الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي أنزل القرآن، وأرسل محمدًا رحمةً للعالمين، نحمده ونستعينه ونستغفره، ونؤمن به ونتوكل عليه، ونعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا ومن سيئات أعمالنا، من يهده الله فلا مضل له، ومن يضلل فلا هادي له، ونشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك وله الحمد، يحيي ويميت، بيده الخير، وهو على كل شيء قدير، ونشهد أن سيدنا ومولانا محمداً عبده ورسوله، أرسله بشيرًا ونذيرًا بين يدي الساعة، من يطع الله ورسوله فقد اهتدى، ومن يعصهما فإنه قد ضل، وإنه لا يضر إلا نفسه ولا يضر الله شيئًا. 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.
قال الله تعالى في كتابه الكريم: وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي يُرۡسِلُ ٱلرِّيَٰحَ بُشۡرَۢا بَيۡنَ يَدَيۡ رَحۡمَتِهِۦۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَقَلَّتۡ سَحَابٗا ثِقَالٗا سُقۡنَٰهُ لِبَلَدٖ مَّيِّتٖ فَأَنزَلۡنَا بِهِ ٱلۡمَآءَ فَأَخۡرَجۡنَا بِهِۦ مِن كُلِّ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نُخۡرِجُ ٱلۡمَوۡتَىٰ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَذَكَّرُونَ
“He is the One who sends the winds carrying good news in advance of His mercy, when they have carried heavy rainclouds, We drive them to a dead land and We send down rain therein and bring forth thereby [some] of all the fruits. Thus will We bring forth the dead; perhaps you may be reminded.” (7:57)
The Prophet’s advent ﷺ gave to humanity a new life, a new light, a new faith, a new warmth, a new society and a new culture. It was the beginning of a new era in human history, marking the commencement of the real mission of man on earth.
١٩. وَمَا يَسْتَوِي الْأَعْمَىٰ وَالْبَصِيرُ
٢٠. وَلَا ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتُ وَلَا ٱلنُّورُ
٢١. وَلَا ٱلظِّلُّ وَلَا ٱلْحَرُورُ
٢٢. وَمَا يَسْتَوِي ٱلْأَحْيَآءُ وَلَا ٱلْأَمْوَٰتُۚ ِ
“The blind and the seeing are not alike, nor are the depths of the darkness and the light; nor are shade and heat; nor are the living and the dead”. (35:19- 22)
Between Islam and Ignorance, there was a deep and wide chasm. Yet, under the inspired leadership of the Prophet ﷺ, the world jumped across this chasm and passed from Ignorance to Islam with a swiftness that is without equal in history.
As we heard last week, the era before the dawn of Islam was one of profound darkness. Society was like a house devastated by an earthquake—chaotic, desolate, and bereft of true values. People had lost their sense of right and wrong, worshipped lifeless objects, and glorified vice over virtue.
Half measures are futile in reforming a morally degenerate society. Addressing just one flaw is inadequate, as human nature is complex and deeply intertwined with its vices. True reform requires a complete overhaul of society’s moral fabric. Without uprooting all forms of immorality and instilling a radical change in collective values, efforts to combat individual vices like alcohol addiction will merely push them into the shadows, making them even more dangerous. A striking example of this is the American Prohibition era. Enforced from 1920 to 1933, Prohibition aimed to eradicate alcohol consumption by banning its production, sale, and transport. Instead of solving the issue, it led to a surge in illegal activities. Speakeasies flourished, organised crime syndicates expanded, and the very vices “Prohibition” sought to eliminate became more secretive and pervasive. Superficial or incomplete measures fail to address the root causes leading only to more severe and hidden manifestations of the original issue.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was not a political leader aiming for Arab unity or power. Though he could have easily become a king, accepted by even his fiercest opponents, Abu Jahl, Utbah and all his other relentless opponents would have readily accepted his kingship. They had already demonstrated their confidence in him by appointing him to arbitrate in Makkah’s most dangerous disputes, but his mission was far greater. He sought to free humanity from the worship of men and subjugation under corrupt empires, guiding them instead to the worship of the One True ilah, Allah. His mission was to promote justice, liberty, and brotherhood across the entire human race, using Arabia as the launchpad.
How did he ﷺ do this?
The Prophet ﷺ applied the right solution to the problem of human nature. It was the problem which had defied solution at the hands of all reformers before him. He ﷺ declared:
“يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، قُولُوا: لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ تُفْلِحُوا.”
“0 People, Say, ‘there is no god but Allah’ and you shall prosper.”
This thunderous declaration caused a stir among the ranks of paganism, and, in an instant, paganism was up in arms against this simple human truth. In the hurricane of hatred and persecution he ﷺ stood firm like a rock. Even when his ﷺ uncle who had raised him since childhood said to him “O my nephew, your people have come to me and said such-and-such, asking me to abandon you. Spare me and yourself from this burden; please do not impose on me something I cannot bear.” This is our beloved Prophet’s ﷺ reply to his uncle at a moment that it seemed as if everyone he had turned against him ﷺ:
يَا عَمِّ، وَاللَّهِ لَوْ وَضَعُوا الشَّمْسَ فِي يَمِينِي، وَالْقَمَرَ فِي يَسَارِي عَلَىٰ أَنْ أَتْرُكَ هَـٰذَا الْأَمْرَ حَتَّىٰ يُظْهِرَهُ ٱللَّهُ، أَوْ أَهْلِكُ فِيهِ، مَا تَرَكْتُهُ
“O my uncle, by Allah, if they placed the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left to make me abandon this mission, until Allah brings it to light or I perish in the effort, I will never abandon it.”
The whole of Arabia became hostile to the Prophet ﷺ. It was far safer to take a trade caravan to Syria or the Yemen, eluding the barbarous highwaymen, than to meet the Prophet ﷺ in Makkah itself. Yet, some brave souls among the Quraysh responded to the Divine Call. Truth had dawned upon them, and now there could be no turning back. Even when they heard:
أَحَسِبَ النَّاسُ أَنْ يُتْرَكُوا أَنْ يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ ٱللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ
“Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, ‘We believe’, and that they will not be tested? We did test those before them, and Allah will certainly know those who are true from those who are false.” (29:2 – 3) And they also heard:
أَمۡ حَسِبۡتُمۡ أَن تَدۡخُلُواْ ٱلۡجَنَّةَ وَلَمَّا يَأۡتِكُم مَّثَلُ ٱلَّذِينَ خَلَوۡاْ مِن قَبۡلِكُمۖ مَّسَّتۡهُمُ ٱلۡبَأۡسَآءُ وَٱلضَّرَّآءُ وَزُلۡزِلُواْ حَتَّىٰ يَقُولَ ٱلرَّسُولُ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مَعَهُۥ مَتَىٰ نَصۡرُ ٱللَّهِۗ أَلَآ إِنَّ نَصۡرَ ٱللَّهِ قَرِيبٞ
“Do you honestly think that you will enter the Jannah without such trials as came to those before you? While they encountered suffering and adversity and were so shaken that even the Messenger and those who believed along with him cried out: When will Come the help of Allah?’ Ah! Indeed, the help of Allah is always near.” (2:214) Theirs was not a hurried decision – they knew exactly what they were doing.
And then Finally, what they had feared happened and the Quraysh emptied the quiver of their wrath. Not one arrow was left unused. But the believers remained steadfast. They said,
هَٰذَا مَا وَعَدَنَا ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَصَدَقَ ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥۚ
“This is what Allah and His Messenger had promised; verily, the Word of Allah and his Messenger is true” (33:22); and it reinforced them internally and strengthened them in their resolve. The more they were persecuted, the stronger their determination grew. From this furnace of trial they emerged as pure as gold.
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، أرسله بشيرا ونذيرا بين يدي الساعة اللهم صلِّ وسلم وبارك عليه وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين، 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
The Prophet supplied the Companions with the spiritual guidance of the Qur’an and looked after their religious education. He made them bow and prostrate, five times a day, before the Creator and the Preserver of the Worlds with cleanliness of body, humility of heart and concentration of mind. Day by day, they increased in stature, morally and spiritually, and rid themselves of shallow, earthly, short-sighted aspirations. Their love for the Lord of the World increased daily.
When the enmity of the Quraysh exceeded all limits, Allah allowed the Muslims to migrate to Madinah, where Islam had already found its way. In Madinah, the Makkan and the Madinite Muslims had nothing in common except the new Deen. Blood was still dripping from the swords of the Aus and the Khazraj. Once on the battlefield, a Muhajir smacked an Ansari, upon which the Ansari cried out, “O Ansar!” while the Muhajir also called out, “O Muhajir!”—as if to rally each side to fight the other in retaliation. However, the Prophet ﷺ at once checked them, “Leave these narrow-minded slogans” he said “these are filthy”. دَعُوهَا؛ فإنَّهَا خَبِيثَةٌ
It is under these circumstances that Islam sowed the seeds of affection in their hearts for one another, bringing about a brotherhood that would never have been possible even among blood brothers. As Allah says in the Qur’an:
لَوْ أَنفَقْتَ مَا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا مَّا أَلَّفْتَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِهِمْ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱللَّهَ أَلَّفَ بَيۡنَهُمۡۚ
“If you had spent all that is in the earth, you could not have united their hearts, but Allah united them.” (8:63) The ties established between the Ansar and the Muhajireen were stronger even than the ties of blood. Allah stressed the importance of forging brotherly bonds between them, by giving the following warning:
وَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلُوهُ تَكُن فِتْنَةٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَفَسَادٌ كَبِيرٌ
” And if you do not do so, there will be disorder on the earth and great corruption. (8:73)
The training of the Companions continued in Madinah under the supervision of the Prophet ﷺ who explained the conception and purpose of the Deen and fostered among them the virtues of introspection and self-censorship, love of learning and anxiety for the After-life. The Companions were seized by an overwhelming urge for self-effacement in the path of Allah. So easy had it become for them to turn their backs on worldly attachments that in ten years they set forth more than a hundred times on Jihad, 27 times in the company of the Prophet ﷺ.
In Madinah, the verses of the Qur’an, as revealed through the Prophet ﷺ, brought into force numerous commands regarding their personal conduct, possessions and families. Once the Gordian knot of kufr had been cut, it was easy to unfasten the other knots that bound them. And once the Prophet had opened their hearts to Islam, he did not have to struggle at each step to make them reject Wrong and accept Right. If they committed any crime, they voluntarily submitted themselves for punishment.
When they had attained to the highest pinnacle of moral development and become proof against the inducements of shaytaan and of their own baser selves, when they had leamed to prefer the future good to the immediate good and had been transformed into lovers of the Hereafter even while living in this world, when neither poverty could be a barrier in their path nor riches make them vain, when they had become meek, yet unbending before power, and when they had come to be the dispensers of justice even against themselves, and their own families, Allah made the whole world subservient to them.
This mighty revolution brought by the Prophet ﷺ among the Arabs, which through them produced a new and lasting impression on all the nations of the globe, was unique in all respects. It was the most remarkable, extraordinary event in human history.
O Allah, the Exalted in Might, the All-Wise, just as You united the hearts of the Muhajireen and the Ansar on Eman and brotherhood, unite our hearts in obedience to You and love for You. O Allah, make us among those who follow the Sunnah of Your Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in words and deeds, and make our hearts sincere to You in all matters.
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.
اللهم يا عزيزُ يا حكيم، نسألك كما جمعت بين قلوب المهاجرين والأنصار على الإيمان والإخاء، أن تجمع بين قلوبنا على طاعتك ومحبتك. اللهم اجعلنا من الذين يتبعون سنة نبيك محمدٍ صلى الله عليه وسلم ، واجعل قلوبنا مخلصة لك في كل شأن. اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى شُيُوخِنَا، وَعَلَى رئيسنا، 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،. ربنا آتنا في الدنيا حسنة وفي الآخرة حسنة وقنا عذاب النار.
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.
