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Thursday, November 19, 2009

[shia_strength] KHUTBAH : SURAH AL FIL- DRAWING THE PERTINENT LESSONS

 

THE STREET MIMBAR

JUM'AH KHUTBAH (20 November 2009)

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It is in such a manner that We make plain Our signs so that the course of the

Criminals may become clear.

Bismillah Ar-Rahmaan Ar-Raheem.

Alhumdulillah. Peace and blessings on Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his Noble Companions and Family.

Ma'ashar Al Mu'mineen, Committed Muslims…

 

Audio on http://www.islamiccenterdc.com/khutbassermons.htm (11-06-2009)

SURAH AL FIL- DRAWING THE PERTINENT LESSONS 

As we inch ourselves closer to the high days of the Hajj, it would be relevant to try to build an understanding of this Hajj and of Makkah so that if Allah provides us the opportunity to fulfil this obligation, we do so with the power of reasoning along with the power of motivation to be there. To better contribute to our understanding of the centrality, the significance, the status of Makkah and Al Bayt Al Haram, (we shall with Allah's assistance), reflect on a short Surah that hopefully is in the memory of all of us. This concise Surah brings to our attention, (we're supposed to read these Surahs with all the mental capacity we have), Allah says and His words are the guiding truth and the enlightening facts of life- present and the future- He says

Have you not seen how Allah dealt with the companions of Al Fil? (Surah Al Fil verse 1)

In another understanding of this ayah,

Do you not consider what Allah has done to the companions of Al Fil? (Surah Al Fil verse 1)

In the 1st understanding of this ayah, the 1st explanation of the word tara is the physical and visual consideration of what happened to a military force that wanted to invade, occupy and destroy Makkah. Remember these words, (i.e. invasion, occupation, destruction), are not easily used by contemporary Muslims, even though this ayah contains the meanings of these words. Remember, these are words that are used in today's vital language of what is happening concerning militaries, war fare and combat. So, if we understand the meaning of the word tara

Have you not seen… (Surah Al Fil verse 1)

Of course, the Prophet was not born when this happened, so how could he see it when he was not born?! (But) still, the meanings stand as such because it has been said that there have been visual evidence of what happened during that year that was called the year of Al Fil, and those visual evidence were in the stones and rocks that are around and in that area and in two individuals who stayed behind in Makkah and did not perish as a result of this military campaign (where) enemies (were) coming to Makkah. At the time of Allah's Prophet, they were beggars, blind and disabled so the traces of that assault to obliterate Makkah and the Ka'bah were there during the time in which this ayah was revealed. This Surah was revealed in Makkah. (It is) one of the 1st 30 Surahs to be revealed in Makkah.

 

The other meaning

Do you not consider what happened (or) how Allah dealt with the companions of Al Fil? (Surah Al Fil verse 1)

OK- who are these people/As'haab il Fil? What happened? What is the background? What is so important in human history and in relations between societies and powers at that time that a Surah from heaven was revealed for us to dwell on/recite/consider/think about/learn from until the end of time? What is it? Where did these As'haab il Fil come from? Here is the information that we should have when we concentrate our minds on this ayah. Sometimes we just say words and pass by. We're going to take a step backward- concentrating our minds is exactly what the status quo Muslims and their mental secular/Allah denying super structure in the world want us not to do. You read/recite/chant or even sing the Qur'an, but you are not allowed to think about the Qur'an and this is exactly what we want to do. We want to reverse this classification that we have been in. Who are As'haab al Fil? What is the background information about this Surah? As'haab al Fil is a military force. We repeat they were a Military force, just like today's military force, who came originally from Africa. We know (that) this is going to get on some nerves of some people who think everything about Africa is positive. Some of them may have racial inclinations-  whatever the case is- continents, races and peoples have the good and the bad. In this case, we are looking at what is bad- coming out of Africa; a force that came out from what is historically called Al Habasha. This force came to Yemen, the South-Western corner of the Arabian Peninsula and by the use of force they conquered and occupied that area/country. And what did they do after that? They built a centre/Church that was called Al Kalis, (or in some other books) Al Kulais (or in some other books) Al Kullais. The word, Al Kalis may have been Arabized and entered the Arabic language as Al Kanis or Al Kanisa. In some other parts of the area it could have been called Al Kalis which refers to the temple of worship of those who belong to the Christian religion of the time. They not only brought with them a military force, but they also brought in a religious orientation and they built on a high area of San'a- the major city in Yemen- this centre of theirs. Their political, ideological and therefore social ambition was to eclipse Makkah and to have people's attention drawn away from Al Bayt Al Haram so now they can go for their pilgrimage instead of to Makkah to San'a in Al Yemen. This is what they had on their mind and how they were thinking. What happened in this time period with these dynamics (was that) there was a person from Kinana, one of the well known tribes in the Arabian Peninsula, who caught wind of the plan that outside forces had for this area. This wasn't a Muslim. The Prophet was not born yet. It may have been out of his own tribal motivation or historical motivations- that area is not very clear. This Kinani goes to this Imperialist area, (it's OK brothers), we can borrow words from today and place it in that time frame so that we can understand that ancient enemies are not really ancient they are also current/contemporary. This person (did this) during what is called Ash Shahr Al Haram. Remember, before the Qur'an was revealed and the Prophet was born there was an Ibrahimi tradition- just like today, there's an Islamic tradition around, during that time there was an Ibrahimi tradition that honoured the sacred and secure month zones of the year. But the way some of them would honour it is called an nasi'. This is a Qur'anic word. What they would do is change the months around the year. If this month is Rajab, (for example), they would switch Rajab with another month of the year. This is called is a nasi.

The switching of months during the year is an addition of Kufr/denying Allah… (Surah At Tawbah verse 37)

That became a tradition. So this person, during this time period, goes and he expresses defiance to this Church that was supposed to replace Al Bayt Al Haram and he stirs the Asabiyah i.e. the clannish solidarities amongst the people in that area against the foreign Imperialists presence/occupation of that part of Arabia. This person i.e. the African Habashi ruler in Yemen called Abraha… You see, the way we read our history, especially those of us who want to interject race into history always have the quote of the Prophet when he sent one of the early Muslims to the Habasha. This same land that produced Abraha produced An Najashi. We are fair- if a person is just and righteous, we grant that to him; but if a person is aggressive and vile, we also identify that in him. It doesn't matter it comes from Africa or anywhere else in the world- race is not an issue. So Abraha takes offence and he wants to go to the source of the problem which he and maybe his advisors and consultants identified it to be Makkah itself and Al Bayt Al Haram. So he puts together a tremendous military force that outnumbers and had more weapons than the inhabitants/nomads who are in Makkah and its surrounding area and he embarks on this military campaign/objective to virtually destroy Al Masjid Al Haram, the Ka'bah or the structure of Ibrahim and Isma'eel (alaihima as salaam) and after that, all the attention will revert to San'a- his capital/conquered city. So he takes this tremendous force to Makkah with what is considered, in those days, the latest fighting technology i.e. the Elephants, (that is why the word Al Fil is used). We don't want to get into any trivial details (of) was it one Fil that Abraha was riding in this military campaign and therefore they were called As'haab Al Fil or was it eight or 12 or more or even 1,000. All of these are mentioned in the books that we refer to. These trivial details don't matter; they were a superior military force and they camped outside Makkah in an area on the road from Makkah to At Ta'if in a place called Mughammas. We and everyone of you should know (that) if you have ever been to the Umra or Hajj, that's not a place anyone would know. We ask ourselves "why?" It's an important area. Imagine- there was going to be a war that was going to destroy Makkah (that was) launched from that area. Why shouldn't we be aware of it? Why should it be buried in history? We could even drive/pass by it and not be aware that this is the last stop that the enemies of the coming Muslims had before they wanted to level Makkah to the ground. But that is something none of us know or even want to know because of the engineered flow of information or (rather) disinformation/de-information that characterises today's Islamic speaking and thinking. Then, we are told in these history books about a communication that took place between Abraha the commander/chief/head/chief executive in the power of Yemen between him and Abd Al Muttalib, who after seeing the disparity/vast difference between the Makkans who virtually had nothing to defend themselves. This wasn't a military society. It's not Spartan. It's nomadic Makkah that had its cultural and economic character but not a military character. Remember, the history books never mentioned Abu Sufyan or Abu Jahl who were main characters in Makkah. The only thing these history books tell us is that this communication was between Abd Al Muttalib- who was the keeper of the Ka'bah and the custodian of the Haram- and Abraha. After this communication Abd Al Muttalib realised (that) there's no match between the two forces, so he advised his extended family as well as all the people of Makkah to leave, abandon and vacate Makkah. This is the only time we know ever since Makkah came into existence when Ibrahim and Isma'eel built the Ka'bah that Makkah was evacuated. It was when this military force was on its outskirts. In fact they went to adjacent mountains and hills for cover. No one was left in Makkah. Allah says

Have you not considered what your Sustainer has done with the companions of Al feel? (Surah Al Fil verse 1)

The word As'haab al Fil, even though it is translated in the mainstream fashion as "the companion of the Elephants" for those of you who can understand both languages, it really doesn't mean that. What it means is like the superior force. Later on, in our history, there was another clash between Muslims themselves and it was called As'haab Al Jamal. This one was called As'haab Al Fil. It's like saying in today's language "Elephant times." The Elephants at that time were like saying an F15 or an F16 in our time. Al Fil, for those who dig deeper, is a cause for optimism; "we're going to win" because we have this force juxtaposed to Al Khail, another reference in the Qur'an to a military description. Everyone in Makkah had left so there was no one there and we have this superior force. The orders are given and they march on Makkah, Then Allah says

Has He not turned their conspiracy into a cul-de-sac or into a dead end? He sent swarms of moving elements in the air. (Surah Al Fil verse 2-3)

The conventional understanding is (that) these moving creatures in the air is simply birds- which could be. No one's denying or affirming, but it could be other things that were sent in the air. Whatever it was,

It targeted this fighting/hostile/disproportionate military force which was pelted with elements of sijjil. (Surah Al Fil verse 4)

Once again this has an open interpretation. Could it be small pebbles and this was a physical miracle in the biblical sense of the word or was it something like bacteria virus, etc. that came upon this fighting force and destroyed it. They couldn't conquer Makkah nor destroy the Ka'bah. Many of them were killed and the remaining remnant force along with Abraha, who fell ill, returned to Yemen where many of them died as did Abraha himself. We hope and think we all have memorised this Surah, but do all of these military details come into our minds? Allah is speaking about al kayd i.e. a thought out conspiratorial strategy.

And then He rendered this military force as if it was a field of harvest/wheat/grains that was burnt/incinerated. (Surah Al fil verse 5)

This is our Makkah, not just that Black Stone and that cubical form of the Ka'bah that everyone goes to with their emotions and what is called piety and then everyone dismisses or is ignorant of this vital information pertaining to Makkah. There are a couple of issues at least that this small Surah should bring to our attention and mind. The 1st thing is we know is that an enemy/fighting force that was sent to Makkah was destroyed itself- this Surah tells us so. But on the other hand, the Prophet of Allah went to Makkah with a fighting force and Makkah was liberated. In Surah Al Fath, an ayah says

Allah has verified for His Messenger, His Messenger's vision in accordance with the truth: you will indeed enter Al Masjid Al Haram in a state of safety and security… (Surah Al Fath verse 27)

Which happened after that. Therefore Makkah can attract hostile forces as well as forces of liberation as is demonstrated by the ayaat in the Qur'an. But who is reading Surah Al Fath and Surah Al Fil or Surah Alam Tara, (it is called both ways) at the same time? This is where we reflect on ourselves and we find that we are deficient. We still/yet have to coordinate and consolidate the meanings of this Qur'an so that we can carry it's message in the world that we are in.

 

Brothers and sisters of the Islamic way/As Siraat Al Mustaqeem…

We just quoted some ayaat of a military nature and this military nature is not frozen in history. There's also now extensive military activities that are taking place in a ring around Makkah i.e. to the South, East, North and West- virtually. This is no exaggeration or hyperbole. Makkah is in the centre of military forces all around it and this is a time when our minds have gone A.W.O.L. Our minds are absent from this fact. What is the power that has occupied Makkah- this is an occupying power,(is anyone ashamed/afraid to say that?) The protection of this occupying power comes from its imposed perception upon us about it. How many hundreds of millions if not billions of dollars has this illegitimate government in Arabia spent on its forces since the time when the petrodollar began to flow into its coffers? We don't have a count of that because it's beyond arithmetic! How many wars? All of them agree, (they won't disagree with you in a conversation/debate), that the enemies are the Zionists that are occupying Palestine. OK- what have they done about that with all of this? How many generations of weapons have they bought? The 1st generation that now is ancient. The 2nd generation that is now too old. The 3rd generation that has become obsolete. The 4th generation that is being replaced with what is called modern weaponry. None of it that they can build! They're not interested in building an industry so they can protect yourselves. They want to depend on the Mushrikeen and the Kuffar for their own protection so they accumulate all of this weaponry and hardware on the deserts of Arabia. How many wars (have there been) since 1973? That's when we want to begin to count them (because) before that they may classify themselves at that time of being poor nomads in tents. OK- but after that time they have a cash flow that we cannot even count, what have they done? There was a war that the Zionists launched, but where were you? In 1973, Egypt and Syria were doing the fighting, (but) where were you? In the beginning of 1980 and 1982 the Zionists, (who they say are their foremost enemies), invaded Lebanon and occupied half the country for some time and continued their occupation of the South of that country until it was liberated in 2002 by Islamic forces, but where were they? What were they doing? Nothing! Today, for the 1st time in their contemporary history, they send their warplanes and artillery to fight against Muslims in Yemen. Was that the reason they were created? To use their armed forces against Muslims? They can't use their forces when they are much in need against an avowed enemy? We see these facts if we understand/think about what we are reading. We are reading military details in the Qur'an, but why can't we bring the meanings out of the Qur'an and into our current affairs, issues and developments. What has happened to us? And they still want to get away with being called the custodians of the two Harams in Makkah and Al Madinah. They are not it's custodians/premiers. They are by the words of the Qur'an

… you repel by your policies, administration, consulates Muslims from going to Makkah and Al Madinah… (Surah  Al Baqarah verse 217)

Without any conditions is the way Muslims are supposed during the Hajj and Umrah there to Makkah and Al Madinah. No conditions, terms or stipulations! Why do they contrive all of this and at the end of the day they want to be called "the custodian of the two sacred Masjids in Makkah and Al Madinah." They don't fool us, because Allah has enlightened us and we pray for the day when this enlightenment touches the hearts and the minds of the rest of the Muslims in the world because after Makkah is liberated, (this is a historical task), the liberation of Al Quds, Jerusalem will be, (in simple language) "a piece of cake."  

 

This khutbah was presented by Imam Mohamed Asi on the occasion of Jum'ah on 6 November 2009 on the sidewalk of Embassy Road in Washington D.C. The Imam previously led the daily and Jum'ah prayers inside the Masjid. His speeches were revolutionary and thought provoking, and eventually irritated and threatened the Middle-East Ambassadors who control the Masjid. Finally, the Imam, his family, and other Muslims faithful to the course of Islam were forced out, into the streets. This khutbah originates from the sidewalk across the street from the Islamic Center, currently under seige.


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