Like I cited before you last Friday; Allah says in the
Quran: “Those of the Children of Israel who went
astray were cursed by the tongue of David, and of Jesus, son of Mary. That was
because they rebelled and used to transgress. They used not to forbid one
another any malfeasance that they performed. Miserable indeed was whatever they
were performing!” (Al-Maida 5:
79-80)
The
Hadiths of our beloved prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) give more details about
these Quranic verses and shed more light [i.e. understanding] on them:
Hazrat ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud (ra) reported: The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, “The first defect (in religion) which affected the Children of Israel in the way that man would meet another and say to him: ‘Fear Allah and abstain from what you are doing, for this is not lawful for you.’ Then he would meet him the next day and find no change in him, but this would not prevent him from eating with him, drinking with him and sitting in his assemblies. When it came to this, Allah led their hearts into evil ways on account of their association with others.”
Then
he (pbuh)
recited, “Those among the Children of Israel who disbelieved were cursed by
the tongue of Dawud (David) and ‘Isa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary). That was
because they disobeyed (Allah and the Messengers) and were ever transgressing
beyond bounds. They used not to forbid one another from the Munkar (wrong,
evildoing, sins, polytheism, disbelief) which they committed. Vile indeed was
what they used to do. You see many of them take the disbelievers as their protectors
and helpers. Evil indeed is that which their own selves have sent forward
before them; for that (reason) Allah’s wrath fell upon them and in torment will
they abide. And had they believed in Allah and in the Prophet and in what has
been revealed to him, never would they have taken them (the disbelievers) as
protectors and helpers; but many of them are rebellious (disobedient to Allah).”
(Al-Maida 5: 79-82).
Then
he [Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh)] continued: “Nay, by Allah, you either enjoin
good and forbid evil and catch hold of the hand of the oppressor and persuade
him to act justly and stick to the truth, or, Allah will involve the hearts of
some of you with the hearts of others and will curse you as He had cursed them”.
(Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)
It
was narrated from the son of Hazrat Jarir that his father [Hazrat Jarir] said: “The
Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: ‘There is no people among whom sins are
committed when they are stronger and of a higher status (i.e. they have the power
and ability to stop the sinners) and they do not change them, but Allah will
send His punishment upon them all.’” (Ibn Majah)
Hazrat
Anas (ra) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “The Kalimah - La
Ilaaha Illallah - benefits those people who read it and protects them from
difficulties and misfortunes also as long as they do not neglect its rights.”
The
companions (ra) asked: “What is meant by ‘neglect its rights’?” The
Messenger of Allah (pbuh) replied: “When sins are committed openly, they do
not forbid them; nor stop them.”
Hazrat
Aisha (ra) narrated: “The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) came and from his
blessed face, I understood that something serious has happened. He did not say
anything. After performing his ablutions, he went directly to the mosque. I
also stood near the wall of the mosque to listen to what he had to say. The
Messenger of Allah (pbuh) stood on the pulpit and after praising Allah, he
said: ‘O Muslims, Allah has ordained you to encourage good and forbid evil
otherwise a time will come when you will pray [invoke Him] but He will not
respond [to your prayers], you will ask of Him a favour and He will not give it
to you, and you will ask Him for help and He will refuse [that help to you].”
Hazrat
Abu Huraira (ra) narrated: “The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: ‘When my
Ummah will start giving preference to this world [over the next world] and
consider it as a source of honour, [therefore] fear [of Allah] and the value [importance]
of Islam will disappear from their hearts. When they will stop encouraging good
and forbid evil, they will be deprived of the blessings of Revelation, and when
they will criticise each other, they will fall in the eyes of Allah.’”
THE ROOT OF THIS PROBLEM
From
the Hadiths that I have put before you, it is clear that leaving the work “Amr
bil Ma’ruf wa nahi anil Munkar” (Encouraging Good and Preventing Evil),
is most probably very first reason which has brought [upon the people - the
Muslims] the anger, displeasure and ultimately the curse of Allah. And in the
case of the Ummat-e-Muhammadiya, if the Muslims neglect or leave this
work, the punishment they will have will be more severe than the past
communities, because they failed to recognize their first obligation and
neglected the only mission of their life. For this reason, Rasullullah (pbuh)
ordered and qualified this action “Amr bil Ma’ruf wa nahi anil Munkar”
as “the basis and particular sign of Deen-e-Islam” and leaving this work
will cause the degradation and disappearance of Islam.
In
a Hadith narrated by Abu Saeed Al-Khudri (ra) it has been mentioned [the
Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said]: “Whoever amongst you sees an evil, he must
change it with his hand; if he is unable to do so, then with his tongue; and if
he is unable to do so, then with his heart; and that is the weakest form of
Faith.” (Muslim)
In
a more detailed version of this Hadith, it has been narrated by Ibn Masud
(ra) that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) observed: Never a Prophet had
been sent before me by Allah towards his nation who had not among his people
(his) disciples and companions who followed his ways and obeyed his command.
Then there came after them their successors who said whatever they did not
practise, and practised whatever they were not commanded to do. He who strove
against them with his hand was a believer: he who strove against them with his
tongue was a believer, and he who strove against them with his heart was a
believer and beyond that there is no faith even to the extent of a mustard seed
[i.e. no grain of faith]. (Muslim)
There
is no doubt that the work of “Amr bil Ma’ruf wa nahi anil Munkar”
(Encouraging Good and Preventing Evil) is that same strong pillar of Islam upon
which every branch of Iman (faith) rests. Verily, all the prophets (as)
were sent by Allah (twt) for this very mission. If by misfortune, we neglect
this work, we forget it, and if we stop doing it, we can say that the very
purpose of Nabuwwat (prophethood) will be distorted and lose its
meaning. It is at this very moment that the conscience of man, which we can
consider as his first wealth, will be spoiled and will degenerate. The mind
will become heavy and dark. The door of vice and arrogance will be opened and
people will become barbaric all over the world. Any invention of man will
become dangerous and it will even bring harm to him. The relationship among man
will sink morally low. But man will realize all this clearly only on the Day of
Judgment, when he will appear before Allah (twt) and he will have to give an
account for his deeds.
This
is a great misfortune that will be fulfilled and which we were afraid of and
which will materialize in all truth before our eyes.
Allah
says in the Quran: “Allah’s command must be
fulfilled.” (Al-Ahzab 33: 39)
And
we have been ordained to say: “Surely to Allah
we belong and to Him we will (all) return.”
(Al-Baqara 2: 157).
The
buildings of Knowledge and Guidance have been destroyed; goodness and the
effect of this knowledge have completely disappeared. As a result, hatred and
dishonour has invaded everywhere. The noble and intimate relationship between
man and his Creator is no longer present in the heart; on the contrary, humans,
just like animals, have become slaves to desires. Indeed in today’s world, true
Muslims are rare and it is practically impossible to find someone who is ready
to bear the inevitable sacrifices to spread Islam.
Any
Muslim who bravely stands up to change this current situation where the Deen
is being massacred and tumbled down, and he does his utmost to relive the
prophetic practice (Sunnah) to spread Deen, and he is always one
step forward to take on this responsibility on his shoulders, he will certainly
be considered as the most noble and distinguished person among all people.
Today,
you are truly fortunate that Allah has had mercy on His servants and
understands your suffering and has sent among you His Khalifatullah to revive
His Deen and bring Islam back to your hearts. Whoever comes forward with
sincerity of heart to help Allah, His humble servant in this work, he is truly
lucky and he will get a great reward from Allah. Remember that the time [epoch,
era] of the Messenger of Allah is not given to everyone. So, those who
recognize, firmly believe and obey the Prophet of Allah who is a perfect and
obedient follower of Nabi Kareem Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), then this person will
also receive the faculty to spread the light of Allah in the world and he also
will receive the ability to do this work of “Amr bil Ma’ruf wa nahi anil
Munkar” (Encouraging Good and Preventing Evil).
We
have to take the time, to reflect calmly on what to do in such situations where
the world is in terrible pain. There are very clear causes behind laziness and
indifference which are spreading these days. Insha-Allah, I will come on
these causes in my Khutba next Friday.
Man
must realize that without his effort and without firm faith, Allah will not put
His breath [i.e. breathe in His Spirit] into his life. He needs to make the
effort which Allah expects of him to witness the clarity of Allah’s miracles. When
he makes efforts in the way of Allah, he will see the signs that Allah is with
him and he will receive the Support of Allah to advance in the accomplishment
of his work of Dawat-e-Illallah, that is to say, to invite the other
people to Allah.
And in the time of the Messenger of Allah, like in our present time, when the sincere followers of this Messenger-Reformer firmly believe in him and his mission and are ready to do anything to help him in this mission and they do not have any doubt in his mission and the revelations which come down upon the Messenger of Allah, His Khalifatullah, then Allah opens up such avenues for such people so that they also gain the ability to do their job of “Doing [Encouraging] Good and Preventing Evil” and Allah will be pleased with this kind of person, provided that he does not falter in this work, because the slightest misstep can cost him his faith. So, a true believer remains firm and sincere and puts his trust in Allah and when the time is ripe, Allah will open the door of His grace for him in this temporal world and in the hereafter, Insha-Allah, Ameen.
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