Khutba on Badr

الحمد لله، الحمد لله القوي العزيز، الذي ينصر لعباده المسلمين في الوقت والمكان الذي هو يريد، 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: وَلَقَدْ نَصَرَكُمُ اللَّهُ بِبَدْرٍ وَأَنْتُمْ أَذِلَّةٌ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ إِذْ تَقُولُ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَلَنْ يَكْفِيَكُمْ أَنْ يُمِدَّكُمْ رَبُّكُمْ بِثَلَاثَةِ آَلَافٍ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ مُنْزَلِينَ بَلَى إِنْ تَصْبِرُوا وَتَتَّقُوا وَيَأْتُوكُمْ مِنْ فَوْرِهِمْ هَذَا يُمْدِدْكُمْ رَبُّكُمْ بِخَمْسَةِ آَلَافٍ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ مُسَوِّمِينَ وَمَا جَعَلَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَّا بُشْرَى لَكُمْ وَلِتَطْمَئِنَّ قُلُوبُكُمْ بِهِ وَمَا النَّصْرُ إِلَّا مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَكِيمِ

    Allah says in His Noble Quran, the translation of which is, “Allah helped you at Badr when you were weak so have taqwa of Allah, so that hopefully you will be thankful. And when you said to the muminun, ‘Is it not enough for you that your Lord reinforced you with three thousand angels, sent down?’ Yes indeed! But if you are steadfast and have taqwa and they come upon you suddenly, your Lord will reinforce you with five thousand angels, clearly identified. Allah only did this for it to be good news for you and so that your hearts might be set at rest by it (help comes from no one but Allah, the Almighty, the All-Wise).” Although Ramadan is first and foremost, a time for increasing in acts of ibada, for every act is magnified at least 70-fold, it has also been a time during which the Muslims have fought and sought rizq, for as the Prophet said, it is a month in which a believer’s rizq is increased. And it was on account of that they went out during Ramadan in the third year of the hijra with the intention of intercepting the heavily-laden caravan of Quraysh, making its return journey from Syria to Mecca. But Allah had something even better in store for them, a glorious battle and victory at Badr against the far more numerous and better-equipped forces of Quraysh. Outnumbered by at least three to one and numbering only 313 men according to most accounts, and equipped only for a raid against a lightly guarded caravan, they routed an army of Quraysh that had equipped itself and come out from Quraysh with the express intention of eradicating the Muslims once and for all. They killed or captured their leaders and set the rest of the army on its heels in a single day.
    How did they do this? It was not because they had more highly-skilled fighters, nor because they were stronger or healthier. On the contrary, most of them had been fasting in the days leading up to the battle, for Badr took place on the 17th Ramadan, the anniversary of which took place last Wednesday. No, the Muslims won because they had the help of the One to whom all power and all strength belongs. They won because they were with Allah and it was upon Him and Him alone that they relied and nothing else. Allah says in surat Ali ‘Imran:

الَّذِينَ قَالَ لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوا لَكُمْ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ فَزَادَهُمْ إِيمَانًا وَقَالُوا حَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيلُ فَانْقَلَبُوا بِنِعْمَةٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَفَضْلٍ لَمْ يَمْسَسْهُمْ سُوءٌ وَاتَّبَعُوا رِضْوَانَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ ذُو فَضْلٍ عَظِيمٍ

    the translation of which is, “They are those to whom people said, ‘The people have gathered against you so fear them.’ But that merely increased their iman and they said, ‘Allah is enough for us and the Best of Guardians.’ So they returned with blessings and bounty from Allah and no evil touched them. They pursued the pleasure of Allah. Allah’s favour is indeed immense.” They knew that victory or failure was not down to them and was not in their hands and so it was not something over which they had to concern themselves. It was down to Allah alone. Even the greatest of mankind, the Messenger of Allah, had no control over what happens. And Allah makes that clear in the Quran, addressing him with the Words,

لَيْسَ لَكَ مِنَ الْأَمْرِ شَيْءٌ

    the translation of which is, “You have no part in the affair.” As soon as we start thinking that we have some part in the affair, that we are masters of our own destiny and that victory or defeat is down, that is when we fail. The Muslims power is and always has been in the realisation of their powerlessness and their utter submission and turning to the One who has power. Our success or lack of it has always been down to our ability to distinguish truth from falsehood, and then follow that truth no matter how impossible or alien it appears to the society in which we find ourselves today. For the truth of the matter is that modern society is built on a lie and is sustained by falsehood. Its parallels with the society of Fir‘awn are uncanny, with government that thinks that it is the legislator and maker of laws, and people who are in thrall to the magicians of the day, deceived into thinking that the illusions they place before them have substance and reality. And they are deceived to such an extent that they spend every waking moment of their lives chasing that illusion, chasing phantom money that exists only as numbers on a screen and whose only real purpose is to siphon off any real wealth that people might possess and place it in the hands of the few, the true robber-barons of the present age.  But we have the staff of Musa, the guidance and example of our Messenger, to expose the scam for what it is and to reveal its falseness. We have the truth, and when that truth comes, it sweeps aside all falsehood in its path. Allah says,

جَاءَ الْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُ إِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًا

    the translation of which is, “’Truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Falsehood is always bound to vanish.” For no matter how imposing, no matter how comprehensive any falsehood might seem to be, in the end it is without substance or reality – it is simply the scum that floats to the surface, as Allah makes clear in a famous metaphor in surat ar-Ra’d,

أَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَسَالَتْ أَوْدِيَةٌ بِقَدَرِهَا فَاحْتَمَلَ السَّيْلُ زَبَدًا رَابِيًا وَمِمَّا يُوقِدُونَ عَلَيْهِ فِي النَّارِ ابْتِغَاءَ حِلْيَةٍ أَوْ مَتَاعٍ زَبَدٌ مِثْلُهُ كَذَلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْحَقَّ وَالْبَاطِلَ

        the translation of which is, “He sends down water from the sky and river-beds fill up and flow according to their size, and the floodwater carries with it an increasing layer of scum; a similar kind of scum comes from what you heat up in the fire, when you desire to make jewellery or other things. That is how Allah depicts the true and the false.” And what is the inevitable fate of such scum? Allah says,

فَأَمَّا الزَّبَدُ فَيَذْهَبُ جُفَاءً وَأَمَّا مَا يَنْفَعُ النَّاسَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ كَذَلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ

    “As for the scum, it is quickly swept away. But as for that which is of use to people, it remains behind in the ground. That is a metaphor which Allah has made.” It does not take much to sweep the scum away – a simple breeze or wave and it is gone and all that remains is the truth. We do not have to worry about overcoming anything. We do not have to think of our battle as a battle of a small handful against overwhelming odds. For, if the Muslims had done that, they would have given up hope immediately, being surrounded on all sides by some of the greatest empires of the day, the Byzantines, the Persians and the Abyssinians. No, all we have to do is obey Allah and His Messenger, and do what He has commanded us to do.  If we are with Him, He will be with us. Allah says,

وَلَيَنْصُرَنَّ اللَّهُ مَنْ يَنْصُرُهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَقَوِيٌّ عَزِيزٌ

        the translation of which is, “Allah will certainly help those who help Him. Allah is All-Strong, Almighty.” And those whom Allah is with will always be successful. Allah says,

إِنْ يَنْصُرْكُمُ اللَّهُ فَلَا غَالِبَ لَكُمْ

    the translation of which is, “If Allah helps you, no one can vanquish you.” This was the case at Badr, and this has always been the case when the Muslims have put their faith in Allah and Allah alone and done what He has commanded. And Allah has chosen to grant a great many of those victories in this blessed month, the conquest of Makka, the defeat of the Persian at al-Qadisiya, the defeat of the Byzantines at Tabuk, the conquest of al-Andalus and the battle of Ain Jalut when the seemingly invincible Mongol forces were finally defeated. So let us take advantage of this month of victory, and return to Allah. Let us stop telling ourselves that the task confronting us is impossible and start relying on Allah. Let us concern ourselves with our affair, obeying Allah and His Messenger, and leave the rest of the affair to Him. Then the victory, which is every near-at-hand, will come.

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. قال الله عز وجل في كتابه العزيز: وَلَا تُبَاشِرُوهُنَّ وَأَنْتُمْ عَاكِفُونَ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ

    Allah says in His Mighty Book, the translation of which is, “But do not have sexual intercourse with them while you are in retreat in the mosques/ while you are in i’tikaf in the mosques.” One of the very best ways of spending one’s time in the last ten days and nights of Ramadan is to do i’tikaf, for such was the practice of the Messenger of Allah.

عن ابن عمر رضى الله تعالى عنهما أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم كان يعتكف في العشر الأواخر من رمضان

    Ibn Umar narrated that the Prophet used to spend the last ten days of Ramadan in the mosque doing i’tikaf.
    This practice is recommended for both men and women, depending upon facilities, and involves retreating into the mosque and dedicating one’s time exclusively to dhikr, Qur’an and prayer. However, for a person’s i’tikaf to be valid, there are a number of preconditions and rulings that must be fulfilled.
    Firstly, i’tikaf must be done in a mosque. Allah says:
وَأَنْتُمْ عَاكِفُونَ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ

    the translation of which is, “while you are in retreat (i’tikaf) in the mosques.” I’tikaf is not valid anywhere else, not even in a zawiyya or cave.
    Secondly, it must be accompanied by an intention, for i’tikaf is an act of worship like any another and as such requires an intention. innama’l-a’malu bi-niyyat. Your intention should specify the length of time you plan to spend in i’tikaf.
    Thirdly, on any day upon that you intend to do i’tikaf, you must enter the mosque before Maghrib and remain there until the following Maghrib. That is the minimum length of time for i’tikaf – one cannot do i’tikaf according to Imam Malik for less than a day And you should not leave your place of i’tikaf except for a pressing need. And by pressing need, we mean one of four things: either meeting the call of nature, buying food and provisions for your stay, illness or, in the case of a woman, beginning your menstrual period.
    Fourthly, you can only do i’tikaf when you are fasting. So if you are too ill to fast or are not permitted to fast because, for example, you are menstruating, then you must leave i’tikaf and not come back to it until you have recovered or that preventative has been lifted.
    And fifthly, you must dedicate your time there to acts of worship as much as possible, to prayer, dhikr and the recitation of Qur’an. And you should keep to yourself and refrain from engaging others in conversation, for i’tikaf is not simply about sleeping in a different place, but rather about taking on the state of the angels – i.e, being in a state of constant dhikr – and denying your base appetites. As for studying the deen and activities of that sort, according to the strongest position in the Maliki madhhab, that is not a proper use of the time spent in i’tikaf.
    These things we have mentioned are the conditions and obligations of i’tikaf. As for those things which render it invalid, they are: engaging in sexual relations, even kissing; leaving the deen; drunkenness; deliberately breaking your fast during the day; and leaving the mosque for any reason other than those four we mentioned, no matter what. This is a summary of the rulings relating to i’tikaf.
    We ask Allah to accept the i’tikaf of all of those who are doing it this year, here in this mosque and throughout the world. And we ask Him to make it the means by which they draw near to Him and obtain His pleasure. We ask Allah to open up the secrets of these last ten days to us all and grant us the strength to stand its nights in prayer and fill them with dhikr and nawafil. We ask Him to make us from among those who find the Laylat al-Qadr and benefit from its rewards. And we ask Him to strengthen this community, protect its shaykh and amir and join our hearts together in obedience to Him and His Messenger.

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، وَعن عائشةَ وسائر أزواج النبي، 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 (3) 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.