Khutbah: Extravagance and Wastefulness

All praises and thanks are due to Allāh, the one who has favoured us with the favour of Islam, the greatest of all favours. The one exalted above change, demise, decline and non-existence. The one who grants favours with grace, the one who judges with justice, the one attributed with generosity. I praise Him—Exalted is He—and thank Him over all His favours. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh, the Lord of the Tablet and the Pen. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger, the one sent to the Arabs and non-Arabs. O Allah, send blessings and peace upon Your slave and messenger Muḥammad, and upon his family and companions, who have achieved the most excellent of guidance and nobility!

O Attendees of this Blessed Friday Gathering! I first and foremost advise you to fear Allāh, your Lord, and remain conscious of Him at all times and places. Obey His Commands and beware of His Prohibitions, without going to extremes. Indeed, Islam is a religion of moderation, and hence we should take the moderate path, the path between the two extremes, both in our religious and worldly affairs.

O Believers! Allāh—the All-Wise, the All-Knowing—says in His Book:

وَلَا تُبَذِّرْ تَبْذِيرًا ۝ إِنَّ الْمُبَذِّرِينَ كَانُوا إِخْوَانَ الشَّيَاطِينِ ۖ وَكَانَ الشَّيْطَانُ لِرَبِّهِ كَفُورًا

"...and do not spend wastefully. Indeed, the wasteful are brothers of the devils, and ever has Shayṭān been to his Lord ungrateful." (Qur’ān 17:26-27)

And Allāh says:

وَلَا تُسْرِفُوا ۚ إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ

"And do not be extravagant. Indeed, He (Allāh) does not love the extravagant." (Qur’ān 7:31)

As we can see from this ayah, as well as from the many other āyāt and aḥādīth in the Islamic Tradition, we should not be wasteful and excessive when it comes to spending our money. We should only spend according to our needs and not waste that which Allāh has provided us with.

We live in a world today which promotes and champions the idea of going beyond what we need. We are encouraged to aim for lives of luxury; lives of luxury are glorified, esp. by the media and popular culture, as the standard to which we should aim. We are encouraged to buy the latest and greatest gadgets, wear the coolest fashions, purchase the most expensive brands, imitate and obsess over the most popular people, hold the grandest events, live the most luxurious lives... We are being pushed the idea that a life of luxury and splendour, of extravagance and grandeur, is the ideal life. But ask yourself: This materialistic world view, is this the way we should view this world and our existence? Or is this a one-eyed, Dajjalic view of this world and our existence?

Remember, O intelligent beings, that this dunyā is not all there is to life. This dunyā that we live in is temporary. Our lives here are temporary. It will all end one day. Now, you might ask, "If this world really is temporary, then shouldn't we be living life to the max, enjoying ourselves as much as we can before we die?" Well, I remind you of the statement of Prophet `Īsā (`alayh al-salām): "This world is a bridge; use it to cross over, not to build over."

Remember, O slaves of Allāh, that this life will be followed by an Afterlife. Our purpose in this life is to plant the seeds for the Afterlife, where we shall see the results of our planting. If we planted our seeds well, we will find the results of that in the Afterlife as being delight upon delight, luxury upon luxury, enjoyment upon enjoyment, in shā’ Allāh. An Afterlife that is everlasting and does not end.

So think about it, O honourable believers: would you prefer the limited enjoyments of this temporary, perishing world, or the limitless enjoyments of the never-ending Hereafter? By Allāh, the enjoyments of this world are nothing compared to the enjoyments of Jannah. They don't even deserve to be called enjoyments. If anything, the greatest enjoyments this world has to offer are in fact like a prison compared to even the least of what Jannah has to offer. So indeed, whoever still prefers what this life has to offer over what the next life has to offer is nothing but a fool.

And what is worse—and this is something we see all too often—is when people are extravagant in committing acts of obedience. E.g. holding large, grand events where Allāh is being disobeyed. Not only are they disobeying their Master and Sustainer, but they are being extravagant in doing so!  Subḥān Allāh! Allāh blesses them with health and wealth, but what do they use that for? To disobey Him! What a pathetic attitude! How grateful and thankful these people are!

Having said all that, there's two things I would like to clarify:

1. The message here is not that you have to live a miserable life to attain the success of the Hereafter. You may enjoy yourself and have pleasure in this world—this is a natural human desire. Allāh says:

قُلْ مَنْ حَرَّمَ زِينَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي أَخْرَجَ لِعِبَادِهِ وَالطَّيِّبَاتِ مِنَ الرِّزْقِ

"Say, 'Who has forbidden the adornment of Allāh which He has produced for His servants and the good [lawful] things of provision?'" (Qur’ān 7:32)

However, it should not reach a point where you are excessive and extravagant in doing so; you should not make enjoyment your purpose in life. The true enjoyment is in the Hereafter and in working for it.

2. The same way Allāh prohibits extravagance, he also prohibits stinginess (bukhl). One of the descriptions the Qur’ān makes of the slaves of ar-Raḥmān is:

وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا أَنفَقُوا لَمْ يُسْرِفُوا وَلَمْ يَقْتُرُوا وَكَانَ بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَ قَوَامًا

"And [they are] those who, when they spend, are not extravagant nor stingy, but are ever, between that, [justly] moderate." (Qur’ān 25:67)

So do not be extravagant and wasteful, which by the way becomes worse when you're actually spending in the path of Shayṭān, and do not be stingy, esp. when it comes to spending in the path of Allāh.

Hence, I urge you, O believers in Allāh and the Last Day—a Day which will not come to an end—, to think carefully about your stance towards this world. This world is a bridge to the Hereafter. Are you going to build over it or cross over it to the other side?

I end with the following āyāt from Sūrat Fāṭir:

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّ وَعْدَ ٱللَّهِ حَقٌّ ۖ فَلَا تَغُرَّنَّكُمُ ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَلَا يَغُرَّنَّكُم بِٱللَّهِ ٱلْغَرُورُ ۝ إِنَّ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنَ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ فَٱتَّخِذُوهُ عَدُوًّا ۚ إِنَّمَا يَدْعُوا۟ حِزْبَهُۥ لِيَكُونُوا۟ مِنْ أَصْحَٰبِ ٱلسَّعِيرِ

"O mankind, indeed the Promise of Allāh (i.e. the resurrection and the judgement of deeds) is true, so do not let the worldly life deceive you and do not be deceived about Allāh by the Deceiver (i.e. Shayṭān). Indeed, Shayṭān is an enemy to you, so take him as an enemy. He only invites his party to be among the companions of the Blaze." (Qur’ān 35:5-6)

Khutbah: Guard Your Tongue

All praises and thanks be to Allāh, the One who has prepared Paradise for those who fear Him and has prepared Hellfire for those who disobey Him. And whoever places his reliance upon Him, He will suffice him. And whoever entrusts his affair to Him, He will guide Him. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh alone, the one without a partner, the one who is transcendent beyond everything that is besides Him. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave, His Messenger and His Chosen One. O Allāh, send blessings and peace upon Muḥammad and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

O Attendees of the Friday Prayer! I advise you first and foremost to fear Allāh, The One Who hears and sees all things, and to be conscious of Him at all times. Indeed, none of you utter a letter except that Allāh witnesses it, and indeed, Allāh will hold you accountable for it on "the Day they come forth nothing concerning them will be concealed from Allāh. To whom belongs [all] sovereignty this Day? To Allāh, the One, the Prevailing."

O Believers! It was narrated that Rasūl Allāh ﷺ said:

أَكْثَرُ خَطَايَا ابنِ آدَمَ فِي لِسَانِهِ

“Most of the sins of the children of Adam are on their tongues.” (Narrated by al-Ṭabarānī)

Hence, I urge you to guard your tongues. Control your tongues and guard what comes out of your mouths the way you would guard yourselves from falling into a pit of Fire.

It was narrated that Muʿādh ibn Jabal was speaking with Rasūl Allāh ﷺ, and he was mentioning several acts of worship, after which he ﷺ said: “Shall I not tell you of the foundation of all of that?” I said, “Yes, O Messenger of Allāh.” So he took hold of his tongue and said, “Restrain this.” I said, “O Prophet of Allāh, will we be taken to account for what we say with it?” He ﷺ said, “Watch out, O Muʿādh! Is there anything that throws people into the Hellfire upon their faces — or: on their noses — except the harvests of their tongues?” (Narrated by al-Tirmidhī)

O Slaves of Allāh! Beware of lying, for indeed lying causes destruction and despair, both in this world and the next. Beware of using foul language, for indeed the use of foul language is a matter hated by Allāh; it also demonstrates how low your intelligence is. Beware of mocking and making fun of others, for indeed it may happen that Allāh may inflict you with something worse than that which you are mocking. Beware of backbiting and gossip, for this is equivalent to eating the dead flesh of your brother; beware of this act of of speaking about others behind their backs before the day when the people of this act will hold copper nails with which they will gouge their faces and chests.

You may think that that swear word you uttered was just a word. Just a word. You may think that that lie you told was only a small lie. You may chuck a giggle, wear a smile and feel good about mocking another person right when they've just turned their back, when they're not looking. You may think of these things as small and insignificant, and even feel good about them. But in the Hereafter it'll be a different story. And what is worse is that you utter a blasphemous word, which you might consider harmless, but in reality is so severe that it causes you to plunge 70 years into the depths of Hellfire.

I once again urge you, O slaves of Allāh, to be wary, be careful of that which is between you two jaws, i.e. your tongue. Guide it towards the Reward of Allāh, before it guides you towards the Punishment of Allāh.

I will conclude with the statement of Rasūl Allāh ﷺ: "Whoever believes in Allāh and the last Day, let him speak good or keep silent." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim)

Khutbah: Envy and Treating Others How We Want To Be Treated

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allāh. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allāh from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allāh guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allāh misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger, may blessings and peace be upon him and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

Anas ibn Mālik (radiya -Llāhu ʿanhu) reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: "None of you truly believe until he loves for his brother that which he loves for himself." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim)

This ḥadīth is the basis of how we should interact with our fellow Muslims. We should want good for others the same way we want good for ourselves. We treat them the way we want them to treat us. We talk to them the way we would like them to talk to us.We honour and respect them the way we would like to be honoured and respected. Think about it: if you were to be rude and impolite to a peer of yours, can you expect them to respond to that with kindness and courtesy? For the average person, the answer would be no. Hence, the way we deal with others should be the way we want to be dealt with, in order that others may deal with us in the same way.

Part of good treatment of others are excusing them and giving them fair chances. For example, if a person commits a mistake, then we should find excuses for them and not jump to conclusions. E.g. you see a person sneakily take something lying on the table. Before you jump to the conclusion that he stole, think of excuses for him. Think of reasons for as to why what he did may have not been stealing. Give him the benefit of the doubt. After all, if you were the one who sneakily took that object of the table though you were in fact not stealing – you weren't in the wrong –, would you like it if someone accused you of stealing – doing something you didn't do? There are many possibilities or ways for us to excuse others who have committed mistakes. And this is from the good treatment of others.

Now, the concept of loving for your brother what you love for yourself may seem simple, but many diseases of the heart can get in the way, the most common one being ḥasad (envy). Ḥasad is when you see something good in someone, and not only do you want it, but you want the other person to lose it. And this goes opposite to what the ḥadīth we have mentioned teaches. So if we feel like we want someone else to lose the good that they have, that’s actually the sign of a serious problem with our īmān, and in the way that we look at our brother or our sister.

We should remember that an important concept in Islam is the fact that everything we have of worldly possessions comes from Allāh. Allāh gives to whomever He wills and withholds from whomever He wills. Whatever another person may have that you really like was given to him by Allāh. So it is not your right to seek that he loses what Allāh has granted him; rather you should be happy for him and want for him that which is good, the same way you would want good for yourself.

Ḥasad is a very serious matter we should be wary of, to the point where we are encouraged to take refuge in Allāh from it after every prayer and before sleep when we recite Sūrat al-Falaq.

وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ

"...and [I take refuge] from the evil of an envier when he acts out his envy." (Qur’ān 113:5)

Now, it's one thing to feel ḥasad inside you, and and it's another thing to act that ḥasad out. Now, notice that the ayah doesn't say in ḥasada (if he acts out his envy) but rather idhā ḥasada (when he acts out his envy). Thus, it is inevitable that the one with ḥasad in his heart will eventually manifest that envy; it's inevitable that he will act that out one way or another. So we should take care not to carry feelings of ḥasad in our hearts in the first place before the disastrous effects of it manifest themselves. As the proverb goes, prevention is better than cure.

Khutbah: Seeking Knowledge

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allāh. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allāh from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allāh guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allāh misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger, may blessings and peace be upon him and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

Among the matters that Islam takes seriously is seeking knowledge. For the first word Allāh revealed to Rasūl Allāh ﷺ was "Read!" There are many āyāt and aḥādīth that point to the importance of seeking knowledge in Islam.

From the Qur’ān:

 قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

"Say, Are those who know and those who do not know equal?'" (Qur’ān 39:9)

إِنَّمَا يَخْشَى اللَّهَ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ الْعُلَمَاءُ

"Only the knowledgeable of His slaves fear Allāh." (Qur’ān 35:28)

يَرْفَعِ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ دَرَجَاتٍ 

"Allāh raises those of you who believe and those who have been given knowledge whole degrees." (Qur’ān 58:11)

From the aḥādīth:

إن الله وملٰٓئكته وأهل السمٰوات والأرض حتى النملة في جحرها وحتى حوت ليصلون على معلمي الناس الخير

"Allāh and His angels, the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, the very ant in its anthill, and the fish bless those who teach people what is good." ((Narrated by al-Tirmidhī)

إذا مات الأنسان انقطع عمله إلا من ثلاث‏:‏ صدقة جارية، أو علم ينتفع به، أو ولد صالح يدعو له

"When a human being dies his work comes to an end except for three things: ongoing charity, knowledge benefited from, or a pious son who prays for him." (Narrated by Muslim and Abu Dāwūd)

وَمَنْ سَلَكَ طَرِيقًا يَلْتَمِسُ فِيهِ عِلْمًا سَهَّلَ اللَّهُ لَهُ بِهِ طَرِيقًا إلَى الْجَنَّةِ

"Whoever travels a path seeking knowledge Allāh makes easy for him a path to paradise." (Narrated by Muslim)

Know that of the most important categories of knowledge is the personally obligatory knowledge. This is the knowledge you need to fulfil your obligations. Examples are wuḍū’, prayer, fasting, etc., and their method, conditions for validity of the act of worship, integrals, nullifiers, and so on. This knowledge is obligatory upon every single Muslim to know. So before you start studying more advanced aspects of the dīn, make sure you've got your basics right. Don't jump. You wouldn't do that with worldly knowledge, would you? It's like learning algebra before even knowing how to solve 2+2.

It is also obligatory for one to know what is permissible and what is unlawful of food, drink, clothing, and so forth, of things one is unlikely to be able to do without.

Now, there is a mentality amongst some Muslims that one shouldn't bother about worldly studies and focus on studying Islam alone. But this is not the correct attitude; Islam's encouragement to seek knowledge is applied in the broad sense. Islam encourages the seeking of beneficial worldly knowledge, and in many cases it can even become obligatory. We can see if we look back at history, during the European Dark Ages, where Muslims were making significant advances the the fields of science, technology, mathematics and the arts.

When seeking knowledge, one must ensure that one have proper adab with one's teachers. This is especially true for those with knowledge of the dīn, the mashāyikh and the ʿulamāʾ. They must be especially respected as they are the inheritors of the prophets (`alayhim as-salāh wa al-salām), as stated by the Prophet ﷺ himself. I remind you – and this reminder is first and foremost for myself – that when seeking knowledge, you must do so with humility. Have arrogance and you'll find no barakah in your knowledge. We must keep in mind the fact that our knowledge is only a speck of dust compared to the Knowledge of Allāh. Just like how Allāh Himself is beyond limits, similarly His Knowledge is beyond limits, and this is something we should keep in perspective when seeking knowledge. After all, Allāh says:

وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلَّا بِمَا شَاءَ

"...and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills." (Qur'an 2:255)

Khutbah: Time and Accounting Oneself

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allāh. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allāh from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allāh guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allāh misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger, may blessings and peace be upon him and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

Among the greatest and most precious of favours that Allāh has endowed upon His slaves after the favours of īmān and life is the favour of time. So precious is this favour that al-Haṣan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahu -Llāh) commented about this and said, "O son of Adam! You are nothing but a number of days, whenever each day passes, then a part of you has gone." And the Prophet ﷺ said:

نعمتان مغبون فيهما كثير من الناس الصحة والفراغ

"There are two blessings which many people lose: health and free time." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī)

Our dīn encourages us to regularly take some time out to evaluate how we've been spending this irretrievable asset. Every now and then, we should take ourselves to account and seriously consider how we have been spending our lives. Allāh did not create us without a purpose. He created us for the sole purpose of worshipping Him, dedicating our lives to Him, spending our existence in His Service, obeying His Commands and avoiding His Prohibitions. So we should regularly question ourselves: have we really been doing our best to fulfil this?

Think about it: In this world, you have about 70 years to prepare for the next world, which lasts forever; the Day of Judgement alone is 50,000 years long. So from these 70 years, you spend about 30 of them sleeping, about 15 of them in childhood. That's 45 years gone. 25 years left. And then a huge portion, if not the majority, of that is spent chasing after desires, food and money. So think: from the amount of time I have that can be used in Allāh's service, how much of it am I actually using to fulfil that?

Indeed, this world is only a moment, so make it a moment of obedience.

Remember the statement of ʿUmar (radiya -Llāhu ʿanhu): "Bring yourselves to account before you are taken to account, and weigh your deeds before your deeds are weighed on the Day of Judgement."

And owing to the fact that not too long ago we entered a new year, we can use this opportunity, firstly by thanking Allāh for providing us extra time we can use in His service, and secondly by proving our thankfulness to Him through our actions. Use this opportunity to take yourself to account, reflect on the shortcomings [and achievements] of the past year and think, "What can I do to make this year better than last year?"

Set goals for yourself that you seek to achieve. Ensure each of your goals are SMART, i.e.  Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic & Timely. Every now and then, take yourself to account to ensure you're on track to achieving those goals. Make a strong resolve to make this year a better year, both with regards to worldly and religious aspirations. After all, this may your last year on the face of this earth, before your body is made to rest beneath its soil and your soul is made to enter a whole new world.

I will end with a ḥadīth where the Prophet ﷺ said:

اغتنم خمسًا قبل خمس: شبابك قبل هَرَمك، وغناك قبل فقرك، وفراغك قبل شغلك، وصحتك قبل سقمك، وحياتك قبل موتك

"Take advantage of five before five: 1) your youth before your old age, 2) your health before your sickness, 3) your wealth before your poverty, 4) your free-time before your preoccupation, and 5) your life before your death." (Narrated by al-Ḥākim)