاَعَةَ آتِيَةٌ لاَّ رَيْبَ فِيهَا

         “The Hour is coming – there is no doubt about it.” There is an immediacy to all these descriptions of the Last Day, and with good reason, for everything in this dunya is brief and transient. We are here one minute, gone the next. If any of us sits to reflect on his life, we cannot help but wonder where it has all gone. The imminent arrival of our tomorrow gives an immediacy to our today and forces us to realise that every moment we now have counts as there may not be any be any moments for us in the future. As human beings, we are in constant need of reminder – we easily forget and are easily distracted. It is all too easy to get lost in the mundane and forget what really matters. Indeed, that is the nature of the things of this world – to entice and distract. Allah says:

زُيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ حُبُّ الشَّهَوَاتِ مِنَ النِّسَاءِ وَالْبَنِينَ وَالْقَنَاطِيرِ الْمُقَنْطَرَةِ مِنَ الذَّهَبِ وَالْفِضَّةِ وَالْخَيْلِ الْمُسَوَّمَةِ وَالْأَنْعَامِ وَالْحَرْثِ ذَلِكَ مَتَاعُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا

         the translation of which is, “To people, the love of worldly appetites has been made to seem fine: women and children; heaped-up mounds of gold and silver; horses with fine markings; and livestock and fertile farmland. All that is merely the enjoyment of the life of the dunya.” The dunya makes us forget. it makes us think that it is all there is – it seems so permanent when in reality it is transient. It steals its way into our hearts and when it is there, it takes up residence and is very hard to remove. Abu Sulayman ad-Daaraani said,

إذا كانت الآخرة في القلب جاءت الدنيا تزاحمها، فإذا كانت الدنيا في القلب لم تزاحمها الآخرة

         “If the akhira is in someone’s heart, the dunya comes to try and force it out, but if the dunya is in someone’s heart, the akhira doe not try to force it out.” The dunya casts a powerful spell, as the Prophet said. But like all magic, it is illusion and deception. Allah says,

فَلَا تَغُرَّنَّكُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا

         the translation of which is, “Do not let the life of this world deceive you.“ It promises so much but, in the end, gives so little, for everything in it fades and disappears. As the Prophet indicated, to see the truth of the dunya, all you have to do is go to a cemetery or rubbish dump. Everything you see there was once something valuable or something full of life, dreams and aspirations, like the skulls of past peoples. Even the faeces was once food that people worked hard to acquire and put in their stomachs.”
         This is the reality of this world: One day we are strong and healthy and in the prime of our lives, the next we are old, weak and senile. One day we are alive, surrounded by family, friends and the trappings of wealth, the next day we are dead and in our graves, totally alone and totally empty-handed. That is true for everyone, poor or rich, slave or king, every one of us leaves here with nothing. Nothing that we have here will be of any benefit to us except what is for Allah. As Sulayman said when he heard a man praise the greatness of his kingdom

لتسبيحة في صحيفة مؤمن خير مما أعطى ابن داود، فإن ما أعطى ابن داود يذهب والتسبيحة تبقى

         “A single subhanallah in the pages of a believer is better than all that the son of Dawud has been given, for what the son of Dawud has been given will fade away, but the subhanallah will last forever.” This world is not the true life, it is but a shadow world. Allah says,
وَمَا هَذِهِ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا لَهْوٌ وَلَعِبٌ وَإِنَّ الدَّارَ الْآَخِرَةَ لَهِيَ الْحَيَوَانُ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ

         the translation of which is, “The life of the dunya is nothing but a game and a diversion. The abode of the akhira – that is truly Life if they only knew.” Our time spent in this world is much like a dream – while we are dreaming, everything we do, see or touch seems vivid and real, but when we wake up, we bring none of it with us except for memories and a pleasant or unpleasant aftertaste and even that gradually fades. Similarly, when we die, it is as if we are waking up and we see this world for what it is – insubstantial and transient. Indeed, when we look back on our lives, it seems to us that they were over in a flash and we were here in the world for no time at all. Allah says:
وَيَوْمَ تَقُومُ السَّاعَةُ يُقْسِمُ الْمُجْرِمُونَ مَا لَبِثُوا غَيْرَ سَاعَةٍ

         the translation of which is, “On the Day the Last Hour arrives the evildoers will swear they have not even tarried for an hour.” But, unlike the dreams in our sleep, what we do in this dream has consequences. The Prophet said,
الدنيا حلم وأهلها عليها مجازون ومعاقبون

         “The dunya is a dream, but its inhabitants are either rewarded or punished for what they do in it.” We cannot afford to go through life oblivious to its reality. We must always remain on guard against it and not let it have access to our hearts. We must be masters of it and not let it become masters of us. We must be people who live in this world for the Next World.

أقول قولي هذا وأستغفر الله العظيم لي ولكم ولسائر المسلمين من كل ذنب فاستغفروه إنه هو التوّابُ الرَّحيم
الحمد لله الحمد لله رب العالمين، وأشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له وأشهد أن محمداً عبده ورسوله، صلى الله وسلم وبارك عليه وعلى آله وصحبه، والتابعين وتابعي التابعين ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.
أما بعد! فيأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله ما استطعتم واسمعوا وأطيعوا وأنفقوا خيرا لأنفسكم. يا عباد الله أوصيكم وإياي بتقوى الله وطاعته وأحذركم وإياي عن معصيته ومخالفته. قال الله تعالى في كتابه العزيز: اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ وَأَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَخْرَجَ بِهِ مِنَ الثَّمَرَاتِ رِزْقًا لَكُمْ وَسَخَّرَ لَكُمُ الْفُلْكَ لِتَجْرِيَ فِي الْبَحْرِ بِأَمْرِهِ وَسَخَّرَ لَكُمُ الْأَنْهَارَ وَسَخَّرَ لَكُمُ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ دَائِبَيْنِ وَسَخَّرَ لَكُمُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ

            Allah says in His Mighty Book, the translation of which is, “Allah is He who created the heavens and the earth and sends down water from the sky and by it brings forth fruits as provision for you. He has made the ships subservient to you to run upon the sea by His command, and He has made the rivers subservient to you, and He has made the sun and moon subservient to you holding steady to their courses, and He has made the night and day subservient to you.”
            While it is true that the things of this world are transient and passing, we are a part of this world and these things have been placed here by our Lord to serve us. They are all blessings for which we should be thankful, for they are tools that enable us to better worship and obey our Lord. They are not blameworthy in themselves and it is not blameworthy for us to acquire them, even to excess. Many of the greatest of the Companions and the men of Allah were wealthy, men like Abu Bakr, Uthman and Abdar-Rahman, and spent large portions of their time in trade, acquiring that wealth. They did not become monks or paupers, but entered wholeheartedly into the dunya and made use of the gifts and skills Allah had given them. They simply did as they were commanded and the wealth was a byproduct of their obedience to Allah and His Messenger. Their goal was never the wealth itself, they did not acquire wealth for the sake of becoming rich and wealthy, but rather for what wealth would enable them to do in terms of worshipping their Lord, helping the Muslims and furthering the cause of the deen. The wealth never found a way into their hearts, it was simply a means to an end, a vehicle to take them more swiftly to their goal. As the Prophet is narrated as saying,
لا تَسُبُّوا الدُّنْيَا، فَنِعْمَ مَطِيَّةُ الْمُؤْمِنِ، عَلَيْهَا يَبْلُغُ الْخَيْرَ، وَبِهَا يَنْجُو مِنَ الشَّرِّ

            “Do not curse the dunya, for how blessed is the riding-beast of the believer – on the back of it, he reaches what is good and is kept safe from what is bad.” It enables us to build mosques, pay zakat, go on Hajj and equip armies, it enables us to protect ourselves from our enemies and keep cold and hunger at bay. There is good in whatever makes the deen strong, and there is no doubt that wealth can do that, so long as it has not entered into the heart. For whatever resides in the heart is our master, and we are its slave and will doing anything to serve it, even if it means destroying everyone and everything we come in contact with, as we see happening in the world around us where everything is sacrificed to appease the money-men, even the welfare of one’s own children and grandparents. One need only look at Cyprus where the entire populace is being blatantly and systematically robbed. The Muslim freely engages in the dunya with his hands, keeping within the parameters and boundaries that Allah placed for his own safety and wellbeing, and keeps it out of his heart, for there is no place in the heart for other than Allah. That is what is meant by zuhd, not austerity and monasticism.
            We must never become like the mormons and isolate ourselves from this world, but at the same time we must never fall into the consumerist mindset that makes the dunya our goal. We must never fall into the trap of viewing success in life by the amount of material possessions we accumulate, or by how high up the career ladder we climb. It should never be more than a means to an end. Our goal in everything we do, every work we undertake, every penny we earn, must be to fulfil the Commands and Prohibitions of Allah. That is how we will gain mastery over it and ensure that it has no mastery over us. We ask Allah to place the dunya in our hands and keep it out of our hearts. We ask Him to give us the means to establish His deen in our time and defeat His enemies. We ask Him to make us people who live in the now, people who act today and do not put aside till tomorrow, people who live each moment as if it will be their last, content that they are doing all they can to see Allah’s deen re-established, people without fear and regret,

إِنَّ اللهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ، يَا أَيُهَا الذِينَ آمَنُواْ صَلُّواْ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسْلِيماً.
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَبَارِكْ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ  أَجْمَعِينَ. وَارْضَ اللَّهُمَّ عَنِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ وَعَلِيٍّ، وعن أم المومنين عائشة التي أمرنا الله في سورة النور أن ندافع عنها، وَعَنْ سَائِرِ الصَّحَابَةِ أَجْمَعِينَ، خُصُوصاً اِلأَنْصَارَ مِنْهُمْ وَالمُهَاجِرِينَ، وَعَنِ التَّابِعِينَ وَتَابِعِي التَّابِعِينَ وَمَنْ تَبِعَهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ إِلَى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ.
اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِ وُلَاةَ أُمُورِ المُسْلِمِينَ لِمَا يُرْضِيكَ وَلِاتِّبَاعِ سُنَّةِ نَبِيِّكَ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَهُمْ عَلَى الصِّرَاطِ المُسْتَقِيمِ، وَأَصْلِحْهُمْ يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى شَيْخِنَا، وَعَلَى أَمِيرِنَا، وَعَلَى جَمِيعِ أُمَرَاءِ وَزُعَمَاءِ المُسْلِمِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى المُسْلِمِينَ فِي هَذِهِ المَدِينَةِ، وَوَفِّقْهُمْ لِمَا تُحِبُّهُ وَتَرْضَاهُ يَا أَكْرَمَ الأَكْرَمِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ أَعِزَّ الإِسْلَامَ وَالمُسِْلمِينَ، وَاخْذُلِ الْكُفْرَ وَالْكَافِرِينَ، وَانْصُرِ المُجَاهِدِينَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ. وَاجْعَلْ كَلِمََتَكَ هِيَ العُلْيَا وَكَلِمَةَ الْكُفْرِ هِيَ السُّفْلَى.
رَبَّنَا ءَاتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقَِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ.
إِنَّ اللهَ يَامُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَى، وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ، يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَّكَّرُونَ، وَلَذِكْرُ اللهِ أَكْبَرُ وَاللهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ. وَقُومُواْ إِلَى صَلاتِكُمْ يَرْحَمُكُمُ اللهُ.