The Month of Muharram Virtues and Innovations

The Sacred Months

My dear brothers and sisters, Allah told us that when He created this world, this universe, He made the time, divided the time into 12 months, 12 months. And He chose from these 12 months, 4 months to be special, to be sacred, to be very honored. And the deeds in these months are multiplied and the sin in these months are also greater than any other time.

Allah made the number of the months 12 months as it's written by Allah. Then He said after that, that among them, 4 months who are حُرُم (hurum). Hurum means مُحَرَّمَات (muharramat), مُعَظَّمَات (muazzamat).

These are 4 months that are honored, special and sacred. And these months, the Prophet mentioned them by names. So the Quran did not specify which 4, but the Prophet said in Hajjatul Wada, he mentioned them, that there are 3 after one another, which is Dhul Qidah and Dhul Hijjah and Muharram, which is the month we just started it 7 days ago.

And one by itself, Wa Rajabul Fard, and the month of Rajab which is by itself, which comes 2 months before Ramadan. So these are the 4 months that Allah have made it. Then Allah said after that:

Do not transgress against yourself during these months. And the transgression that you can do during these months is by 2 things, missing the obligations and doing the forbidden things. So Allah specifically warning us not to commit any type of transgression during these months. And so if there is any month that you should avoid the sins and the haram, it will be this month.

If there is any month that you should commit to the obligation and not to miss any one of them, it should be this month. And these months, some of them said that the best of all of them is the month of Muharram, which is we are in, that comes after Dhul-Hijjah. Some ulama said that.

But some might say no, it's Dhul-Hijjah because it's Arafah and the 10 days of Dhul-Hijjah. But in any case, Shahrullahil Muharram, it used to be very sacred month among the Arabs even before Islam. Where did they get that from? They inherited this from Nabiullah Ibrahim and Ismail.

It is something that was inherited generations after generations, the importance of this month. وَكَانُوا يُسَمُّونَهُ بِالشَّهْرِ الْأَصَمِّ يَعْنِي مِن شِدَّةِ تَحْرِيمِهِمْ لَهُ They respect this month so much that they made it very very special. And they used to bring a new cover for Al-Kaaba every year during this month.

كَانُوا يَكْسُونَ الْكَعْبَةِ كُلَّ سَنَةٍ فِي هَذَا الشَّهَرِ They will bring the cover of Al-Kaaba, the curtain of Al-Kaaba during this month. And Islam came to make this month also special. I recognize because that's part of Deen Ibrahim.

That's something that Allah have made and have revealed to the Prophets and Messengers before us. And Nabi said as Abu Huraira reported to us:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 6, Hadith 2532)

The best fasting can be ever offered after fasting the month of Ramadan will be the fasting of the month of Muharram.

(Sahih Muslim, Book 5, Hadith 1721)

And the best prayer that you ever can make after doing the five daily prayers is the night prayers. And that means that any volunteer, just a random volunteer days to fast, the best time to do some kind of random fasting will be the days of Muharram. And if otherwise, there is no doubt that fasting of Arafah is better than fasting a day from the days of Muharram, and also the six days of Shawwal according to some scholars.

So the point is any volunteer, random volunteer fasting, the best time to do it is during this month. And just for the record, today is the seventh of it. So if you didn't know that, you already missed seven days. But you still have 23 days to go or 22 based on the moon sighting.

Fasting the Month of Muharram

And some of the ulama even said that it might be good for the person. Some ulama suggested to fast the whole entire month of Muharram. Why? Because Aisha said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1980)

She said, I have never seen the Prophet fast a whole entire month except the month of Ramadan. And I have not seen the Prophet fasted many days of a month except the month of Shaban. This proved that the Prophet did not fast a full month except Ramadan. So those who suggested that fasting Muharram the whole month is sunnah or recommended is not a very strong opinion.

And if we're talking about fasting during the month of Muharram, the minimum you can do is to fast the day of Ashura, which is the 10th of Muharram. That's the minimum, the minimum of fasting. And that 10th of Muharram, it is highly recommended to fast.

The Virtue of Fasting Ashura

يَقُولُ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ أَرْضَاهُ Ibn Abbas said, I have never seen the Prophet care to fast a day like the way he used to care to fast the day of Ashura. To the extent كَانَ الْعُلَمَاءُ مِنْ عَهْدِ الصَّحَابَةِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَالتَّابِعِينَ يَصُومُونَ عَاشُورَاءَ حَتَّىٰ فِي السَّفَرِ, some of the scholars in the early generations will not miss Ashura even if they are traveling.

And they were asked, how can you fast in Ramadan when you fast you break your fast, but when you are traveling now in Ashura you are fasting, how come? And he didn't do that for Ramadan. So they said, and that's what was reported from several people. They said, as for Ramadan, Allah says:

You can make it up, Allah said in Ramadan if you break your fast for a reason you can make it up in other days. But he said that's not applicable to Ashura. You cannot make it up in other days. So if you missed it, you missed it. That's why they used to care for fasting it even in the traveling.

To the extent that al-Rabi' bint Muawad said that we used to fast the day of Ashura and we're making sure that our children, children fasting. And when they cry for food or water we give them toys to play with until the Maghrib comes. That's how they train their children on fasting that day.

And some of the ulama said that actually before Ramadan was made obligatory on people to fast, it was only obligatory on them to fast the day of Ashura. And after that this was obligated by making Ramadan wajib, obligatory. And Ashura became just a recommended day to fast.

And Nabi said in regard to Ashura:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 6, Hadith 2534)

That it will wipe out the sins of the previous year. Can you imagine one day fasting wipe the sins of 365 days? But you might say, sheikh, isn't also the prophet of Dinchid? Just not long time ago you told us that fasting the day of Arafah will erase the sin of the previous years and the upcoming year, two years. And that's interesting.

Al-ulama said, because the day of Arafah is a day that this was given as a gift to Ummah Muhammad when Allah says to Muhammad:

When this religion was completed, it was kind of a gift to Muhammad and an honor to him and his Ummah. The day of Ashura, the Prophet said we fast the day of Ashura. One of the reason is because this is the day where Allah gave it as a gift to who? To Musa.

(Sahih Muslim, Book 6, Hadith 2529)

This is the day where Allah saved Musa and his people, the children of Israel, from basically Firaun and his soldiers. So we, Musa belong to us and we belong to Musa. We have more rights over Musa than any other because we are the one who kept the true message of Musa. The true religion of Musa. Muhammad is the true representation of the message of Musa, which is the message of Tawheed, the message of justice, the message of compassion. It's the message of, you know, that came in the Torah and it's a representation of the message of Ibrahim, his grandfather and Nuh, his great grandfather and Adam, which is the great grandfather of all of us.

Anyway, so al-Ulama said because of the virtue and the level of Muhammad and his ummah, which is higher, that was two years versus one year. But again, the question is still valid. Why would I, khalas, I fasted last Arafah and I got this wiped out. Why would I need to wipe out another, you know, I need the previous? First of all, nobody can guarantee that their fasting in Arafah was accepted 100% because it could be, you fast but maybe your fasting is not good enough to be strong enough to wipe all the sins.

See, Nabi said, you pray:

(Sunan an-Nasa'i, Hadith 1151)

You pray and you finish your prayer and some people فَبَعْضُ النَّاسِ يُقْتَبُ لَهُ مِن صَلَاتِهِ نِصْفُهَا وَبَعْضُ يُقْتَبُ لَهُ رُبْعُهَا وَبَعْضُ يُقْتَبُ لَهُ ثُلُثُهَا وَبَعْضُ لَا يُقْتَبُ لَهُ مِنَ الْأَجْرِ فِيهَا شَيْءٌ بَسْ أَدَّىٰ الْفَرِيضَةَ. Based on how much you focus, how much you follow the sunnah in praying, that's how the reward is. Some people their salah, only you take 50% of the reward, 60%, 80%, 10%, 20%. Some people zero. They just fulfill the obligation.

So based on how you do it according to the sunnah and how focused you are, Allah will reward you in return. So the same thing with the ibadat in general. So that's why the Prophet said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1520)

The perfect hajj is the one who wipes all your sins, not any just hajj. So the same thing with the fasting of the day of Arafah. So it might be enough to wipe some of the sins of the previous year but it was not strong enough to do that. Or maybe your sins are too many and your deeds are not strong enough to do that.

Ibn Taymiyyah gave the example of soap that it has a stain, so many stains or some stains that much harder than others to remove. So some of them you need Clorox, you need detergent. You need to, you know, with your hand to go and brush it off. There's an extra work need to be done. He said that's why we keep doing all these good deeds to wipe our sins away and to clean, and to cleanse ourselves because unfortunately as a human being we're accumulating every day, every hour, you know, things which is not necessarily to be beneficial but could be harmful to the person.

Fasting the Ninth with the Tenth

Also, Ibn Taymiyyah said, if I would live to the next year, I will not only fast the ninth, the tenth of Ashura, but I will fast the ninth and the tenth. He said I will fast the ninth and the tenth. I will fast the ninth and the tenth. Some people think that the meaning of the Prophet's saying, no, I will fast the ninth instead of the tenth. This is wrong. Some people think the Prophet said if you live next year, I will fast the ninth, not replace the tenth with the ninth. No, it is the ninth and the tenth. That's why it's called Ashura because of the tenth.

Also, Ibn Al-Qayyim mentioned and this was reported from Jama'a min al-Salaf and reported from the Prophet that the best fasting of it is to fast a day before and fast the day of Ashura and fast a day after. Is to fast a day before and the day of Ashura and the day after. So the ninth, the tenth, and the eleventh. And some ulama said this will be the best. In general, it is highly recommended for you to fast during the month of Muharram, to fast the month of Muharram. So if you can do that, that will be an excellent thing to do.

Practical Guidance on Fasting Ashura

Also, one other thing that I want to say, that Siyam Ashura, it is a highly recommended sunnah. And Ashura will fall today is the seventh, eighth so it will be on Sunday. So you can fast on the Sunday by itself. You can add to it Saturday and Sunday, Sunday and Monday. So take the ajar of fasting Monday. That will be a great thing to do. Here we say these volunteer fast in the day of Muharram other than Ashura, these random days. Can it count as a days of the missing days of Ramadan? Yes. But Ashura, no. Because Ashura is a specific day you have a specific intention for it. But the day before it or the day after you can count them as part of your missing days in Ramadan. And Allah knows best.

One other thing that today it might be hard because of the summer long days, hot. But that's the challenge. So I encourage all of us not to miss the month or the day of Ashura. And Insha'Allah hopefully I will talk to Azeem who might be able to do some Iftar here in the masjid. Talk to Shaykh Ibrahim as well. We can organize an Iftar Insha'Allah on Sunday where people come here. But for me it's important to recognize why do we fast? What's the reward for it? And as a general rule, this is a month where you should increase your Salah, increase your Sadaqah, increase your Dua.

The Virtue of the First Months

Al-Fajr. Some scholars say Al-Fajr is the first day in Muharram. It's the first day of Muharram. From it the year starts. It's the starting of the year. And some scholars said the Salaf used to celebrate the 13th of Ashura? Three 10s are so special. The last 10 days of Ramadan and the first 10 days of Dhul-Hijjah and the first 10 days of Muharram. They used to care to do their best during these 10 days as much as they can. May Allah help us during these days.

Innovations and Misconceptions on Ashura

Some people on the day of Ashura they do things other than Siyam like they go to the cemetery and read Quran and hang around the grave. And this is basically no base for it in the Sunnah of the Prophet. Some people during this day, because on the day of Ashura also there is a sad incident happened which is the death and the murder of Al-Husayn. May Allah be pleased with him. And there is no doubt that the death of Al-Husayn, it's a great tragedy.

Remembering the Tragedy of Al-Husayn

So every year when we come to Ashura and we remember the death of Al-Husayn, it is recommended for us we recognize that this is a Musiba, a calamity. That the grandson of the Prophet was murdered and betrayed. So this Musiba, whoever remembers a Musiba, that the person will say that's a calamity, Allah rewards you as if you were there in the time of the Musiba and you showed patience. So that's something that you should say when you remember the Musiba of the death of Al-Husayn.

And Al-Husayn was killed by two people. By the people who betrayed him and offered him support. And when he came to Al-Iraq, they left him to die by the hands of unjust army. And SubhanAllah, there is no one plot against Al-Husayn unless Allah exposed them. And Allah brought revenge to Al-Husayn before he died from all of them. And that's another story to be shared.

Ahlus Sunnah's Position on Al-Husayn

But no doubt as Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, Al-Husayn is the grandson of Rasul Allah. He has the highest place in our hearts and our minds. But that doesn't mean that we pray to him. That doesn't mean that we believe like all of the Shia for example claim that he has all these divine powers and divine attributes and they pray to him. We don't believe that the Sahaba are cursed because of that. We don't believe that fasting the day of Ashura has anything to do with the death of Al-Husayn.

Against Self-Harm and Bid'ah

And one of the common bid'ah, and unfortunately it is a very bad image for Islam and Muslims, that you see sometimes on TVs, bringing those people who are beating themselves and basically injuring themselves, bleeding themselves, their children and all these images that you see on the days of Ashura. All this not from Islam. As a matter of fact, this goes completely against what the Prophet told us to do when a calamity strike us is to show patience, not to weep and cry and curse and beat ourselves.

And some of the things that we see, it's unbelievable. You can't imagine a human being will do that to themselves. And that's not showing any form of being sad or anything. That's not how it is. We should say what Allah told us.

Warning Against Cursing the Sahaba

One of the worst things that can be done also on this day is cursing the sahaba and cursing Abu Bakr and Umar and Aish. All these are acts of kufr. So if you curse Abu Bakr or Umar or Aish or accusing her, these great companions will know, believing that the whole sahaba are not Muslims, that's not a Muslim because that contradicts the Quran. May Allah guide those who are misguided and guide us to follow the footsteps of the true members and the Muhammad.

Final Reminder

With this being said, I will also say in the end, not like get distracted from the main point of the khutba, which is the main point of the khutba is maximize your good deeds during this month. Fast as many days as you can, if you can. And at least don't miss to fast the day of Ashura.

Closing Du'a

O Allah, O Possessor of Majesty and Honor, grant us a good ending in all our affairs, and do not leave us to our own souls even for the blink of an eye, nor anything less than that, lest we perish.

Allahumma salli wa sallim wa barik ala nabiyyina Muhammad wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa qumul al-sunati. Alhamdulillah.