Lessons from the Events in Syria (with British Sign Language) - Shaykh Ahsan Hanif

Opening — Khutbah al-Hajah

أَمَّا بَعْد، فَإِنَّ أَصْدَقَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، وَخَيْرَ الْهَدْيِ هَدْيُ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَشَرَّ الْأُمُورِ مُحْدَثَاتُهَا، وَكُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ، وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ، وَكُلَّ ضَلَالَةٍ فِي النَّارِ.

The Methodology of the Quran: Lessons from Events

From the methodologies of the Quran is that Allah سبحانه وتعالى would often — after incidents and events that took place in the lifetime of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم — reveal verses and passages, and sometimes chapters, that indicated the lessons and the benefits that we could take and extract from those events. That was the methodology of the Quran. Allah عز وجل, after the battle of Badr, the battle of Uhud, the conquest of Mecca, the treaty of Hudaybiyyah, the slander of our mother Aisha رضي الله عنها — all of those and other incidents — Allah سبحانه وتعالى sent down verses of the Quran so that the believers would know benefits and lessons that they could take from those incidents; principles that they could learn, not only so that they could reflect upon the errors that they made and the things that they did right, but also therefore to benefit from future similar events.

That is one of the methodologies of the Quran. And I want to take that methodology and extrapolate from the Quran certain verses and principles as it relates to the recent incidents and events that have unfolded in Syria — a conflict that began over 13 to 14 years ago, back in 2011. When we spoke about some of those issues that our brothers and sisters were facing, thousands died, millions were refugees displaced. And Allah سبحانه وتعالى decreed, in this week, in these days, that a change — a monumental change — would come.

And sometimes it is difficult when you're going through an event, or you're going through some difficulty or challenge — whether you are close to that issue or far away as many of us were — sometimes it is difficult to understand some of the wisdoms of Allah سبحانه وتعالى, and the decrees of Allah عز وجل, and the sunan of Allah سبحانه وتعالى in his universe. But sometimes it is easier to reflect when you look back in hindsight, and when you see now that Allah سبحانه وتعالى — in everything that He does, everything that He wills, everything that He decrees — there is ultimate wisdom and knowledge from Him سبحانه وتعالى.

Our Lord is لَطِيفٌ بِعِبَادِهِ — gentle to His servants; حَكِيم — wise; الْعَلِيم — knowing. He does as He pleases سبحانه وتعالى, for a purpose and a will and a decree that none of us can even begin to imagine to understand, let alone fully comprehend.

Lesson One: All Might and Power Belong to Allah Alone

From those lessons that I want to share with you today, and from the lessons that we take in the book of Allah سبحانه وتعالى, is that all might and all power belong to Allah عز وجل alone. True power, true majesty, true supremacy — they belong only to Allah سبحانه وتعالى alone.

Allah عز وجل has decreed that in this dunya and in this life nothing shall remain, nothing stays as it is. No matter how strong you are, how powerful you are, how wealthy you are, no matter how strong you may think you are — none of that remains. Everyone that is young will become old and weak, and everyone that is rich will soon become poor — either because they will lose that wealth, or they will die and that wealth will therefore benefit them in no way. Every civilization that rises, every country that becomes strong, becomes weak and it falls into ruins.

Allah عز وجل says in the Quran:

Have they not traveled upon the earth and seen the end result of all of those who came before them? How many civilizations, how many nations does Allah عز وجل Himself just mention in the Quran — those past nations that today no remnants of them remain? We see their lands, we know their names. Sometimes you see the monuments that they built, such as the Pharaohs of Egypt and the people of Salih, but there is no one there to claim them home today.

Those people before were more than you in number, stronger than you in might, their landmarks were grander than the ones that you have — but it didn't benefit them when the laws of Allah and the decree of Allah عز وجل came upon them. Nothing remains.

The people of Aad — Allah عز وجل tells us in the Quran — were from the strongest of nations, mighty, a warrior nation:

Allah says describing them: when they would conquer and they would fight, they were known for their harshness, for their tyranny. And then when Allah عز وجل gave to them a prophet from Him — Hud عليه السلام — calling them to Allah عز وجل, they rejected him. And when he threatened them of the punishment of Allah عز وجل that would surely come upon them due to that rejection, they ignored him. And they said: who is stronger than us?

Who can possibly topple us? Who is possibly stronger and mightier than us? A nation that conquers, that does as it pleases — leaders and kings that do as they please. Allah عز وجل replied:

Do they not see and know and realize that Allah is their creator, that Allah عز وجل is stronger and mightier than them? And so Allah سبحانه وتعالى destroyed them. And that is from the sunnah of Allah سبحانه وتعالى — Allah عز وجل changes times and changes situations and changes the days between people; He alternates them.

Allah says — from the lessons of the battle of Uhud, when the Muslims suffered losses; 70 of the companions were martyred رضي الله عنهم أجمعين, and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم himself was injured — Allah says: if today, meaning on the day of Uhud, they came upon you injury, loss, death — then they came upon those, your enemies, something similar before. Didn't they lose on the day of Badr? Didn't they suffer injuries and loss before you? "And such are the days" — Allah says — "that it rotates between the people." Nothing rests, nothing lasts. The only thing that will remain is the name of our Lord سبحانه وتعالى, and the only thing therefore that we take from this dunya is that which we do for His sake and in His name سبحانه وتعالى — your iman, your righteous deeds, all of that which you accomplish with your own hands. That is what you will take forth.

Lesson Two: Allah Hates Oppression and Will Hold the Oppressors to Account

And that brings me on to the second benefit that we take from these events — and that is that from that which Allah سبحانه وتعالى has made haram and from that which Allah detests and dislikes and hates is zulm and oppression in any way, shape or form.

In the hadith of Ibn Umar رضي الله عنه, collected in both al-Bukhari and Muslim, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2447; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2579)

Oppression will be darkness — layers of darkness — on the Day of Judgment. And that is because any type of oppression that is committed towards any other person, Allah عز وجل will hold those people to account, and Allah will deal with them either in the dunya or in the akhirah.

And from the duas that are not rejected is the dua of the mazloom, the oppressed, as the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم told us. That is a single individual that is oppressed — because someone took away from them their rights. Imagine then if that is ten people, a hundred people, a thousand, a million — a whole nation of people, all of them making dua because of the oppression that has come upon them. The dua of the oppressed is not rejected by Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

And in what is collected in Sahih Muslim, the hadith of Abu Dharr رضي الله عنه — the hadith Qudsi — our Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said that our Lord Allah عز وجل says:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2577)

"O My servants, I have made oppression haram upon Myself" — and Allah didn't need to make anything haram upon Himself; He does as He pleases and no one can overcome His will سبحانه وتعالى — but to show the repugnant nature of this type of sin, that someone should harm another, take from their rights, withhold something that belongs to them rightly, Allah عز وجل made it haram upon Himself.

"Your Lord never oppresses any of His creation." — "I have made it haram upon Myself and I have made it haram upon you — فَلَا تَظَالَمُوا — so do not oppress one another."

And in the Quran, every single story — of a nation, of a king, of a leader, of a pharaoh — that was destroyed, it is often because of the oppression that they committed. And that is why Allah سبحانه وتعالى says:

"We never oppressed anyone, but they used to be the ones who used to commit oppression against themselves." And the greatest form of that oppression is the oppression of shirk:

That is the worst type of oppression — because you withhold the right of Allah عز وجل. Let alone the rights of others — to withhold the worship that belongs to Allah سبحانه وتعالى alone is the worst form of oppression.

Lesson Three: Allah Will Help the Oppressed

And from those lessons that we also then learn is that if Allah doesn't like the zalimeen — the oppressors — and their oppression, then Allah سبحانه وتعالى will help the oppressed, and that help will come to them sooner or later. As Allah عز وجل says about the people of Musa عليه السلام — Bani Isra'il — who underwent years of subjugation, years of oppression, years of torture at the hands of Pharaoh and his armies and his advisors:

Allah says: "We want to show Our favor to those who are weakened upon the earth" — those people that were displaced, those people that were tortured, those people that were exiled from their homes, that were imprisoned, that were harmed in one way or another — Allah عز وجل says: "one day will come, We will make them the leaders — وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ الْوَارِثِينَ — and they will be the ones to inherit the earth."

Allah سبحانه وتعالى destroyed Pharaoh and destroyed his armies despite his wealth and despite his might and despite his power — Allah destroyed him because of the oppression that he committed. And Allah عز وجل raised up those people that he looked down upon, that he frowned upon, that he thought were beneath him, that he thought were not even worthy of him looking towards them. Allah سبحانه وتعالى raised them up and Allah elevated them. But they were elevated — why? Because of their iman. Because they were willing to believe in Allah عز وجل. Because they were willing to follow the Prophet of Allah, Musa عليه الصلاة والسلام. And because of that, Allah عز وجل honored them.

And one of the things that we often forget — and from the lessons that we can learn from the Quran in these types of events — is that the promise of Allah is ever true. The promise of Allah never diminishes. The promise of Allah will always be that which Allah عز وجل decrees, when He decrees it, in a manner that He decrees.

Lesson Four: Relief and Power Are Themselves a Test

And therefore from the lessons that we also learn from this is that when Allah عز وجل answers those duas, and Allah brings relief, and Allah عز وجل gives people that which they requested — sometimes for years and years — and Allah عز وجل grants them power and success over their enemies, that is just as much a cause of celebration and is also a test from Allah عز وجل — to see how you will behave now. What will you do?

One of the things that Allah عز وجل placed in our path when the Syrian conflict began many years ago is that Allah عز وجل wanted to see how we would behave. And for many of us, alhamdulillah, we put our hands in our pockets and we spent in the way of Allah عز وجل. But now also, Allah سبحانه وتعالى will want to see from those people in Syria who are now the people in charge, who are now the people in power — what they will do, how they will react.

The people of Musa عليه السلام used to say to Musa: "There is no benefit in you coming, O Musa — whether you came or didn't come — you're still being oppressed, Pharaoh is still doing what he's doing. What's the point?" And so he said, as Allah mentions in Surah Al-A'raf:

"It may be that the time will soon come that Allah will destroy for you your enemy and He will make you take their place — to see how you will do. How will you behave? How will you act?"

And so often we ask Allah عز وجل for change but we're not really prepared for that change. And when that change comes, sometimes we don't do much better. Sometimes we're worse. Sometimes we do something but not in the way that Allah عز وجل is pleased with. It is a test from Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

And just as that applies to those situations far away, it applies to us as well. When we ask Allah for change, when we ask Allah for something in our lives, and Allah gives us something, and Allah grants us something, and Allah bestows something upon us — and Allah gives it to you — how will you then react? How will you behave? Because the blessing of Allah عز وجل can be taken as a means of good, and it can be taken as something which is a means of trial — and that person then becomes more distant from Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

All of these and more are lessons that we can learn, that Allah عز وجل disperses throughout the Quran, that our Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم taught us in the Sunnah. These events are important for us to reflect upon and to think about. They should increase us in our iman and bring us closer to Allah عز وجل, but they should also make us reflect.

We ask Allah سبحانه وتعالى for His guidance and for His steadfastness and that Allah سبحانه وتعالى gives to people good guidance and that Allah عز وجل helps them to achieve and attain success.

Second Khutbah

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَمَنْ وَالَاهُ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا. أَمَّا بَعْد.

Lesson Five: The Great Blessing of Safety and 'Afiyah

The final lesson that I want to share with you — and it is a lesson that I've said a number of times, but it's something which I think bears repeating and is worth repeating, because it's something that we often take for granted — and that is that from the greatest lessons that we learn from incidents and events like this is the great blessing of Allah سبحانه وتعالى of safety, that Allah عز وجل spares you from the challenges and the trials that others face.

No one knows — no one knows how they would react in that situation. No one knows how they would behave. No one knows the strength of their own iman — that if they were to be threatened with their own life or the lives of their children, or the loss of their property and wealth, how they would respond and react to that.

And so the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said in the hadith:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3558; graded Sahih)

Ask Allah for His protection. Ask Allah for safety. Never want to be in that situation. Never ask Allah عز وجل to place you in a trial that you don't know how you would bear.

And that is why some of the Salaf — from their understanding and from their knowledge — the companions رضي الله عنهم: if they were to ask Allah عز وجل regarding an illness or a difficulty or some hardship, they would always close it with a caveat and say: "O Allah, if You must try us, then give us a trial in which we do not decrease in iman, nor do we become distant from You." Because everyone is tried and tested, but the problem is not in the trial and the testing itself — it is in the way that we respond. "O Allah, if it is a trial that takes us further away from You, weakens us in iman, makes us negligent and heedless of You, then O Allah, do not try us with such things. But if it is going to be a trial that increases us in iman, expiates for our sins, and increases us in reward — then insha'Allah that is a trial from which you will benefit, from which you will gain."

And that is why Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه — in what is collected from one of his first sermons that he gave as the khalifah of the Muslims — said to the community, and the vast majority of them were sahaba that he was speaking to, on the minbar of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in Medina: "Ask Allah عز وجل for aafiyah. Ask Allah for safety and protection. For no one was given anything after yaqeen and after certainty better than the protection and the safety of Allah سبحانه وتعالى." Because of that protection you are able to come to the masjid and pray, and you are able to read the Quran, and you are able to have relative safety for yourself and your family — that you can then spend your time and effort in doing that which is pleasing to Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

We ask Allah عز وجل that He keeps us safe — us and our brothers and sisters — and that Allah عز وجل grants us His protection, and that Allah سبحانه وتعالى saves us from the trials of the dunya that make us weak in iman and that distance us from Him. We ask Allah سبحانه وتعالى that He protects us from the traps of Shaytan. And we ask Allah عز وجل that He makes the affairs of our brothers and sisters in Syria and that whole region easy for them — that Allah lifts from them their oppression and their difficulty, that Allah عز وجل grants them safety in their families and in their honor and in their wealth and in their property.