Last Friday Sermon of the Year 2016
Today, for the last Friday Sermon of the year
2016, like usual, it is my duty to make people, especially the Muslims, become
conscious of the excesses and innovations which breezes through their lives,
and thus making them imitate the non-Muslims and participate in unislamic
practices.
For New Year festivities, there is a fashion
trending to organise all sorts of programmes in hotels and other places which
have been transformed for the occasion. These End of Year programmes, including
those broadcasted on TV, attract a lot of people. On TV, there are lots of
channels which advertise to attract subscriptions, offering deals so that you
may opt to subscribe with them during the last month of the year as well as the
first month of the New Year. TV Channels also propose all kinds of activities
like theatre, discotheques, singing and dancing competitions in several
languages with attractive prizes. Many people come forward to participate.
Moreover, there are all sorts of games of chance. It is a shame to see that
so-called Islamic concerts are organised and for the End of Year and New Year
posters are put everywhere for premieres of new films in cinema halls. People
do not hesitate to lose time in long queues in order to buy those tickets for
them as well as their spouses and children.
Twisted Thinking among the Muslims
It is most unfortunate that many women are
interested in all these distractions, especially Muslim women and girls, who
have been barred from Friday Sermons and congregational prayers in the mosques,
as well as Eid prayers after a month of fasting and as well as those of the Eid
of Sacrifice (Eid-ul-Fitr & Eid-ul-Adha). They are denied the right
to listen to sermons which are very important for a believer, male and female. Today's
so-called Mullahs see all these as haraam (illicit) for the women and
girls, and they have closed the door leading to Allah for them, and now those
Muslim women and girls are holding fast to the door leading to Satan, whereby
Satan makes everything seem beautiful for them so as to separate them from Allah
and His Messenger (pbuh). So, according to these Mullahs, the door of the
mosques are haraam (illicit) for the ladies, but now are all these
satanic attractions which they have hold fast to halaal (licit) for
them? Where will that door lead them? To Paradise or Hell?
Islam is a religion which gives much honour to
the ladies. Islam teaches us to protect them and also ordains them to remain in
Pardah. Therefore, it is completely against the teachings of Islam for
Muslim ladies to organise Islamic activities and invite the national TV and
even national and private radios to retransmit those videos and programmes on
TV whereby they become a spectacle for the non-mahram. The ladies have
the right to organise Islamic activities among themselves, and they need not
invite men in the Islamic programmes which they organise. The Islamic
programmes which you do is only to seek the pleasure of Allah (swt), and not a
show which encourage women and girls to come without Pardah and thus
attracting the illicit and perverse eyes of the non-mahrams on them.
This is not Islam. We must take great precaution if we really want our deeds to
be of benefit to us in the hereafter.
During islamic celebrations and/or programmes,
we advise Muslim women not to forget to dress themselves in a proper manner for
that is really important! A Muslim woman does not have the right to dress in a
way where her hair, ears, stomach or other parts of her body are visible. This
is forbidden in Islam and especially in the End of Year and New Year celebrations,
there are Muslims who participate in grand festivities along with family, at
home, or at the seaside with all sorts of menus - barbecues etc. Those who are
wealthy enough to afford festivities in hotels shall do so. Let me be clear on
this: Going to hotels with family is not a sin in itself, but now the trend and
the dimension of going to hotels and spending lots of money for the End of Year
and New Year celebrations has become the "it" thing. This has become
like a tradition, and this is not good. But going to hotels etc. is not a sin
(except when it involves unislamic happenings like dances, music etc. which are
associated with hotel life).
Many sectors of the working population shall
have holidays so as to celebrate the New Year and there shall be many
festivities, including Hollywood and Bollywood concerts which are organised
which involve singing and dancing. It is most unfortunate that Muslim men and
women let themselves be tricked into these kinds of practices. They prefer to
copy other cultures and religions than to follow the teachings of Islam. They
prefer trampling their own teachings to give preference to the cultures of
others. They do lots of publicities so as to invite others in their so-called Islamic
concerts. There was a year, if I am not mistaken, some 3 years back where there
was a so-called Islamic concert with title: Belly-Dancing.
Islam does not permit singing concerts in Arabic
(Arab culture, which may not be islamic at all) which are associated
with music. It is absolutely haraam (illicit). Being born as an Arab
does not mean that one is Muslim. A non-Arab Muslim who makes efforts to know
the Arabic language in order to read Salat and Quran is much better than an
Arab who despite knowing Arabic yet does not heed the Quran and Sunnah, and all
other Islamic teachings. If the person organising the concert hails from an
Arab country, this does not mean that the concert is permissible. Even if the
person is saying/ singing words of praises, this does not mean that the concert
is permissible, even if the person says otherwise. This is because he is
associating music and dancing with all this, and especially when it is not
spiritual advancement which is promoted, but only amusement and satanic entertainment.
Devotional Poetry versus Wild Entertainment
Islam authorizes Nazams, Qaseedas, Naat
(singing poems/ words of praises) in any language to praise Allah and His
Messenger (pbuh) with lots of respect, but without music and dancing which
resemble those entertainment of the West (European Countries etc.). I make an
appeal to all Muslims, national and international not to participate in these
so-called Islamic concerts and do not mark your presence in these kinds of
places. I call out to the organisers of these events to take their
responsibility towards Allah and His Messenger (pbuh), because you are
propagating something which is haraam (illicit) in the name of Islam.
Organising spiritual programmes and converting them into concerts must be
stopped! Spiritual programmes should only be for the pleasure of Allah and
where haraam (illicit) things are not associated with them (i.e., these
programmes). It is then that you shall see progress. There should be no
exaggeration and going beyond limits in that kind of so-called demonstration of
love for Allah and His Messenger (pbuh), for while proclaiming love for Allah
and His Messenger (pbuh), these kinds of people associate illicit things in the
name of Allah and His Messenger (pbuh), be it in form of music, singing and
dancing on the dance floor! Beware!!!
Become responsible beings; take the advice and
permission of those who are really attached to the teachings and commandments
of Allah and of His Messenger (pbuh). Do not organise illicit festivities to
avoid deviation from the course of the Shariah (Islamic Laws). Those
so-called Islamic concerts cannot promote the praises of Allah as well as
respect for Allah and His Messenger (pbuh). These events/ concerts are not a
solution for the new generation to purify and plunge themselves in the love of
Allah and that of His Messenger (pbuh).
Therefore, think well before organising such
programmes, for bear in mind that you shall have to account for all this before
Allah, especially concerning the proper respect which you owe to the beloved of
Allah (pbuh) and Allah Himself. It is Allah who gives honour; do not seek
honour from creatures of Allah by trampling the Islamic precepts/ principles and
teachings. Do not forgo your own true teachings which exist since the creation
of this universe for the sake of other cultures. No!
Lose of Values lead to the Fall of Nations
Allah (swt) has sent
messengers to their peoples. They came with clear signs, but those nations
preferred their own material comfort instead of accepting Allah (swt) and His
Messengers. And despite all efforts deployed by the messengers to give the
divine messages, these people, through their sheer arrogance did not accept the
messages which they received and they belied (denounced) the messengers and
they even went as far as to say: "Have you come among us to make us
abandon that which our ancestors used to follow?" For those ignorant
people, they believe that the messengers of Allah seek honour and grandeur in
the country (i.e. this materialistic world). It is then that they (these
people) say: "Wa maa nahnu laku-maa bi-muminiin !"
- We do not believe in you.
Like Allah (swt) says in the Holy Quran, it is
because of their own (evil) deeds and behaviour that We set seals upon the
hearts of those who exceed all limits. They prefer attaching themselves to
things which shall deviate them from the right path and which attract the wrath
of Allah upon them. They prefer these indecent amusements, all those evils which
grow like wild weeds in all corners of this temporal life. Read Surah At-Tauba
and see what Allah (swt) says:
For these kinds of evil people, be them men and
women, they are comrades to one another. They ordain that which is forbidden
and they hinder that which is permissible, and their hands are tied, i.e. they do
not like to spend in the way of Allah. They prefer to spend their wealth in
vain things which do not reap any blessings, any barakat in their money
(or wealth in general), in their homes, in their families, in their health. They
forget Allah and they give preference to their own passion, their own desires,
exultation and Allah also therefore altogether forget them. Thus, when Allah
forgets them (i.e. do not care for them and puts them away from His
remembrance), then definitely, they are no more on the right path. They take
the wrong path and they are satisfied to tread on that path. Allah (swt) says: "Wa la ana humullah, Wa la hum azaa bum
Muqiim » - Upon them is the curse of Allah, and an
enduring punishment.
Allah (swt) furthermore says in the Quran:
"Have they not
travelled through the land and observed how was the end of those before them?
They were more numerous than themselves and greater in strength and in
impression on the land, but they were not availed by what they used to earn."
(Ghafir 40: 83).
Allah says: Have you (O people) not travel
through the land and see how the nations who lived before you, who were greater
in strength than you and who had more wealth and children than you (were
finished)? You have gotten your share (of punishment) like the people before
you received. And like them, you also went further in your deviation. Such
kinds of people, their work on earth and the life to come is rendered void, and
it is them the losers.
So, O Muslims, you need to learn to preserve
your honour and dignity and you must not associate yourselves with (unislamic)
End of Year activities. These are activities inspired by the Satan. Understand
and heed my message well, for these kinds of activities attract the wrath of
Allah, and I pray that we, Muslims separate ourselves completely from such
activities. Ameen.
----Friday Sermon of 30 December 2016(29 Rabi’ul
Awwal 1438 AH) delivered by Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) of Mauritius.