الله أكبر (7)  الله أكبر ، الله أكبر، الله أكبر، لا إله إلا الله. الله أكبر، الله أكبر، ولله الحمد. الله أكبر كبيرا، والحمد لله كثيرا، وسبحان الله بكرة وأصيلا.

لا إله إلا الله وحده، صدق وعده، ونصر عبده، وأعز جنده، وهزم الأحزاب وحده. لا شيء قبله ولا شيء بعده. الله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر. 

نحمد الله تعالى ونستعينه، ونشكره تعالى ونستغفره ونستغيثه، ونشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك و له الحمد، يحيي ويميت، بيده الخير، وهو على كل شيء قدير،  ونشهد أن سيدنا و مولانا محمداً عبده ورسوله، النبي الأمي الذي أرسله الله بالهدى والدين الحق، بشيرا ونذيرا بين يدي الساعة، صلى الله عليه وسلم وعلى آله وأصحابه ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.

أما بعد! فيا عباد الله اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمون.

قال الله تعالى في كتابه الكريم: وَلِتُكْمِلُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا اللَّهَ عَلَى مَا هَدَاكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

 

Allah says in His Noble Book, the translation of which is, “You should complete the number of days and proclaim Allah's greatness for the guidance He has given you so that hopefully you will be thankful.”

الله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر

 

Muslims, today we have gathered together to celebrate the 'id al-Fitr, to rejoice in our having successfully completed one of the greatest acts of obedience to our Lord, fasting the month of Ramadan. And for that we must give heartfelt thanks, for the truth of the matter is that there is no greater nima than Islam and no greater nima than being given the strength and capacity to fulfil what our Lord has commanded us to do. Allah says:

 

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنْسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

 

the translation of which is, “I only created jinn and man to worship Me.“ Thus, we only truly embrace our humanity and only truly fulfil our potential as human beings by worshipping our Lord - that is our fitra and that is what brings us the most contentment and happiness. 

And not only are we fulfilling ourselves, but we are being rewarded for doing so at the same time, for you should know that today is the day that Allah rewards all His slaves who have completed the month of Ramadan by granting them His forgiveness. And it is only today upon its completion that this reward is bestowed upon us. The Prophet said that Allah forgives us on the last night of Ramadan, and then when he was asked if that night was the laylat al-Qadr, he replied,

 

لا ولكنّ العاملَ إنما يُوَفَّى أَجّرَه إذا قضى عملَه

 

“No, but no worker receives his wages until he completes his work.“

And in another hadith from Ibn Abbas, he said,

 

إذا كان يومَ الفطرِ هَبَطَتِ الملائكةُ إلى الأرضِ فيقومون على أفواهِ السِّكَكِ ينادون بصوتٍ يسمعُه جميعُ من خلقَ اللهُ إلا الجنَّ والإِنسَ يقولون: يا أمة محمد اخرجوا إلى رب كريم يعطي الجزيل ويغفر الذنب العظيم، فإذا برزوا إلى مصلاهم يقول الله عز وجل لملائكته: يا ملائكتي ما جزاء الأجير إذا عمل عمله؟ فيقولون: إلهنا وسيدنا أن توفيه أجره فيقول: إني أشهدكم أني قد جعلت ثوابهم من صيامهم وقيامهم رضائي ومغفرتي، انصرفوا مغفوراً لكم"

 

“On the day of the Eid ul-Fitr, the angels come down to the earth, stand at the head of the various streets and alleyways, and call out in a voice that all of creation are able to hear except for mankind and the jinn, ‘O umma of Muhammad, go out to a Generous Lord who gives an ample reward and forgives great wrong actions.’ Then, when the people come to their Musalla, Allah says to the angels, ‘My angels, what is the recompense of the paid worker who completes his work?’ They reply, ‘Our God and our Master will give him his payment in full.’ Whereupon Allah says, ‘I bear witness that I have made their reward for the fasting and praying they have done be my rida (contentment with them) and My Forgiveness. So go forth forgiven.’”

So we thank Allah for giving us the strength to complete the fast and thus grow closer to Him, and we thank Him for the tremendous reward He bestows upon us for doing so.

 

الله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر، لا إله إلا الله. الله أكبر، الله أكبر، ولله الحمد.

 

Muslims, despite all of our differences and all of the individual idiosyncrasies with which each of us is blessed, we ARE a single nation, we ARE brothers. Allah says:

 

 إِنَّ هَذِهِ أُمَّتُكُمْ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً وَأَنَا رَبُّكُمْ فَاعْبُدُونِ

 

the translation of which is, “This nation of yours is one nation and I am your Lord, so worship Me.” And Allah says:

إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ

 

the translation of which is, “The muminun / the believers are brothers.”

And today is the day when the truth of that hits home the most strongly, for here we all are, gathered together, men, women and children, young and old, rich and poor, with nothing having brought us together except for our desire to proclaim the greatness of our Creator and thank Him for the incomparable blessings He has bestowed upon us. I still remember when I lived in Fes and walked to the Musalla to pray the Eid prayer. Even from the moment I left my house, I could hear the Eid dhikr reverberating through the streets, and then when the Musalla came into view and I saw the sea of humanity stretching into the distance, thousands upon thousands of people sitting in lines and saying the takbir in unison, I can truly say that I have never seen a more awe-inspiring sight. 

And we must carry that brotherhood, togetherness and love for one another with us throughout the rest of the day and indeed throughout the rest of the year. If there are friends from whom you have become estranged, then visit them. If there are family members with whom you are angry, forgive them and re-establish ties. And meet everyone with a smile and kind words. Abdallah ibn Umar said, 

 إن البر شيء هين؛ وجه طليق وكلام لين

 

“Birr (goodness) is a simple matter - it is simply having a smiling face and speaking kind and gentle words.”

So, take delight in the blessings Allah has given you - your food and drink, your clothes, your sweet-smelling perfumes and the company of loved ones. And display them openly out of thanks to your Lord.

وَأَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ فَحَدِّثْ

 

“And as for the blessing of your Lord, speak out!” 

Wear your best clothes, eat your best food and wear your best perfume. Enjoy today for it is our Eid. 

 

أقول قولي هذا و أستغفر الله لي و لكم و لسائر المسلمين من كل ذنب فاستغفروه إنه هو الغفور الرَّحيمالله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر، لا إله إلا الله. الله أكبر، الله أكبر، ولله الحمد.

الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على خير المرسلين وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين.

أما بعد: قال الله تعالى في كتابه العزيز: قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن تَزَكَّى وَذَكَرَ اسْمَ رَبِّهِ فَصَلَّى

 

Allah says, the translation of which is, “The one who has purified himself (zakkaaha), invoked the Name of his Lord and prayed, will have success.” This aya has been interpreted by many of the mufassirin as referring to the payment of the zakat ul-Fitr and the establishment of the Eid prayer. Hence, the payment of zakat ul-fitr is inextricably linked to this Eid. And as we mentioned last Friday, it is an obligation on every Muslim, regardless of age, sex, wealth or social status, unless of course they are absolutely destitute. And, there is a very good reason for that, and that is so that no Muslim will go hungry on this day and every one will be able to enjoy this day without having to undergo the indignity of having to ask or beg. By giving zakat al-Fitr, every one of us is gaining the reward for feeding someone and bringing them happiness and joy. 

الله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر

 

Allah says, 

 

فَأَمَّا مَن طَغَى وَآثَرَ الْحَيَوةَ الدُّنْيَا فَإِنَّ الْجَحِيمَ هِيَ الْمَأْوَى، وَ أَمَّا مَنْ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّهِ ونَهَى النَّفْسَ عَنِ الْهَوَى فَإِنَّ الْجَنَّةَ هِيَ الْمَأْوَى

 

the translation of which is, “As for him who overstepped the bounds and preferred the life of the dunya, the Blazing Fire will be his refuge. But as for him who feared the Station of his Lord and forbade the lower self its appetites, the Garden will be his refuge.”

Muslims, throughout this past month, we have been commanded to show that we are human beings, not animals, and that it is we who control our appetites not our appetites which control us. We have forbade our lower self its appetites and, after a month of tough fasting, have started to gain the upper hand over it. We have succeeded in weakening the hold of the dunya over us, so let us not let all that good work go to waste. Let us keep up the good habits we acquired and forego the bad habits we left behind. Let us not view the end of Ramadan as an ending, but as a new beginning. We have fueled up and are ready to get on with the work at hand. We have never been more ready. Let us continue to keep our tongues moist with la ilaha illa Allah and the remembrance of Allah. Let us continue to build our days around the prayer and by means of it, bring our nights to life. And let us re-establish zakat in all its justice, glory and magnificence, the pillar of the deen that has been all but lost since the fall of the khalifate and is only now starting to be once again be properly implemented. Let us make Allah our goal and see His deen uppermost in the land. 

 

الله الأكبر، الله أكبر، الله أكبر، لا إله إلا الله. الله أكبر، الله أكبر، ولله الحمد.

 

Oh Allah, we ask You to accept our fast and our prayer and grant us Your Forgiveness. We ask You to give us success in keeping our himma high and putting into practice what You have commanded us, and to protect our hearts from love of this world and its ensnarements and attractions. We ask You to make the Garden, and not the Blazing Fire, our refuge.

We ask you to bless us on this blessed day, and fill our hearts with joy and delight. And make it the means for the re-unification of the Muslim Umma. 

 

إنَّ اللهَ ومَلائِكَتَهُ يُصلُّونَ على النَّبِي يَا أَيُها الذينَ آمنوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وسَلِّمُوا تَسْليماً. اللهمَّ صَلِّ وسَلِّم وبارِك عَلَيْهِ وعلى آلِهِ وصَحْبِهِ أجمعين. 

وارضَ اللهم عن الخلفاء الراشدين أبي بكرٍ وعمرَ وعثمانَ وعلي ، وعن سائر الصحابة أجمعين، خصوصا الأنصارَ منهم والمهاجرين، وعن التابعين وتابعي التابعين ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.

اللهم اهد أولات أمور المسلمين لما يرضيك ولاتباع سنة نبيك صلى الله عليه وسلم  وثبت أقدامهم على الصراط المستقيم وأصلحهم يا رب العالمين.

اللهم بارك على شيخنا، و على أميرنا، وعلى جميع أمراءِ وزعماء المسلمين.

اللهم اغفر لنا وارحمنا وارحم والدينا وارحم موتانا وارحم من علمنا وارحم أشياخنا وارحم من سبقنا بالإيمان وارحم بفضلك جميع المسلمين والمسلمات، والمؤمنين والمؤمنات، الأحياءِ منهم والأموات، يا أرحم الراحمين، يا رب العالمين. آمين آمين آمين.

 وعيدكم مبارك سعيد