Dear ikhwan fillah rahimakumullah, Alhamdulilillah. We are indeed fortunate to be the chosen servants of Allah s.w.t to be in this blessed month of Ramadan. It has almost been a week since we entered this month of rahmah, this month of mercy. Ibn Khuzaima reported on the authority of Salman al-Farisi that the Prophet (saaw) delivered a Khutbah on the last day of Sh'aban saying: "O people: You are about to enter the shadow of a great blessed month. A night therein is better than a thousand months. Allah (swt) made fasting during this month an obligation and encouraged people to perform extra prayers. during its nights. Seeking nearness to Allah (swt) through a good deed would be considered like performing an obligatory act of worship. In turn, performance of an obligatory act of worship during this month would be rewarded seventy times more than during any other month. It is the month of patience, and the reward for patience is Jannah. It is the month of comforting others, and the month during which believers would enjoy plentifulness. The Prophet (saaw) went on to say:" Make sure you frequently do four things, two of which would please your Lord and the other two are indispensable for your salvation in the Hereafter. As for the two things that would please your Lord, they are: testifying to the oneness of Allah (swt) and seeking repentance. And the other two are: asking Allah the favour of entering Jannah and seeking refuge in Him from the Hell Fire." Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said: "When Ramadhaan arrives, the gates of Heaven open, the gates of the Hellfire are sealed, and the Shayaateen (devils) are chained.” (Bukhaari & Muslim). He sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam also said: "On the first night of Ramadhaan, the Shayaateen and the leaders of the Jinn are chained." (Ibn Maajah). This means that their ability to tempt people is diminished during this month. Evil and disobedience decrease, because, although the causes of disobedience are many, the greatest factor of all is the whispers of Satan. However, not all Shayaateen are chained during this month for other narrations prove that only the leaders of the Shayaateen are chained. That is why, even though evil and disobedience diminishes during this month, it does not come to a complete halt. There are many other sources for evil that still remain, one of them is the human soul, which is naturally inclined towards evil and accompanies one at all times. Human devils are another reason for immorality in addition to man's own lusts and desires. Yet another reason is that the remaining soldiers of the devils that do not get chained continue to misguide people. Nevertheless, all of these reasons and causes have a lesser effect over fasting people because fasting bestows upon them a certain blessing. This is a month that every single night Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala saves people who are destined to go to the fire of hell. And this is a month that has one day in it and that day is better than 1000 months of your worship. And this is a month when Quran was revealed as Almighty Allah says in surah Baqarah verse no 185: “Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur’an, as a guide to mankind, also Clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong). So every one of you who is present (at his home) during that month should spend it in fasting, but if any one is ill, or on a journey, the prescribed period (should be made up) by days later. Allah intends every facility for you; He does not want to put you in difficulties. (He wants you) to complete the prescribed period, and to glorify Him in that He has guided you; and perchance ye shall be grateful” (2:185) Brothers and sisters this is that very month, this is the month of Ramadan. The month of Ramadan is the holiest time of the year. We thank Allah that not all of the timings of the year are the same rather Allah has preferred some timings over others. And this month is the most preferred and the most blessed timing. And what this does for us is that it encourages us to be good, it makes us want to do extra good deeds in this month. And realise my dear brothers and sisters that the month has been made so easy for you; every aspect has been facilitated for you. Jahannam is closed, Jannah is wide open. There are no devils, nobody can now come and say: Oh! shaitaan whispered into my ear. There are no shayateen whispering; if you do a bad deed in this month realise that 100% this deed is from you. Not that if you did it outside of Ramadan you can blame shaitaan. Shaitaan can only whisper but in Ramadan – he cannot even whisper. Even that is taken away from him. Any evil that you do in this month, it comes from your soul. So Ramadan is a reflection of who you are. If you are good and righteous in Ramadan this shows that you have a good side to you. But if you cannot be good in this month, if you fail to live up to the expectations of your religion in this month then, realise that there is no hope for you at all. And this is not my words, this is not my speech; this is the speech of the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). One day when he (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) was giving the Friday khutbah, he climbed up his mimbar, he climbed up the pulpit – and his pulpit had 3 steps to it. And so he climbed up the first pulpit and he said out loud Ameen. Then he climbed up the second and he said Ameen. Then he climbed up the third and he said Ameen. So the companions were confused and they said: “Oh! Messenger of Allah we have never seen you say Ameen every time you climb the pulpit; this is the first time we have heard you say Ameen. What was the reason for this?” The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “When I was climbing up the pulpit, Jibreel (AS) came to me and told me: O Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)! Anyone in your nation who manages to be alive when Ramadan comes & yet cannot get his sins forgiven, then may he perish in the fire of Hell. Say Ameen.” So the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said Ameen. Then he climbed the second step, Jibreel (AS) said: “O Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)! Anyone who manages to catch Laylatul Qadr & he does not manage to get his sins forgiven, may he perish in the fire of hell. Say ameen.” So the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said ameen. And then he climbed the third one and Jibreel (AS) said: “O Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)! Anyone of your ummah who manages to catch his parents one of them or both when they are elderly and they need his help and he is not able to service them properly and get his sins forgiven then may he perish. Say ameen.” And so he (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said ameen. So three dua’s were made. That there are three golden opportunities; three opportunities that even the worst of mankind can get their sins forgiven if they only turn to Allah. Two of those opportunities, two, related to Ramadan. Two of them deal with Ramadan. And these are – the entire month and Laylatul Qadr. In other words what Jibreel (as) is saying and what the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said Ameen to – and ponder over this my dear brothers and sisters and think about it. If you cannot be righteous and good in this month then really you have no hope there is no hope for you. Why? Because there are no excuses. Shayateen have been chained up. There is no way to go except Jannah. Jannah is open, Jahannam is closed. Every night Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala frees hundreds and thousands and millions of people who have been destined to go to hell. He frees them because of their good deeds. If you can’t be amongst them, if you are not able to be good in this month then really and truly there is no hope. But the question is: what do you have to do? Very simple! The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: Three things, any one of them will forgive all of your sins, all – unconditional, no matter what sin you have done, if you repent properly in this month and you do what Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala wants you to do and what the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) told us to do, all of your sins will be forgiven. What are these three things? He said: Whoever fasts the entire month of Ramadan believing in Allah and hoping for Allah’s reward. Those are the only two conditions; that you are a believer in Allah and you do the fasts wanting the reward from Allah. You are doing it expecting Allah to reward you. You are not doing it because society is doing it, you are not doing it because your parents want you to do it; you are not doing it because all of your friends are doing it. You are not doing it because the culture of your country requires you to do it. You are doing it for the sake of Allah. You are doing it purely to please Allah. If you did it with this intention, the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: all of your previous sin are forgiven. The second thing he said, whoever stands up at night in Ramadan and Ramadan has a beautiful prayer, that we call taraweeh. This prayer is a prayer that is the equivalent of the tahajjud of the other nights in Ramadan. We call it taraweeh. It is the same prayer. This prayer is a prayer that the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did occasionally and the sahaba also did and it is something that he did it in congregation occasionally and he did it at his home all the time. And so in our times it has become a congregational prayer that is encouraged to do. You are encouraged to pray taraweeh. It is not obligatory but you are encouraged to do so and if you do so every single night, if you do so then that is one more opportunity to have all of your sins forgiven. And the third opportunity to have all of your sins forgiven is the opportunity known as Laylatul qadr. And what will make you understand what Laylatul qadr is? It is one night of Ramadan, it is one night of Ramadan than when you worship Allah properly when you are standing in prayer and reading Quran and doing dhikr for this one night that all of your previous sins will be forgiven. This is Laylatul Qadr! So the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) gave us three opportunities in this month to get all of our sins forgiven. One more blessing of Ramadan – Ramadan is the month that when you perfect your fasting in it, you may enter Jannah by a special door. It is a special door set aside for those who fast. The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: In Jannah there is a special door called Ar-Rayyan. And Ar-Rayyan means ‘that which will give you lots of water’. So it is called ‘that which will give you water’ because the way to get to it is to deprive yourself of water. How so? The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: It is set aside for those who fast frequently. For those who perfect their fast, and you cannot perfect your fast until you have perfected the fast of Ramadan. So fasting Ramadan forgives your sins. Fasting Ramadan causes you to enter Jannah. Fasting Ramadan brings about a sense of taqwa and Imaan. O Muslims! Know that fasting is a protection from wrongdoing. This month is an opportunity for you to purify yourselves and release yourselves from the effects of sins, so take advantage of it. During Ramadhaan, a Muslim has fewer burdens as his desires are diminished and he acquires more goodness from being involved in fasting; one can rid himself of bad habits, such as overdoing matters which are lawful, such as overeating, talking too much and being over indulgent in sexual relations with one’s spouse; we must stop the awful habit of going to extremes in fulfilling these desires. Some people fail to understand the reality of fasting. They refrain from eating and drinking in the daytime but do not abstain from sin or oppression. They continue their practices as usual or if they do stop in the daytime, they continue with their normal routine as soon as they break the fast. They spend their mornings hungry and thirsty and their evenings are full of sin and evil. They spend the whole night watching television with their wives and children. Others refrain from food during the daytime, and after sunset, they eat all night long to make up for the food they missed. Therefore, fasting is nothing for such people except a change in the times of eating – for they eat during the night rather than the day. When night comes, all kinds of foods are put forth for them to consume - one kind of food is not sufficient for these people - and they stuff their stomachs with all these various types. It is as if these people have never heard of the saying of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam: "The believer eats in one stomach, and the disbeliever and the hypocrite eat in seven." (Bukhaari and Muslim). In another narration of this Hadeeth, it is mentioned: “A man by the name of Abu Ghazwaan came to visit the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. This was before Abu Ghazwaan had become Muslim. The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam was the most generous of all people. He milked seven sheep for him, so the man drank all of the milk. Then the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said to him: "Isn't it time you became a Muslim?" He replied: 'Yes' and became Muslim. The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam then stroked his chest (while supplicating for him). The next day, the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam milked only one sheep for him, but Abu Ghazwaan, may Allaah be pleased with him, was not able to drink all of the milk. So, the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam asked: "What is the matter Abu Ghazwaan?” He, may Allaah be pleased with him, responded: 'I swear by the One Who sent you as a Prophet, I have had enough.' So the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said: “Last night you had seven stomachs while you were a disbeliever and today you only have one stomach.” (At-Tabaraani). This saying of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam means that a believer can eat less and control his desires more, since he does not eat to enjoy nor to fulfil a desire, but rather to stop hunger and become stronger so that he can worship Allaah. The disbeliever, however, who does not believe in the Day to come, eats with a strong desire and the lust of animals, as Allaah describes him in the Sura Muhammad verse no 12: which means: “…But those who disbelieve enjoy themselves and eat as grazing livestock eat, and the Fire will be a residence for them.” (Muhammad: 12). O Muslims! One type of cooked food is enough; let us not be like the Children of Israel who would not settle for only one kind of food. O people who observe fasting! When you put these different types of foods on the table in front of you, remember before you begin to eat, that the master of all the creations of Allaah, the leader of all Messengers and creation, the Seal of the Prophets sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, would remain without lighting a fire in stove of his house (i.e. without cooking) for one or even two months. “He and his family only ate dates and drank water.” (Bukhaari). One or two months! This was not because he sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam could not have obtained it and that he had no choice, because he could have had all he had wanted. It was only due to the fact that he stayed away from worldly pleasures, living an ascetic life and aimed to draw ever closer to Allaah. Even though Allaah offered him control of the treasures of the earth and the opportunity to live like kings, having a nice, easy, and comfortable life, he sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam chose to live in poor conditions, eating as a slave eats, sitting as a slave sits. He sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam used to say: "O Allaah! Let me live as a Miskeen (humble servant) and resurrect me with the Masaakeen (humble)." (Tirmithi & Bayhaqi). O Muslims! Let this month be an opportunity that we take full advantage of. Let us get used to these customs - the customs of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. Let us get rid of the habit of overeating like animals. Let this month be a chance to purify ourselves and become elevated from lusts, desires, and trivialities that are of no real value. Let us elevate our souls to the heavens with faith – we can elevate them from the pleasures of this world to the pleasures of the world to come. May Allah guide you and I to spend our time worshiping Him, guard us against sins and evil, guide us to the right path and save us from the path of Hellfire, and be among those who fast Ramadan believing in Allah and anticipating His Reward as He is Most Generous. . Second Khutbah Dear Brothers and Sisters, Many of us think that Ramadan is a time to ‘go slow’ and to avoid exerting ourselves. Some of us, if we had the opportunity, we would want to sleep all day until iftar. This is completely wrong. Ramadan is not a time for hibernation. That’s for the polar bears and grizzly bears in the cold north American winter. It’s not for Muslims! Ramadan is the time we should be busy reading and understanding the Quran, studying our faith and trying to improve our knowledge and our character. It’s a time of spiritual renewal and revival. Many important events took place in Ramadan: The Holy Quran was revealed in Ramadan. The Battle of Badr took place in Ramadan. Makka was conquered in a bloodless battle by Prophet Muhammad sws during Ramadan. Tariq bin Ziyad conquered Spain during Ramadan. The list goes on and on… So remember, Ramadan is not an excuse for laziness. It is a time for improving ourselves, improving our mind and body and spirit. Almighty Allah says in surah Baqarah in verse no 183 “O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may learn self-restraint and piety” (2: 183) So remember – that the purpose of fasting in Ramadan is to achieve righteousness and piety. This is the ultimate goal. Allah does not benefit when you tire yourself out, rather you are the one that benefits. Dear Jeemah, most of us come from tropical regions where the duration of day and night is not as extreme as in here. In here, the days are very long and the society is very liberal. We are still young and a lot of us wont get this blessed month in summer in their lifetime, and even if we do, we will be old and feeble. We should consider ourselves blessed because the harder the training the better Muslim we become, the bigger reward we receive. Fasting during the month of Ramadan is one of the rites of Islam and made as an obligation by Allah and anyone who does not believe in its obligation is regarded as a disbeliever because he denies the command of Allah and His Messenger (SA) and goes against the consensus of Muslims. Fasting is obligatory upon every sane healthy Muslim, who is not traveling at that time, whether man or woman unless she is in menstruation period or having post-childbirth bleeding. Fasting is not obligatory upon a non-Muslim and if he embraces Islam during the month of Ramadan, he is not obliged to make up the previous days of the month. As to the day on which he converts, he should fast till the end of the day with other people and is not obliged to make up this day. Fasting is not due upon minors but if they can tolerate fasting, they should fast to get use to its hardships. The companions of the Prophet (SA) used to encourage their children to observe fasting and when they weep out of hunger and thirst, they gave them toys to play with it until sunset. The young boy becomes an adult by three features. The first of which is to reach the age of fifteen and the second is seeing the pubic hair and the third is seeing the sperm during a ‘wet dream’ or by any other method. In addition to these conditions, which are applied to the boy, the girl becomes an adult when she experiences menstruation. Fasting becomes obligatory by meeting any of the previous conditions. O Muslims, the things that invalidate the fast are seven: The first is to have sexual intercourse, which is grievous action during fasting. Whoever performs sexual intercourse during the day of Ramadan is subject to restitution. At first he must set free a slave and if he could not, he must observe fasting during two consecutive months. If he could not fast, he must provide food for sixty poor persons. The second thing that voids fast is ejaculating sperms intentionally even if it was just due to kissing, hugging, or masturbation or by any other way. If it is due to a ‘wet dream’, it does not invalidate the fast because he is sleeping and not responsible for what happen during sleep. The third is the intentional eating and drink, be it lawful or unlawful, harmful or good, or through the mouth or the nose. The Prophet (SA) said: “Exaggerate when rinsing your nose unless you are fasting.” This indicates that whatever enters through the nose is like the mouth. As regards smell, it does not invalidate fasting because it has no volume that may enter the body. The fourth is that which takes the rule of food like injection used for feeding because it is used instead of eating and drinking. If it is not used for the sake of feeding like medicine, it does not invalidate the fast whether intravenous or underneath the skin because it is not like food and drink. The fifth is cupping because the Prophet (SA) said: “The fast of both the cupper and the cupped is invalid”. The fast is not vitiated by the nosebleed because it is not an intentional act. Bleeding resulted from uprooting the teeth does not invalidate the fast; s/he should not swallow the blood because it is prohibited during fasting or at any time. The fast is also not invalidated by the blood resulted from wounds. However, taking blood from a person to be injected into another person invalidates the fast because it harms the former like cupping. If the second person is in a dire need for the blood and cannot wait until sunset, the fasting person is allowed to break his fast and give his blood to him but he must make up this missed day. The sixth thing, which invalidates a fast, is intentional vomiting. If he vomits intentionally, his fast is invalid but if he vomits unintentionally, his fast is still intact. In this regard the Prophet (SA) said: “Whoever is overcome and vomits is not to make up the day and whoever vomits intentionally must make up the day.” Fasting is invalidated by the previous causes only when the person is knowledgeable of them. If he is ignorant or eats, drinks, or has intercourse, thinking that the sun has set or that Fajr has not occurred, the fast is sound and there is no need to make up the fast on a such day. The Prophet (SA) said: “Whoever forgets he is fasting, and eats or drinks is to complete his fast, as it was Allah who fed him and gave him something to drink.” Once he remembers that he is fasting, he must give up eating and drinking and if he continues, his fast is invalid even if he swallows what in his mouth only. If anyone noticed anyone eating or drinking, he should remind him as means of cooperating with each other in what is good and righteous. The fast is not invalidated by anything that might enter his stomach unintentionally when rinsing the mouth or the nose. The seventh thing that invalidates the fast is menstruation and post-childbirth bleeding even if a moment just before sunset. If she feels it before sunset and the blood does not appear before sunset, her fast is sound. It is permissible to apply kohl (surma) and eye drops or eardrops while fasting. It is also permissible to heal wounds and to smell perfumes but s/he should not sniff to let it enter his/her body. It is also permissible to apply things that might calm his thirst like the wetting of his clothes. In this regard Imam Malik reported that some companions of the Prophet (SA) saw the prophet pouring water upon his head out of thirst while fasting. It was also reported that Ibn ‘Umar wetted his clothes and wore it. It is permissible to the fasting person to use the tooth stick (miswak) at the beginning of the day and its end because it is the Sunnah of the Prophet (SA). It is recommended to use it before prayer, ablution, getting up and when entering the home. The Sunnah is to break the fast by eating ripe dates or dry dates and any food if dates are not available and any drink if food is not available. If the sun has set and he is in a place where there is nothing to break the fast, he should intend breaking the fast but not sucking the finger like some ignorant people. O Muslims! Keep your fast away from obscenity, falsehood and its application because whoever does not abandon falsehood and its application and foolish behavior, Allah will be in no need that he abandons food and drink. Perform the obligatory prayers in the regular times in congregational manner. Perform as much prayer, remembrance of Allah, reciting the Holy Qur’an and give charity as you can. Beware of all that Allah has prohibited you to do like backbiting, cheating, telling lies and vain speech and foul language and if one of you is being cursed or annoyed, he should say, I am fasting. Be on guard against listening to music from the radio or any other means because fasting, in the first place, is a guard against sins to escape the Hellfire. Whoever commits prohibitions and neglects obligations during fast, his reward will be subject to reduction. O Believers! Fast with the due rights of fasting so that you may attain piety. As Allah says in Surah Baqarah verse no 184: But to fast is best for you, if you only knew. (2:184)
May Allah make us amongst those whose sins are forgiven in this month, whose fasting is accepted, whose reading of the Quran is accepted and whose Qiyam is accepted. And may He make you amongst those who enter Jannah through the gate of Ar-Rayyan. Wallahu a’lam bishawab.
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