Ramadan – Not too late. Making the Most of the last Days
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Channel: Mufti Menk
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AI Generated Summary ©
The importance of forgiveness is crucial to achieving a football match and a positive life. forgiveness is achieved through showing faith in Allah's mercy and allowing others to do their own things. Prayer and deeds are essential for achieving this, and people should not pick on others. The importance of holistic peace is emphasized, and events like weddings and graduations can strengthen one's umighteen. forgiveness is achieved through love, faith, and deeds, and people should not harms themselves with their actions.AI Generated Transcript ©
Bismillahiwalhamdulillahi
wa salaatu wa salaamu ala rasulillahi wa'alaaalihi wa
sahabii'mayin.
My brothers and sisters, Ramadan is a gift,
and the difficulty is it's coming to an
end. So the question is, what did I
make out of this month? A very important
question.
And the answer to it can never be
negative because there are still a few days.
Right? So even if you have
thought to yourself, and we all probably would,
that I haven't done as much as I
could have,
then, well, there are a few more days
remaining. If you're losing a football match, what
do you do? You get serious towards the
end, and everyone starts screaming and yelling and
cheering you on and
You know that you've got to score. In
this particular case, it's not like you're going
to miss it if you are serious about
it. You will score. You seek the forgiveness
of Allah. Primarily what I want to achieve
from Ramadan
is the forgiveness of Allah. And the reason
is the prophet Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam
says, woe
be upon the one who has witnessed the
month of Ramadan and did not achieve forgiveness.
That hadith goes to show that primarily what
I'm supposed to get from Ramadan
is forgiveness.
If Allah forgives me, what happens? I earn
His mercy. If I have the mercy of
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
then I get Jannatul Firdaus.
I get paradise, subhanAllah.
So ultimately, you and I would like to
go to Jannah. We would like to go
to paradise. That's why there's a hadith of
the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam wherein he
says that every night of Ramadan, there are
people whom Allah chooses,
and he gives them his forgiveness.
He frees them from hellfire,
which means he writes their names from among
those whom the fire will not touch.
So someone asked me, look, what if I
am a young person
and, subhanAllah,
I achieve
that I'm on that list? So Allah has
written my name from among those whom the
hellfire will not touch.
That
happens every single night, right, of Ramadan.
So we ask Allah to have our names
written,
not just once, but a few times, inshaAllah,
we've seen so many Ramadans. But the question
from this young man was, say I'm young
and my name is now on that list.
What if I do nasty things after that?
Well, the answer to it is if Allah
has put your name on that list,
by his will and mercy, he will protect
you because of your seriousness
and dedication
to him. He will protect you from engaging
in that which would not have made you
deserve that list. That's Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
I made it on the list tonight. May
Allah make it that we all are on
that list. And remember, any deed Allah can
look at, have mercy on you, write your
name and your set, alhamdulillah.
If I make it on that list by
the will of Allah,
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, he will make sure
that I,
because of my dedication, my love of Allah,
and the fact that I keep trying,
will not do things
that would make me such a person that
would have to be removed from that list
because there's no removing from that list once
you're on it.
So one of the ways of knowing that
you're on that list insha'Allah, although you can
never know for certain,
is if your life changes
with Ramadan.
So Ramadan came in and I was not
such a good person. But when Ramadan exited,
I've changed 4 or 5 major things in
my life so that I can earn the
mercy and the pleasure of Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala.
What a beautiful month of Ramadan.
What acceptance. What amazing forgiveness.
What mercy of Allah, and what freedom from
hellfire have I just achieved. That's a blessing
of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So I'd like
you to pause for a moment and ask
Allah ask Allah. Firstly,
what would you like to ask Allah? I
can tell you.
You we'd like to ask Allah
to assist and help our brothers and sisters
in Gaza and in Palestine. That's the first
thing. Before I even ask Allah
to have mercy on me, I ask Allah
to have mercy on our brothers and sisters
in Palestine and in Gaza. May Allah
forgive our shortcomings,
our weakness, our inability. May Allah Almighty really
forgive the ummah for the fact that they
have failed our own brothers and sisters who
are dying as we speak of hunger.
Hunger.
Imagine
people prohibiting food and drink from
humankind,
Whereas in Islam, we are taught that even
if there is a dog and you were
happen to quench its thirst, you will get
the mercy of Allah. You will achieve the
favor of Allah because you cared for an
animal.
That's what we are taught as Muslims. But
one wonders who and where and which faith
and which moral
values
teach that you need to stop food and
drink from innocent people, from an entire population.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
give them what they deserve, and may Allah
truly forgive our shortcomings. Then we ask Allah
for mercy upon all of us, forgiveness for
all of us.
Paradise. May Allah have mercy on us. May
Allah free us from hellfire.
May Allah love even a single deed that
we've done just like he loved the deed
of the one who was kind to a
cat and the other one who quenched the
thirst of a dog.
Tonight, we are here together.
1000 of us,
we will ask Allah almighty, and we will
continue to ask him throughout
the evening.
You can start right now while I'm talking
to you. It's not wrong to continue to
ask Allah while you're listening to me, but
you're making a du'a. You're making a du'a
for whatever
needs to be, Insha'Allah, met by Allah
Indeed, the mercy of Allah is what I
ask for.
Now
if you recall,
you may have heard, and I am one
of those who have said it some time
back, that in Ramadan,
you have
forgiveness of Allah, the mercy of Allah, and
freedom from hellfire.
Right? Those three things.
The division of those 3 into the first
10, the second 10, and the third 10
is what is not authentic,
because
there are clear cut authentic narrations that prove
that the mercy of Allah is throughout Ramadan,
not just specialized for a particular tent. The
freedom from hellfire is throughout Ramadan every night.
Allah has
those whom he frees from hellfire every single
night, not just on 10 nights. And Allah's
mercy, Allah's forgiveness, and the freedom from hellfire
happens on all of those nights. So I
just wanted to
repeat it to correct it because we do
hear it often. And in fact, some of
us like myself, sometime back, I actually reset
these words. So we need to rectify it
and correct it to say, you know what?
It's throughout Ramadan. May Allah Almighty
grant us his mercy,
grant us his forgiveness,
and grant us freedom from hellfire.
This evening, we will also be given an
opportunity
to donate towards good causes.
And,
one of the causes will also be that
of our brothers and sisters who are struggling
in Palestine, in Gaza.
May Allah Almighty use us to continue to
do lots and lots of good.
Why I say this is because
what we do in Ramadan
in terms of goodness will be multiplied by
reward
or in reward by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
And how many times? Not just 10,
not just 70,
not just 700,
but beyond that. Allah knows your intention. Allah
knows your condition. Allah knows what you wanted,
and Allah will reward you between you and
him.
So continue to do lots of good deeds
in this
last 10 nights of Ramadan. In fact, last
few nights of Ramadan, there are only about
5 more nights.
May Allah Almighty accept them from us and
accept whatever we've done already.
Now
another very interesting thing is, Ibadah in the
month of Ramadan is such that it takes
a lot from a person.
Allah wants you to engage in night prayer
in Ramadan.
Allah wants you to engage in extra activity.
Remember it's the month of the Quran. It's
the month of Taraweeh.
A few weeks ago, I was counting how
many things Ramadan
is a month of, and I counted about
20 things, and we were still counting. It's
the month of mercy, the month of forgiveness,
the month of victory. Do you realize some
of the battles took place, like the battle
of Badr? The victory against all odds happened
in the month of Ramadan
when the battle of Badr took place, and
I tell you against all odds, our brothers
and sisters will also be victorious. It's another
month of Ramadan. May Allah Almighty grant us
victory upon victory.
It's a month of
dedication to prayer because you add extra voluntary
prayers, but Allah rewards you so much that
he tells you this is gonna be the
reward. How are you going to miss out
something when Allah's giving you so much reward?
That's why taraweeh,
very important. You're supposed to
enjoy the beautiful prayer of Taraweeh. You're supposed
to,
you know, love the fact that you're prolonging
in prayer.
Unfortunately with us
with us, what happens is we start getting
edgy and agitated,
and I know many masjids
where
people pick on the lighting, they pick on
the windows, they pick on the heating, they
pick on the cooling, they pick on the
sound, they pick on the imam, they pick
but they have to pick on something.
They have to pick on something. I'd just
like to be a person who doesn't pick
on anything. Just enjoy the recital. If you're
in charge, then you should try and correct
everything so people don't pick. But imagine
I came about here. Someone told me it's
gonna be very cold in this venue, so
I wore 2 pairs of socks,
and my shoes didn't fit me, so I
put on slops. So I said, you know
what? I've defeated the purpose anyway. However,
I came in here, and the warmth of
the hearts of the people has really
brightened up this place, and at the same
time, given it some beautiful feeling. I didn't
need these 2 pairs of socks.
May Allah Almighty
grant us warmth of the heart. May Allah
Almighty help us to care for one another.
I wanna give you a quick one. You
see it's the ummah. We are supposed to
be caring for one another. If something is
happening to our brothers and sisters in Gaza,
it should hurt us. You notice the lighting
here? You lit it up in certain colors.
You should be knowing what those colors are.
But nonetheless,
if you don't have a feeling
for those who are right next to you
right now, what feeling are you going to
have for those across the continents?
So it begins here. We are seated in
our 1,000. Do you feel a connection? Do
you feel the love? Are you here to
sacrifice so that another person can have a
smile on their faces, or at least they're
not harmed from you?
Tonight, I want you to promise
that you will make sure
that
never does any harm come from you to
another person,
by the will of Allah? The way you
speak to people, the way you interact with
them,
the way you are with them, be it
at home with your spouse, with your children,
with your parents, with your siblings, with your
uncles and aunts, with your in laws or
outlaws, whoever they are. Trust me. If you
promise that harm will not come from you
to another person, you finally understood the meaning
of assalamu alaikum.
You finally understood the meaning of assalamu alaikum.
I'm a Muslim. I walk in. I greet
assalamu alaikum. The brothers told me, we don't
have much time. You need to go straight
onto the stage so we won't be able
to greet people. 2 guys tried to greet
me, and guess what I did? I had
to break the protocol and greet them because
I couldn't bear the pain that they might
have felt as they were being ushered away.
No. No. I mean, come on. But then
I was worried that others might get up
and rush, so I kept on looking down
and walking because of love. It's love. That's
what it is. So don't blame me if,
for example, I walk past and I happen
to just wave at you without shaking your
hand, because you know what? Sometimes it's humanly
impossible.
Nonetheless, when I say assalamu alaikum to you,
I mean, I guarantee you, I will not
harm you. What does peace be upon you
actually mean? What peace? I'm talking of holistic
peace. Peace be upon you from Allah. May
peace be upon you from me. I'm not
gonna harm you. The type of peace I
can offer you, it's going to be there.
What peace Allah can give you is actually
holistic. Allah will give you contentment and so
much more. The most beautiful, most amazing greeting
ever is assalamu alaikum.
The greeting on that day,
when they meet with Allah, will be salaam.
Peace.
SubhanAllah.
So be conscious of the fact that you
are saying, assalamu alaykum. What's the point of
assalamu alaykum? And then you dagger the person
as they turn around. You say, you know
what? Rotten person, and you walked away. Why
did you have to say salaam if that's
how you felt?
In fact, the reason I raise all of
this is because
to show a concern for your brothers and
sisters begins at home. It begins here. It
begins with those around you, those you interact
with. Allah places people in your life, makes
you pass people on the street,
designed by him. It was not just a
mere coincidence,
designed by Allah. You passed a certain person,
or you crossed paths with someone, or you're
in a situation, or you're sitting next to
someone right now.
You know what? You're gonna have to bear
patience, regarding a few things, maybe.
They might be an asset or they might
not be. The prophet
tells us about the masjid, that when you
go to the masjid, make sure there's no
foul smell coming from you.
If you've eaten
something strong, eaten
garlic. You know, garlic sauce is a condiment
that a lot of us
really enjoy when you're dipping the right thing
in that sauce.
Sorry for speaking about it just before we're
opening our fast, but it's one of those
things. And you dip it, and what happens?
Your mouth, you don't realize you enjoyed it,
but you go to someone, salamah.
As you want to open your mouth and
the person is like, oh, you're saying salam
alaikum. It's more like smell alaikum. You know?
May Allah
forgive us.
Allah tells us through the blessed lips of
Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam that if you're
coming to the Masjid, make sure you've gargled,
you've eaten onion or garlic or something strong.
If that is the case, and it is,
what about if your perspiration is really, you
know, on 99.9?
What would you have to do? Wallahi, you'd
have to
ensure that you're smelling good. You know, perfume
or something decent or an underarm earlier on
in the day so that when you come,
you're okay. You're not harming people with your,
what you call a scent, but they might
call a stench.
And why I say that is because some
people enjoy onion, but they don't realize, wow,
that was so good. The next person doesn't
think the same.
So we need to be so conscious of
a smell, a foul smell as believers.
Imagine if you're harming them with your mouth,
with your words, and physically.
How would that be? Don't you see that
the blessed
teachings of Islam
are such that we would be the biggest
assets to those whom we interact with on
a daily basis?
Biggest assets. If you pass me on the
path by the will of Allah, I will
ensure that somehow
you have a pleasant experience.
May Allah make us that way. May Allah
make us that way. So Ramadan
is a month of
caring for others, thinking about others. When I
don't have food, I I thank Allah for
giving me the ability to see how it
feels or to feel the feeling of those
who perhaps don't have food, not out of
choice,
but they are starving.
What will I do? Am I going to
reach out to them? I give something inshallah
by the will of Allah
Allah gave me an opportunity
to reach out or to feel and to
think about others in different situations and scenarios.
We have homes. We have clothes. We have
so much more. I told you about the
2 pairs of socks that I just wore
because I was told how cold it was.
There are others who don't know what socks
what a pair of socks is.
There are people who actually have no access
to to warm clothing at all. What am
I going to do about it? You might
say, well, you know, I'm still not working
yet, and I still don't. Wallahi, you have
a pound or £2, don't you? Or you
have some old clothes, don't you?
Try and check where to give it instead
of throwing them away. Check. There are people
who will then send it to places where
they don't have those clothings. And this is
why
when you are buying clothing,
make sure you're buying that which you will
not be embarrassed
to donate to those in need when you
have to now pass the clothing on. But
if you're buying clothing, and I'm not going
to pick on any gender in particular here,
but if you're buying clothing that
is such that when you are done with
it, you will be so embarrassed to donate
it to the next person,
then maybe you need to up your wardrobe
game and make it a little bit more,
or should I say, a little bit less
embarrassing in that instance,
A little bit more compliant by the will
of Allah. You might argue, what about my
underwear?
Okay. Let's not talk about that Insha'Allah. May
Allah Almighty forgive us and grant us ease.
And, we're talking about what's beyond that by
the will of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
May Allah Almighty truly make us from those
who care for one another, those who can
reach out, those who can fast. Imagine the
hadith says, Whoever
fasts Ramadan
with conviction
and expecting a reward from Allah,
I'm going to stand this night, insha'Allah, in
Ibadah. I'm going to do something extra. It's
possible. It could be Laylatul Qadr, so I'm
going to stand in extra prayer. I'm not
going to get upset even if it's a
little bit extra prayer, a few extra duas,
perhaps Allah will write my name from those
who are free from hellfire, and Allah will
forgive me.
I promise you that thought is.
It is
accounts. You are what are you doing? You're
actually
believing in Allah, expecting a reward from Allah,
and you actually know that if Allah accepts
this, this is what I'm going to get
for it. So I'm trying hard
that it is accepted in the best possible
way. Now I'm going to stand in prayer,
and as much as the imams are taught
to go easy on the crowd, the crowd
is taught to enjoy the recitation of the
imam, try to listen, and try to enjoy
whatever is being recited. May Allah Almighty make
it easy for us this evening, Insha'Allah.
I really appreciate the fact that everyone is
seated here. It's unbelievable
if you're outside.
It's unbelievable
to imagine
that there are so many 1,000 beyond maybe
9, 10000,
perhaps maybe beyond, I don't know the exact
figure,
in this particular venue, because there is so
much of silence and there is so much
of goodness. And Insha'Allah, I pray
that that is accepted by Allah
I'm looking at some of the faces of
the brothers here right in the front, and
I'm wondering, I wonder what time you guys
came here, masha'allah.
2, 3 hours ago?
2 hours ago? Masha'allah. That's not too bad.
Masha'allah.
And, may Allah accept it from you. There
are so many who said they would come
immediately after work and they would join us.
I pray that we have a good evening.
Now
let's be very
conscious
of the fact that we are so many
in number.
When the food does come,
let's
try
let's try
and do what?
Munch it as soon as possible. No. No.
No.
When the food comes,
let's understand
we're not the only ones.
Try
to ensure everyone has a meal.
Try to ensure that everyone has a meal.
I'm sure there's more than the number that
is here, but it's a matter of logistics.
Just ensure that everyone has a meal. Let's
not be selfish,
and let's ensure that we
give
the others or make sure that everyone has,
and we will also have by the will
of Allah
Similarly,
I've noticed in past events that people pick
on 2 negatives that they might have noticed,
and they forget about the positive, so they
discourage others from attending.
Don't do that. Speak about the millions of
positives there are. I promise you the ummah
at the moment
needs gatherings where the identity of a Muslim
is confirmed and is solidified
and strengthened, and you feel a sense of
belonging to an ummah. We need that so
desperately
as an ummah
now in this time in our history,
and that's the reason why we actually arrange
and organize
events like this. When you come together and
your identity as a Muslim, masha'Allah, you feel
proud of it, and you strengthen,
or it is strengthened that you are a
member of an ummah.
Do you know that at a time of
weakness of the of the entire ummah, getting
together is one of the ways
of strengthening yourselves,
and this is why there is something in
Islam known as al Jumu'atuh wal Jama'atuh.
Jumu'ah is the Friday prayer.
The Friday, the day, and the prayer as
well. And jamaa'ah means the gathering.
We gather every day, 5 times a day
for prayers, and it's recommended to gather. If
you don't have an excuse, you should be.
And on a Friday, you must come together.
Come what may, you must come together.
What's the purpose?
Well, what I just mentioned now, there are
so many purposes and so many reasons. One
of them is the strength of the ummah,
the sense of belonging, the fact that you
care for one another, you get to know
one another, you see one another, and you
pray for one another. May Allah Almighty strengthen
all of us.
I know that there are a few more
minutes remaining.
I my time is up, and Insha'Allah,
and for the rest of the evening.
and for the rest of the evening.