On Celebrations: 'Halal' and 'Haram'

“End of Year Festivities”:

Like you are aware, the year 2015 is coming to a close. We are living the last days of the year 2015 and particularly the month of December. The month of December is also a month known as the month of festivities. Many people make therein provisions for celebrations and amusement. The public, private and industrial sectors which all their companies organise end of year parties and this applies also for individual family units who organise Christmas parties (today is Christmas) and end of year festivities.

In such situations, a Muslim must take precautions to preserve his faith, and not to abandon the teachings of Islam and the perfect role model which Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) represents. It is not forbidden to have lunch or dinner between friends and office colleagues, in any workplace (which is licit for a Muslim), but it is strictly forbidden for a Muslim to associate himself with illicit/forbidden things and practices. And especially in end of year parties where there is an unlimited amount of alcoholic drinks which are served. You may be tempted by friends to drink a little, to have a toast for “good health”. They may tell you: “Come on, the year is ending. Please us, and have a drink with us, to toast for good health”. And thus, to please them you forget the commandments of Allah!

Do you really think that alcoholic drink shall bring you good health? Or will it destroy your health?

A glass (of alcohol) will become two and shall keep on increasing, and thus there shall be no difference between you and them, for then you shall enter such a trap which shall be grievous (for you) in the eyes of Allah. Your good deeds done during a year such as: Prayers, remembrance of Allah, supplications, recitation of the Holy Quran, Fasting during the month of Ramadan, sacrifices done during that holy month, as well as blood (animal) sacrifice (Qurbani) done, shall be in vain. Also, many of our brothers and sisters did lots of sacrifices to perform the fifth pillar of Islam (Hajj). Now on a whim you prefer to burn down these good deeds with alcohol, cigarettes, fireworks and you begin to dance to their tune with all their drinking habits, singing and dancing, and thus you replace what is good, that is, acts of worship with bad things.

Muslim women and girls who have a job must also take great precaution so as not to fall prey to consuming Haram (illicit) food. Do not fall prey to those vices for those vices shall lead you in a vicious circle in which you shall not be able to come out. Muslim women and girls must take precautions for in these kinds of parties, men and women mingle together and thus there is no Pardah. 

Ponder over this: You are barred from mosques and prayers in congregation as well as Jummah prayers, but to participate in your workplace in these kinds of end of year parties, is that not Haram for you? Is this Halal? Are those so-called Mullahs and great defenders of Islam doing nothing to protect the dignity and honour of our Muslim brothers and sisters, to stop them from falling into these kinds of traps? Very often we see parents authorising their children (boys and girls) to attend those kinds of end of year celebrations. They come back home quite late in the night and some even spend the whole night out with strangers with all their end of year amusements. They enjoy themselves so much that they go beyond limit and return back home late or remain outside without any performance of prayer etc. Indeed, where there is such amusement, there is no prayer!

15 Years of Divine Manifestation

On this festive day of New Year 2016, I offer a prayer to the Creator of the universe for all mankind: 

“O my God, 

You were with us and You strove for us even before we do so with ourselves; also be with us since we are as You were with us even before our existence! 

Clothe us with Benevolence (Lutfika) and come to us with Your love (Atfika) and Your Majesty (Janaabika). 

Bring out of our heart the darkness of self-will and let shine in our secret (Sirr) the light of surrender to You! 

Make us contemplate the excellence of Your choices so that what You demand and what You choose for us may become more beloved to us than the choices we could possibly make for ourselves. Ameen!”

Today January 1, it’s been 15 years since the late 4^th Caliph of the Ahmadiyya movement based himself on a report of hatred and jealousy of his ex so-called Amir to believe that two people were creating fitna (disorder) in the Ahmadiyya movement in Mauritius and that the system of Khilafat (Caliphate) was in danger. And then, without listening to our version mainly on divine revelation which I was receiving at the time, the fourth Caliph with such arrogance humiliated us and expelled from the Nizam-e-Jamaat (administration of the Jamaat) and in addition to that, he had not hesitated to send a curse (Lannat) on us, predicting our end. He qualified this end as a tragic and horrible end; that we would have a fearful destiny. 

As Allah told me afterwards, it was a Mubahila - a wish/ prayer for our misfortune and our end – which the fourth caliph had done, from the tone of his writings which he dictated through the Additional Vakilut-Tabshir Majid Tahir. In a vision (Kashf), Allah (swt) made it very clear to me that it was indeed a Mubahila which the fourth Caliph had done and I saw the Hand of Allah crush the letter (of Mubahila) in question and throw it in the dustbin. The 4^th Caliph had not realized his mistake and had failed to control his ego, and then with all his arrogance, he told us to go and form our separate Jamaat, and that when two people will go this shall not make the weight against the millions of people who will join the Ahmadiyya movement.

Huzur (atba) said that recently an Ahmadi told him that they (the Ahmadis of Mauritius) needed him (meaning that he is a vital asset for the Jamaat of the Promised Messiah), and to return to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association. Huzur (atba) said that he never left the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association. It was never his wish to do so. 

Indeed, it was those at the head who plotted to expel him from the Jamaat, the Nizam-e-Jamaat. Indeed, see how the plan of Allah unfolded. The 4^th Caliph “ordained” the both of them (that is, Hazrat Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (atba) and Zafrullah Domun Saheb) to go form their own separate Jamaat. In a way, they both obeyed the Khalifat-ul-Massih; it is them who showed obedience whilst the other Ahmadis are still showing themselves disobedient. All in all, the will of Allah prevailed in all circumstances.

Ahmadi Mosques under Attack

HATE CRIME AGAINST ISLAM

We all know what happened on 13 November 2015 in Paris (France) after extremists opened fire on people, out of whom 129 died and more than 350 injured. After that incident, there have been other attacks and last month itself in the USA, some hours after the Paris Attacks, some people opened fire on an Ahmadi Mosque in Meriden, Connecticut, the “Baitul Aman”. By the grace of Allah, there were no victims. But these attacks on mosques, be it those of Ahmadiyya or other mosques and Islamic centres, be it in America or elsewhere in the world, are becoming all the more frequent, especially because of the vendetta/ revenge which people are extracting against Islam. According to them, it is Islam and its teachings which are to be blamed!

Worst, nowadays in America there are some stupid people who are standing as presidential candidates of the USA, for example, Donald Trump, a Republican who has seized the opportunity of the Paris Attacks to make his political campaign against Islam whereby he has proposed that if the Americans vote him, he shall make it a must to spy on the Muslims and bar entry of Muslims in the USA. His hate speech against Islam and the Muslims has brought shame to his own political party. His own people have fallen on him for what he said for America is for the freedom of religion, people and liberty of expression. I warn him, and all those like him, that if he does not desist from his words and realise his error, if he continues in his hate speeches against Islam and Muslims, therefore Allah shall seize him in a severe punishment and humiliation. It is Allah who shall deal with him, because terrorism has no religion. 

'The Idiot Box is Truly Harmful'

 TV’S HARMFUL EFFECTS

By the grace of Allah, Allah (swt) in His infinite wisdom and grace has given me again the Tawfiq to continue my sermon today on the subject of: “The Harmful Effects of Television”.

Indeed the time that you lose watching TV is a time which you cannot gain back again, and verily you are in no position to know the exact remaining days which you have before you, before you leave this world. Therefore, maximize what time remains for you in the worship of Allah (Ibaadat), and the seeking of His forgiveness and mercy (Istigfaar). Spend all your time in the path of Allah by doing the works of religion and spend your money also for the propagation of the unity of Allah. Do not spend your money in useless preoccupations wherein there is no divine reward or pleasure.

Islam teaches us that despite all that which we possess (on earth), we verily have no right to use it in the way we want for all these things verily belong to Allah alone: our body, our strength, our time, our money and knowledge, etc. As for TV, it makes us waste our time and money in the disobedience of Allah and it makes us become lazy. With each second that you spend before TV you waste your existence, and verily you shall one day have to account for all that before your Creator. Your TV set plays day and night to such an extent that your electricity bill becomes enormous. It is verily wastage of your money, for apart from (national) television, you get to subscribe to other private channels and you have to pay for all that every month. 

Bear in mind that you have to account for all wealth/ money which Allah has given you before Him one day. Therefore, instead of wasting money, put the money to good use in the treasury of the Jamaat, to spend for the cause of Allah. This shall verily be a blessing for you for Allah shall put His blessings in your money and home and Insha-Allah, you shall have a great reward for it in the hereafter. What you sow in this world, you shall reap it in the hereafter. When you sow good deeds solely for the cause of Allah, therefore you shall reap an infinite reward both in this world and the hereafter. Verily the reward in the hereafter shall be much better and grand. 

TV: Impact on Islamic Life

TV’S HARMFUL EFFECTS

Today, by the grace of Allah, Allah has given me the Tawfiq to continue the second part of my Khutba Jummah on ‘The Harmful Effects of Television’.

Through TV, the Islamic dress code is disappearing, to such a point that there are some who consider the Islamic clothing as uncivilised dress code and only good for ancient times!

Islam has put great restriction concerning sexuality so that the social life of our community remains clean and far away from prostitution, homosexuality and other social maladies. As for TV, it not only removes that restriction through the means of its dirty films but it also incites young people to satisfy their carnal desires (sexual needs/ passions) in an immoral and illicit (Haram) way.

Islam is a religion which teaches Muslims men as well as women to cultivate shame (Haya) in them because shame is a quality which helps cultivate mutual respect. The Holy Prophet (pbuh) has even made us know that Allah (swt) has joined shame (Haya) together with faith (Iman). As long as someone has shame in him, his faith shall be alive, but if he loses his shame, he loses also his faith, and he begins to act like an animal. Through the various obscene TV channels proposed to people, television has taken away shame from that community (the Ummah of Hadhrat Muhammad (pbuh)).

Shun Arrogance and Cheap Victories

OBEDIENCE TO ALLAH AND TO HIS MESSAGE 

Hazrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al- Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) opened his Friday Sermon stressing on Obedience to Allah and His Khalifatullah, for therein is true salvation for a true believer. A true believer never seeks to hurt the feelings of the Messenger of Allah, Khalifatullah. The one who truly loves Allah and His Khalifatullah will always show obedience to Allah and His Khalifatullah.

During the course of his explanations which Huzur (atba) explained to be divinely inspired – for he relates that ever since the beginning of the Divine Manifestation, before doing any Jummah Khutba (or discourse) he seeks divine succour and guidance on which topic/ subject to bring before the Jamaat and the world at large – and Alhamdulillah, he also received on the spot (11 December 2015) the following revelation (in English): “These are the words coming from Allah. These are not the words of Munir Ahmad Azim.”

Shun Arrogance and Cheap victories

He reiterated the need for each member of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, National and International to ever remain firm in his or her belief and to always project the authentic facets of Islam, and forego all kinds of arrogance and attachment to minor/trivial things which can thus become major impediments in our faith. Arrogance can exterminate one’s faith, and an arrogant person can become like those who left the Divine Manifestation and sought to create problems for Allah and His Messenger and Jamaat. Huzur (atba) said that there is no difference between someone who left the Divine Manifestation and the one who does not pay obeisance to Allah and His Khalifatullah and manifest his or her nafs (ego, passion). Allah does not love the arrogant.

He made the congregation ponder over the situation of those who left the Divine Manifestation, who noted down the divine revelations, where are they today? Or even on those who at the very beginning of the Divine Manifestation itself rejected Allah’s revelations and signs! Now, with the celebrations of the centenary Jubilee of Ahmadiyyat establishment in Mauritius, how hurt they felt when their own Khalifa (elected by man) did not attend this function! Mauritians from all over the world came back to their country in the hope of having that grand celebration with their Khalifa, but all in vain! 

Allah has showed that there is no Khalifa except His very own Khalifatullah, His Chosen Khalifa who could have celebrated that particular centenary Jubilee. All the programmes done were through the helping hand of Allah. Are you still blind? Are you not still recognising that sign? Are you still manifesting your nafs (passion)? Are you still disputing over petty things? Are you trying to put the Messenger of Allah and the Jamaat of Allah in a fix? In the times of the Holy Prophet of Islam (pbuh), the latter stressed on unity, for it is united that we can progress – not divided and having petty arguments!

Watching Too Much TV

TV’S HARMFUL EFFECTS

Today the subject of my sermon shall be on the harmful effects of television. TV in itself is a favour for us from Allah (swt). You shall notice that in all good favours that Allah gives man, little by little Satan makes his way in them, leaving his mark, thus spoiling the favours which Allah have enabled us to have, especially in this past era and the actual era in which we are living with the introduction of television. There are programmes on TV which are essential for viewers, to learn from the given information, such as documentaries, news, educative programmes and others.

Now attraction to all the good effects of TV has disappeared, especially among the youths. Are you people now pondering over the arrays of TV Channels which are available today? I recall the past when there was only one television channel in Mauritius and there were interesting programmes, educative ones (such as documentaries etc.) which started around 3.00 pm and ended at 10.00 pm. Even the radio ended early just like for television. It was years later that a second channel was introduced and today there are a whole lot of TV channels besides the basic national TV channels. Now there are TV stations such as CANAL + proposing new programmes and channels and there is also the MY.T which proposes different new channels. Recently MY.T through publicity done have given viewers 3 months (till October 2015) free viewing of all its channels (more than 73 channels), with the hope that this attracts more and more people to subscribe to these usually paid channels. From what I have learnt, all kinds of Hindi and other serials are being broadcast, one after the other.

Now, what one sees is that all people are before the television, morning and evening. And there is even the option now to get to view the missed programmes and films of the past days.

So the believers need to ponder a lot over the harmful effects of television. Nowadays, a TV in a house has become for the people like a dangerous enemy. It has become such an enemy which is destroying your Iman (faith), time and money when you go to have paid subscriptions to get to view such channels which are dirty. At the same time, you are inviting your wives and children to partake of the harmful effects of these immoral movies and as a result, they also get to be negatively affected by these.