Eid Khutbah by Shaykh Waleed Basyouni 04-10-2024

Eid Khutbah — Shaykh Waleed Basyouni

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

الحمد لله كثيرًا وسبحان الله بكرةً وأصيلًا

All praise due to Allah and his praise, and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم.

Ibadallah, my dear Muslim brothers and sisters, after 30 days we have spent in fasting, praying, sadaqa, du'a, reciting the Qur'an —

We're grateful and thankful to Allah, and this is our duty to him, as Allah says:

The month of Ramadan is the month in which the Qur'an was revealed, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and the criterion. So whoever witnesses this month among you, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey — then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship, and wants for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that which He has guided you — and perhaps you will be grateful.

Allahu Akbar — Alhamdulillah — Astaghfirullah

In the end of Ramadan we say Allahu Akbar. We say Alhamdulillah. And we say Astaghfirullah.

We say Allahu Akbar because Allah is the greatest. He is greater than anything of our desires. He is greater than our love and need for food, drink, and our desires. He is the greatest thing in our hearts and our minds. Because of that, we left sleep. We have left our beds in the night to pray. We went to bed late after our usual bedtime during the year, just because we spent that time praying to Allah.

We have given from our money — that we work hard to earn — for His sake, because He is greater in our hearts than money. We have given up food and drink during the daytime because Allah ordered us to do so. We abandoned even our relationship with whom we were lawful to have a relationship with during the daytime because Allah ordered us that, and He is greater in our hearts than anything of our desires.

We're grateful and thankful to Him —

نشكره أن شرع لنا من الدين والعبادات ما تحصل به تهذيب النفوس وصلاحها وزكاة القلوب، يرفع الله به درجاتنا ويغفر به ذنوبنا.

We are grateful to Allah that He ordained for us such a great month, a great act of worship that will lead to forgiveness, lead to guidance, lead to purification, lead to elevating your status in Jannah.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: whoever fasts one day for His sake, Allah will distance him from Hellfire by 70 years. What do you think of those who have fasted 30 days — not only one day?

We are grateful to Him. We are praising Him —

لأن شرعه محكم ودينه قويم وتقديره وتيسيره على وفق حكمته ورحمته.

We are grateful to Him because our Lord is all-wise. Our Lord is the most knowledgeable. Our Lord is the most merciful. We praise Him because of the perfect religion that He has sent to us. And we are very grateful to Him. Don't take things for granted — take things with gratitude. That is the right attitude towards the things that Allah has ordained for us.

Ending Ramadan with Istighfar

And we ask His forgiveness for any shortcoming that has occurred. Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz — may Allah be pleased with him and have mercy on him, the Commander of the Faithful and the leader of the Tabi'een — used to order the people, and order his governors in all the regions, to command the people at the conclusion of Ramadan to increase in istighfar and to give sadaqat al-fitr.

Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz wrote an order to all his governors and lieutenants all over the Muslim world at that time to make sure to inform people to end Ramadan with istighfar and sadaqat al-fitr.

Qatadah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

إن هذا القرآن يدلكم على دائكم ودوائكم.

The Qur'an explained to us where our disease comes from and where our protection and healing comes from.

قال: أما داؤكم فالذنوب، وأما دواؤكم فالاستغفار.

Your disease — the real disease — is in the sins that we commit. And the real healing and protection is in Astaghfirullah, in istighfar.

And from the subtle meanings that the scholars of tafsir have noted — regarding the verse:

فمن علم الله حق معرفته أدرك حقه عليه، وعلم تقصيره في حقه، وهذا يدفعه إلى الاستغفار.

Allah told us: know that Allah is the only one worthy of worship. He deserves to be worshipped in the perfect way. And He followed that by saying: seek forgiveness — because if you know His rights upon you, you will know that you will never be able to fulfill them fully. That is why you say Astaghfirullah from any shortcoming.

So increase, may Allah have mercy on you, on this blessed day in the remembrance of Allah — in takbir, and saying Alhamdulillah, and saying Astaghfirullah, and giving thanks to Allah:

What Ramadan Taught Us

Ramadan is not just days and nights that we spent. Ramadan is a great opportunity to learn, to grow, to change, to be better.

1. Sincerity (Ikhlas)

في رمضان تعلمنا الإخلاص لله.

Ramadan taught us the importance of sincerity. This is an act of worship we do only for Allah, as Allah said: fasting belongs to Me, and to Me alone, and I alone will reward you for it. Sincerity and truthfulness are the base of every virtue. And I have learned in my life that sincerity makes the least person the most valuable — sincerity makes a very ordinary person more valuable than the most talented hypocrite.

2. Submission to Allah

Indeed, in Ramadan we learn how to submit ourselves to Allah. Yesterday like now it was haram for you to eat, and today it is haram for you to fast — it is full submission to Allah. You fast when you see the new moon and you end your fasting when you see the next new moon.

3. Controlling Our Desires

في رمضان we learn how to control our desires — not to be controlled by our desires. And if you learn self-control, you can master anything. Control yourself, or someone else will control you. And that is why Islam came to free people from being enslaved by others, and the most important: to free yourself from being enslaved to الشيطان.

هربوا من الرق الذي خُلِقوا له، فبُنوا برقِّ النفس والشيطان.

4. Patience (Sabr)

في رمضان تعلمنا الصبر على العبادة، وكيف أن الأمر يبدأ شاقًا ثم لا يلبث إلا أن يصبح يسيرًا، وأن العبادة تكون محببةً سهلةً للنفس.

In Ramadan we learn that patience is the base for all virtue as well. In the beginning it is hard, but with commitment and training, things become much easier — by the end of Ramadan. Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting. Patience is bitter, but its fruit is so sweet. Be patient, because good things take time to happen. That is something we learn in Ramadan — to have that sabr by abstaining from the haram, and sabr in committing to what is good.

5. The Value of Time

In Ramadan we learn the value of time, we learn how to manage time. Days go very fast and we have accomplished so much during this month, alhamdulillah. We fasted 30 days, some of us read the whole entire Qur'an, we gave sadaqa, we prayed qiyam al-layl, some of us made i'tikaf — so many good deeds, alhamdulillah. It is such a blessed month and so much is done in a short period of time. The way we treat time defines who we are, and I do believe that lack of direction — not lack of time — is the problem. Lack of management, not lack of time. Otherwise, we all share the same 24 hours.

6. Gratitude and Thankfulness

In Ramadan we learn how to be grateful and thankful for Allah's blessings. I want you to always remember the things that Allah has blessed you with without you even asking — not only thinking about the things you did not receive after praying. Many people think about what they have not gotten after praying, but they forget about all the countless blessings that Allah has given them without them even asking.

Allah's blessings are of two kinds: blessings of worldly matters — health, money, family, job, and whatever things of that nature — and also religious blessings: that Allah guided you, that Allah gave you the ability to fast, to pray, and so forth. So be grateful to Allah for both.

Continuing the Habits of Ramadan

Make sure that you continue. In Ramadan you learned about qiyam al-layl, about salat al-witr, about reciting Qur'an, about du'a, about siyam — don't let all of that end with Ramadan. Continue as much as you can. Pick some of these good habits and keep them up. You might not be able to pray the same number of rak'as or the same length, but keep some of these habits.

One of the things that we train ourselves to do right away after Ramadan is to fast six days in the following month — the month of Shawwal — and if you do so, it is equal to fasting the whole entire year, as the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said.

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1164)

Zakat al-fitr: something that happens at the end of Ramadan — after all the sadaqa we have given, we still need to give more, to teach us to continue doing what is right. Zakat al-fitr is wajib — a purification for your fasting and something to elevate you. It is wajib on you and every member of your household. And if you did not give it before salah, you must still give it — rush to give it even after salah if you forgot. May Allah forgive our sins and accept our deeds.

Celebrating Eid — A Balanced Approach

My dear brothers and sisters, we are celebrating Eid with full happiness and joy, and that is the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. We are smiling and happy — not because it is over, but because we made it. We did it. We were able to accomplish such a great act of worship and add it to our account, to our savings that we prepare for when we meet Allah. May Allah accept and reward us for it.

It is because of the grace and mercy of Allah that we were able to do it. Yes, we celebrate. We are happy, we smile, we enjoy ourselves on the day of Eid, and we make it a happy occasion for us and our family.

Yes — with all the sadness and disturbing news that we hear every day — our happiness and our celebrating of Eid will not make us forget about our brothers and sisters around the world or their rights upon us. But adding more sadness to sadness will not change the reality. Those who call people not to celebrate Eid have gone against the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم celebrated Eid in Medina while his brothers and sisters were still being persecuted in Mecca. That did not make him صلى الله عليه وسلم or the sahaba forget about what was happening. While there is crisis, celebrating Eid has always been the sunnah of Muslims around the world throughout history. We are a balanced ummah. Allah is the one who makes one laugh and weep.

Gaza, Palestine, and the Suffering of the Ummah

Yes, my brothers and sisters, we should always feel the pain and share the pain that our brothers and sisters are suffering around the world — especially with the genocide that is taking place in Gaza, the open war that was declared against innocent people, against the people of Gaza who are just citizens, suffering from being bombed and killed. Members of our community have lost over 100 of their family members during this unjust war.

War will never determine who is right — it only determines who is left. I do believe that this genocide and this suffering of those people who have been in an open jail for years and decades will not come to an end unless there is a fair and just peace. Calling for peace alone will never last — it has to be a peace based on justice, a peace that secures dignity and freedom for the people of Palestine. I know it is hard and I know it is not easy, but I promise you something: the more we invest in peace, the less we bleed in war.

My brothers and sisters, it is important for us and for those around us to see this situation in the right frame. This issue is not only related to Gaza — because the people in the West Bank are also being killed, their land is being confiscated, they are being put in jail, they are being persecuted. It is not only since the 7th of October — it has been going on for decades: massacre and killing. And we should speak up. We should express our anger and outrage in the right way and channel it in the correct way.

As Martin Luther King once said: our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. Raise your word, not just your voice. Raise your commitment and action, not just your voice. It is rain that grows flowers — not thunder. Strong people stand up for themselves; do you know what stronger people do? They stand up for others. And we stand up for others — we are the best nation brought forth for people.

I also want to say: it is so important, when we talk about the issue of Palestine, that we understand that there are core principles and common ground that we must all agree upon. But there may be areas where we differ — perhaps in techniques, strategy, or how we deal with this issue. It is so wrong and so dangerous for us as a community to take an area where we might differ and have a different opinion about how to approach these issues, and make that small area a reason for us to be divided and not united.

Some people think protest is the best form of expressing their position. Some people don't think that way. Don't ever point a finger at people who choose another strategy and label them as wrong. Maybe somebody boycotts certain products; maybe somebody doesn't consider that company or doesn't agree with that method. Don't make that a reason for us to boycott and turn away from each other. That must never shake our principles or our unified message. I might agree with certain organizations but not others — but in the end of the day, we must all agree that what is right is right. What is happening to the people of Gaza and the people of Palestine is nothing but genocide. It is nothing but a war crime. It is nothing but an inhumane way of treating these poor people who have been suffering for decades.

My brothers and sisters, as we feel pain and bleed for our brothers and sisters in Gaza and Palestine, that should not make us forget about the bleeding and the suffering of people around the world — because the blood of our brothers and sisters in Rohingya, in Burma, is not in any way less valuable or less important than the blood of the people of Gaza. The blood of the people in Syria is equal to the blood of the people of Sudan, and equal to the blood of the people of Kashmir. They are all equal.

فالمسلمون دَنَبٌ واحدة.

(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 2751; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 2683)

All Muslims are equal in their blood. Yes, lands are different — some lands and some strategic lands hold more importance than others — but that does not ever make an innocent life less valuable. As a matter of fact, any innocent person's life is sacred and must be protected, no matter where it is.

My brothers and sisters, do not ever allow anyone to make a cheap political gain at the expense of the issue of Palestine, or to make a business out of it, to enrich themselves. That would be so immoral and unacceptable, and we should be smart enough not to fall for such things.

Connect Your Family to the Masjid

أيها المسلمون، اربطوا أولادكم بالمساجد والصحبة الصالحة.

If there is anything I want to leave you with at the end of my khutbah, it is this: connect your family with the masjid. Connect yourself with the masjid. Your family and your kids will attach to the masjid when they see you coming to the masjid more often. Make sure that you raise them to love the masjid, to love being in the masjid, to come to pray in the masjid.

Our children are one-third of our community and society today, but they are the whole entire future of our society tomorrow. So make sure that we raise them right, make sure that we are committed to the masjid and to ibadah.

Warnings to the Youth

My young men and women — be aware and stay away from haram, especially drugs, as they have become more common these days. Drugs will destroy your future. Drugs are not a cool thing. Say no to drugs. A pill can maybe thrill, but it also kills. Be very careful how you treat your future. Be smart and don't start. Don't say "let me try." Stay away from marijuana — it is haram, even if they legislate and legalize it in every single form, in every single state. It is haram, it is a sin, it is najis, and it is not allowed to be used unless for a medical reason, under the supervision of a professional doctor. Herbs may be good for food, but they are bad for the brain.

My brothers and sisters, stay away from bad manners — especially the young men and women. Make sure that you hold on to good principles and good manners. Be good to your parents, be good to your relatives, be good to your neighbors, and to people in general.

Our Civic Responsibility — Elections

As you all know, this is a year of elections. I know we are in so much pain and shame over our foreign policy in our country. Unfortunately, our President and our State Department have disappointed us so many times. As has been said eloquently by some of our leaders in the Muslim community in America: we are not looking for a change in the tone of your talk, Mr. President — we are looking for a change in your policy. That is what we demand. That is what we want. But that demand and that request will not come unless we participate, unless we have a voice. And you see, the tone has already changed because of the pressure of the uncommitted voters who chose not to vote.

My brothers and sisters, I do believe that it is important for us to vote, and at the very least to be registered and to be counted as a voter. I am not going to tell you who to vote for or who not to vote for, but for sure there are some people I want to send back — or send away for a very, very long time. But you know, it is not only about the President. It is much more important for us to be very careful about local elections as well. We are a community that I believe can have a great positive influence on American policy, which we are in dire need of.

I do believe that we have many principles. We are against lying — lying cannot be justified. And I wish that one day we see America legislate a law to say that candidates who lie should be held accountable for their lies. When you are campaigning, we do not lie. Also, as a community and as a principle, we should promote truth and not allow ourselves to be manipulated by lobbies and money. We should use language that fits the level of our educated and respectful society. Mocking, language of violence, sarcasm, and being disrespectful of women or people of other faiths is not the language that Muslims should use — and we should teach that and promote that in our politics.

Today we should focus on policies that bring prosperity to people. We as a Muslim community should lead through our manners and by being a role model to society at large. My brothers and sisters, we should spread in our society the true meaning of brotherhood — a society that respects Allah, religion, and manners.

Du'a

Ya Allah, we ask You to accept our good deeds. Ya Allah, we ask You to accept our fasting and all the good deeds that we did in Ramadan, and to forgive our shortcomings, and to help us to continue to do good, and to grant us many Ramadans to come while we are in happiness and unity, and to bring relief to those who are suffering around the world.

Ya Rabb, make it easy for our brothers and sisters in Gaza, in Palestine, and all over the Muslim world. Ya Allah, we ask You to lift up our weak brothers and sisters in Gaza. Ya Rabb, we ask You to protect the workers and the du'at who are working to help our brothers and sisters in Gaza, and to strengthen them with money and equipment. Ya Rabb, we ask You to grant success and to bless all those who help our brothers and sisters in Gaza, and to guide those who have been left behind, and to choose the Muslims who are among the chosen ones.

Ya Allah, make our situation better and protect our children, our wives, our homes, and our money. And forgive our parents. And accept from us — for You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.

And Allah is the Greatest, and to Allah be all praise. Every year may you be in good health. A blessed Eid to all of you. والسلام عليكم ورحمة الله.