Sikander Hashmi – Muharram the Month of Allah
AI: Summary ©
The holy month of Islam is the final year of the cycle, with the importance of fasting, avoiding distractions, following the Bible's rules, following the holy month, and following the importance of fasting to avoid confusion and increase one's fasting to avoid confusion. The holy month is a special time for Islam, with the final year being the final year of the cycle, and the holy month being the final year of the cycle. The importance of fasting to avoid confusion and increase one's fasting to avoid confusion is emphasized, as it is the final year of the cycle.
AI: Summary ©
And,
welcome,
to this,
special,
evening and seminar.
Allah
has,
has blessed us and brought us to a
new
Islamic, Hijri year. So we ask Allah
to bless us therein
and to grant us all that good that
he has written. Ask Allah
to protect us,
from any evil and any hardships that he
has written us in for us in this
year 1445.
And in fact, I want to share with
you the dua of the prophet sallallahu alaihi
wa sallam.
So Abdullah ibn Hasham, radiAllahu an, who reports
that the companions of the prophet
would learn the following dua for when the
new month or the new year would begin.
So he mentioned both. So new month or
new year.
And your pleasure. Right? So once again, the
prophet
had,
most likely taught this to the Sahaba, but
nonetheless, the Sahaba will make this dua that,
oh, Allah, bring this month or this year
upon us with so what did they ask
for? Security.
Right?
Iman,
faith.
Was salama,
safety.
Al Islam
Islam.
Protection.
Protection from shaitan.
And and the pleasure of the ar Rahman
and the pleasure of Allah.
So these are the things that,
they ask for. So we ask Allah
to grant us the same as well in
this new year.
By the way, does anyone know
when the Hijdi year actually started being counted?
Like, when did the Hijdi year become a
thing?
Anybody know?
So the calendar begins from the hija of
the prophet.
Like, that's that's when he started counting.
But when did it actually when was the
calendar instituted?
Sisters?
Does anybody know? When was the Islamic calendar,
the Hijani calendar instituted?
So
it
was actually at the time
of
saying welcome.
So it was
so until then, the practice was to name
the years. Right? So that's why we know,
for example,
the year of the elephant. Right? As is
is known as the year when the prophet
was born as an example. Right? So the
years used to be named before, but it
was during the time of saying
when the discussion began that, you know, there
should be a numbered years.
And then the question was, okay. Well, what
should be the numbered years be based on?
Right? Should we based upon the birth of
the prophet,
should we based upon the passing of the
prophet,
you know, so they're looking for different,
you know, for a starting point for the
calendar. And then the,
the,
the decision was made that it's gonna be
based upon
starting
from the time of the Hijra of the
and the Muslims from Mecca to Medina, and
that became the starting point for the calendar.
So the calendar was not actually instituted during
the time of the
right, the Hijri calendar. It came after the
prophet,
but it's based upon the Hijriah. So the
counting year 0, year 1 starts from the
Hijriah of the prophet
Okay. So today, or tonight,
we'll like I'd like to cover a few
things. So we'll talk about, the sacred months.
Anytime if you can't see the screen or
something happens, please let me know because you
may not be able to see behind me.
So we'll be talking about the sacred months.
The Ashurahul Hurom, you know, what are they?
Why are they sacred? What makes them special?
We'll talk about the history of fasting.
We'll talk about the fasting of the day
of Ashura.
We'll also talk about the historic events,
related to the day of Ashura, which is
the 10th of Muharram. And finally, we'll talk
about customs and practices,
that are related to Muharram and whether they
are legitimate or whether they are not legitimate.
So the value of the sacred months comes
from this verse,
aya number 36 of Surah Tawba, in which
Allah says,
Indeed, the number of months ordained by Allah
is 12 in Allah's record
since the day he created the heavens and
the earth. So we understand that this,
you know, this,
idea that there should be 12 months in
a year is not something which was made
up by human beings, but rather this is
something which was designed and instituted by Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
So there are to be 12 months. That's
the way that Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala has
designed,
the the calendar for this world.
Since the day he created the heavens and
the earth. And then of those 12,
4 of them are sacred.
And Allah says
this is or that is the right way.
So do not wrong yourselves
during these months. Right? So here we understand
that there are certain times of the year
which are special and, of course, we know
other times are special, for example, the month
of Ramadan. But when it comes to the
sacred months, Allah has identified 4 out of
12.
And in those 4, Allah
says, do not wrong yourselves there, him. Now
in the in the days
of in the days of ignorance,
there were, you know, different,
different beliefs. So for example, you know, some
may have believed that there are 8 sacred
months or that the months can actually move
around or, you know, you can change the
months if,
you know, if there's a reason to do
so. So for example, you know, they would
decide that, because, you know, fighting was prohibited,
during this month, there were to be no
battles,
in the sacred months. So let's say, okay.
Well, you know, we have a battle or,
you know, we want to engage in battle,
so we'll switch the months around. Okay? So
we'll call,
so for example, you know, if it's gonna
be Muharram
and there is, you know, they want to
fight to say, okay, you know what? We'll
change this month from Muharram, and we'll call
it something else.
You know, we'll say that it is, Safar,
for example, it's the 2nd month, and then
we'll, you know, we'll we'll go to Muharram
afterwards.
So they'll mess around with the calendar and
mess around with the dates. So Allah
made it clear that
you know this is the way it was
going to be
and Allah
also highlighted the sanctity of these months.
Particularly when it came to battle that there
was to be no initiation at least of
battles, and of, you know, of of fighting.
If Muslims were attacked, then there was an
opportunity to defend themselves against the attack, but
there was to be no initiation or no,
you know, starting of any skirmishes or any
fights during, during this,
during these sacred months.
Abu Bakr reported
that the prophet
said that time has returned to its original
order
as it was on the day when Allah
created the heavens and the earth.
Right? So once again, we find this notion
of the calendar and time being so important
This is something that Allah has instituted
when he created the heavens and the earth.
And again, it says that, you know, that
that the year is 12 months, a which
4 are sacred.
3 of them are consecutive.
3 of the sacred months are consecutive, and
they are
and.
So being the 11th month,
being the last month of the Islamic calendar,
and being the 1st month of the Islamic
calendar. So these 3 are, consecutive,
and the prophet
said,
and the 4th one being Rajab, which is
called the Rajab of Mudar, as the prophet
said,
which comes between,
the the the 2 jumadas and Shaban. So
this is the only 1 month which is
not consecutive
in the for in the sacred months. Right?
So we have 3 which are consecutive. And
And then you have Rajab, which is the
8th month, and it sort of comes,
you know, in the middle. Not exactly in
the middle of the year, but, you know,
it's not consecutive with the other sacred months.
It was called the Rajab, it was called
the Rajab of Mudar of, and this is
it was a tribe,
which was called the tribe of Mudar. And
this was because they did not tamper with
its timing. So the tribe of
of of, of Mudar was a tribe which
stuck to the order of the month of
Rajab, did not move it around,
unlike the the others who used to change
it around depending on whether they were in
a state of war or not. Right? So
as I indicated earlier, that was a practice
that people would do or tribes would do
at that in the days of ignorance where
they would change months around because even they
believe that they were not to, you know,
to, engage in battle during the sacred months.
But if it became inconvenient, then they would
switch it around. But the tribe of Mudar
was 1, which it did not do that,
so the prophet referred to it as
Rajab,
of,
of of of Mudar.
Now when Allah says,
that, you know,
do not wrong yourselves therein. You know? So
what does that actually mean? So says
that sins in these months are more serious
and good deeds bring a greater reward.
K. So we're talking about all 4 months.
We're not only talking about right now, but
we are talking about all of the sanctified
months,
all 4 of the sanctified months. So he
says that the sins are more serious and
good deeds bring a greater reward. And, Imam
Al Razi, he says,
The disobedience in it is more severe in
punishment, and obedience in it is more rewarding.
So what we understand, my brothers and sisters,
is that
the weight or the the severity
of a sin or the reward of a
good deed
is not always the same. It can fluctuate
depending on time and place. So, for example,
if a person goes to Makkat Al Muqarrama,
right, goes to the sacred land and commits,
a sin there, then it is more serious
than doing it outside of Makkat as an
example. Right? If a person commits a sin,
you know, in the, for example, in the
month of, of Ramadan, you know, then we
can say that potentially the sin is of
greater severity because that is a time that
is recognized
as being a time of goodness.
On the other hand, if a person does
in a good act right? So for example,
we know that one salah in masala haram
is equivalent to a virtue of how many
prayers
in terms of reward?
100,000. Right?
So, Zakhalahaid. So a 100,000 prayers. So we
know, it's again, as an example, that there
can be times and places where there is
greater reward for good deeds and there is
also greater, severity of, misdeeds,
as well.
Some of the scholars mentioned a fine point
and that they and they say that,
the
the good deeds and the bad deeds are
not equal
in this regard. Because when a person
does a good deed at a special time
or in a special place, then that good
deed is multiplied
not just in terms of quantity but in
terms of quality as well. Okay? So Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala will multiply it in terms
of his quality as well. So what that
would mean is that, you know, for example,
if one salah in Masjid Al Haram
is is worth 100,000 prayer prayers elsewhere,
you don't only get the reward
of 100,000 prayers, but you also get the
reward of offering a prayer which is a
100 a 100000 times better in quality
by virtue of that place.
And similarly in Ramadan, if Allah
you know multiplies your reward, then Allah is
not multiplying just the quantity of the reward,
but it's also
multiplying
the quality of the action that you have
done. Whereas when it comes to sins, it's
the opposite.
Right? Whereas,
yes, there is severity, but the only the
quantity will be multiplied or will be taken
as being more, but not the quality of
the sin. So, you know, if somebody commits
a bad deed, it won't be, like, you
know, like, at a special time or special
place. It won't be that, you know, they
have committed the the sin,
you know,
that much that many times, like, worse as
well in terms of its quality. Right? So
the quality of the sin will remain the
same, but potentially, the punishment or the, the
severity of it will be more because of
the sacredness of the time and the place,
and Allah
knows best.
So,
this is something to keep in mind, and
I don't think this is something that we
often, you know, generally recognize
that, you know, there is greater reward and
there is greater severity
of sins, reward of good deeds and and
severity of sins when it comes to the
sacred months. Right? So let us remember, inshallah,
Dhulqada, Dhul Hijjah, Maharam,
and Rajab are months in which we should
be, you know, a little bit more careful.
Right? That doesn't mean that wrongdoing is fine
outside of that. Of course not. Right? Of
course, we understand that wrongdoing outside of these
months is not okay. But if we are
to be extra careful, then these are times
to be extra conscious and extra careful, extra,
you know, paying extra attention to our relationship
with Allah
paying extra attention to,
you know, the sins that we might be
committing, the heedlessness that, you know, that we
might be finding ourselves in,
and and trying, our best to do a
little bit more
than,
just ordinary when it in terms of goodness,
when it comes to these months, and particularly
when it comes to our relationship with Allah
And really what we find is that Allah
has given us
various opportunities.
Right? So I know there's a lot of
focus on the month of Ramadan. Right? Like,
everyone focuses on Ramadan. You know, Ramadan is,
of course, the time when, you know, it's
it's like make you make it or break
it. Like, you know, that's the time that
you absolutely
wanna go all out. And it's true. Right?
There's nothing that will match the month of
Ramadan in terms of virtues and in terms
of rewards. Right?
Ramadan is really,
special. You know? Maybe we could say the
first 10 days of the of the Hijjah,
you know, would be similar.
But, you know, those are really times that
are highlighted. Definitely. There's no question about that.
Right? But then Allah has also given us
other times as well. Right? So it's not
like all or nothing where we go just
go for Ramadan and we go for, the
first 10 days of the Hijjah, and then
the rest is like, you know, you know,
it's, you know, we're just, like, totally,
free and, you know, there's nothing to to
worry about. There's nothing to motivate us to
do good. You know, we're just totally all,
you know, just totally heedless and careless. No.
It's not like that. Right? Allah has given
us multiple opportunities
to reflect multiple opportunities to seize the moment
and try to, improve ourselves and get closer
to Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala.
With regards to the fasting of the month
of Maharam. So the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam,
has told us, and this is related by
Abu Huraira radiAllahu anhu, that The
best prayer
after the prescribed prayers is a prayer offered
in the middle of the night.
Right? And we're talking about virtues here. Right?
So the best prayer after the prescribed prayers
is a prayer that is offered in the
middle of the night. Right? So in the
darkness of the night and one of the
ways one one of the reasons we could
understand this, potentially, we can explain this and
Allah knows best, is that that is the
prayer in the middle of the night which
is the most discreet.
Right?
If you are offering prayers during the day
and, you know, you're also offering the prayer
at night, most chances are that the prayer
at night is going to be your more
most
discreet prayer. The the one in which, you
know, you really feel the presence of Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
The one in which you are most engaged
with your heart. Right? Because other other times
during the day it could still happen during
the day, but the nighttime, you know, is
special because you're alone. During the daytime, other
people are seeing you. There's other distractions. Everything
is bright and visible. You know, you may
have things to do during the day. You
may be meeting people. You may have had
conversations.
You know, you may be addicted to your
phone, whatever. Like, you know, there may be
whole, a whole host of
opportunities for distraction. But when it comes to
the night prayer, you you know, in the
middle of the night, that is when,
you are likely to be, alone and you
are likely to be most focused on more
focused on Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And then
the prophet said
Ramadan
That
the best fasting after the month of Ramadan
is fasting in the month of Allah
Al Muharram.
Right? And the best month of fasting is
after Ramadan
is the the, the fast of the month
of Muharram.
So here, you know, we,
we find that the prophet
has given us a comparison. So first prayers,
which is something which is daily, fasting which
is done annually. So when we compare that
between Ramadan and Muhabram,
it's the same as
the prayers
done,
you know, during the,
during the day which are prescribed,
and then the best one being the prayer
offered in the middle of, the night. One
thing I wanted to mention also, with regards
to the sacred months, I'm just gonna backtrack
a little bit, is that, you know, what's
the reason that they're not all 4 together?
That not all 4 months,
the sacred months, are not together. Right? So
we find 3 another together
and one which,
is separate, right, which is Rajan. And the
scholars explained that, one of the possible reasons
for that was,
was to give ample time for people to
come from a distance to perform Hajj and
to go back safely without being able to
without being,
endangered by war and and by battles. Right?
So,
and even in terms of travel. Right? So
having,
safety and security,
you know, if you think that maybe, you
know, the bandits and the people who would
cause harm maybe would have some fear of
Allah and they would still honor,
you know, the the sacred months and not
attack the, you know, people who are coming,
at that time. Maybe, maybe not. You know,
it's amazing. Sometimes you read stories,
right, of even people who are doing evil,
right, especially in the past. Even they would
have some level of tafor. Right? So even
though they're robbing people, they're bandits, they're taking
away people's rights, even then, you know, at
some point, there would be some level of
taqwa in which there would be a little
bit more careful. Right?
We know that this was not always the
case because even until recently, like, a few
decades ago, it would still be a dangerous
journey to go on Hajj. Well, you know,
like, before the advent of airplanes and people
go by ship, and then they would, you
know, travel in caravans,
or they would be coming from, you know,
faraway places on caravans. It would be a
dangerous journey. Right? Sometimes
they would be attacked and they would be
bandits even if they realized that they were
going for a hut. So it wouldn't apply
to everyone across the board, but, nonetheless, the
idea was that,
safe passage would be allowed or the journey
would become safer
because battle was something which was prohibited during
these times. So
to get to to to Mecca for Hajj,
to perform Hajj and spend time there, and
then
to be able to make it back home,
safely. Now with regards to, the month of
Rajab, which was, you know, sort of in
the middle, that was made sacred so that
those who are coming from the furthest areas
of Arabia are able to perform a Umrah
and visit the Kaaba and then go back
to their area safely. So, really, two times
are given for visiting the Kaaba in safety.
1 is the time of Hajj, which more
time is given so that people are able
to of course, Hajj is longer and so
they will spend more time. And 1 month
was given for being able to visit,
Baitullah,
and so that they can perform umrah in
the month of Rajab. This is one of
the explanations that has been given by,
by the scholars.
Now,
coming back to fasting. So we understand that
the best fasting is the fasting of the
month of Muharram
after the month of Ramadan. So Ramadan is
the best, of course, because this is obligatory
just like the prescribed prayers are the best
because they're obligatory.
And then we have the,
the prayer in the middle of the night,
which is best, and the fasting of the
month of Muharram, which is
also,
best.
Another small point here is that, you know,
our focus should always be to complete that
which is obligatory first.
Right? So, for example, in the month of
Ramadan,
if somebody is, you know, not offering
for example,
properly or in jama'ah, but then they're making
a focus or an effort to come only
for salatul Tawawhi.
Right? Or their focus is, you know, on
Tawawhi, but they're missing the other prayers. Right?
They're not offering them in the best way.
They're not offering them in Jemaah. Right? So
the focus should be on
that which is prescribed, which is obligatory first.
Right? Priorities. Right? So focus on that first.
It's not to say that you shouldn't do
the the optional or that which is not
recommended, of course, but focus on that, which
is for which which is obligatory. Similarly, when
it comes to fasting, right, if a person
is not fasting, in Ramadan or they have
Ramadan fast left, then they shouldn't be doing
the optional fast until they have made up
the Ramadan fast. Now the question comes up,
like, can you have a dual intention? Right?
If you have to make a fast, you
know, can you have a dual intention and
say, okay. You know what? I'm fasting on
Muhammad,
Ashura, for example, or on Arafa, and I
also have an intention to make up, you
know, a Ramadan fast. So there's a scholarly,
you know, difference on that.
You know, some scholars will say that, yes,
if you're gonna make you have to make
up a fast anyways,
you might as well do it on those
days and hope that inshallah Allah gives you
the added benefits or the virtues of fasting
on those days as well. Although your intention
is to make up your missed Ramadan fast
because that is obligatory and that is more
important as opposed to the voluntary fast.
With regards to, you know so fasting, you
know, so what is the significance of fasting
on Hashuah, which is the 10th day of
Muharram? So if you take a quick peek
into the history of fasting, Aisha
reported that
that the Quraish tribe, they used to fast
during the days of ignorance
on Ashura.
So this was not something which was new,
but this was something that they were accustomed
to doing and this was something which was
a habit, a a, you could say, a
cultural practice of theirs that they used to
fast,
on the day of Ashura in the pre
Islamic,
period.
They would do this,
for,
atonement of their sins. The prophet
would also fast, but of course he would
be doing it for Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala.
So
And the messenger of Allah ordered
the Muslims to fast on it till the
fasting in the month of Ramadan was prescribed.
So from the very beginning, there was fasting,
but the fasting was not in month of
Ramadan. The Ramadan fasting was prescribed.
Anybody know when?
I think you might know from the quiz.
Right?
Yes.
Yes. Was that from the quiz? No? Okay.
Yes. So 2nd year of,
2nd Hijri year. So the 2nd year after
the Hijra is when the Ramadan fasting was
instituted. However,
there was still fasting before that, but it
was not for a whole month. It was
only on the day of Ashura.
After that, when Ramadan fasting was prescribed, the
prophet
said, that whoever wants
on to fast on Ashura can do so,
and whoever does not want to fast may
not fast. So Ashura fasting was made optional,
and this was something which was,
no longer,
required.
What we do find though is that the
prophet
was always
keen to fast on Ashura.
And now, my master
relates
that I never saw the prophet
seeking to fast on a day that he
favored
more than another except this day
Ramadan. So
the prophet
never fasted more or favored more to fast
on any other day except the day of
Ashura
and the month of Ramadan.
K. So Ramadan, of course, was a month
when there was gonna be fasting, obviously, after
it became,
obligatory.
But apart from that, the prophet
was extremely keen on fasting
on the day of Ashura and this is
something that he continued even after Ramadan became
obligatory,
but it was not made obligatory for, everyone
else.
With regards to the virtue of Ashura fasting,
so why do this fast on the 10th
day of Muharram? Abu Khattada
reported that the prophet was asked, was
asked
was asked about fasting on the day of
Ashura, and he said that it will expedite
the sins of the past year. Now which
other day expedites
for a year
past and a year to come?
Yes.
So the day of Arafah, prophet said that
I hope it will exceed for the sins
of the past year and the coming year.
And how long has it been since Arafah?
20
1 days?
20
1 days? Yes?
How long has it been since the day
of Arafat?
Today is, you know, the the first, you
know, of, of the second haram. So
it'll be 22 days. Right? Approximately 22 days.
So we have these two opportunities that come
almost back to back. So first, the day
of Arafah.
And if a person, you know, missed it
for some reason, was not able to fast,
you know,
I was gonna say maybe they were at
Hajj, but, you know, they would have gained
much more at Hajj than fasting on the
day of Arafah.
But nonetheless,
Allah gives us another opportunity
to gain forgiveness
and to,
to to, to gain,
pure spiritual purity. Right? And this is from
the mercy of Allah
That if a person was not able to
fast on the day of Arafah, right, for
some reason,
or a person fasted, but maybe the fast
was lacking in some way, then another opportunity
comes up to gain the forgiveness of Allah
Subhanahu wa ta'ala. Of course, Arafah was greater
because there was a potential of forgiveness for
2 years, But even here we have still
the opportunity to gain forgiveness
for the previous years since may Allah
grant us forgiveness, Ameen.
This fasting is virtuous, but it is not
mandatory. And it is important to mention this
because, you know, sometimes I think,
you know, we are,
excited and we are passionate about doing optional
deeds, which is good.
And,
you know, we want to encourage others to
do it, but we have to be careful.
We have to be careful that we don't
make that which is virtuous
into something which is obligatory. So we don't
elevate
actions more than than their importance,
nor do we put down actions
more than their place. Right? So it is
really about
following the,
the the the the the deen of Allah
in the way that the prophet
has
taught us to do so. Right? So, yes,
that which is obligatory, of course, is obligatory,
and we cannot make it into something which
is less.
That which is recommended is something which is
recommended, but we can't can elevate it to
to being obligatory,
and we can't push it down to being
not important. Right? So it's important to keep
things
in their place. And
the way that this can be manifested is
the way that we look at others.
The way that we look at others. So
if someone,
you know, takes us very seriously
and is fasting on the day of Ashura,
is fasting on the day of Adafaa, is
trying to use every opportunity to fast or
to do good deeds and to get closer
to Allah.
You come across someone who is not fasting
on those dates.
You know?
How do you perceive them?
You know? What do you think of them?
Right? So it's important that we don't allow
a form of self righteousness to come in
where we start elevating things more than their
actual place
and
potentially start looking down upon others. So for
example, if somebody does not pass on Ashura,
somebody does not pass on Harafa for whatever
reason. Right? There's no blame on them because
the prophet
has said that whoever wishes to fast may
do so, whoever wishes to break this fast
may do so. Right? So it is there's
full permission that the prophet has given full
choice to fast on this day or not
to fast on this day. And the beginning
of the hadith here,
early Ashura is a day
from among the days of Allah. And this
question comes up by the way, you know,
when we hear about Muharram,
you know, the month of Allah Muharram. And
here,
is from the days from the days of
the days of Allah
What does that mean?
Like, what does that mean that a day
or a month is the month of Allah?
Can anybody take a guess as to why
Allah
or the prophet may have been putting it
in that way?
Why is it called that?
The month of Allah, the day of Allah.
Any thoughts?
Because of the the saving of the Bani
Israel?
Yes. Yeah. Good guess.
Yeah. Yeah.
But not exactly.
You see, the scholars say that whenever Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala creates a nisba of something
with himself. Whenever Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala links
something with himself,
it is to sanctify it and to highlight
its importance.
Right? So for example,
the Kaaba really, you know, is a cube
like building, right, which has been reconstructed.
Right? So it got built, you know, destroyed,
it was rebuilt, or, you know, it was
damaged in floods and so on. It was
rebuilt. But why is it called Baitullah?
Because Allah
has associated it with himself. Allah has linked
it with itself with it it with himself,
and therefore, it has become sanctified because of
its niswa with Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. Similarly,
when you say that, you know, the masjid
is the house of Allah, it's the same
idea. Right? Once again.
Or like when we, you know, read about
the the camel. Right? Naha Tabla. Right? When
the camel of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So
what is the link? The link is really
one of sanctity, that when something is linked
with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, it becomes more
special
and becomes more honored
and it becomes more deserving of being honored.
Right? So therefore, when Allah says
that, you know or when the prophet says
that shahrullahi muharam, the month of Allah, muharam,
or that from the days, Ashura being from
the days of Allah, it means that these
are days that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has
assigned importance to by linking to himself.
And therefore, the idea being that we should
also be
conscious of honoring these dates and these dates.
Right? We should not treat them as they
are
ordinary days. We should not treat them as
there is nothing special about these days.
Right? We should honor them in some way.
Right? Whether it is through fasting, but it
is optional.
But we should have reverence of these days
and and times because they have been linked
to Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala.
On your point with regards to Sayeeda Musa
alaihi sallam, so we know the famous story
and the famous narration that when the messenger
of Allah sallallahu alaihi wasallam came to Madinah,
what did he find? He found that the
Jewish community of Madinah is fasting on the
day of Ashura.
And the prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam asked them,
you know,
What is this day that you are fasting?
Right? And if you think about it, okay.
Well, what was the reason? Like, why would
the prophet ask them? Right? And,
what's notable here is that, you know, this
was
an act, a fasting of was something which
was being done in the days of ignorance
and the peep that the Quraysh were doing.
Right? So the people of Mecca were doing
it. But when the prophet came to Medina,
you know, it probably struck him that, okay,
why are the Jewish people doing this? You
know, it's understandable that, you know, it's it's
being done in Mecca. The Quraysh are doing
it, But what's the link for them? Like,
what's the reason that they're actually honoring this
day? So they respond and they say
that,
this is
a great day. Right? Why is it a
great day? Because this is the day that,
the,
that,
Allah
So
this is the day this is the great
day in which Allah
saved Sayida Musa and his people,
of course. You know the story as it
is mentioned in the Quran.
And,
he drowned Firaun and his people, meaning his
army that was behind him.
So Musa, alayhis salam, fasted on this day
due to gratitude,
and therefore, we also fast on it. Right?
So that was the reasoning that the Jewish
people of of Madinah gave to the prophet
when he asked about why they were fasting
on this particular day.
And the
prophet said that
so we are more worthy and closer to
Musa alaihi salaam than you, and the prophet
fasted on the day and he commanded fasting
on it as well.
So we understand here that, this was also
something which,
another factor that adds to the importance
of the day of Ashura or makes up
the importance of the day of Ashura.
And, the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam,
fasted on this day. So the reason for
the fasting,
you know, changed after coming to,
to Madinah. Of course, the obligation was was
already there, but once coming, once he came
to Madinah and he found out that this
was an added reason you can say for
which, you know, Muslims were instructed to fast
because this was a a a day of,
of thankfulness, of gratefulness,
for Sayna Musa alaihi sallam. And, of course,
all the prophets of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
are are prophets.
Right? All the prophets of the previous nations
are prophets of Islam. And that's why we
say that Islam is not a new religion.
The religion of Islam is not a new
religion. Right? It is simply a continuation of
the religions that the previous prophets and the
previous believers
practiced upon, although the, the the methodology or
the the the method of
practicing has changed in some ways, but the
beliefs and the essence of it is,
is the same.
There's also a narration,
from from one of the, youngest female companions
of the prophet,
Rubai ibn Bint Abu Abu Adiallahu Anha.
And she reports that the prophet
sent messengers to the villages of the Ansar
on the morning of Ashura
with the message
that the person the he who has started
the day not fasting,
let him finish the day finish his day,
and he who has starting the fasting,
let him continue to fast. And she says
that after that, we used to fast on
this day afterwards,
and we used to make sure that our
children were also fasting as well. We will
make them woolen toys. If a child's pride
of hunger, we gave it a toy to
play with until it was time for ending
the fast. So they took this day so
seriously that even they would even though it
was not obligatory for the children to fast,
they would get their children to fast as
well. And even if the children cried out
of hunger, you know, to encourage them or
to distract them, they would give them toys
so that, you know, they will be distracted
from the hunger and they could continue to
end the fast. You know, this gives us
an indication
that we should try to encourage our children
to fast. Okay. We don't wanna force our
children and harm them. Right? Or we don't
want to make them like, when they're very
young, you know, we don't want to,
make them,
you know, hate fasting or dislike fasting.
But at the same time, it is a
good idea to encourage our children to fast
because this is something that the early Muslims
at the time of the prophet sallallahu alaihi
wasallam, they did.
Even though that it there was some hardship
for the children, we would still encourage them
to do so, but we wanna be careful
that we don't force our children to fast
to the point where it becomes harmful for
them and it becomes an issue, especially, like,
if they're going to school or if they're
going to get sick or if they're gonna
get tired and so on.
But it is good to encourage our children,
to fast.
Imam Ibn Arabajab,
humbly
he says that the day of Ashura has
great virtue
and tremendous sanctity, hoorama.
What does it have? Great virtue and great
hoorama, tremendous sanctity.
And the virtue of fasting, it was known
among the prophets, alayhi, musaratus salaam.
Both prophet Nuh alayhi salaam and Musa alayhi
salaam fasted it. This is according to the
the Raja of
So, again, to highlight the importance,
and sanctity of this day. But
that being said, it is a day which,
is not a requirement to fast on, but
it is, encouraged or greatly encouraged to do
so.
Now what about adding a day?
You know, what about
adding a day? You know, this is something
you may have heard of. Adding a day
before
or after, especially before 10th of Wahaara. What
is the reason for that? So I've been
Abbas with the allahu anhu I reported that
when the messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wasallam
fasted on the day of Ashura
and commanded that it should be observed as
a fast, his companions said to him that,
you Rasulullah,
that this is a day that is venerated
by the Jews and the Christians.
And,
and
the prophet said that, yes.
That is true.
And
The next year, if Allah wills, we will
fast on the 9th day as well, but
he says
that
but by the time the following year came,
the messenger of Allah salallahu alayhi wa sallam
had passed away. So meaning that when this
point was raised
about the similarity of the fasting of Ashura
with the fasting of the Abdul Kitah,
the prophet
did say that, you know, this is after
Ashura had passed. Also said that, yes, from
the next year, we'll also pass on 9th
day as well. What's the reason for that?
You know, why was this a concern
for the companions?
And why is that? Like, what's the reason
that they wanted to to to differentiate?
Yes.
So,
you know, if you look at the prophetic
approach,
right, in the approach of that we find,
that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has taken and
the prophecies has taken, it was always to
try to differentiate
practices
of Islam, of the shaliyah of Muhammad sallallahu
alaihi wasallam
from the practices of the Ahlul Kitab. Right?
It was always so for example, in the
Quran, we what's the what will be the
earliest example that we find of this in
the Quran?
Where there was a change?
What changed? So it's in the beginning of
the second juice.
The tabla.
Right?
Yes.
So the first tabla was not towards the
Kaaba.
Right? But was towards
towards Jerusalem.
Right? Towards
Jerusalem.
Right? Masjid Aqsa by 2 Macdas was the
first tibla. Right?
And this was also the tibla of the
Jewish people as well. Right? And Allah
changed it
towards the Kaaba. And as we know, it
actually happened in the middle of prayer. Right?
So the was leading prayer and the revelation
came in the middle, and there was actually
a changing in the,
in in the direction and the movement that
happened during the prayer. Right? That's a separate
discussion. So
the first example we find in the Quran
is with regards to the Qibla. And then,
you know, as time went on, there were
other instances where the prophet
did not institute something or did not do
something because it would be copying
the Ahlul Kitab.
One example of that is the adhan.
Right. So the adhan,
was not instituted right away, and there was
a discussion in practical need because,
you know, how do you call people? As
the community is growing, how do you call
people for salah? You know? And,
some of the ideas that were suggested were,
you know, to ring a bell
or
to light a big fire, right, if people
could see the smoke.
Right? But both of these ideas were,
turned down by the prophet. So we're not
accepted by the prophet
and one of the reasons we can find
is similarities with other religious practices. Right? When
it came to
growing of the beard and trimming of the
mustache, right, the prophet
said for men to differentiate their appearance from
the mushrikeen or the others who had this
as their,
you know, as as their religious practice
to shave the beard and to grow the
mustache.
So the father said, you know, grow your
beard and
share or or shorten your mustache, right? So
there was always an effort to to differentiate
Islamic practices and differentiate ourselves as Muslims from
the practices of
which were,
which were inherent to or which were, a,
a symbol of other faith groups and particularly
the.
So,
here as well, this is why we can
understand that the companions raised this concern to
the
that someone realized probably that, oh, you know,
this is something which, the Jewish community is
doing. So,
you know, is this appropriate or not that
we're doing it in the same way that
they are doing it? So the prophet
said to differentiate
by adding the 9th day.
However, you know, that time didn't come and
the prophet passed
away before that. But this is considered to
be from the past fasting of the prophet
that a person ideally fast on 9th
10th
or 10th 11th. There's some narrations with regarding
that as well.
But this is ideal. You know? It's not
absolutely necessary. So if a person does not
fast on 9th, does not fast on the
11th, and just fast on 10th, it's still
virtuous and it's still good. Right? But it
is better to add a day. If you
can add the 9th day, that is good,
or you add the 11th day, that is
good.
Or, you know, some of the scholars have
written that you actually passed all 3 days.
So 9th, 10th, and 11th, and that is
the most virtuous,
of all, but nonetheless, it is not something
which is going to be,
blameworthy if someone happened to pass only on
10th. So if you do it on 10th,
then that
is great.
However,
you should, you know, ideally do one day
before and one day after. If not, then
one day either before
or after.
Now, you know, what's what's interesting and what
I want to go into now is,
and I actually didn't realize this, but I
it right like, at the outset, I realized
that for some years when I started talking
about the day of Ashura.
I realized that there are
different,
historically different ways that this day is
marked or recognized in different cultures,
like Muslim Islamic cultures. Okay?
You know,
I was remember, I gave a Khotwa bar
at Ashura in Kingston, and there's a very
nice, lovely,
elderly sister, Egyptian background.
And she said, Imam,
you know, I never knew
that Ashura was a thing and that there
was virtues around it or, you know, like,
all of this. Like, there was there there
were, you know religiously, we had virtues and
also historically the things that happened
on this day. All I knew is that,
you know, in Egypt, we would just, like,
distribute candies,
you know, and they would be self like,
you know, it would be a festive atmosphere
on the day of Hashira. Is that true?
Yes? Options? Okay.
And on the other hand and this was
for me, it was very it was very
surprising
because in other parts of the world, right,
especially if you look at, you know, in
South Asia,
this is really seen
as a day of mourning by many. Right?
Even those who don't necessarily, you know, who
are not Shia, for example, right, they're Sunni,
but they still consider, like, you know, the
day of Ashura really, like, to be a
day of sadness or there's, like, you know,
negative emotions associated with it,
because of the martyrdom of, Sinai Imam Hussain,
Rabula Lavan.
So it was it was very interesting for
me to realize that, okay, you know, some
parts of the world is actually celebrations.
You know, people are giving out candy and
they're, you know, they're they're it's a festive
atmosphere. On the other hand, there's, like, sadness
and there's mourning. Right?
So we say, okay. So what is the
root for this? You know, where is this
coming from? Okay. And there may be a
couple of reasons. So first of all, you
know, there is this notion or this, you
could say, a teaching
regarding generosity
towards one's family on the day of Ashura.
And there is a narration,
reported from the prophet
that one who generously spends on his family
on the day of Ashura,
Allah will increase his provision for the whole
year.
There is discussion with regards to the the
strength of this narration with regards to its
chain of narrators. There is a discussion about
whether it is weak or not.
Imam Al Bayh Haqqani has says that, you
know and he has related it, of course,
in his collection, When all the chains of
these narrations are gathered, they assume sufficient strength.
It is related from different different chains of
narration.
And this is something which has been practiced
and is reported by many scholars. Right? So
even,
you know, if you,
you know, want to,
particularly, you know, follow
scholars who generally are, you know, are more
strict, there will be a recognition that many
of the great scholars of the past from
from the set of have actually recognized this
as a virtue and have practiced this. Right?
And this is something that I've experienced and
I have also seen,
as well. But, of course, it could be
debatable because, you know, some will say that
because there is,
you know, no,
narration
that is very strong or in other, you
know, terms very authentic.
Therefore,
nothing none of this has to do with
the sunnah because it can't really be proven
because the narration is is somewhat questionable.
But when we look at, again, the the
the narrations
and we look at the practice of many
of the early scholars, some of the great
scholars that everyone agrees upon and that are
that were great and known for their knowledge
and their piety, there just was something which
was recognized. Does it mean that it's something
you have to do? No. Of course not.
Right? It is something that, you know, you
must not do. That is debatable.
But it is something that you can do.
Right? Because it has been the practice of
many, and there are some narrations to support
it,
as well. You know, when it comes to
these things, it is important again that we
don't give them more importance
than than than than they have. Right? So,
you know, if somebody starts considering this something
to be,
you know, something that absolutely has to be
done or, you know, feels like that they're
doing some great wrong. If they don't do
it, then that would be wrong because it's
not at that level.
You know, but at the same time, if
the approach is that, you know what?
This may be something that exists and maybe
Allah
will, will grant some barakah, you know, if
this is true. So, I'm gonna try to
do something a little bit extra, you know,
for my family in terms of kindness, kindness,
and generosity on this day. And I ask
that Allah accept then, if something like this
exist, then
will grant
the increased provision or that barakah and, you
know, I don't wanna miss out on it
if it does exist. So that is more
of a balanced approach towards things like this
as opposed to thinking that it is absolutely
something that that has to be done because
that is definitely,
not the case. So
going back to, you know, celebrations,
this may be, you know, one of the
the roots perhaps, one of the reasons why
it has been seen as a day of
generosity in giving candies to children,
maybe because,
of of this teaching.
That's one possibility. There's another
more,
there's another possibility which may be a little
bit more,
serious,
maybe a little bit more negative,
and, that has to do with the tragic
martyrdom of Sinai Mah Hussain.
With regards to the historic events,
you know, the Bani Israel were saved, from,
from
Firaun. I don't know if that is the
reason for the candies. Maybe that could be
the reason. Well, Adam, I don't know.
There are some reports which are deemed to
be unreliable. So for example,
that, Sayna Adam alayhi salam, you know, was
created on this day or that, it is
the birthday of Sayna Ibrahim alayhi salam or
that, you know, the repentance of Sayna Adum
alayhi salam,
was, and his wife was accepted, you know,
on this day or that the day of
qayama will fall on 10th of Muharram. You
know, all of these, reports are deemed to
be unreliable.
Allah
knows best. You know, it could have happened
or it could happen, could not happen. It's,
you know, it's not something that we can
say, with certainty.
The,
other,
you know, major historic event, of course, that
has happened,
on this day is, the martyrdom of Sayna
Imam Hussain, radiAllahu anhu. This is really one
of the most tragic episodes
of our history because this is the grandson
of the prophet,
and Hassan and Hussain
both,
were tremendously beloved to the prophet.
You know, these were, young children who grew
up with the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam
often, you know, are would be playing
with with or, you know, on the prophet
sallallahu alaihi wa sallam like his leading salah,
you know, and, you know, and when it
in the case of, of, of saying that
Hussein radiallahu anhu, it is said that he
was the one who resembled the most
physically to the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam.
Right? So
very close to the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam,
you know, in terms of relation,
relationship and love, But even in terms of
physical appearance,
very, very close. And, you know, this is
seen. Right? Like, if you sometimes look at,
you know, parents, you look at their children
or grandchildren, you know, sometimes that that DNA,
you know, those genes are being being passed
on. And so, Hala, you look at a
person,
you know, and,
you know, and then you look at their,
their parents, maybe a picture, you know, when
they were younger, and they look exactly the
same. Or, you know, a person grows older
and you look at, you know, how their
parents or grandparent look like, and you're like,
oh, man. This is like, you know, a
complete copy. So this is what is, this
is similar to what is described with regards
to,
Sayna Husayn
In the Kathir Rahimahullah, he says that every
Muslim
should mourn the killing of Al Husayn
for
he is one of the leaders of the
Muslims, one of the scholars of the Sahaba
and the son of the daughter of the
messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam who
was the best of his daughters. He was
a devoted worshiper and a courageous
and,
generous
man. So this is something that everyone agrees
upon. Right? And the reason why I mentioned
up this is that, you know, sometimes there's
this feeling,
you know, that,
that the Ahlus Sunnah or Jama'a, the Sunnis,
you know, don't love the household of the
prophet
or that they don't have any sadness over,
you know, these tragic events or that
even supported this somehow or something. You know?
That is absolutely not the case. Right? Our
scholars have been clear
that this was a tragic event that happened.
You know,
there is, no question that what happened,
was
wrong. It was,
you know,
tragic. It was horrible,
the way that, you know, the the household
of the prophet
were with him, you know,
at Karbala,
you know, and the way that they were
treated, the way that their children, you know,
their women were treated,
the way even that they were martyred,
you know, let's say that same name of
Hussein
who was martyred. Like, all of that is
absolutely tragic, and there is, there is no
question or no doubt about that. The question
is about
how do we remember these events? What do
we do about them? Right? And the prophet
has said that he is not one of
us who strikes his cheeks, who rends his
garment, or cries with the cry of the
Jahiliyyah.
Because this was the method of mourning
in the days of ignorance.
This is what people used to do and
the prophet
strictly prohibited us from doing that. So, yes,
we are sad.
Yes, you know, this was something tragic that
happened that should not have occurred,
and it is something that saddens all of
us. But how do we remember it? We
do not remember it by
mourning in this way. We do not remember
it by harming ourselves as, you know, some
of the people do.
And in fact, it is related from Sayedna
Hussain, radiAllahu anhu, himself
that he said, my dear sister, I swear
upon you that in case I die, you
shall not tear your clothes nor scratch your
face nor curse anyone for me or pray
for your death. You know? So these are
not ways which are appropriate
to mark the the passing of, of someone
or to mark a a a tragic, occurrence.
So,
you know, of course, we are saddened, and
we we remember the household of the prophet
We remember what happened to Sayna Hossein radiAllahu
anhu. We recognize it as a tragic occurrence,
and a a sad,
sad event,
in our history, but we do not remember
it in the ways that the prophet
has prohibited it to be, to be remembered.
Also,
when it comes to the celebration part,
there are some theories.
I don't know what's the theories, but there
were actually some groups, true, that there were
some people
who started celebrating
on this day
in reaction to the morning done by the
shiyan the the shia on this day. So
to counter the shias
who were in a state of mourning, in
a state of sadness,
you know,
they instead started taking this day as a
day of celebration
to
oppose what they were doing in terms of
mourning. And this is also wrong.
Right? So we do not have any part
in this. Right? So any,
honoring of this day, you know, is not
in any way to be taken as
an act of opposition towards the the morning
or whatever, you know, the Shia people might
be doing on this day. Right? It is
not for that reason. We mark this day
because
it has been sanctified by Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala. We mark it because the prophet
has told us that it is a virtuous
day. If somebody shows generosity towards your loved
ones and their family, they do it not
because they are trying to, you know, make
this make, you know, people who are who
are mourning the loss of or the tragedy
of saying that,
like, they're trying to make them feel bad
or anything like that. It's not related to
that. Right? There are completely different things. We
have to remember that the martyrdom of Sayedah
Hussain occurred
when? It occurred 50 years after the passing
of the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam.
Prophet passed away in year 11 after Hijidi
right after Hijra. Right? Year 11 Hijidi.
And this incident occurred, you know, year 61.
Right? So it's 50 years later after the
passing of the prophet So
the teachings of the prophet
with regards to this day and this month
are not related in any way to the
martyrdom of Sayedan Hussain radiAllahu anhu
and the way we treat his martyrdom
and this tragic occurrence is the same way
that the prophet
treated
all the sad occurrences and tragedies that occurred
in his life and that happened in the
past. Because the prophet
did not mark any anniversary
of any passing of any tragedy,
therefore, we do not do the same as
well because
we love the prophet
the most,
more than even his own household.
So, yes, we love the household of the
prophet because that is something that he has
instructed us to love and to show reference
and care for them. Absolutely. No question about
that.
But
will
the the the the the loss of
a member of the household
of the right, will that loss take precedence
for us over the teachings of the
No. Right? Because
the went through hardships and tragedies as well.
Right?
The year of sadness when the
you know, lost his beloved wife Khadija
right? And also lost who else?
His uncle. Right? Mutali.
And the prophet
was very sad, but he never marked that
time. He never marked that year or the
anniversary in any way. And there were other
tragedies that happened, great tragedies that happened when,
you know, there were great losses that were
inflicted upon the Muslims,
things that have happened in history, but we
learn from the prophetic way is not to
remind ourselves
and to mark
those days and and mourn. Even when it
comes to days of mourning, how long are
we supposed to mourn for generally? If someone
passes away,
3 days. Right? Except, you know, in the
case of,
the spouse or a widow, of course, and
there are reasons for that as well. Good
reasons for that because it's from the the
design of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala and the
wisdom of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. But otherwise,
it's 3 days. Right? And then we try
to move on after that and we try
to cope. Doesn't mean we can't remember what
happened. We doesn't mean we can't miss people.
Of course, we can. And in fact,
you know, the prophet
has told us that a person who remembers,
you know, a time,
he says,
the hadith is the meaning of the hadith,
there is no Muslim who is afflicted
by a calamity.
And when he remembers
it, even if it was in the dim
and distant past, he says
but Allah
will give him a reward
like that of the day when it befell
him. Okay. What does that tell us? If
we remember a tragedy, if we remember a
calamity, and we are saddened by it, if
we are hurt by it, say
and be patient and Allah
will reward you in the same way that
he rewarded you when it happened and you
showed patience.
Right? Even if it happens much later on.
Right? So this is what we learn in
terms of how to cope with sadness and
how to cope with,
you know,
remembering, you know,
act things that happen which make us sad
or that make us mourn. But apart from
that, you know, there is no tradition. There's
no prophetic tradition
to mark
the days of passing and of sadness and
of tragedies,
in ways that bring us down and that
in in ways that make us sad, and
that is not, you know, that is not
the way that the prophet,
has taught us and and that, you know,
things that that we should do.
There are a few other things, Insha'Allah. I'm
gonna wrap up with that.
You know, for some, there is,
you know, some,
practices. So for example,
the scope you can describe it this way.
The scope of worship expanded
during this time, you know, on this day
or in this month to include good works,
you know, to do extra good and some
extras as well. So for example, you know,
clipping of nails or, you know, applying, quahal,
you know, on on the eyes,
and things like that, you know, to to
to show reverence
towards his time. This is not proven through
the actions of the prophet or his companions.
Right? So we want to try to mark
these days
in the way that the prophet
and his companions mark Right? To say that,
you know what? This is a special time.
Yes. We all agree it's a special time.
It's a sanctified time. There are virtues around
it. You know, there's extra qama, extra sanctity,
absolutely 100%.
But is it appropriate for us to go
beyond
what the prophet and his companions did to
mark these days. Right? So that is something
which you could say is debatable. You know,
in my view,
we are much safer
if we stick
to with the way of the prophet
and his companions. Right? Because once we start
adding on things, you know, even if we're
just doing it as extras, we don't really
believe that it's necessary, but we just want
to, you know, show excitement. We wanna show
extra reverence.
You know, at some point, you know, in
the future,
these things may very well become accepted
by future generations, and they start thinking that,
you know what? This is actually a part
of the deen. This is actually a part
of the reverence that we're supposed to do
that is actually,
like, part of the religion, and that's how
new things get introduced into the religion. And
it becomes very difficult to differentiate
what is actually true and what is extra
or what is unnecessary.
Yeah. So that is why
even though it may not be, you know,
haram, it may not be prohibited outright,
which we should be very judicious and very
careful
that we don't allow, you know, extra things
to be added. You know, some things, yes.
For example, previously, there was an narration. K?
There is an narration about generosity towards the
family. It is debated by the early scholars.
It was something that was practiced by them.
You know, the there is a discussion scholarly
discussion with regards to the the, authenticity or
the strength of the narration and so on
and so forth. So there, at least you
have some grounds,
right, to act upon it. But when it
comes to these types of things,
there is no basis. Right? There's no basis.
It's not proven in any way. There's no
narration. There's nothing. So, therefore, we should try
to avoid that as much as possible. Now
what about superstitions?
Okay. Because according to some in some cultures,
Muslim cultures,
this Muharram, because it is a you know,
it's considered to be,
because the thing is when you translate
Haram, you can translate it or you can
understand it in 2 ways. Right? You can
understand Haram as being prohibited. You can also
understand haram as being sanctified.
Right? So when you say masjid al haram,
right, are we saying that it's a prohibited
masjid? Like, is it prohibited in a negative
sense? Obviously not. Right? Because there's riches for
going down frame. Right? So we understand it
in the sense of sanctity. It is a
sanctified space where, yes, certain things are haram,
but if it's a positive connotation, it's not
a negative connotation.
Right? So it's possible that because Muharram is
the haram month or the sanctified month,
prohibited month in terms of something being prohibited,
maybe some have taken it to mean that,
you know, there are good actions that are
prohibited in this month because it is an
unlucky month. Or maybe it is seen as
being unlucky because of the March of the
of
which in my view doesn't really make sense
because it is offset by
the luckiness of
being saved, you know, during this month and
on that day. Of course, you understand what
I'm trying to say. Right? So,
is it appropriate to have superstitions about this
month? No. Is it an unlucky month? No.
You know, does it mean that, you know,
you should avoid new ventures or avoid getting
married because it's gonna be, like, a form
of bad luck or something? Absolutely not. K.
So there's no basis whatsoever,
you know, with regards to this. So if
you are planning to get married and the
date that is chosen happens to be in
the month of Haram, no problem whatsoever. Okay?
If you're starting a new business or buying
a new home or whatever, you know, or
starting something new and it happens to me
in the month of haram, no issue whatsoever.
In fact, it's one of the virtuous times
of year. Right? So may it might actually
be a good thing, if anything,
you know, as opposed to being negative. So
it's important that we don't, you know, buy
into these myths and these types of, you
know, ideas that may be prevalent culturally.
There's absolutely no negativity associated with the month
of some will say, oh, you know, we
don't want to,
you know, celebrate anything,
because of the march of them of Sayna
Hussain
Once again, this is not from the prophetic
way. There is no evidence to suggest that
the prophet
did not, you know,
you know, withheld
doing good things or, you know, having marriages
or,
you know, or or doing something good or
new in the month of Muharram or on
the day of Ashura because,
you know
or or sorry, on any day because of
something that happened on that day. Right? This
is just not something that we, that we,
that we consider. And in fact, it is
said that Sayna Ali
actually, you know, was married in the month
of Muharram, actually. You know? So
there is,
there's no reason whatsoever to be superstitious
or, to assign any negativity
with this month.
And we must remember that whether it's Muharram
or whether it's the day of Ashura or
any other date or any other month, it
cannot bring any harm or any danger. Right?
So this whole notion, this whole idea
is foreign to Islamic teachings.
Right? To have certain times when or or
or dates or months when, you know, it's,
something is, you know, that there's some sort
of harm or danger. We just that's not
something that that we believe in because harm
and danger only comes or is only in
the control of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, happens
only with the permission of Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala and there is no time or date
that is,
associated,
with that. Yes. When it comes to places,
you can say that, you know, if I
try to make a link, you can say
that, yes,
maybe, you know, there are some places. So
for example, places where adab has descended.
Right? Places where the punishment of Allah
came. So those are places where it is
said that, okay, you should not hang around
there for too long. You know, you shouldn't
stop there and and and and, you know,
and enjoy the place, so to speak. You
know, you should try to move through there
quickly. So that is something that we can
find in terms of negativity associated with the
place, but not with time. When it comes
to time, there is no such notion or
no such idea and Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
knows best. So if we are to do
a recap,
and by the way, if there's any questions
for those who are online,
feel free to type your questions in the
chat box. If you're on Facebook or YouTube,
if you're on our website, you can click
on the link on the, the title of
the video. It'll open up in YouTube, inshallah.
You can type in the comments, and I
will see that here.
So just to recap,
when it comes to the sacred months, 3
are consecutive. Which ones
are consecutive?
Muharram.
Muharram. So Dhakaadah, Dhul Hijjah, and
being consecutive.
1 is separated. Which one is that?
Raja. Raja. Okay.
And,
of course, we know that, that warfare is,
you know, prohibited in this month, but also
these are months,
in which,
there is added sanctity with regards to,
or added virtues with regards to good deeds.
Allah says, do not wrong yourselves
therein.
It means for ourselves virtually, but also one
another in terms of our relationships and in
terms of our interactions. We want to be
extra careful during these months, that we do
not commit any wrongs,
and the sins and good deeds are magnified
in this month. So in these months, so
we wanna try to minimize our sins as
much as possible and we want to increase
our good deeds as much as possible inshallah.
When it comes to the month of Muharram,
it is referred to as the month of
Allah because Allah has linked it, to himself.
Well, the prophet has linked it to Allah
and therefore that means that there is added
reverence and extra reverence and honor of this
month.
Fasting is virtuous
throughout the entire month,
but particularly on the day of Ashura. It
is not an unlucky month,
and celebrations or, you know, good actions, good
starts are not discouraged,
during this month in any way. And finally,
the day of Ashura is 10th of Muharram.
Fasting on this day is virtuous,
but not a requirement. So if somebody decides
not to do so for some reason, there
is no blame on there. There's there's nothing
wrong with that, and we should try to
add,
a day before
and or a day after. If you can
do all 3 days, 9th, 10th, 11th, then
that is,
that is,
that is better.
It is a day of historic events, but
these days are not marked. Right? The only
marking that we find is through fasting.
Right? The prophet said with regards to Mondays,
right, that I was born on Monday and
therefore that he was fasting on Monday. So
that we find is a way of marking
a a good occurrence through worship, through fasting.
And similarly, Sayid al Musa alaihi salam and
the Bani Israel being saved, Saidah Musa alayhi
salam fasted, the prophet also said to fast.
So historic events the goodness of historic events
is marked by fasting. That much we can
say. We can we can deduce from the
the prophetic practice.
But, otherwise, in terms of tragedies, martyrdom, things
like that, that is these dates are not
marked. Yes. We remember it historically.
We recognize that it was something tragic that
occurred, but we do not mark these days,
in any way.
And there is, finally, possible virtue
regarding spending
generosity
towards one fam one's family on the day
of Ashuqa, but this is not something which
is,
you know,
which is, a 100% confirmed. This is not
something which is mandatory or required in any
way and, it is, optional if a person
chooses to do that and to practice
upon it. Insha'Allah.
There's certain things that are associated with the
day of Ashura along with, you know, the
clipping of nails and other stuff that I
mentioned. So for example,
cooking special dishes, you know, in some places,
they may be cooked with or without grains,
wearing of new clothes,
you know, buying the year's supplies on that
day,
you know, deliberately slaughtering an animal on that
day,
you know, wearing the, you know, special,
henna or, you know, calling the eyes, taking
a bath, shaking hands with one another, visiting
one another,
and all of that. There is no evidence
of that, you know, from,
you know, from from any of the
from the prophet or from any of the
companions or from from any of the early
Muslims and and scholars.
Inshallah, we'll end it with that. Any questions?
Yes.
Yeah.
So the prophet
does say that, regarding 9th, definitely.
So 9th, yes, and it's mentioned in the
hadith as well. 10th, we know for sure.
There are other narrations about 11th as well,
but they don't reach the same level of
authenticity. But if any if any was covered
in the last 3 days or maybe it's
10th or 11th, 9, or 10th? I I
I'm not sure about that, but it is
mentioned in in the, in the books of
the salah for sure. So we do find,
acceptance of that,
and I'm fairly certain that,
they would not have said that if it
wasn't for some evidence from the from the
Sahaba. Yeah. I hear it, but it was
for the to know the source. Yeah. So
I I don't know about that, about the
actual source. With regards to the Sahaba doing
it or not on all 3 days.
So I Very good. Yes.
Yeah. So that's a long, you know, it's
it's a long, event. You know, there's a
lot of background to it, But essentially,
you know, there was,
a dispute with regards to leadership
and, the people who were there were calling
Sayedem Hussain, radiAllahu anhu, to be their leader.
And at first, you know, there were a
few calls. This is just a brief summary,
but then eventually he received many letters up
to some some say up to 10,000 letters.
Right? So there are many letters of support
encouraging them to come and to come and
we'll accept you as our leader and so
on and so forth.
So, you know, he,
he accepted that invitation
even though, you know, there were people from
the senior, you know, companions or others who
had, discouraged him from going so but weren't,
you know, suggested that it was not a
good idea. But nonetheless, you know, he was
a very fair minded person, so he felt
that, you know, it was the right thing
to do, and he set off, you know,
with members of his family and extended plan.
However, you know, when he arrived there, he
found out that the situation had changed,
and the tables had turned, and all those
a lot of the supporters are actually dissipated
and had essentially
deserted him. Right? So,
he did not go to fight,
but essentially, you know, the situation came to
that,
And he was a person of uprightness and
justice, so he refused, to go back,
and because he really felt that what he
was doing was, was was correct and was
the right thing to do.
And, essentially,
he was then you know, him and his
family, his whole group was mistreated very badly,
and essentially, they were, the men were slaughtered
and then the women were were taking captives.
Yeah. So, that's essentially what happened. So it
wasn't supposed to happen that way. Right? But
at the end of the day, that was,
you could say, it was and
it played out in that way. We asked
to, to elevate the ranks, in general. I
mean,
question online, somebody sorry, yes, go ahead.
Okay. So very good question.
So the,
the order as we know as well, the
12 we know is from Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta'ala for 12 months. And the order also
is something which has been mandated by Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala of the month. Right? So
this is something which goes back in history,
and this is something that,
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala has mandated, and that's
why it was prohibited
to move around the months. Right? Because this
is the way that it had been established.
You could say potentially that it was in
the in the Sharia or the teachings of
saying that Ibrahim alaihis salam
and even before that as well because we
know that the people of Makkah were claiming
to follow the religion of Ibrahim alaihis salam,
but they had made modifications.
So one of the modifications that they had
made, which they shouldn't have, one of the
ways that they had tampered, was they had
started messing around with the monks.
So to answer your question, it goes back
to Allah
sending the order and the naming of the
months,
being done by Allah
or
at the time, you know, of saying that
I'm
not certain, so I can't give you a
100% response on that, before the rest of
that question. But, yes, the order has been
set by Allah
and the months also,
are,
are with the
the the
the the mandating of Allah whether it was
through the prophet
or whether it was through Sidibe
Ibrahim
Any questions?
No. Thank you very much. Okay. There's a
question online.
Can we fast for 9, 10, 11? Yes.
Absolutely.
You can fast for 9th, 10th, 11th. You
can fast the whole day if you sorry.
Whole month, if you would like to. Inshallah,
there is,
you know, there there let's say, it's a
month in which, fasting is, is virtuous.
So you can increase your fasting, acting upon
the sunnah of the prophet, sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam.
And there's no prohibition of the Qur'an, etcetera.
Not, worship or something else that even the
Quran, etcetera.
Not, so he's asking if there's any specific
acts, apart from fasting, in the month of
Muharram or other day of Ashura. So, you
know, what we find is
that what is has been,
conveyed to us, what we have been taught,
is that the, fasting is the main thing
that is virtuous.
But because it is
part of the sanctified months, therefore, all good
deeds
are, you know, are more virtuous as we
have already discussed.
So there's, you can say that there's a
general encouragement if you want to do increase
any acts of goodness, not necessarily on the
day of but
with the through the month of mohrab and
through any of the sanctified months because they
are all generally more virtuous in terms of
good deeds. But in terms of specific acts
of worship,
I'm not aware of anything being, authentically narrated
from the prophet, salamu alayhi wa sallam.
Lower.
Alright. Any other questions online?
A few moments.
We are at 10:40.
So,
look forward to that.
Yes. The,
the first
day of Muharram. Yes. It is.
I was getting confused with the date, but,
yes, it would be today. Today is what
would be today.
Meaning now would be in the second,
day,
And that is actually the other benefit of
also fasting on 9th 10th,
or 9th, 10th, 11th, that you cover all
your bases if there's any confusion with regards
to,
the date.
Everyone. Allah bless you all. May Allah always
guide us to do that which is best.