Khutba on Rizq
الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي يرزق جميع أهل الأرض والسماوات، حتى الذي يكفر به ويعبد العزى واللات، ويفعل السيئات، 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.
When people are growing up, there are so many dreams and plans they have for their lives. Everything looks bright – the world is their oyster. They look forward to what is to come, the joys and the challenges, but then the fear of provision steps in. There is nothing that holds a human being so much as fear of provision, there is nothing that prevents him from making a success of his life. Instead, he puts his life on hold and goes to work in a job in which he has no emotional investment or even actively dislikes. In a recent gallup survey, it was found that only 13% of employees worldwide were actively invested in their work, the rest were either disinterested or actually depressed and unhappy, some so unhappy that they only way they can get through their lives is to forget through drink, or to take out their frustrations on others, especially their families. Their fear and anxiety, their frustration, builds and builds until it inevitably explodes. A particularly extreme example is portrayed by Michael Douglas in the film ‘Falling Down’. What do most people do when faced with such a future? When faced with the prospect of such a future? Nothing, because they are afraid for their provision, they are afraid they won’t be able to pay the rent or the bills, they won’t be able to put food on their tables or the tables of their families. And so they continue to gear their lives around an activity that they hate, and make that activity the centre of their lives, they continue along the same path and make little to no attempt to change their circumstances. Why? Because of their fear and the way society has conditioned them.
For make no mistake, the modern state does not view people as human beings, it views them as productive units and consumer units, cogs in the machine. And so, from the moment they are born, instead of educating them, it indoctrinates them. Schools and universities are no longer places of learning, they are conveyor belts, furnishing people with the necessary skills to enter the job market and become productive. We study to get qualifications, the passports to better-paying jobs and hence a better standard of living, not to acquire knowledge. When I was in university, I knew lots of people taking course like Canadian Studies, not because of some interest in the land of Canada, but because it it was the easiest and least work intensive way of getting their hands on a degree.
The whole system is geared to create a dependency, to place us on the teats of the state and invest us in the system, so that we work to prop it up even though we hate it, anxious that if something should happen to damage it, as in places like Greece, we will lose our livelihood and either starve or be driven out of our homes. Fear of provision has us all trapped in a cycle of living that keeps us in check and keeps us in our places.
And yet there are few things less worth being afraid of than provision. It will come to us regardless of what we do. We cannot escape it. It is written into the code of creation, in the world about us. It is something our Lord has made His duty, Allah says,
وفي السماء رزقكم وما توعدون فورب السماء والأرض إنه لحق مثل ما أنكم تنطقون
the translation of which is, “Your provision is in heaven – and what you are promised. By the Lord of heaven and earth, it is certainly the truth, just as you have speech.” It is as guaranteed as death. The Prophet said,
إِنَّ الرِّزْقَ لَيَطْلُبُ الْعَبْدَ كَمَا يَطْلُبُ أَجَلُهُ
“Rizq chases seeks out the slave in the same way that his appointed time does.” And, like death it cannot be escaped and cannot be denied. The Prophet said,
لو أن أحدكم فرّ من رزقه لتبعه كما يتبعه الموت
“If you were to try to run away from your provision, your provision would come running after you just like death.” Every penny we will ever earn, ever morsel we will ever eat is guaranteed to us. And we not meet our Lord until we have gotten our hands on every part of it. The Prophet said,
إن نفساً لن تموت حتى تستكمل رزقها
“No human being will die until he has received his provision in full.” In full, it all comes to you and nobody else can take it from you. So we do not have to concern ourselves with it or with its acquisition, we do not have make that the focus of our lives. For as soon as we do, we have lost the plot completely. We have put as our goal something which is no more than a means to an end, the fuel and vehicle to get to the destination. We do not take any of the material things of this life with us to the Next, the Permanent Abode, not one, so why expend some much worry and energy on them? Your job is not your life, your work does not define you, the purpose of your life should not simply be to survive to the next day. You are living beings, so be alive. Live lives that uplift you, that energise you and increase you in appreciation of the gifts and wonders you have received, not ones that make you feel down and depressed. Do not be content with discontent, do not be satisfied with dissatisfaction, do not give way to anxiety about provision and let in trap you into a menial and seemingly meaningless existence. Instead trust in Allah and realise that He will look after you and your family. He will provide for you as He provides for the beasts and the birds and everything else in existence.
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.
Our rizq is guaranteed, but we do not know what it will be. Knowledge of the future, knowledge of what we will we get and where we will go lies with our Lord. We simply act according to the laws He has laid down and the rules according to which He has decided that creation be governed. So when we are saying that your rizq will come to you whatever we do, we are not saying sit back and do nothing and wait for it to fall into your hands. Your actions are as much a part of your rizq as your material possessions, and stasis and lack of action is damaging to your well-being and is never in your best interests. The human being is either going forward or going backwards, there is no third state. Allah says,
لِمَنْ شَاءَ مِنْكُمْ أَنْ يَتَقَدَّمَ أَوْ يَتَأَخَّرَ
the translation of which is, “For those of you who wish to move forward or fall behind.” There is no such thing as remaining still, so never put your life on hold, never sit and expect your life to come to you. That is not tawakkul, it is ingratitude for the strength and skills that your Lord has given you, and is the surest path to fear, anxiety and depression.
No, I have not said any of this to discourage people from working, for work is a necessary and praiseworthy part of existence practiced by all those whom Allah sent for us to emulate. Allah says,
وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلَّا إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِي الْأَسْوَاقِ
the translation of which is, “We have not sent any messengers before you that did not eat food and walk in the marketplace.” Walking in the marketplace implies trade, earning a living. Sayyidina Dawud was a blacksmith, manufacturing and selling armour, and our own Prophet took caravans of goods from Makka to Sham and back. Despite their knowledge that everything they would ever need was coming their way, they never for a moment rested on their laurels or considered that a sign to retreat from the world. But their work was never the focus of their existence, their focus was always to get closer to Allah. Their work was never something they felt forced into, it was always out of gratitude to Allah.
Our time on this planet is very short, so it is important that we take advantage of each and every second. We do not want to be wasting our time doing what takes us away from our Lord, whether because the activity is itself an act of disobedience to Allah, or because it enervates us and wears us down, and takes away our joy, sense of fulfilment, and gratitude. Do not spend your life doing what you hate, it is no way to live.
What we need, more than anything, to get the most out of existence on this planet, is for our Lord to place baraka in our lives. And that baraka comes in a number of ways.
The first and most important is believing in Allah an following His Commands to the closest of your ability. Allah says,
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَى آمَنُواْ وَاتَّقَواْ لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَاتٍ مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالأَرْضِ
the translation of which is, “If the people of the villages had but believed and had taqwa, we would have opened up for them the blessings of the heavens and the earth.” And the Prophet said,
إن الله تعالى يقول: يا ابن آدم: تفرغ لعبادتي أملأ صدرك غنى، وأسد فقرك، وإن لا تفعل ملأت يديك شغلاً، ولم أسد فقرك
“Allah says, ‘Son of Adam, if you devote yourself to My worship, I will fill your breast with wealth and remove your poverty. But if you do not, I will make your hands busy with work and leave you to remain in poverty.’
Then there is appreciation. We most go through life aware that our Lord is the true source of everything we get, and thankful to Him for every part of it. Allah says,
لَئِنْ شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ
the translation of which is, “If you are grateful, I will certainly give you increase,”
Further, we must make sure that it is to Him we turn at every juncture and from Him we seek forgiveness whenever we slip up. Allah says,
فَقُلْتُ اسْتَغْفِرُواْ رَبَّكُمُ إِنَّهُ كَانَ غَفَّاراً يُرْسِلُ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُم مِّدْرَاراً وَيُمْدِدْكُم بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمُ أَنْهَارا}ً
the translation of which is, “Ask forgiveness of your Lord. Truly He is Endlessly Forgiving, and He will send heaven down on you in abundant rain and reinforce you with more wealth and sons, and grant you gardens and grant you waterways.” In other words, He will fill your life with every conceivable form of baraka.
And we must ensure that we reciprocate His generosity and give readily from what He has given us. You will have noticed that it is easy to give from something you have received unexpectedly, or something you have got hold of with little effort. Well, the only thing that stops you from spending out of the rest of your wealth is your attitude that is yours by merit and it is your own efforts that have brought it to you. To a certain degree, it is all too easy to receive your wage packet and think like Qarun that what you get is down and your own skill and efforts, and therefore hoard and keep it for yourself. That is a mistake – it is as much a gift of Allah as the unexpected inheritance. Give out from it freely and it will expand and bring more benefit to you in this world and the Next. Allah says in a hadith qudsi,
أنفق، أنفق عليك
“Spend out and I will spend out on you.” And as we know, Allah spending is not like ours, He gives many times in return. These are some of the secrets of a life of baraka, and without baraka you cannot truly have life. We ask Allah to place baraka in our lives. We ask Him to expand our provision, give it to us from where we know not, and remove from our hearts all fear and anxiety of where it will come from. And give us a way out of the modern economic system that has us all trapped and ensnared.
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