Bismillah Ar-Rahmaan Ar-Raheem. Alhumdulillah. Peace and blessings on Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his Noble Companions and Family. Brothers and sisters, Committed Muslims… Audio on http://www.islamiccenterdc.com/apps/podcast/podcast/21876 (11-26-2010) REFLECTIONS OF HAJJ 2010 Now that the Hajj season/obligations/efforts have more-or-less began to recede many Muslims have begun returning to their lands of origin. We can in a more calculated sense comment on some of the aspects of the Hajj that are in the Book of Allah and in the behaviour/conduct/character of His Prophet but not among the Muslims of today. In the tenth year of the hijrah- the last year of the Prophet's life- the Prophet of Allah stood on Read/Proclaim in the name of your Lord who created (Surah Alaq verse 1) There was virtually no Muslims around. He began with himself and in the course of twenty-three years there were between 100,000 and 120,000 Muslims who came to the Hajj i.e. at that time virtually all the Muslims of the world. Obviously, in that time period/those twenty-three years, from those beginning words/ayaat Read, Proclaim in the name of your Lord who created (Surah Alaq verse 1) to the concluding words/ayaat … this day I have completed your Deen for you… (Surah verse ) Between the first and last words of the wahy were twenty-three years. For those who place their thoughts/hearts in that time period it appears like every day in those twenty-three years were equivalent to a year. The struggle was a long/extended one but at the end there were over 100,000 Muslims who were in the Hajj. That was quite an accomplishment if we take a look at the last Prophet of Allah, and (who some consider to be the first Prophet of Allah), Nuh (alaihi as salaam). Nuh remained almost 1,000 years working on the same thing that Allah's last Prophet was working on and what did he wind up with? An opposing/hostile/foul mouth society. Nothing much was achieved in the sense of winning over people. We all know the details of what was going on in those, (almost), 1,000 years between Nuh and his society. Compare that to the twenty-three years of Allah's Prophet that brought to the Hajj 100,000-plus people. There was a social dynamic at work. Compare that with Musa (alaihi as salaam) after him came three-hundred Prophets to Bani Isra'eel and they still could not get it right until Allah took the covenant away from Bani Isra'eel and placed it in the supporters/followers of Allah's last Prophet. So Allah's Prophet stood on that day, the ninth of Dhu Al Hijjah, on Arafat with 100,000 Muslims. Brothers and sisters- you don't really have to be of a mathematical mind to try to figure out the discrepancy/difference between those times and our times. In those times virtually all the Muslims went to Hajj. 100,000-to-120,000. Only a few remained who didn't go. Some (were) in Al Madinah and some from the scattered areas around- may be a few thousand. The rest were there in/during the Hajj. (Take a) look at today's world: how many Muslims do we have? Some would quote the lesser number- 1,3billion. We haven't seen anyone lately with credibility saying "there's less than 1,3billion Muslims." Then those who tend to be more accurate say "the Muslims are around 1,8billion-to-2billion Muslims in the world." Now, if we were following the Prophet of Allah when he had practically all the Muslims in Makkah that would mean that we are going to be forced conceivably admit that the over-whelming majority of Muslims are supposed to be in Makkah at that time. Well- some people say "that's impossible." It is impossible for 90%-to-99% of the 1,8billion-to-2billion Muslims to be in Makkah the same way they were during the time of Allah's Prophet. But how about half of the Muslims of the world? We go from 90/95% to 50% of the Muslims in the world. Should we not expect that to be the case? Something has happened to the quality/quantity of our existence/numbers. When they speak today they tell you, (we don't know if this is accurate or not neither but this is what these people who control that part of the world say. Once again it depends on what newspaper you're reading or what source of information you go to.), "between 2,5million and 3,6 million…" This is the first time we hear this. We've been following the Hajj very closely for the past thirty years and this is the first anyone comes out and says "there was about 3,5million pilgrims who were in Makkah this year." Well- what 3,5million compared to 1,8billion Muslims in the world. It's a drop in the bucket/trivial/nothing! But do we have the integrity/independence of thought to ask ourselves "so what happened? Are we, Muslims today, less interested in going to the Hajj?" You ask yourself: "are Muslims today less interested in performing the Hajj than they were in the centuries/generations that passed or would many Muslims want to go to the Hajj- much more than actually go/make it to the Hajj?" If that is the case, why isn't it that they can proceed/perform their Hajj obligation? Here is the area where Muslims don't want to go with their minds because they are going to run into the Governments of the world and they don't want to do that. That's going to cost them sleepless nights/give them headaches/it's not going to go down well with the people who have the power/wealth in this world so they don't want to mention that; so let's have every year the Hajj continue the way it has been. This is the problem with us, Muslims. We don't want to take our minds where Allah's ayaat and the Prophet's ahadith are taking us. We don't want to do that! Let's be frank with ourselves. These people who were in the Hajj were saying- everyone knows that everyone of these hujjaj who has a vocal chord- Labbayk Allahummah Labbayk… Isn't this what every person with a voice was saying there? But we come and say "is this true?" It's true that they are saying words but, (first), do they understand what they are saying and, (second), do they do what they say? You hear Labbayka- what does Labbayka mean? O Allah I have come/responded to you. Oh yes?! You've responded to Allah. (Take a) look at the condition of some of us/Muslims who go/make it over there- have you responded to Allah? In the year before his last year, when there were other Muslims who had gone to Makkah from Al Madinah, the Prophet of Allah instructed/ordered them to recite the ayaat of the bara'ah from the Mushrikeen. This in today's language amounts to cutting off political/military/economic relations with the Mushrik power centres. In today's Hajj, (to the best of our knowledge), if people want to declare/express/explain the meanings of these ayaat- these are at least the first thirty-nine/forty ayaat from Surah At Tawbah that the Prophet told/commanded/ ordered the Muslims to express- we cannot do it today. If people are given permission- listen- there are people who want to do this. They want to express the bara'ah from the Mushrikeen but they have to acquire permission?! Where did this come from? We have to acquire permission from someone to do what Allah's Prophet is telling you to do?! This doesn't make sense because we don't make sense! So we go there and many Muslims say in the Hajj "Laa Ilaha illaHu wahdaHu laa sharika laHu Al Mulk wa laHu Al Hamd." First of all do they understand what they are saying? Second of all do they mean/do what they are saying? We're sorry to say that what they say is one thing and what they do is another thing because the people- due to the acquiescence their Governments/Authorities- have assigned to Allah other equivalents. So they say "Laa shareeka LaK" with their tongues but with their hands/feet/work/efforts we recognise besides You many shuraka'/ competitors/partners/competitors/associates. That's what they do with their policies. So do we have a Hajj. As we said: we are saying these words because the Hajj now is a matter of the weeks that have passed and we can think more closely "did Muslims in this world really perform a Hajj or whether they went there because it's a matter of tradition/ceremony/culture/inherited religion and these other things that take/move these people to go for the Hajj." We leave it up to you. You're an understanding/thinking person, you decide for yourself: have Muslims of the world performed the Hajj as it was meant to be or not? We have spoken previously about the many details in Hajj Al Wada' and we are not going to speak about them at this particular time, but we're going to say with the knowledge/information that come to us from Allah and His beloved Prophet is that we, Muslims of the world, (we don't want you to take this personally), have a problem and that problem is that we are unable to extend the meanings that have been revealed to us to those who wield power/hoard wealth. We're afraid! Muslims are afraid! They don't want to do that. If someone has something- a building/land/account in the bank somewhere- they say "if we're going to speak about the rulers what's going to happen to the material/physical things we have in this world?" What will happen to them? You tell us! It's a material thing! What's more important? Is your relationship with Allah/principles/covenant/ commitment more important or the buildings/things that come-and-go in life? We have today's Muslims thinking that some walls/cement/steel/fabric are more important than the commitment to Allah?! And they go to Hajj- Masha'Allah. They go hundreds/thousands of miles to the Hajj and they say "Laa shareeka LaK." Oh yes! They say "Laa shareeka LaK" over there and in the way they behave/decide here there is a rival to Allah/He has a shareek. So who are we going to believe? The Muslim who went to Makkah and spoke some words or the Muslim who behaves contrary to Islam over here/in these other lands around the world? There's nothing wrong with looking at ourselves to regenerate/become who we are supposed to be. We're not going to go off the major subject but we're going to shift attention here to demonstrate the same point i.e. where the horizons of the ayaat and ahadith are. Some of you are old enough, (just like your speaker here), to remember that there was a Non-Aligned Movement in the world in the 1950's/60's/70's. During that time period, (particularly in the 1950's/60's), Brothers and sisters- we ask you: we have a history in the 1,400 years that has lapsed. We've been through the annals of this history up-and-down from different perspectives. Now let us take another approach to this history that we have. We have a history in which Brothers and sisters, committed Muslims… The force of the past/propulsion of traditions/cultures have made it awkward to speak about those who speak about those who impose on our societies and public will. No one wants to give Muslims self-determination and the freedom to express their political will- not even Muslim rulers in Muslim countries. This has been the case for almost 1,300 years. We had a small deviation that began to increase throughout the centuries until we wound-up with what we have today. It's about time that we muster the courage/husband the moral integrity to say… One of the headlines that is of course kept away from the headlines/main/front pages a week ago or so is that "69,000 beggars were rounded up." Where do you think this would be? In Yemen/Somalia or some poor country? No! It's not in a country, it's in a city. "69,000 beggars/paupers were picked up in This khutbah was presented by Imam Mohammad Al Asi on the occasion of Jum'ah on 26 November 2010 on the sidewalk of |
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