In the Name of Allah the Compassionate
the Merciful
Brothers and Sisters in Islam
Today is Eid, Eid-ul-Adha, the Eid of
Sacrifice... and today our Muslim Brother and Sisters in Hajj complete the
rites and procedures of Hajj.
We take this opportunity to supplicate
to Allah that He accept their Hajj, forgive their sins, bring them all to their
homes safe, make their Hajj reach their hearts, change them into strong
believers, and make them useful to our Islamic Ummah
We also take this opportunity to
supplicate to Allah to make us among those who will be blessed by performing
Hajj and Umra in future years In'sha'Allah.
Two aspects of these holy days are
worthy of our study and examination: The hardship of Hajj, and the Sacrifice
associated with it
Hajj is one of the five pillars of
Islam, it is a must for the adult Muslims who can afford it both physically and
financially
Allah Says in Surat Al Imran (3:97) The
translation of the meaning is "Pilgrimage is a duty people owe to Allah -
Those who can afford the way (journey)"
In performing Hajj, a Muslim suffers
many hardships. He takes out of his time, his money, his effort, and his health
to perform this worship
Physical effort is required in
performing Hajj: travel in itself is a physical hardship, Tawaf, walking and
rushing between Safa and Marwa, the Rajm (stoning) of Iblis, and you do that in
an ocean of humans. An unparalleled crowd
Many other hardships of financial
expenses, travel, dress code, and other restrictions
And one wonders: How can a Muslim, in
the midst of all these hardships and with all such suffering, devote himself to
the worship of Allah and perform pilgrimage? The answer to this question is
simple if we consider the case of the other worships that Allah commanded us to
do, also if we were to consider any meaningful action or task that we are to
accomplish
There is always a mission, a goal, that
we are to attain, yet there are always impeding factors that stand between us
and that goal. And, those who are successful, do not let these impeding
elements from preventing them from reaching the goal and accomplishing the
mission
Success never comes easily whichever
success we talk about
In education and studies, one has to
spend these long hours of reading, working out practices and exercises, and
research to get the knowledge he seeks
In professional life, it takes
tremendous effort, trials and error, and many hardships and disappointments,
before one reaches any degree of success
In raising children, it takes out of
parents time, comfort, money, and emotions, to do a sincere effort leading to a
successful mission
This is the way life is, and this is
the way Islamic worships are as well. Islam is a way of life that makes worship
part of our lives just like eating, studying, and raising our children. An
integral part that blends with both aspects of our existence; physical and
spiritual
In our daily prayers, we take out of
our time and effort to do them on time under all circumstances and conditions
to strengthen our belief and our ties to Allah, as we worship Him
In fasting, we struggle with hunger and
thirst as we strengthen our belief and our ties to Allah, as we worship Him
In Zakat, we pay out of our wealth, we
help others as we help ourselves, and in this way again we worship Allah
In all these are hardships, but there
is a goal, and our objective is the successful achievement of the mission. And,
in going through these hardships, we learn how to deal with them and how to
overcome them. And that makes us better humans and stronger Muslims
And, in Hajj, is a greater hardship, if
we examine the fact that it is only mandatory for those who can afford it
In Hajj, we see a great wisdom, as we
struggle with all the hardships of Hajj, we are to sincerely worship Allah
The goal is the worship and the
impeding factors are those of our daily lives
A concentrated dose of hardship we
experience in this Hajj yet it is the same kind we have to deal with every day
And we have to deal with it, overcome
it, and successfully accomplish our mission of sincere and devoted attachment
to Allah and His way, simply worshipping Him
Yes, in the midst of all this life
hardships like working for income and dealing with people, we have got to
remember Allah at all times and worship Him sincerely, worship Him as if we see
Him, because if we do not see Him, He sees us
In Hajj, we live the same circumstances
in a comprehensive, concentrated and intensified form
And as we examine ourselves as we
practice the other aspects of our lives and worships. As we achieve our goal
and feel the rewards, benefits, and joy of success. We then feel that every
effort that was put in the process was worth it
In our prayer, as we take the time to
do it, we feel the rewards of tranquillity and humbleness in our soles, we feel
the rewards of renewal and strength in our hearts, and we know that the
ultimate reward of Allah's Satisfaction is awaiting us
And we know then that we did not waste
our time or our effort in performing this prayer
And in Hajj, the same happens. Those of
us who have been through it know exactly that. Yes there are hardships in Hajj,
but there are the rewards as well. Rewards in this life and rewards in the
hereafter
May Allah help us all realize these
rewards and enable us to his way and to his satisfaction
<><><><><><>
The second point for discussion today
is sacrifice. And, in the story of
Ibraheem, pbuh, is a great insight for us.
Allah says in Surat Assaffat
(37:100-111)
"O my Lord! grant me A righteous
(son)!" So, We gave him the good
news of a forbearing son. Then, when the
son reached the age of serious work with him, he said: "O my son! I have
seen in a dream that I offer you in sacrifice: now see what is your
view!" The son said: "O my
father! do as you are commanded: you will find me, if Allah so wills, one of
the steadfast." So when they had
both submitted to Allah, and he had laid him prostrate on his forehead, We
called out to him, "O Ibraheem! you have already fulfilled the
dream!" - thus indeed do We reward those who do right. For this was a clear trial - And We ransomed
him with a momentous sacrifice: And We left for him among generations to come
in later times: peace and salutation to Ibraheem! Thus indeed do We reward those who do right,
for he was one of our believing servants.
An
aging man was about to sacrifice his only son as he believed that this was a command
from Allah. Neither he or his son
argued, disputed, or even doubted the message, nor did they hesitate in the
execution.
That was a test from Allah, and what a
test, a great one given to two great people.
That was Prophet Ibraheem, a great
prophet, who was willing to sacrifice his son as he had sacrificed his father's
love before. As he rejected idolatry, he
gave away love and support and even peace with his father and his people, a big
sacrifice for the sake of Allah.
Allah says in His Holy Book (29:2,3),
the translation of the meaning of which is:
"Do people think that they will be
left alone on saying, "We believe," and that they will not be
tested? We did test those before them,
and Allah will certainly know those who are true from those who are
false."
Tests come from Allah, no doubt, and
only the true believers can pass those test, and the key to passing is
sacrifice.
Sacrifice is the act of weighing what
our hearts and souls desire against Allah commands and wishes, then deciding to
give up our desires and wants in order to conform to Allah's commands and
prescriptions.
And, sacrifice has many forms. Following the straight path implies
sacrifices.
Maintaining worships involves
sacrifice. Spending money, effort, and
time to serve Islam and Muslims involves sacrifice.
Being an active member of one's
community is a sacrifice.
Being a good example to be followed is
a sacrifice.
Allah says in His Holy Book (3:195),
the translation of the meaning of which is:
"And their Lord has accepted of
them, and answered them: "Never will I suffer to be lost the work of any
of you, be he male or female: you are members of one another: those who have
immigrated and left their homes, and were driven out therefrom, and suffered
harm in My Cause, and fought, and were slain,- verily, I will blot out from
them their iniquities, and admit them into Gardens with rivers flowing
beneath;- a reward from Allah, and from Allah is the best of rewards."
This Ayah demonstrates a typical
sacrifice pattern for the early Muslims, the companions of the prophet,
pbuh. They sacrificed their wealth,
their wives and families, their parents who rejected Islam. They were tortured and they were exposed to
many forms of suffering. They sacrificed
all for the sake of Islam and in Allah's Cause.
And their reward is the pleasure of Allah and His Gardens. They are no doubt the true winners.