Echoes of Labbayk : Importance of Dhul Hijjah

Echoes of Labbayk: The Importance of Dhul Hijjah

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Today, brothers and sisters, is the first day of Dhul Hijjah, as you all already know. This is amongst the days that the Prophet ﷺ considered to be some of the best days — or the best days — in the year.

He said the best days in the world are these 10 days, the 10 days of Dhul Hijjah. It is also because during these 10 days occurs the best day of the year. As our Prophet ﷺ said in the hadith of Ibn Mas'ud, the best day of the year is Yawm al-Nahar — the day when you do the sacrifice.

And during these days is Yawm al-Arafah — it is the day when Allah forgives more people than throughout the rest of the year. Hafiz Ibn Rajab also says that during these days, the reason for the fadila (virtue) of these days is that these are the only days when all five pillars of Islam come together, because Hajj does not occur except during these days.

Why Does Allah Bless Us With Special Days?

But all of that you probably already knew. What I want to spend some time with all of you on today is understanding why Allah blesses us with these kinds of days. He gave us the 10 days of Dhul Hijjah. He gives us Ramadan. He gives us the last 10 nights of Ramadan, and amongst those 10 nights He gives us Laylatul Qadr. But why?

For that, brothers and sisters, inshallah, let's spend a few minutes reflecting on a surah that Allah revealed — Surat al-Balad.

This is one of the twin surahs. Surat al-Fajr and Surat al-Balad come together and they complement each other. And it's interesting that when you look at Surat al-Fajr, it is one of the proofs for these days. Ibn Abbas says that Surat al-Fajr is referring to the 10 days of Dhul Hijjah.

Humankind Was Created in Toil

But in Surat al-Balad, Allah makes a statement:

Indeed, human beings — you and I — have been created in kabad. And the general, easy translation of that is: in hardship, in toil. And that, brothers and sisters, is true of every single human being — those sitting here in this masjid, or sitting in other masajid, or even not sitting in a masjid at all, whether they are Muslim or not Muslim.

Every human being is in toil. And subhanAllah, if you reflect on this ayah and connect it to the three qasams (oaths) that Allah takes right before this ayah, the scholars say it explains a little bit of what this kabad is about for everybody as a general statement.

It's about finding a home. It's about finding comfort in your life.

Allah takes the second oath — and this again, the scholars say, refers to the second type of struggle and toil that we go through: the mission that we have in our life. What are we working towards? And the third kind of toil that we go through in our life is the toil that we have with our families — setting the next generations up to follow and carry on that same mission.

Two Paths: The Najdayn

But here, brothers and sisters, is where the paths diverge. Allah says:

In the same surah, as Allah talks about the different faculties He gave us, He says He blessed us with two paths. He gave us two paths and He clarified them to us — the path of the right and the path of the wrong.

As for the person who does not have the right mission, they are focused on toil — so irrespective of how much money they have, how rich they are, or how successful they might be in this world, they might still not be sleeping at night. And that is their toil. Whereas as Muslims, Allah gave us a path — the path of righteousness.

The Aqabah: Struggling Toward the Mountaintop

And Allah goes on to say:

As for that person who did not take the path — who did not struggle — the literal translation could refer to a mountaintop or a valley. But Allah explains this further, and this is what I want to spend a few minutes on.

Number one: in this ayah, Allah uses the word iqtiham. The meaning of that word — if you think about it in the Arabic language — is like when you're trying to squeeze yourself into a saff (row), people are standing and you're trying to squeeze yourself in. That is an act of iqtiham. Or in a modern sense, think about the Black Friday sale and the crowd doing qiyam outside waiting to catch the sale, or the rush that happens as soon as the mall opens. That is the act of iqtiham. And Allah is explaining to us that there is a struggle going on in this world, and this person wished he had taken this path — the struggle that takes you to the aqabah.

Then Allah explains what that aqabah is:

What is the aqabah? It is freeing a slave. Or feeding someone during a time of famine — an orphan who is close to you and your family, or a miskeen (poor person) who is dusty and soiled and needs care. And then being of the people who believed and who helped each other in patience and in marhamah (compassion).

Let me go back here because I covered a lot of ayat in a few seconds. When Allah is talking about this path of struggle to the mountaintop — aqabah is explained as either the mountaintop or a valley that is constricted by mountains. So if you think about that imagery, it is scaling to the top of a mountain or getting to protection in a valley where the mountains are surrounding you and giving you shelter. But the act of getting to the top is a struggle, and the act of getting into that constricted valley is a struggle.

And Allah is explaining — through these examples of freeing a slave or taking care of somebody in famine — that they point to a huge responsibility that Allah has given to you and I.

The Straight Path Is Not a Personal Journey Alone

Brothers and sisters, the journey we are on — we pray 17 times a day, we ask Allah:

Guide us to the straight path. And Allah is trying to explain to us that this straight path is not something that is super personal to me alone. It is not just about religious rituals. Rather, it is about impacting the people around us. It is about lifting the humanity around us:

• From darkness to the light of Islam.
• From oppression to the justice of Islam.
• From the cruelty of this world to the rahmah (mercy) of Islam.
• From the worship of desires and other things in this world to the worship of the one and only Allah.

And Allah is saying that this path of aqabah — going to the aqabah — includes these things. And through that, you have iman. Notice that Allah uses the word ثُمَّ — "and then" — you would have iman, and you would تَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْمَرْحَمَةِ — help each other in patience and compassion.

Allah here uses الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا — which is actually very interesting — because it points to collective action. You are part of a community that is going on this path, on this struggle together.

We Are the Chosen Tools on This Path

The reason I wanted to share this with all of you is because, brothers and sisters, this responsibility requires a foundation — a foundation that we have within us. We are the tools on this path. We are the people that Allah has chosen. Chosen. Because we are qualified to do so. He chose us to be on this path by giving us the gift of Islam. And that means we have a responsibility towards the humanity that is all around us — to lift them up, to bring them from darkness to the light of Islam, to bring them away from the worship of creation to the worship of the Creator.

And brothers and sisters, this is why Allah gave us these days — the days of Dhul Hijjah, the days of Ramadan, and the likes. Because on this journey there is a lot of struggle, and for that struggle we need strong Muslims. We need Muslims who are centered in their religion, who are centered in their faith.

So yes, during these 10 days we have to worship Allah. But I want us to think about a different paradigm. It is not just a worship to get to the mountaintop by ourselves. It is not just a worship to get to Jannah by ourselves. It is a worship to strengthen ourselves so we can struggle and pull everybody else along with us to Jannah.

That, brothers and sisters, is a huge responsibility. And this is why the act of Hajj is legislated. Because if you want to have this responsibility, you have to have the ultimate submission to Allah and His commands. You cannot falter. You cannot flinch. And this is the example of Ibrahim ﷺ that Allah gave us.

It is no longer a personal thing. It is no longer about: I want to get to Jannah. It is about: not only do I want to get to Jannah, but I want to be strong enough — and I want to use these days to gain that strength — so I can pull everybody else along with me to Jannah.

This is why Allah gave us these days. This is why the legacy of Ibrahim ﷺ is celebrated at Hajj. This is why the hujjaj, in the valleys of Makkah, fill the air with the echoes of:

We are responding to Your call, ya Allah, because You have put us on this path and we will respond to it, we will strengthen ourselves — and not only will we take ourselves to Jannah by that strength, but we will pull everybody along with us.

Aqulu qawli hadha wa astaghfirullah li wa lakum wa li sa'iril Muslimeen, fastaghfiruh innahu huwal Ghafurur Rahim.

Five Things to Do During These Ten Days

Alhamdulillah, was-salatu was-salamu ala Rasulillah wa ala alihi wa man wala. In the next couple of minutes, brothers and sisters — now that we know why we are doing these things, why these days are so important, and why as human beings we have to think about our worship as beyond personal gain, as a way to set up a strong foundation from which we can stand up and invite others to Islam — let us talk about five things we should do during these ten days.

1. Ask Allah for Forgiveness

Because Allah says:

Turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, so that you may be successful. Asking for forgiveness is the number one means to success. Because whatever we do in this world, it is not sufficient. We have shortcomings and we need to ask Allah for forgiveness for those shortcomings.

This is why when Ibrahim ﷺ and Ismail ﷺ built the Ka'bah — arguably the most amazing act of worship, an act of worship from which people are still earning reward today — what was the du'a they made after that? They said:

"O Allah, accept from us. Indeed, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing." And they asked for forgiveness. This is also why after every prayer we say:

We ask for forgiveness because our actions have defects in them by default. So ask for forgiveness and increase in it during these days.

2. Forgive Each Other

One of the things that detracts from your amal reaching Allah and giving you the strength that you need is holding grudges with each other. So forgive each other.

3. Increase in Dhikr

Our Rasul ﷺ is reported to have said about the best dhikr during this time — the tahlil, the tahmid, the tasbih, and the takbir:

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 5446; reported by Ibn Umar)

4. Pray on Time

Our Rasul ﷺ was asked what is the best act during these days. And he ﷺ said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 527; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 85)

Prayer on its time. This is first and foremost an advice to myself before all of you. Because we all fall short in this. We have our life and the things that pull us away. What can we do to pray on time? Let us commit to that during these days.

5. Fast These Days

Finally, brothers and sisters — and arguably this is an act that Allah Himself rewards you for directly — fasting. You have Yawm al-Arafah to fast. But Yawm al-Arafah is not the only day. All these days are amazing and beneficial. So inshallah, fast all ten days — or nine days if you are not fasting today. Try to fast all of them.

And through that, brothers and sisters, we will build a foundation. Keep in mind: you are building a foundation. You are not just doing this to better yourself and get to Jannah alone. You are building a foundation. You are becoming a stronger Muslim — so you can go out there and represent Islam the way Ibrahim ﷺ represented it.

Du'a

عِبَادَ اللَّهِ، اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ. إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى يَأْمُرُكُمْ بِثَلَاثٍ وَيَنْهَى عَنْ ثَلَاثٍ: يَأْمُرُكُمْ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَى، وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ، يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ. قُومُوا إِلَى صَلَاتِكُمْ يَرْحَمْكُمُ اللَّهُ.