Surah Kahf Recitation & Jumu'ah Khutbah | Mufti Fahmy Abdelkawy | 7/4

Surah Al-Kahf Recitation

I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

First Khutbah: The Importance of Seeking Knowledge

الحمد لله الذي أعلَّم بالقلم، أعلَّم الإنسان ما لم يعلم، والصلاة والسلام على خير معلمين، سيدنا محمد، وعلى آله وصحبه وسلم.

My dear and respected brothers and sisters, may Allah accept all of your steps to the masajid, and may Allah guide all of us to the right path and make us the people of al-Jannah — say ameen.

Our topic today will be about the importance of seeking knowledge. As you know, we are the ummah of iqra'. The first word in the Qur'an is about reading. Allah is encouraging the people to read and to learn. And especially nowadays — and all the time — knowledge makes a big difference in the life of the people. It makes a difference between the nations, between the cities, between the families, between the individuals.

And when we are thinking about ourselves — you and me and all of us — however much you are seeking knowledge and learning, you will get development in your life. Yes or no? Of course. And this is what used to happen back home. If your family encouraged you to learn, then it means you are elevating yourself, and elevating your family with you.

But when we are talking about seeking knowledge as Muslims, it means something unique and different. Why? Because of many reasons. First of all, because Allah started the Qur'an with the word iqra'. Secondly, because seeking knowledge for us as Muslims is an obligation — it is wajib.

Allah used to elevate those who have knowledge among you. And Allah used to elevate them in different stages — based on how much they spend to seek knowledge and learn, and based on how much sincerity is in their heart.

And the Prophet ﷺ said:

Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim male and Muslim female. (Sunan Ibn Mājah, Hadith 224)

What is the Meaning of 'Ilm?

So we have first of all to know — which kind of ilm? When the Prophet ﷺ mentioned it is wajib, which kind of ilm? And what is the meaning of ilm? What do you mean when you are saying "seeking knowledge"? When we are talking about ilm in general, what does it mean? The scholars say:

So ilm means: you are knowing something as it is. If you are learning something as it is, and you have some evidence for that — or you are learning it through evidences — it means you have ilm. Ilm ud-dīn means you are learning the religion through the Qur'an and the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. Ilm ul-kīmiyā' — if you are learning chemistry, it means you know the chemistry and you know the rules of chemistry. This is the meaning of ilm in general.

And when Allah has encouraged all of us to learn, He encouraged all of us to learn all of the ilm, but with some conditions — it is not open overall. There are some conditions. How do you know it? Through the different kinds and ahkam of ilm.

The Different Rulings (Ahkam) of Knowledge

Some kinds of ilm — learning them is wajib. You have to do it. Like what? You have to learn how to pray. If you are not spending time to learn how to perform wudu' well, how to pray, how to give your zakah if you have money, how to do the fasting of the month of Ramadan — if you are not spending enough time to learn and understand and practice it in your life, now you are sinning. You commit sin if you didn't spend enough time to do it, and if you are not encouraging your kids to learn it.

If you are going to get married, you have to encourage them to go and learn ahkam uz-zawaj — their duties and their rights. They have to know it. Because if they didn't learn how to be a good husband or a good wife, they will make more mistakes in their life. And this is what we are suffering and struggling with — because of that lack of knowledge, that gap between our ilm and our daily routine and our life.

We are spending much time working and doing many things, but we are not spending enough time to know what is wajib. You have to learn the ahkam ul-'aqeedah. You have to know Allah well. You have to know the attributes of Allah. You have to know the Prophet ﷺ. What does the word "Prophet" or "Messenger" mean? What is the difference between both? What are the conditions of the Messengers and Prophets? Why? Because it will protect your mind — and protect your kids' minds — from the strange ideas which we are encountering more during these days through social media, through the news, from different sources, at schools, or wherever.

So to protect your mind, to protect your heart, to protect your belief and your kids, you have to learn and encourage them to learn. You have to ask them to go to the masjid, to reach the imam or the shuyukh and scholars, to ask them. You have to enroll them in ilm circles, in seminaries, and the like. And alhamdulillah, it is very good for Dar us-Salam to have this — they have a seminary, they have scholars, they have programs. And because of that, we have to take care of it and focus on it.

Some kinds of ilm are recommended — mustahabb — to learn. Even if you are not in need of it in your life, but it is good knowledge. Like extending your knowledge about Islam, knowing something about the seerah of the Prophet ﷺ and the maghazi, knowing something about the sahaba, the companions of Rasulallah ﷺ. It is good — it will help you to draw closer to Allah and the Prophet ﷺ.

Some kinds of ilm are haram to learn. You have to stay away from them. Like ilm us-sihr — magic. It is haram. So there is no way for us to learn it or to encourage anyone to learn it. And because of that we have to understand the hukm of ilm in general, and the different kinds of ahkam ul-'ilm.

The Three Categories of Islamic Knowledge

Number two — are there different kinds of ilm in Islam? Yes. You have to know that we have ulūm ul-masādir — the highest level of knowledge — which is ashraf ul-'ilm. These are the sources: the Qur'an and the sunnah of our beloved Prophet ﷺ. This is the highest level of ilm. And we have to know something about it.

You have to know: if you are hearing the word "al-Qur'an," do you know the meaning of al-Qur'an? If your child asks you for the definition of al-Qur'an, can you answer that question? Unfortunately, most likely, we cannot. And the scholars have written it — so simple a definition — and you have to know it and understand it, to be familiar with the book of Allah. And you have to know what is the meaning of ulūm ul-Qur'ān.

Secondly, about the sunnah. You have to know what it is. We are always saying, "Ya akhi, it's sunnah to do this." So, before that, what is the meaning of sunnah? If you are joining the ilm circles, you will get it very easily. Most of the scholars mention in their circles:

Everything that came from Rasulallah ﷺ — whether it is sayings, actions, tacit approvals, or the physical and moral attributes of Rasulallah ﷺ — all of that is sunnah. And you have to know the difference between sunnah ul-'ādah and sunnah ul-'ibādah. These are basics of ilm for us as Muslims. This is about the ulūm ul-masādir.

The second kind of ilm is ulūm ul-maqāsid — the goals. The sources help the Muslims to reach the goals. So what are our goals, brothers and sisters? Our goal is to know Allah, to obey Allah, to be close to Allah, to be close to the Prophet ﷺ. How can we do it? Through ilm ul-fiqh and ilm ul-'aqeedah.

By the way, Imam Abu Hanifa radiyaAllahu anhu has a unique book about this. When he wrote his book al-Fiqh ul-Akbar, he collected everything related to al-'aqeedah and al-shari'ah in one book and named it al-Fiqh ul-Akbar. So when we are thinking about the goals of the Muslims, it should be al-Fiqh ul-Akbar — knowing Allah, knowing the Prophets, knowing the Angels, knowing everything about the Day of Judgment, knowing everything about al-Qadar, and knowing how to worship Allah, how to buy, how to sell, how to get married. Know these basics about our life. Because Allah will ask me and you about it.

And the third kind of ilm is ulūm ul-wasā'il — what can help you to understand the sources and help you to reach the goals? Is it easy for anyone to just open the Qur'an and say, "I understand the rules and the ahkam"? No, it is not right. So you have to learn the Arabic language. You have to learn usūl ul-fiqh. You have to learn ilm ul-mantiq. You have to learn these sciences to understand the sources and to reach the goals — to achieve what Allah has created me and you to do.

Allah has created me and you to do special things. First of all, to worship Allah — so you have to worship Allah based on knowledge. And to do imārah — and you have to do it through knowledge. And to do tazkiyah for your soul — and you have to do it through knowledge.

A Warning for the Scholar Who Does Not Act

Brothers and sisters, it is not good for the ummah of Rasulallah ﷺ to be in that state — away from ilm, and not respecting the ilm and the ulama well. We have to try to do more. We have to encourage our kids to do what we couldn't do. Why? Because it is wajib, farīdah.

If I ask myself and my brothers and sisters a question: do you think spending time seeking knowledge is better or praying nafilah? In terms of the hukm, the scholars said: spending time seeking knowledge and learning is better than praying nafilah. Look how great the perspective of our scholars was!

And when we hear from the scholars:

It draws our attention to how important and dangerous knowledge is at the same time. Because the scholars mention: a scholar who does not fear Allah and does not act upon what he has learned — Allah will punish him before the idol-worshippers. Look how dangerous that is.

And because of that, those who have khashyah — the ulama — fear Allah, and they have more khashyah in their hearts than others. And Allah will elevate their ranks in Jannah because of what they learned and what they did.

I am asking myself and my brothers and sisters to take care of knowledge, to spend more time seeking it and encouraging others, and spending time and money helping to make our ummah better. We need to have huffādh, we need to have ulama — those who understand the Qur'an. And we as an ummah in general need to strengthen our knowledge in all categories and all different types of the lifestyle.

When we are talking about ad-dunyā, it is a big test for me and you. And how much you give — time, care, money, and everything — how much you give in this life, that is what you will find in the ākhirah, inshaAllah. And because of that we have to do as much as we can.

Go and read the biography of the ulama. Ask your kids to be familiar with our scholars. Ask them to know how much they suffered and struggled to facilitate the knowledge to us. And before the ulama, the sahaba, ridwanAllahi alayhim — and before the sahaba, the Prophet ﷺ.

My dear and respected brothers and sisters, there are many evidences in the Qur'an and the sunnah about ilm. The Prophet ﷺ said:

Whoever takes a path seeking knowledge, Allah will make easy for him a path to Paradise. (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2699)

We know all of the evidences about encouraging people to seek knowledge. But unfortunately, maybe we don't know how we can do it. We have to know the ulūm ul-masādir, the ulūm ul-maqāsid, and the ulūm ul-wasā'il. And we have to focus on al-ilm ud-darūrī — the necessary knowledge — and al-ilm ul-wājib. Because this is what Allah will ask me and you about on the Day of Judgment.

May Allah guide all of us to be among the sahaba and the prophets, and to have the highest level in Jannat ul-Firdaus. And may Allah give us all sincerity in our hearts, in our actions, in our life in general. Ameen.

وَصَلَّى اللهُ وَسَلَّمَ وَبَارَكَ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلِّمْ. Wa salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah.

Second Khutbah: The Names of Allah — Al-Rahman and Al-Rahim

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah. My dear respected brothers and sisters, respected elders and youngsters in Islam — as-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah.

Allah — as He is infinite in His being, in His dhāt — He is also infinite in His sifāt, in His attributes. Ninety-nine of those attributes were mentioned by Rasulallah ﷺ in a hadith where he gave the names of Allah. We who are sitting here in this prayer hall, in this masjid, have the ninety-nine names of Allah around us on these medallions as a reminder.

And Allah says:

And to Allah belongs the beautiful names — so invoke Allah through His names. Make du'a to Allah by taking tawassul and wasīlah of His beautiful names.

And Rasulallah ﷺ said:

Indeed, Allah has ninety-nine names — one hundred minus one — whoever internalizes them will enter Paradise. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2736; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2677)

Whoever memorizes these names of Allah and internalizes their meanings and believes in these attributes will enter Jannah.

The Names Derived from Rahmah

And amongst the attributes of Allah that are the most dominant — those that Allah begins His description of Himself with in the beginning of the Qur'an — are those names derived from rahmah, from mercy. The first ayah of the Qur'an being:

Before that, when we say أَعُوذُ بِاللهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ and we open the Qur'an, you will find that wherever the Qur'an is printed — in the East or the West, the North or the South, in any century, in any time — it is never written there, even though it is a command of Allah in the Qur'an:

This is an amr, a command from Allah, that when you recite the Qur'an you seek protection in Allah from Shaytan the accursed. But there is an intentional decision made — right from the time of the sahaba — from the time of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu, when the Qur'an was compiled in its totality for the first time, and thereafter during the Khilafah of Uthman radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu — that it will not be written, so that there can never be any confusion between what is the Qur'an and what is not.

The Compilation of the Qur'an

Uthman radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu compiled the Qur'an on a very grand scale. He prepared seven manuscripts as the original — kept one in Madinah, one in Mecca, one in Kufa, one in Basra, one in Damascus in Sham, one in Misr, and one in Yemen. And he sent these seven official copies and asked that all other potential recordings or writings that were made by different individuals — scattered in the Islamic Khilafah — be disposed of with utmost respect, and that these seven should be the official collections from which any other Qur'an should be copied. That is why he became known more commonly as Jāmi'ul-Qur'ān — the compiler of the Qur'an.

But it is a mistake to believe he was the first one. This happened actually during the Khilafah of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu. Uthman radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu is known as Kāmil ul-Hayā' wal-Imān and Jāmi'ul-Qur'ān. Yes, he was Kāmil ul-Hayā' wal-Imān — his imān and hayā' were complete. His hayā' was specifically recognized as Rasulallah ﷺ mentioned:

The one who has the most hayā' in my Ummah is Uthman. (Referenced in various hadith collections on the virtues of the Companions)

The one who has the most hayā' and modesty in my Ummah is Uthman radiyaAllahu anhu. So he did collect the Qur'an — but it was actually Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu who initiated this process.

After the tragedy of more than 70 huffādh becoming shaheed and giving their lives in the battle of Yamāmah against the false prophet Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb, Zayd ibn Thābit radiyaAllahu anhu was appointed. It was actually Umar radiyaAllahu anhu — who had a very major role — because he was the spark that started this whole process. After the battle of Yamāmah, Umar radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu came to Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu and said that 70 sahaba became shaheed in the battle against the false prophet Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb, and he said: "I am afraid of what will happen to the Qur'an. This is our obligation to protect it and preserve it."

In the time of Nabi ﷺ, the wahi was coming, and he would call different sahaba and have them write it down. There are 40 sahaba who were given this honor of being Kātibīn ul-Wahi — the scribes who wrote down the revelation. Nabi ﷺ would call them and ask them to write down the wahi. Among them was Mu'awiyah radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu.

Umar radiyaAllahu anhu said: "I'm afraid about this." Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu said: "O Umar, if you ask me to pick up a mountain from one place and move it to another, that would be an easier task — because this is something that was not done in the time of Nabi ﷺ." So Umar radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu said that Nabi ﷺ had it written, but the revelation continued to come until the end — until the last ayah was revealed — and if the revelation had completed, Nabi ﷺ would have compiled it together in one place. So we should do this. And he kept on speaking passionately to Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu.

The first khutbah that Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu had given after accepting the Khilafah was in which he mentioned that "I will be a muttabi' — I will follow our master Rasulallah ﷺ — and I will not be a mubtadi' — I will not create innovations in the deen." So he did not want to do something new. But then when Umar radiyaAllahu ta'ala anhu continued explaining the benefits, Abu Bakr became convinced and said: "This is the truth." And they appointed Zayd ibn Thābit — a young Ansāri sahabi who was a genius, a child prodigy — as the chairman of the committee, and with other sahaba he collected the Qur'an.

Zayd ibn Thābit was very close to Rasulallah ﷺ. Such was his genius that in the beginning, when Nabi ﷺ was dealing with the Jewish tribes in Madinah al-Munawwarah — the Banū Qurayzah, Banū Qaynuqā', and Banū Nadhīr — they would need a translator for correspondence and speech. So Nabi ﷺ asked this young genius Zayd ibn Thābit radiyaAllahu anhu to learn the Hebrew language. It is mentioned that he mastered it in two weeks — subhanAllah.

And Rasulallah ﷺ, in the last year of his life, listened to the entire Qur'an from Jibreel — his teacher — and recited the entire Qur'an to his teacher. And he also listened to the entire Qur'an from Zayd radiyaAllahu anhu, and recited the entire Qur'an to Zayd radiyaAllahu anhu. These are four khatams among many other khatams performed in the last Ramadan of Rasulallah ﷺ — known as al-'ard al-akhīr. And this is very important because those ayat that were abrogated were not recited, and those ayat that were muhkam and remained were definitely recited. So it gives a conclusive experience of what is the final kalām of Allah.

And at that point they made this very beautiful and important decision of lasting significance — that no matter how many beautiful things there are of tafsīr and explanation of the Qur'an and du'as, they made the decision that the ta'awwudh will not be written — even though it is an order of Allah — so that there can never be any confusion of what is the Qur'an and what is additional to it. Just like in Sūrah al-Fātihah, after we say Ameen, it was not written.

Bismillah in Sūrah an-Naml

The Bismillah is written, and the fact that it is written is because it is an ayah of the Qur'an. There is also another Bismillah ar-Rahmān ar-Rahīm which is part of the Qur'an — in Sūrah an-Naml, in the middle of the surah — the surah of the ant. In the story of Suleiman alayhis salam and Bilqīs, the queen of Saba, there is one scene where Suleiman alayhis salam is sending his letter through the hudhud bird to the Malika of Saba. And she says:

"I have received a very noble letter. It is from Suleiman, and it is: Bismillah ar-Rahmān ar-Rahīm. Do not dare to be arrogant in front of me, and come to me in submission." This sounds like a brief and direct message — and this is where the tafsīr comes in. There is uslūb ul-hakīm — the style of a wise teacher who explains things — and there is uslūb ul-hākim — the style of a ruler. Suleiman alayhis salam, of course, had hikmah as a nabi, but he was also the hākim, the ruler. So it was a no-nonsense, to-the-point message — almost like a telegram. And even in that short letter, he said: Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

The Names Al-Rahman and Al-Rahim

Allah has many, many names — 99 of which we know — and an infinite number of names beyond that which Allah has kept in His unseen knowledge. He had so many options, and He could have kept a variety of different names at the beginning of His Book. But He selected two names — and both come from rahmah: Al-Rahmān and Al-Rahīm.

One indicates how His rahmah is 'āmm — all-inclusive — that is Al-Rahmān. And one is tāmm — how it is perfect for every individual — that is Al-Rahīm. There is more detail about the difference between these names, but the time has come to an end.

This is a reminder for us that when we invoke Allah and we beg from Allah, we should take support from and rely on His rahmah, and never lose hope. This is the greatest attack of Shaytan — where he makes us think that we have committed so many sins, there is no way we can be forgiven, so there is no point in asking forgiveness from Allah.

And whoever thinks that he cannot be forgiven — whoever thinks it is strange: "How is it possible that Allah can take me out of my shahawāt? How is it possible that Allah can guide me and forgive my sins?" — in reality he is not being humble. He is committing a major crime by even having this doubt. And that major crime is that he has limited the infinite power of Allah, whereas Allah has the ability to do everything — anything He wants.

So may Allah inspire us with yaqīn in His sifāt — particularly the sifah of today being His rahmah, that He is Al-Rahmān and Al-Rahīm — and no matter how great our sins are, He is ready to forgive us. May Allah fill our hearts with yaqīn in His mercy, and give us tawfīq to make du'a. Ameen.

Announcements

Nabi ﷺ said: charity given on the day of Jumu'ah is greater in reward than any other day. So please pass the donation boxes from left to right. There are also kiosks in the lobby. This sadaqah goes to the masjid. If you would like to give via Zelle, you can donate at masjidds.org. If you would like to give your zakāh, you can do so at zakat.masjids.org.

MashaAllah, Dar ul-Huda, a masjid from Georgia, has completed their phase one in their land development project. They added 111 parking spaces to support its growing community. As the current building can no longer accommodate worshippers, a new masjid is being built from the ground up. Please generously donate on your way out — this is a sadaqah jāriyah, inshaAllah.

As the sheikh has emphasized the great virtue of studying knowledge, Dar us-Salam Seminary's Tanweer Intensive and the Tadris Integrated High School Program are both beginning on August 11th, inshaAllah. Do consider the youth of our community — our children, nephews, nieces, and so forth — for both brothers and sisters, ages 14 and up, to join these programs inshaAllah.

We also have our Tarbiyah for Tā'aj program for boys and girls ages 4–5. Our Qur'an and Islamic studies and sports camp has been going throughout the summer. Please register — openings are still available. And we have our Tamheed program for brothers and sisters ages 14 and up — an ongoing weekly program.

Tomorrow night at 7:15pm inshaAllah — our Ashura program with Mufti Siddiq Muhyiddin. Today is the 9th of Muharram and tomorrow is the 10th of Muharram — the Day of Ashura. Please join us for this special occasion.

Also at our local masjid ICW, they will be having a program tomorrow on the 10th of Muharram immediately after Dhuhr Salah — a musalsal hadith of Ashura, a hadith uniquely narrated on this day across generations by our dear and beloved Mufti Fahmi, inshaAllah.

We are continuing our Tuesday Tafsīr with Mawlana Yusuf Ghaus — Reflect and Connect on Sūrah an-Naba'. Thursday, we have our Salawāt and Urdu Dars with Mawlana Abdul Basit Sahib, inshaAllah — both after Maghrib.

Please join us tomorrow morning after Fajr for our Team Fajr program — The Beauty of the Divine with Mawlana Abdul Basit. Every Saturday after Fajr we have this program — a series regarding the names of Allah.

Our sisters' programs: we have our bi-weekly Sīrah and Salawāt Subhā with Alima Khadijah Al-Aqi. Next session is July 20th, 12:00–1:45pm. Our sisters' weekly Urdu Tafsīr is currently paused and will continue after the summer inshaAllah. There is also our weekly Tafsīr by Alima Nikhat Al-Muqeem.

We request everyone to make du'a for 8-year-old Noor Siddiqi for a speedy recovery and complete healing — she is having abdominal surgery. And one of our beloved students, Dr. Sami's daughter, is also very sick for a long period of time — we make du'a for her shifā' as well.

And as always, please keep Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Myanmar, and all other Muslims throughout the globe in our du'as for their safety and security, inshaAllah.

Brief Talk on the Day of Ashura

Alhamdulillah rabbil 'alameen, wassalatu wassalamu 'ala rasulihil ameen. Alhamdulillah, the past few khutab have been on the importance of the Day of Ashura. This is the day that Musa alayhis salam was saved from Fir'aun, and that Fir'aun was drowned. And it was also mentioned about the reward of fasting this day:

Fasting on the Day of Ashura expiates the sins of the previous year. (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1162)

When we are seeking the forgiveness of Allah, not only should we remain far away from bad things and things which incur the wrath of Allah, but we should also continuously work towards earning more good deeds and doing things which please Allah. And from amongst these things that Nabi ﷺ has specifically mentioned on the Day of Ashura:

The one who spends generously on himself and his family on the Day of Ashura, Allah will expand his wealth for the rest of his year. (Reported by al-Bayhaqi in Shu'ab al-Iman, and others)

So alhamdulillah, we have this opportunity — the Day of Ashura is tomorrow. Many of us were already fasting today. We should all tomorrow try our best to first wake up our families early in the morning, do suhoor together, fast on this day, and try to earn the reward of our entire year's sins being removed. But we should also try to spend on our family — whether that is getting gifts for the kids, or other things. Maybe after everyone fasts the entire day, we can all go out to have dinner somewhere nice, and in that way we spend on our family.

So I ask that Allah allow us to fast tomorrow and allow us to spend on our family tomorrow. And for those who missed it inshaAllah, after the remaining sunnah and adhkār, Mufti Menhajuddin will be giving a special bayān on the importance of imān and yaqīn. All brothers are requested to join. All the jamaats are requested to come. Especially the visiting Khatam Jamaat is requested to come close inshaAllah.