What does it mean to be a Martyr?

Opening — Khutbah al-Hajah

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ، نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ، وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا، مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ، وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ

Amma ba'd: Indeed the best of speech is the Book of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad ﷺ, and the worst of matters are those newly introduced, and every newly introduced matter is a bid'ah, and every bid'ah is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.

Introduction: Why This Khutbah?

Brothers and sisters in Islam, the title of our khutbah today is Ash-Shuhada' — The Martyrs. In this khutbah, insha'Allah, we're going to understand: who is the Shaheed? What kinds of death constitute martyrdom or shahada? What is the big deal — the virtue — of being a Shaheed? What kinds of rewards and advantages do they have on the Day of Judgement? And then in the second khutbah we'll look at how you can attain shahada, and we'll look at the proper terminology regarding the shahada.

But the question is: why explain all this? Why is this the topic of the khutbah? The main — or perhaps the only — reason is just to bring ease to our hearts, knowing the great blessings the people of Palestine and the people of Gaza are receiving bi-idhnillah. Because if we only see their suffering and the murder in this world without taking into consideration the akhira, without taking the next life into account, then your pain will only increase. But when you consider the reward of the shahada, not only does it bring ease to your heart, but you yourself will also desire a level from the levels of martyrdom that we're going to mention in the khutbah.

But it's important to say this: this khutbah is not to encourage people to go out for jihad. That's not the purpose of the khutbah — to encourage young men to go out for jihad. And this is not out of fear of any government or any entity. But what happens is people, and especially the youth, when they hear about the greatness of martyrdom, they want to go out and to attain it without knowing any of its guidelines. And so they end up doing things that are outright haram — harming civilians, harming the innocent, leaving without their parents' permission, joining the wrong group — and the list goes on and on. So this khutbah is about bringing ease to our hearts, knowing what, insha'Allah, the people of Palestine are experiencing and that they are shuhada' with Allah azzawajal.

Why Is the Martyr Called a Shaheed?

The first thing is: why this name? Why was the martyr called a shaheed? Shaheed, from shahida, yashhadu — which is someone who witnesses, testifies, or experiences something. Imam al-Nawawi and other scholars gave a list of different possible wisdoms behind them being named shuhada', or a person being named a shaheed:

• Because Allah and the angels يَشْهَدُونَ لَهُ بِالْجَنَّةِ — because Allah and the angels bear witness and testify for them that they're going to al-Jannah, and that's why they were named a shaheed.
• لِأَنَّهُ حَيٌّ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِ — because he is still alive with his Lord, so it is as if his rooh, his soul, is present — shahida, present, still — because he's not dead, just killed.
• Because when they are killed, يَشْهَدُ مَا أُعِدَّ لَهُ مِنْ كَرَامَةٍ — he witnesses what was prepared for him, and he gets to witness his place in al-Jannah. So that's why he's called a shaheed — because he gets to witness his place in al-Jannah.
• Because Allah testifies يَشْهَدُ لَهُ بِحُسْنِ نِيَّتِهِ وَإِخْلَاصِهِ — that they had good intention and they had sincerity.
• Because people testify for them — شُهِدَ لَهُ بِالْإِيمَانِ — with the good end and with having iman, based on his apparent, external situation.
• Because he has a witness — شَاهِدٌ بِقَتْلِهِ — he has an evidence or a proof that he was killed. What is the proof? His blood. Because he is also buried in his clothing with his blood, without washing. So that comes as the proof, the evidence, that he was killed for the sake of Allah. That is his shahid, and that's why he's called a shaheed.
• Because رُوحَهُ تَشْهَدُ دَارَ السَّلَامِ — his soul witnesses and sees Dar al-Salam, al-Jannah, because his soul goes straight into Jannah and experiences and gets to see al-Jannah, while other souls don't get to experience that.

There are many other explanations, but the truth is: whichever definition you look at, you see that the shahada is actually something great — something truly great.

The Virtues of the Shaheed

There are many levels of achieving shahada and martyrdom, and the greatest one is the one who dies in battle. So what are the virtues of the shaheed?

In Surah al-Baqarah, Allah azzawajal says:

"And do not say about those who are killed in the way of Allah that they are dead. Rather, they are alive, but you do not perceive it."

In Surah Ali 'Imran, Allah says:

"And do not think that those who have been killed in the cause of Allah are dead." It always says "killed," but they didn't die — they were only killed in this world. "Rather they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision" — they are يُرْزَقُونَ, receiving provision from Allah.

The Souls of the Martyrs — Their State in the Hereafter

In Sahih Muslim, Masruq said: "I asked Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, the companion, about this verse, and he said: 'We also asked about that verse — we asked the Prophet ﷺ.'" And the Prophet ﷺ described where their souls are and how they witness and how they receive provision. He said:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 33, Hadith 4651)

Their souls are in the crops — the bellies — of green birds, which have lamps hanging underneath the Throne of Allah. They roam freely wherever they want in Paradise, and then they return to these lamps. Then their Lord looks down upon them and says: "Do you desire anything?" — to the souls of the shuhada' resting in these lanterns hanging from underneath the Throne of Allah azzawajal.

So Allah azzawajal asked them: "Do you desire anything?" And they said: "What could we desire, when we can roam freely wherever we want in Paradise?" And Allah asked them three times: "Do you want anything? Is there anything that you want?" And then the Prophet ﷺ said: when they realized that they would not be left without being asked — meaning you have to give an answer — they said: "Our Lord, we want You to restore our souls to our bodies so that we may be killed for Your sake again."

Think about what that means. The pangs of death — experiencing death — this is something difficult. Even the righteous suffered and had difficulty when their soul was leaving. And can you imagine that there will be individuals who would wish to go back to earth to die again? When Allah saw that they had no need, they were left alone after that.

In another hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, the Prophet ﷺ said:

There is no one that enters al-Jannah that wants to go back to earth and have nothing to own on earth — nobody goes into al-Jannah and wants to come back to earth with nothing — except for the shaheed. He wishes to return to the dunya, he wants to come back to earth and be killed ten times over, because of what he saw from the graces and the blessings of Allah.

Imam Ahmad also narrates another hadith where the Prophet ﷺ said: "The soul of the believer is a bird that perches in the trees of Paradise until Allah — may He be blessed and exalted — restores it to its body on the Day of Resurrection." And then another hadith says: "The martyrs are on the banks of a river at the gate of Paradise, in a green tent, and their provision comes out to them from Paradise in the morning and in the evening."

So we have the ones whose souls are in the bellies of green birds that perch in these lanterns under the Throne of Allah; we have the ones where the martyrs are on the banks of rivers at the gates of Paradise in a tent; and we have the hadith describing that the souls of the martyrs are birds that perch in the trees of al-Jannah. Some scholars tried to reconcile between all these narrations, and some scholars said you will find different rewards for their souls in al-Jannah because they were at different levels. Not all the martyrs are the same — they vary based on their courage in the battlefield, whether they were in the front lines or the back lines, whether they were very sincere or slightly sincere or not sincere at all. And that's how some of the scholars reconcile the different hadith describing different blessings for the souls of the shuhada' in al-Jannah.

The High Station of the Shuhada' in the Quran

In Surah an-Nisa', Allah says:

"Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, then they will be with those whom Allah has bestowed His blessings and His grace upon — from the Prophets, then the Siddiqun (those who were first and foremost to believe), then the Shuhada'." We're mentioning the verse to show you that the shuhada' are at this extremely high level — with the Prophets and with the Siddiqun. The scholars said that being "with" them does not make them equal to the Prophets. It means that they will share either some of the levels of Paradise, or they will share some of the blessings along with them. But it doesn't make them equal to Prophets — in case anyone is confused about that. They could be sharing the same level of Jannah as those high-ranking individuals, but they are not equal to a Prophet.

And one of the favours that Allah bestows upon His servants is that He will also cause their children and their wives to come and join them at their high level in al-Jannah.

The Seven Blessings of the Martyr

It was reported in a hadith narrated by al-Miqdam ibn Ma'di Yakrib that the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2522; Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1663; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 2799 — reported from al-Miqdam ibn Ma'di Yakrib)

"The martyr with Allah gets seven blessings." When does he get these seven blessings? He says:

1. From the first drop of blood — يُغْفَرُ لَهُ فِي أَوَّلِ دُفْعَةٍ — every sin they committed in their life is forgiven. Not from the last — from the first drop of blood that falls from their body, every sin they've ever committed is forgiven immediately.
2. He will see his place in al-Jannah — immediately he gets to see his palace in Paradise.
3. Allah will protect him from the questioning of the grave — not from the trial of the grave only; the questioning, the punishment, the test in the grave — they don't get to experience that.
4. He will be caused to feel safety and security on the Day of Judgement — how many times in the Quran does Allah describe the fear that people experience on that day, how their eyes will be looking down in fear — but the martyrs will not experience any fear, and they will be safe from the fear of that day.
5. A crown will be placed on their head — and the Prophet ﷺ describes that one of the jewels on this crown is better than the whole world and everything in it.
6. He is given in marriage 72 from the women of al-Jannah.
7. He is allowed to intercede for 70 of his family members.

This is in one hadith — seven blessings that the martyr receives. And because of that we see that it's a big deal to die as a shaheed. And because it's such a big deal, it's not up to you — it is a blessing and from the graces of Allah. And that's why Allah says in the Quran:

"And He chooses shuhada' from amongst you." It is a great blessing that not everybody has the honour to become one of the shuhada'.

The Other Levels of Martyrdom

But there are other ways and other levels of becoming a shaheed. In Sunan Abu Dawud — also mentioned by al-Nasa'i and Imam Ahmad — Jabir ibn Atiq narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 3111; Sunan al-Nasa'i, Hadith 1846; Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 15498)

"What do you regard as martyrdom?" They said: "Fighting for the cause of Allah." And then the Prophet ﷺ said that martyrdom is seven things besides being killed in the battlefield. He mentioned:

1. الْمَطْعُونُ شَهِيدٌ — the one who dies from the plague (al-ta'un). The scholars made qiyas and said anyone who dies from anything similar — they mentioned tuberculosis, they even mentioned COVID based on what kind of complication killed them — that kind of person is a level of shaheed.
2. وَالْغَرِيقُ شَهِيدٌ — the one who drowns is a shaheed. But the scholars said not just anybody who drowns — it's not someone who was on a jet ski with a female companion. Anyone who is doing something that was not haram, who was in obedience and righteousness, and they drown — we say that they're a shaheed, insha'Allah.
3. وَصَاحِبُ ذَاتِ الْجَنْبِ شَهِيدٌ — the one who dies from pleurisy — a pain from the side, and an inflammation in the membrane between the two lungs which causes pain in the chest. Someone who dies from that dies a shaheed as well.
4. وَالْمَبْطُونُ شَهِيدٌ — the one who dies from a stomach disease is a shaheed. The scholars even said anything in the abdomen in general — including the liver. Some scholars say even someone dying from some kind of liver disease is a level of shaheed. And others say anything related to the stomach or the bowel. Some of the classical scholars specifically mentioned when someone's stomach is running and they die as a result of that — whether from dehydration, dropsy, or any pain in the stomach — that person is a shaheed.
5. وَصَاحِبُ الْحَرِيقِ شَهِيدٌ — the one who dies from fire is a shaheed. Not someone who got burnt and then 20 years later died, but someone who died from the fire. And from that, look at the mercy in Islam — the scholars said that even the firefighter who dies in the fire would be considered from the shuhada', because he died in the fire while trying to protect and assist fellow Muslims or others.
6. The one who dies beneath a collapsed building is a shaheed. And we're seeing different levels for the shuhada' of Palestine right now — people dying underneath collapsed buildings. And from there, look at the mercy of Islam: the scholars said even someone who dies in a car crash where the car rolled over — because essentially the car collapsed upon them — they can get that level of shahada, provided they weren't racing, speeding, drifting, or doing these things that risk their life. They even mention the plane crash — but if you cause the plane to crash, that's another matter entirely. Any of these deaths, as long as you're not in a state where you're drunk or doing something haram, you can become a shaheed.
7. وَالْمَرْأَةُ تَمُوتُ بِجُمْعٍ شَهِيدَةٌ — a woman who dies in pregnancy is a martyr, a shaheeda. And then we have other narrations which mention: not only if she dies pregnant — if she dies while delivering, during delivery; and even if she dies in the postnatal or postpartum period — during the nifas — any time she dies within that period, she is also a martyr with Allah. This is from the mercy of Allah azzawajal, from the mercy of Islam. And the scholars mention, obviously, this is referring to a lawful pregnancy — and unfortunately you have to say that these days.

Other hadith mention:

• Someone who is killed and stung by a venomous animal or insect — dies a shaheed.
• Someone who is killed by a predatory animal — and that's not an easy death, to be attacked while alive and conscious by a lion or by some predatory animal until it kills you.
• If you fall off your riding animal and die — you're a shaheed.
• A traveller who dies alone in a foreign land is a shaheed.
• Someone who dies at sea is a shaheed.
• Someone who falls from the top of a mountain — and in our times that would be from the top of a building — and dies a falling death is a shaheed. Again, the scholars say, provided it's not that we're making some YouTube video where they're jumping from one building to another, risking their life — that's not a shaheed.

Imam al-Nawawi says all of these have difficulty in them — they're difficult deaths. And that's why those people attain the level of shahada or martyrdom.

Dying in Defence of One's Rights

Likewise, in another hadith, the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 4772; Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1421; Sunan al-Nasa'i, Hadith 4095)

• Whoever dies defending his wealth is a shaheed.
• Whoever dies defending himself is a shaheed — if you're defending yourself and you're killed, you're a shaheed.
• Whoever dies protecting his family is a shaheed.
• Whoever is killed because of their religion is a shaheed — and we know that happened recently here in the area of Dallas, where a woman was stabbed to death. May Allah accept her as a martyr. You're killed because of your religion, you're killed while spreading your religion — you die a shaheed. And that's why, as we all know, the family of Yasir — they were from the first of the shuhada' in Islam.

Bringing Ease to Our Hearts

So the idea is that we understand the virtues — what happens to the soul of the shaheed, what happens to them on the Day of Judgement — because we hear about the shuhada' of Palestine, the shuhada' of Gaza. Let's understand just some of the great blessings that they achieved. And perhaps, since many of us feel unable to do anything and feel helpless, at least that might ease our hearts a little bit — knowing what they achieved, bi-idhnillah.

We ask Allah for His forgiveness. Indeed, those who ask for His forgiveness shall prosper.

Second Khutbah: The Proper Adab Regarding Shahada

We Do Not Guarantee Jannah for Any Specific Individual

Part of the proper language and the adab is that we do not guarantee al-Jannah nor al-shahada for any particular individual. Meaning: it's fine to say "the shuhada' of Gaza," "the shuhada' of Palestine," "the shuhada' of any battle or conflict." But you do not specifically say "this person is a shaheed" or guarantee it for them. Part of the adab with Allah is that you don't speak as if you're guaranteeing the shahada — even though historically there were people who were known as al-Shaheed fulan, the martyr so-and-so, meaning we hope. They're not trying to say we're guaranteeing a shahada for them.

And the Prophet ﷺ said in a hadith — and this is in Sahih al-Bukhari, where Imam al-Bukhari named the chapter: "It cannot be said that so-and-so is a martyr, and one guarantees that this person is a martyr" — and he mentions that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Allah knows best who was wounded for His sake, and Allah knows people's hearts, and He knows who is truly sincere and who is truly a shaheed."

In another hadith, the Prophet ﷺ was at the burial of a young child — a young child had died. Our mother 'A'ishah said: "Ya Rasulullah, glad tidings for this boy — good for him, one of the little birds of Paradise. He did not do any evil, or even reach the age of doing evil." And the Prophet ﷺ told her: "It may be otherwise." He's not speaking about the boy — he's telling her that we don't speak this way, guaranteeing for anybody, even if it's a child. And even out of adab, you don't confirm for sure what Allah did not confirm to you.

You Can Die a Shaheed in Your Bed

From that, there's something else that's important: you can die a shaheed in your bed. And those are the words of the Prophet ﷺ: whoever asks Allah in truthfulness, with sincerity, Allah will have him attain the level of the martyrs — even if he dies in his bed — because he asked for it sincerely. And another narration mentions: whoever asks Allah that he be killed in the path of Allah while he is truthful — then he just dies naturally, he doesn't get to go out to battle, or he is killed by someone else not in battle — he gets the reward of a shaheed.

We have the story of the companion Haritha ibn Suraqa. He was hit by a stray arrow. His mother heard that he was killed — just by a stray arrow; he wasn't even in the battlefield. So she came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: "Is he in al-Jannah? Because if he is, I'll be patient. If he's not, you'll see what I'll do." (And this was before it was forbidden to wail and cry excessively.) So the Prophet ﷺ told her: "It is multiple levels of Jannah — of Paradise — it is not just one. It is multiple levels. And your son has attained al-Firdaws al-A'la." So Haritha wasn't even in the battlefield — it was just a stray arrow that came and killed him — and he is in the highest levels of al-Jannah.

Because people might be asking: what about those who were just killed — what about those who were, as we call it today in a politically correct sense, "collateral damage"? Even those people, they get that level.

These Levels of Shahada Are for the Muslims Only

The last thing — and it's ridiculous that we are now living at a time where we even have to mention this: all these levels of shahada — for whom? You would imagine I wouldn't have to say this, but it's for the Muslims only. For the Muslims only.

But you find quote-unquote "sheikhs" on the internet now saying the ayah didn't specify, and it says "whoever dies like this is a shaheed," so anybody — no matter what religion — if they die drowning or in a fire or like that, they're a shaheed, and they'll even be in al-Jannah. No they won't. No they won't. This is for the Muslims. All of these hadith are speaking about the believers — speaking about the believers who believe in Allah azzawajal. These are the ones who will be from the shuhada'.

Closing Du'a

With that, we ask Allah to make us of those who recognize the truth as clear truth and follow the best of it. And we ask Him to make us of those who recognize falsehood as clear falsehood and abstain from it.

"O Allah, lift from them the affliction and strengthen them, O Lord of the worlds. O Allah, lift from them the affliction and strengthen them, O Lord of the worlds. O Allah, be for them a helper and supporter. O Allah, be for them a helper and supporter. O Allah, decree for this ummah a matter of right guidance in which those who obey You are honoured, those who disobey You are guided, good is commanded, and evil is forbidden — O You Who hears all supplications."

O Allah, send Your blessings upon the one sent as a mercy to all the worlds, and upon his family and all his companions. And now rise for your prayer — may Allah have mercy upon you.