Khutba on the Prophetic Example
الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي اختار من خلقه محمدا الهاشمي، وجعل محبتَه فرضا على الأممِ، 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.
We mentioned last week that maintaining a true appreciation for the high station of the Messenger of Allah is the secret for a healthy and successful existence, for he is the yardstick, he is the barometer, against which all human endeavour and all human character is measured. It is only through knowing him and his life that we are able to see the heights that the human being is capable of. He opens up a whole new realm of possibilities to the human creature and opens his eyes to his own vast untapped potential. In effect, by honouring and recounting his deeds and qualities, we give ourselves a glimpse of where we currently fall short and all the areas within which we can improve, while by demeaning and dishonouring him, we limit the scope of human growth, both inwardly and outwardly, and both at a personal level and a communal one, and effectively doom ourselves to live in societies where ignorance holds sway over knowledge, greed over generosity, and cowardice over courage. That is say, the societies in which we currently find ourselves where the barometers for success and rightness are arbitrarily decided by people with none or very few fine qualities themselves. Just look at the politicians that are routinely elected into our governments and given the power of formulating laws and regulations over us all. All this because we elevate those not worthy of being elevated and denigrate or forget those who are, those who were sent to us as guiding examples, to show us how best to conduct ourselves and live our lives, the Prophets and Messengers of Allah, and in particular, the one sent to this umma, the one sent to the people of this age, the Prophet Muhammad. Allah says,
لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِمَنْ كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الْآَخِرَ وَذَكَرَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا
the translation of which is, “You have an excellent model in the Messenger of Allah, for all who put their hope in Allah and the Last Day and remember Allah much.”
There may appear to be some limited degree of success – we may get rich and sate some of our worldly appetites – through adopting the mores and ways of this modern society, but it is at best short term and ultimately brings very little satisfaction. The only path to long term success – success that extends beyond the bounds of our earthly lives, to our afterlives and the future lives of our descendants, is through emulating him. If we want to rediscover fairness in society, if we want to recover our own self-worth, then we need to fully reacquaint ourselves with him and his life. His light is within us all – if we but take on, to the best of our abilities, his character, and follow, as far as we are able, his living example, then our hearts will become illuminated, the seals on our eyes and ears removed and the chains that weigh down our limbs cast aside.
For there is no noble quality of character nor any zone of right action except that he represents its absolute pinnacle. The evidence for this is clear and irrefutable. Qadi Iyad says in his Shifa,
لا خفاء على القطع بالجملة أنه صلى الله عليه وسلم أعلى الناس قدراً وأعظمهم محلاً وأكملهم محاسن وفضلا
“There is absolutely no way to conceal the fact that the Prophet is the worthiest of all mankind, the greatest of them in position and most perfect of them in good qualities and virtue.” This fact is testified to by Allah throughout His Noble Quran and by all who met him and spent time with him. Let us start with the Words of Allah,
لَقَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ عَزِيزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ حَرِيصٌ عَلَيْكُمْ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ رَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ، وقرأ بعضهم: "من أنفَسكم"
the translation of which is, “A Messenger has come to you from among yourselves. Your suffering is distressful to him; he is deeply concerned for you; he is compassionate and merciful to the believers,” with some reciters reading it as min anfasikum, “From the most valuable of you”
This aya describes the Messenger of Allah as being the most valuable of human beings, and that relates to all ways that human beings assign value to the human condition, whether through birth, physical appearance, physical prowess and skill, knowledge or good character. In other words, on every level that we ascribe worth, even those that are innate and not acquired, the Prophet ranked the highest.
His family lineage was the noblest and most pure. The Prophet said,
إن الله خلق الخلق فجعلني من خيرهم من خير قرنِهم، ثم تخيَّر القبائل فجعلني من خير قبيلة، ثم تخير البيوت فجعلني من خير بيوتهم، فأنا خيرُهم نفسا، وخيرُهم بيتا
“Allah created Creation and He placed me among the best of them from the best of their generations. Then He selected the tribes and He put me among the best tribe. Then He selected the families and He put me among the best of their families. I am the best of them in
person and the best of them in family.”
His physical form was beyond compare. Abu Hurayra said,
ما رأيت شيئا أحسن من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، كأن الشمس تجري في وجهه، وإذا ضحك يتلألأ في الجدر
“I have not seen anything more beautiful than the Messenger of Allah. It was as if the sun was shining in his face. And when he laughed, it reflected from the wall.”
And his strength, speed and agility were on a different level. Qadi Iyad said,
وقد جاءت الأخبار بأنه صرع أبا ركانة أشد أهل وقته، وكان دعاه إلى الإسلام وصارع أبا ركانة في الجاهلية، وكان شديداً ، وعاوده ثلاث مرات، كل ذلك يصرعه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم .
“Traditions have come down to the effect that he threw down Rukana, the strongest of the people of his time, and called him to Islam. He wrestled with Abu Rukana, renowned for his incredible strength in the Jahiliyya, three times. The Messenger of Allah threw him every time.” And Abu Hurayra said,
ما رأيت أحداً أسرع من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في مشيه، كأنما الأرض تطوى له، إنا لنجهد أنفسنا وهو غير مكترث
“I did not see anyone who walked more swiftly than the Messenger of Allah. It was as if the earth rolled up for him. We would exhaust ourselves and yet he was not tired at all.”
As for knowledge, he was granted the highest portion of it, for he was the embodiment of the Quran which contains all that it is possible for the human being to know.
كان خُلُقه القرآن
“His character was the Quran,” as Aisha said. He had full knowledge of the affairs of this world just as he had knowledge of the next. Indeed, Allah states that He gave him the hikma and gave him knowledge of the things he did not know, so that he knew what to do in whatever circumstances he faced. Allah says,
وَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَعَلَّمَكَ مَا لَمْ تَكُنْ تَعْلَمُ وَكَانَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ عَظِيمًا
the translation of which is, “Allah has sent down the Book and Wisdom to you and taught you what you did not know before. Allah’s favour to you is indeed immense.”
And, as for quality of character, which is an area in which all too many are sorely lacking today, he was unrivalled in human history. Indeed, in surat Nun, Allah addresses him, saying,
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَى خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ
the translation of which is, “Indeed you are truly vast in character.” The word ‘adhim is one of the names of Allah, which when used to describe creation only describes the greatest of them. For example, the ‘arsh, the greatest in terms of size of Allah’s creation, is described as ‘adhim. So the fact that the word is used to describe the good character of the Messenger shows it to be the greatest in everything that may be termed good character: forbearance, patience, thankfulness, justice, doing-without, humility, pardon, chastity, generosity, courage, modesty, manliness, silence, deliberation, gravity, mercy, good manners, comradeship and all other similar qualities. They were all his in immeasurable abundance, and if we want them we must follow his way and his example. We ask Allah to bring those qualities back to live in us, and through them, revitalise our homes, our communities and our lands.
أقول قولي هذا وأستغفر الله لي ولكم ولسائر المسلمين من كل ذنب فاستغفروه إنه هو الغفور 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.
In the famous aya of surat Tawba which we mentioned in the first khutba, Allah concludes by describing his noble Messenger with two of his own attributes, ar-raouf (the compassionate) and ar-rahim (the merciful). This is perhaps the greatest testament to the Messenger of Allah’s character, and what it means is that the Messenger of Allah does not just have those qualities, but is an embodiment of them. He is not just compassionate and merciful, but rather he is compassion and mercy. This is confirmed by another ayat of Qur’an. Allah says:
وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِلْعَالَمِينَ
the translation of which is, “We did not send you except as a mercy to all the worlds.” Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Tahir said in his tafsir of this ayat, “Allah imbued Muhammad with mercy, so that his very being was mercy, and every one of his qualities and attributes was a mercy to all creatures. Whoever is touched by any aspect of his mercy will be saved in both worlds from every thing hateful and will obtain everything he loves.”
This mercy of his extends to all of creation, even the highest and mightiest of creatures, for when Jibril was asked if any of that mercy reached him, he replied that indeed it had, for it was only through the Prophet that he lost his fear of what might happen to him and became certain of his own high station with the Lord of the the Throne.
And this mercy of his is not just for those who were alive with him when he was alive, but extends beyond his lifetime. All of us in his umma are recipients of it, as the Prophet himself affirmed when he said,
حياتي خيرٌ لكم وموتي خيرٌ لكم
“My life is a blessing for you and my death is a blessing for you.” This is how it was with his quality of mercy, but the same applies to all his other qualities. He did not just have those qualities but was an embodiment of them. So, if you want to know what courage is, you must look to the Messenger of Allah, if you want to know what generosity is, you must look to the Messenger of Allah, if you want to know what forbearance is, you must look to the Messenger of Allah, if you want to know what thankfulness is, you must look to the Messenger of Allah, and so on and so forth. His example and his practice defines those qualities and so the only way to revive them and bring them back in their true form is by looking to him and following him. This can be accomplished to a certain degree by reading the descriptions of him and his life, such as those found in the Shifa of Qadi Iyad, but by far the most effective way is to seek out and sit in the company of his lovers, the inheritors of his light. Those who have sat and absorbed the character of those who sat and absorbed the character of those who sat and absorbed the character, in a continuous unbroken chain back to those who sat at the feet of the Messenger of Allah and absorbed their character from him. Such company is essential for good character is not theory it is witnessed practice.
We ask Allah to give us the discrimination to recognise such people when we see them and keep us always in their company. And that He give us the success to embody those noble Prophetic qualities of character by which we can elevate ourselves and our societies and make them pleasing to our Lord. We ask that Allah give victory and success to this Umma and keep us firmly on the Straight Path, the way travelled before us and lit up for us by the Prophet and His Companions. And increase us all in love, appreciation and remembrance of His beloved.
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.