02: Eid al-Adha 2024 | Prayer & Khutbah - Shaykh Zakaullah Saleem

Eid al-Adha 2024 — Khutbah by Shaykh Zakaullah Saleem

Prayer Announcement

One thing I would like to highlight that we usually hear during the Salatul Eid: when the Imam says Allahu Akbar, the congregation also raise their voices with Allahu Akbar — which is not from the Sunnah. It is not from the Sunnah for the congregation, for those who are praying behind the Imam, to raise their voice with Allahu Akbar. So say Allahu Akbar quietly. The Imam will be saying it out loud, and you as a congregation say Allahu Akbar quietly.

Eid Prayer — Recitation

Surah Al-A'la (First Rak'ah)

Surah Al-Ghashiyah (Second Rak'ah)

The Khutbah

The Blessed Day of Eid al-Adha

We thank Allah who has blessed us with this blessed day — the day of Eid al-Adha, which is also known as Eid al-Nahr, and the day of Nahr, the day of sacrifice. And this sacrifice reminds us of an individual who attempted to sacrifice for the sake of Allah — not an animal, rather he was ready to sacrifice his son.

There are many lessons for us in the life of Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him — one of the two best friends of Allah. Ibrahim Khalilullah and Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, they were the best friends of Allah. Allah called them Khalil. Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him, is the Prophet of Allah, is the forefather of all the Prophets and Messengers who came after him, peace be upon him.

First Lesson: Standing Firm for Tawheed

There are many lessons for us in the life of Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him. This very day reminds us of his life. One of those lessons is that we learn from the Seerah and the life of Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him, that he stood up for the Tawheed of Allah — he stood up for the oneness of Allah. And when he stood up for the Tawheed of Allah, he was alone.

Allah says in the Quran — Ibrahim alone was the entire Ummah. He was alone, one individual, but Allah called him Ummah. Which gives us a lesson that when you stand up for the Tawheed of Allah and you remain firm and steadfast, you are never alone. You are never alone — rather, you are the Ummah. The number does not count in the sight of Allah.

Don't be deceived by those who always follow the number and the majority. The majority does not count. Rather, Allah has criticized the majority in many places in the Quran. So much so that He says: if you were to obey the majority of those who are on this earth, they will mislead you, they will lead you astray.

So never ever try to follow the majority. Majority does not count. What counts is the message of the Tawheed of Allah and the oneness of Allah.

Second Lesson: Standing for Justice with Allah's Help

The second lesson that we learn from Sayyiduna Ibrahim is that when you stand up for justice — because the Tawheed of Allah is the greatest justice, and the opposite of Tawheed is Shirk, which is the greatest injustice on the land of Allah — so when you stand up for the justice, for the Tawheed of Allah, for the oneness of Allah, Allah helps you, Allah assists you. Allah's mercy, Allah's help, Allah's assistance is for those who stay firm and steadfast for the Tawheed of Allah.

Unfortunately, the Ummah is suffering. The Ummah of Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, is suffering now from oppression throughout the globe. And one of the core reasons for that is that the Ummah has lost the path of Tawheed. Allah had ordered us in the Quran to follow the way and the path of Ibrahim. Allah even ordered His best messenger, Muhammadur Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, in the Quran:

We revealed to you and we ordered you, O Muhammad, that you must follow the path and the footsteps of Ibrahim, peace be upon him. And what were the footsteps of Ibrahim? Standing firm and steadfast for the Tawheed of Allah.

Third Lesson: Complete Submission and the Spirit of Sacrifice

Another lesson that we learn from the Seerah of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, is to be ready to sacrifice for the Tawheed of Allah — sacrifice whatever is in your possession and whatever you are capable of. Ibrahim, peace be upon him, sacrificed his homeland, he sacrificed his family, he sacrificed his father — he sacrificed so many things. Whatever Allah asked him, he sacrificed.

And that spirit of sacrificing for the sake of Allah was the result of his complete submission to Allah. As Allah says in the Quran, Allah said to Ibrahim:

O Ibrahim, submit. And Ibrahim instantly said: I have submitted myself to the Lord of the Universe. That submission gives you strength. That complete submission gives you firmness and the spirit of sacrifice for the sake of Allah. That is why Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was ready to sacrifice his son for the sake of Allah.

And if you completely submit yourself to the will of Allah, then Allah gives you the strength to be ready to give up whatever you have in your possession for the sake of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. And if you do so, then Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram will replace you with something that is much better — far greater than what you had sacrificed for the sake of Allah — as Ibrahim, peace be upon him, did.

The Reward of Passing Every Trial

And then when Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was successful on all the trials and tribulations that he faced — Allah tested him on many occasions, and he was successful in all those trials, and the success was that he was ready to give up everything for the sake of Allah — Allah will replace him with something that is much greater than what he sacrificed.

And what was that? Allah says in the Quran — when Allah tested Ibrahim with so many things and Ibrahim was successful in all the trials — Allah says: Ibrahim, I am going to make you an Imam, and a leader, and a role model for the rest of humanity until the Day of Judgment.

And Allah promised him and fulfilled His promise to Ibrahim, peace be upon him, that every single Prophet and Messenger of Allah who came after Ibrahim, peace be upon him — all of them came from the progeny of Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him.

These are the lessons, amongst the many lessons, that we learn from the Seerah and the life of Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him. And this very day — the Day of Adha, and the Day of Nahr, the Day of Sacrifice — reminds us of Sayyiduna Ibrahim Khalilullah, peace be upon him.

Du'a

We ask Allah that He gives us Tawfiq and ability to stand up for the Tawheed of Allah, for the oneness of Allah, and to remain firm and steadfast on the Tawheed of Allah until the last and final breath that we take in this Dunya.

And may Allah grant us all success in the Dunya, in our graves, and in the Akhirah. And may Allah alleviate the suffering of those Muslims who are facing oppression throughout the globe, including our brothers and sisters in Palestine.

O Allah, help Islam and Muslims. O Allah, make Islam and Muslims stronger. O Allah, help Your weak believers in every place, O Lord of the worlds. O Allah, protect them — from their front and from their back, from their right and from their left, and from above them and from beneath their feet — O Most Merciful. O Allah, grant us good in this Dunya and good in the Akhirah and protect us from the punishment of the Fire. O Allah, do not take us to account if we forget or make a mistake. O Allah, do not burden us with a burden as You have burdened those before us. O Allah, do not burden us with something with which we have no power. Forgive us, pardon us, and have mercy on us. You are our Master, so help us against the disbelieving people. O Allah, honor Islam and the Muslims. O Allah, whoever intends to harm Islam and the Muslims, engage him in his own self, and turn his plot against him, and destroy him, O Lord of the worlds. O Allah, You are capable over Your enemies, the enemies of the religion. O Allah, You are capable over the oppressors. O Allah, seize them with a mighty and powerful seizure.

Congratulations to everyone — Eid Mubarak to everyone. JazakAllah khayran. May Allah bless you all. Assalamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullah.