The merits of the DAY of ARAFA (October 25, 2012)

Which is happening tomorrow this year.

On the merits of the Day of Arafa

Our Master Muhammad pbuh
said, “fasting on the Day of Arafa may atone for the sins of the preceding and the coming year.”

First sermon
All praise is due to Allah, by his grace righteous deeds are fulfilled. He the Almighty has blessed his servants with seasons of worship. I bear witness there is no deity but Allah with no partners. He is the Patron, the Most-Forgiving, the Forbearing, the Grateful.

I also certify that our Master Muhammad is His Messenger and beloved servant. He had worshipped His Creator and excelled. He properly fasted and prayed to Allah and circled the Kaaba. May the peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

As to what follows, I call upon myself first and all of you to obey Allah, as He says, the meaning of which is, “And fear a Day when you will be returned to Allah . Then every soul will be compensated for what it
earned, and they will not be treated unjustly.” (Al Baqara: 281).

O Believers,
Please remember that we are in blessed days of high merits, the gem of which is the Day of Arafa. It is one of the best days of the year when the light of truth has become manifest with Allah, the Almighty, honouring pilgrims and accepting their supplications. Privileged as such, pilgrims come back from Tawaf with high hopes their sins have been expiated. The Prophet Muhammad pbuh said, “On this day, Allah, the most Exalted, descends to the nearest heaven, and He is proud of His servants on the earth and says to those in heavens, look at My servants, they have come from far and near, with hair disheveled and faces covered with dust, to seek my Mercy. Even if their sins are as much the sand or the froth of the sea, I shall forgive them.”

The virtues of Arafa are not the preserve of pilgrims only. They also benefit all Muslims. That is why our Prophet Muhammad pbuh recommended non-pilgrims to fast this blessed day as it removes one’s misdeeds of the past and the upcoming year. Our Master Muhammad pbuh said, “fasting on the Day of Arafa may atone for the sins of the preceding and the coming year.” In the same regard, Abdullah Ibn Umar, may Allah be satisfied with him, said, “when we were with the Prophet peace be upon him we gave to it (the day of Arafa) the equivalent of two years of fasting.”

On this blessed day, praying is also more valuable than on other normal days, for Allah, the Almighty, rewards his servants abundantly and bestows his generous bounties upon them. At this time, Allah, the Almighty, offers to answer the call of whom He wills as our Guide
Muhammad pbuh said, “the most excellent Duaa is the Duaa of Arafa, and the best of what I and the prophets before me have said is, ‘there is no deity but Allah, alone, without partner. To Him belong the Kingdom and praise, and He has power over everything’.”

He pbuh also said, “Satan is not considered more abased or more cast out or more contemptible or more angry on any day than on the Day of Arafa.
That is only because he sees the descent of the Mercy and Allah’s disregard for great wrong actions.”

Dear Muslims,
Please remember that one of the remarkable events took place on the Day of Arafa when the Prophet Muhammad pbuh stood on Mount Arafa to address his companions may Allah be pleased with them. In his sermon,
the Prophet pbuh spoke of how coexistence with non-Muslims should be, stressing that people’s life, integrity and possessions are sacrosanct and must not be violated. This is to ensure security and justice. He pbuh also urged believers to protect women and treat them fairly, saying, “Allah has made your blood, your properties and your honour Sacred to one another (i.e. Muslims) like the sanctity of this day of yours in this month of yours,

in this town of yours… Fear Allah with regard to women, for you have taken them through a trust from Allah.”

O believers,
Among the greatest acts to help Muslims get closer to their Creator on this day is to engage in actions that would bring happiness to the poor and needy. So blessed are those who stood on the Mount of Arafa as well as
those, amongst non-pilgrims, who fasted that day. Credit will also go to anybody who set himself to please Allah by increasing his good deeds.

One can achieve this by giving charity, praying to Allah, reading the holy Quran, mending one’s heart, controlling anger, treating parents nicely,
honouring ties of kinship and competing for doing whatever act is deemed righteous.

Allah, the Almighty, says, what means, “O you who have believed, bow and prostrate and worship your Lord and do good - that you may succeed.” (Al Haj: 77).
With this in mind, let us profit from these days to increase acts of worship
lest these moments might not come again. Indeed the most successful is he who has been guided by Allah to obey Him and the loser is he who missed this opportunity to benefit himself.

May Allah help us to obey him and those He has ordained upon us to obey pursuant to His instructions: "O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you." (Annissaa: 59).

May Allah bless you and me with the ability to implement the Holy Quran and the Sunna of His Messenger Muhammad pbuh. I say this and pray to Allah, the Almighty, to grant us forgiveness. Supplicate to Allah for forgiveness for He is the Most Forgiving and the Most Merciful.

Second sermon
Praise be to Allah. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah, having no associates. I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is His servant and messenger, who was true to his promise. May the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, his companions and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
As to what follows, Please obey Allah as you are instructed and do observe his commands whether in secret or in public.

Dear Muslims,
As Eid Al Adha is approaching, please be aware that sacrifices are Sunna, a ritual with which Allah redeemed His Prophet Ismail (pbuh)’s life. On this matter, He, the Most Exalted, says, meaning, “And We ransomed
him with a great sacrifice.” (Assaffat: 107). They are also a show of solidarity with the poor and needy.
For this sake, Muslims have to choose an animal that is sound and free of defects, according to the Hadith, saying, “There are four that will not do as
sacrifices: The animal that clearly has one bad eye: the sick animals that
is obviously sick; the lame animal with an obvious lamp; and the animal that is so emaciated that it is as if there is no marrow in its bones.”

Dear Muslims,
Allah has commanded you an order to which He and His angels are both committed, when He says, the meaning of which is, "Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet: O ye that believe! Send ye blessings on him, and salute him with all respect." (Al Ahzab: 56).
The Prophet pbuh said, "for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten blessings from Allah." May the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Master Muhammad pbuh, his family and all his companions.
May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided Caliphs and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

O Allah, forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead,

O Lord, forgive and show mercy, You are the Ever Merciful and there is no strength or power save with Allah, the High, the Great.

We pray to Allah, the Most Gracious, to continue blessing the Qatar and all Muslim countries with safety and security.