Muiz Bukhary – Environmental Destruction- A Sign of the End Times
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In the name of Allah, the most Gracious,
the most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And I pray and send salutations on the
most honorable of the Prophets and Messengers, our
Prophet, our beloved, and the pleasure of our
eyes, Muhammad bin Abdullah, upon him and upon
his family and his companions, the best of
prayers, and I complete the submission, after that.
All praise belongs to Allah, the Creator of
the heavens and the earth, who created the
universe in perfect balance and harmony.
أشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وأشهد أن
محمد رسول الله We bear witness that there
is no deity, there is no God worthy
of worship other than Allah and we bear
witness that Muhammad صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم
is his final messenger.
We ask Allah عز و جل to send
his choicest of blessings and salutations upon Muhammad
صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم, his family members,
his companions and every single individual who follows
in the prophetic path, who embraces the prophetic
teachings إلى يوم القيامة, until the Day of
Judgment.
My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, Allah
سبحانه وتعالى, he reminds us in the Noble
Qur'an, Surah Fatir, Ayah number 39 وَهُوَ
الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ فِي الْأَرْضِ It is he
who made you خلائف, successors upon the earth.
It is he who made you stewards upon
the earth.
So Allah عز و جل has appointed us
as stewards or خليفة upon this earth.
This is an honor and this is a
great responsibility.
And from the responsibilities within this role of
being a steward is to care for and
to protect this planet, to protect earth and
not exploit it for personal gain.
Allah عز و جل has indeed created the
earth and all of its resources for our
benefit.
The trees, the rivers, the minerals beneath the
ground, all of these are gifts from Allah
سبحانه وتعالى, meant to serve us and fulfill
our needs.
And yes, it is permissible for us to
use these resources.
It is permissible to drive cars.
It is permissible to build homes.
It is permissible to use the trees for
wood, to use the water for our sustenance.
However, we must do so responsibly.
Allah عز و جل has entrusted us with
these resources and we are definitely accountable for
how we use these responsibilities.
We are permitted to use them but we
are not permitted to abuse, exploit or waste
these resources beyond what is necessary.
So as stewards of the earth, it is
our duty to use the blessings of this
world in moderation, with care.
And to make efforts to reduce harm wherever
possible.
If we cut down a tree, we should
strive to plant another tree in place of
the tree that we cut.
If we use resources, we should seek ways
to restore and replenish them.
Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى He says in the
Noble Qur'an, قُلُوا وَشَرَبُوا مِنْ رِزْقِ اللَّهِ
وَلَا تَعْتَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ مُفْسِدِينَ Eat and drink
from the provision of Allah and do not
commit abuse on the earth spreading corruption.
What do we see today?
We see destruction.
We see pollution.
We see exploitation of resources without any regard
for the balance that Allah has created.
Our forests are being destroyed, our rivers and
our oceans being polluted and the air we
breathe filled with toxins.
This imbalance is not just a worldly consequence.
It is a sign that we are neglecting
our responsibility as stewards of the earth, as
stewards of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى.
Today we are reminded of Hurricane Milton which
ravaged Florida leaving behind death, destruction and displacement.
Similarly here in our own country, we've been
experiencing heavy rainfall, heavy rains which have caused
flooding and hardship for many an individual.
May Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى grant ease to
those affected by these disasters.
We pray for them.
May Allah heal their wounds.
May Allah replace their losses with something better.
Ya Allah shower Your mercy upon those who
have died, those who have perished and grant
strength and resilience to those struggling to rebuild
their lives after these disasters.
Ameen.
These natural disasters are not random occurrences my
dear brothers and sisters.
They are signs from Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى.
Allah عز و جل warns us in the
Noble Quran, ظَهَرَ الْفَسَادُ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ بِمَا
كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِ النَّاسِ Corruption or فساد has appeared
on land and sea because of what the
hands of people have earned.
So if you see these signs manifesting around
you, these are not coincidental.
These are what our hands have earned.
The pollution of the air, the contamination of
our water, the destruction of the forests are
all forms of فساد.
They are all forms of corruption.
When you use the word corruption, we only
think of bribery and corruption in that sense.
But these are also forms of corruption.
When you abuse the natural resources, when you
abuse the blessings and gifts given to you
by Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى, we are witnessing
this corruption with our own eyes and it
is a direct result of our actions.
Look at the example of Muhammad ﷺ.
When you see this, you will see how
far away we are from his teachings and
his example.
He set forth the most beautiful example of
how to live in harmony with the creation
of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى.
Look at this hadith.
He is reported to have said, إِذَا أَقَوَمَتِ
السَّاعَةِ Along the lines of these words, even
if the Day of Judgment is established, and
one of you has a sapling, has a
plant in your hand, then let him plant
it.
Allahu Akbar.
You see, the Day of Judgment will be
established on a Friday.
Think about it.
The Day of Judgment is about to be
established.
Destruction, chaos, everyone running, helter-skelter, the teachings
of the Prophet, the command of the Prophet,
even at that juncture, if you have a
plant, if you have a sapling in your
hand, plant it.
So this hadith fills us with so much
of optimism in the face of destruction, in
the face of chaos, in the face of
global warming, in the face of all of
the tragedies and challenges we are facing, we
should still not lose hope.
We should still plant trees.
We should still work towards conserving and protecting
the resources of this beautiful planet.
So even in the face of the end
of the world, the Prophet ﷺ encourages us
to plant trees, symbolizing that caring for the
environment is an act of worship, no matter
how small.
The Prophet ﷺ is reported to have said,
لَا تُسْرِفِّلْمَا Do not waste water, even if
you perform your ablution on the banks of
an abundantly flowing river.
Even if you are by a river, there
is abundant water, do not waste water.
Ask yourself, touch your heart, how many of
us let the faucet run when you're making
ablution?
When you're at the masjid, the faucet is
running, as you wash your face three times,
as you wash your hands three times, as
you gargle your mouth, and you're thinking you're
doing an act of ibadah, you're performing ablution,
whilst you waste water.
Water, one of the most valuable resources, and
we are running short of it.
There are people in our own country who
do not have access to water, who have
to walk kilometers on end to get access
to water.
Here we are, whilst we brush our teeth,
the faucet is running, the tap is running,
water is being wasted.
Whilst we perform ablution, the water is being
wasted.
Subhanallah.
All you need, by the way, you can
go, search on YouTube, if you search my
name and perhaps search ablution, the video will
pop up.
All you need is this much of water
to perform ablution.
I've done a demonstration.
This much of water, one glass of water,
half a glass of water is enough for
you to perform ablution.
And that was the sunnah of the Prophet
ﷺ.
But there was a study done, liters of
water, the Muslim community, by the way, we
are wasting so much of water, for what?
For ablution alone.
So much of water.
And the Prophet ﷺ is teaching, even if
you are by the bank of a river,
do not waste water.
Subhanallah.
It is forbidden in Islam.
Forbidden.
When you go out of the bubble that
you are in, when you go to the
villages, where people are drinking dirty, muddy water,
that's when you realize the value of the
fact that you have abundant water, access to
water, you have cold water, you have hot
water, you have mineral water, you have alkaline
water, now you have hydrogen water, you have
all types of water.
But there are people who do not have
access to water, to even wash themselves after
relieving themselves.
They do not have water to take a
bath, a simple bath, whilst we have enough
water to waste.
Subhanallah.
So don't you think you are going to
be held accountable?
Don't you think you will be asked by
Allah?
And don't you think that you will have
to face the consequences of wasting the water?
The more you waste, the more the world
around you deteriorates.
This ravaging storm is not by coincidence.
It is the decision of Allah.
It is a sign of Allah.
At times when we need water, we need
water where?
The lands where there are vegetation, where our
rice grow, but it doesn't rain there.
When you go there, those lands are parched,
dry as a bone.
In the city, in the urban setting, where
it does not need to rain this much.
It rains cats and dogs, making life complicated
for people.
These are signs.
Signs of Allah to wake you up.
Whenever it would rain, the Prophet would run
to Allah, would run to prayer.
So these are signs from the signs of
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
You have to understand my dear brothers, I
don't have much time.
The devastating consequences of human caused pollution.
Today you have air pollution poisoning the breath
of life.
You have water pollution contaminating our life blood.
You have soil pollution destroying the earth beneath
our feet.
You have light, light pollution obscuring the signs
of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
The artificial light of all these LEDs, sign
boards, modern cities drown out the beauty of
the night sky.
Obscuring the signs of Allah's creation.
Light pollution disrupts the natural rhythms of both
animals and humans.
Today there is so much of research being
done in terms of light and how much
it disrupts your sleep.
How much it affects your stress levels.
There are literally glasses now being made with
blue light filter that you wear towards the
evening.
Why?
Because there are so many screens around you.
Your iPads, your mobile devices, your TVs, these
sign boards.
This blue light affects you.
It affects your health.
It affects your stress levels.
It affects your sleep.
It affects your recovery.
Why do you think your devices, now your
mobile phone, you have this setting where you
can set it to have the blue filter
after sunset until sunrise the screen turns a
shade of yellow or a warm color.
It cuts out the blue light because the
blue light is bad for our health.
So it not only disrupts our lives, it's
also disrupting the lives of innocent animals.
Subhanallah.
And who is doing it?
We.
For our own convenience.
It is permissible to use these resources without
abusing them, my dear brothers and sisters.
Then you have noise pollution disturbing the peace
that Allah has given us.
Allah has granted us.
The constant noise of urban life disrupts the
peace and tranquility that Allah has provided for
us.
And chronic exposure to noise causes stress, causes
anxiety.
I've spoken about this before I think in
this very masjid itself.
It causes stress, anxiety, so many health disruptions.
Subhanallah.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala help us
to understand all of this.
Then you have plastic pollution.
I don't even want to get started.
Plastic pollution.
A global crisis.
Yes, we do have to use plastic but
do so responsibly.
Do so mindfully.
Do so with the thought of mitigating and
reducing the impact.
So therefore my dear brothers and sisters, let
there be a call to action.
Let there be a call to action.
Let us return to our role as stewards
of this planet.
We must recognize that caring for the earth,
caring for this planet is a spiritual duty.
A form of worship that brings us closer
to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
A few action items.
Let us take practical steps.
Let us reduce waste.
We waste food.
Subhanallah, so much of food.
So much of food.
You know there are actually philosophies and campaigns
to live a zero waste life.
You know even the vegetables that you cut,
you can utilize it in so many ways
where there can be zero waste.
You know when you break eggs.
Egg shells can be used for something.
There is this philosophy.
Study about it.
Read upon it.
Watch videos where you can cut down on
your waste.
There are actually people living in this world
with zero waste.
Ask yourself, each individual, how much of waste
do we produce?
Waste.
In terms of plastic, in terms of vegetables,
in terms of food, how much of food
do we waste?
All of this Allah says, Do not waste.
Allah does not love those who waste.
So reduce your waste.
Number two, plant trees.
Plant trees and protect the wildlife.
Number three, conserve water.
Do not waste water and reduce your pollution.
Take these practical steps.
Let us renew our intention to become better
stewards of this earth.
To care for the creation of Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala and to leave behind a
planet, a world, that future generations can thrive
in.
Subhanallah.
Let that be our intention.
So as we conclude, let us remember that
our role as stewards is a noble and
heavy responsibility, my dear brothers and sisters.
Let us repent to Allah subhanahu wa ta
'ala for our shortcomings and ask Him to
guide us back to the right path.
And let us take action, no matter how
small, to protect the earth and to fulfill
our duty as the khalifa that Allah has
entrusted us to be.
O Allah, forgive us and have mercy upon
us.
O Allah, make us stewards and guardians of
this earth and help us to protect your
blessings, O Allah.
O Allah, grant victory and relief to our
brothers and sisters in every land affected by
oppression, affected by disaster and grant them patience
and trust in you, O Allah.
O Allah, forgive us for the harm we
have caused to your creation.
Forgive us for the harm that we have
caused to your planet.
Heal the wounds that we have inflicted upon
this earth and grant us the wisdom and
resolve to correct our ways, O Allah.
O Allah, strengthen our hearts with iman and
grant us the clarity to recognize the responsibilities
you have entrusted unto us.
O Allah, replace the destruction that we have
caused, our hands have caused, with renewal, with
healing and allow us and permit us to
be agents of goodness and positive change.
O Allah, grant relief to all who are
suffering from disasters, be it from hurricanes, be
it from tornadoes, be it from floods or
any calamity.
Comfort their hearts, provide for their needs and
replace their losses with something better.
O Allah, bless our lands with abundance, bless
our air with purity, bless our water with
cleanliness, guide us to live in harmony with
the nature around us and help us to
protect the blessings you have given us and
bestowed upon us and make us a people,
make us a people who repair this planet,
who repair this earth, who heal this earth
and not corrupt it, O Allah.
O Allah, help us to help those who
do not have access to water, help us
to feed those who are hungry, help us
to provide healing for those who are sick.
O Allah, help us to dig deep into
our pockets and give out in charity, O
Allah.
And just as how you united us here
in this masjid, unite us in the beautiful
gardens of Jannah, in the companionship of our
beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Ameen, ameen.