Mamdouh Mustafa 10-6-17

All praises due to Allah. May Allah's peace and blessings be upon His beloved Prophet Muhammad. I bear witness that there is no one worthy of worship but Allah alone. I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, his household, his companions and everyone following him till the day of judgment. اللهم آمين

My dear brothers and sisters, with the beginning of a new Hijri year, every year we remember this main and major incident of Islam: the Hijrah, the migration of Rasulullah from Mecca to Medina. The incident that changed the face of the history of humanity forever until يوم القيامة.

The Establishment of the Islamic Calendar

The incident that the Sahaba of Rasulullah under the leadership of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Khalifa after Rasulullah, decided that it becomes the main incident to start the Muslim calendar - تقويم الإسلام - to start the Muslim calendar with that incident.

When they met together, when Abu Musa al-Ashari in Yemen sent a letter to the Khalifa Umar ibn al-Khattab, he said: "You keep sending us letters not dated. We do not know when did you send it and what should we do." And they had issues with the expansion of Islam and the state of Islam to keep records and dated. So he asked him, make a calendar for us so we can follow.

So he gathered the Sahaba and they talked: which incident in our Deen since the prophethood of Prophet Muhammad started should we start our calendar with? They talked about the birth of the prophet, or the death of the prophet, or the prophethood of the prophet. But they decided at the end to choose the Hijrah.

The Significance of Principled Living

And that's the first point I wanted to emphasize today. For a Muslim, the incidents that separate between Haqq and Batil are the most important of incidents. Our life is not how many years we live - 50, 60, 70 years - no, how many years you really stood on your principles. Those are the years that count in your life. How many years you were challenged to compromise your Deen but you stood strong in front of all temptations. Those are the days, weeks, months and years that count in your life.

So the Sahaba chose Hijrah. And Sayyiduna Umar said: لأن الله فرق بها بين الحق والباطل - "We are going to choose this for all Muslims to follow. Year number one is the year that Allah separated Haqq from falsehood." So that should be year number one, the birth of the calendar of Muslims. Think about it like that.

Knowing Your Islamic Calendar

We all talk about sighting the moon and when is the first day of Ramadan and when is the first day of Dhul Hijjah and the first day of the year. But how many of us know today what date in Muharram it is? After one week, after one month, only we remember whenever there is an occasion or something. No, you need to know exact each and every day, my brothers and sisters.

This lunar calendar - before even the Islamic calendar - lunar calendar is one thing, Islamic calendar is another thing by the way. Lunar calendar is from the time Allah created heavens and earth. Allah said that in the Quran:

Allah created this heavens and earth - يوم خلق الله السموات والأرض - Allah created heavens and earth. And then there is the sun, there is the earth, and all this science that we know now. Allah said there were 12 months when Allah created this, before even creating Adam. So that is lunar calendar there. The month starts and ends, 12 months by sighting the moon. That is before any human being on this earth.

The Importance of Islamic Calendar in Worship

Our calendar, Islamic calendar, is very important for us - not only for fasting and hajj like many people think. That's what it is, moon sighting, everybody think what? In their head that is the yearly annual debate about Ramadan and about hajj. But you know that this is very important in every single ibadah, every single ibadah - lunar calendar.

Your zakah has to be calculated according to lunar calendar, not solar calendar. If you had the nisab of zakah, if you had the minimum zakatable money, you have to calculate one year. So if you had it on October 6th, let's say, that now I have the amount equal to gold or silver that I have to give zakah. Now if you calculate one year until 6th of October 2018, you already delayed your zakah 11 days. So you are making zakah qada like you delayed the prayer until the time finished. So you don't calculate by that. So you have to know what day of the year it is - that is the hijri year.

Detailed Fiqh Examples

The women calculating their period - and one day makes a difference between halal and haram. A woman cannot marry until she finishes her iddah, and the iddah finishes by calculating the times. If a woman, her husband dies, she waits 3 months and 10 days - 3 months of the lunar calendar. So if the month is 30 days and she only counted 29 and then she married someone else, she married someone else during her iddah. You see, and there are hundreds of masa'il like this in fiqh - hundreds, not tens - hundreds of issues like that.

And we only think that calendar or lunar calendar is important only for Ramadan and the beginning of the year and let's celebrate this kind of things. No, that's your deen, my brothers. Hajj according to lunar calendar, zakah according to lunar calendar.

If a person - and I'm giving you this masalah just to feel how detailed and meticulous this fiqh is - if a person was born on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah, someone born on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah - يعني يوم عرفة - 9 of Dhul Hijjah, he was born one hour before Maghrib or at Maghrib time. Someone is born on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah at Maghrib time and then he goes to hajj when he is 15 years old. He did not reach puberty - there is no sign of physical puberty on him. So according to our Deen, once he reach 15 he will be treated as an adult regardless of the signs. If the signs come before that - 10, 11, 12 - he's an adult or she's an adult. If not, then we wait until 15 years.

Now comes the issue, and I want you to pay attention to this: When a person did not reach puberty, their hajj counts - meaning they will be rewarded - but it does not take away the duty to perform hajj when they are adult. Are you with me? Are you following? So they had to perform hajj. But if they reach puberty, the hajj counts, they don't have to do it again. You see the difference?

So he is in Maghrib standing in Arafah as a child - as a child - and then Maghrib time comes. What does he do? He leaves Arafah or he stays in Arafah? For the hajj to count, if he leaves, he left as a child. If he stays five more minutes, it will count and he will become an adult. You see? And the hajj will count. He does not have to perform hajj again for the rest of his life if he doesn't. You see? You appreciate our Deen, how it goes? How detailed it goes?

And it is not according to "My birthday is October such and such" or "it is November such and such." No. It is 15 years with the lunar calendar, with the Islamic calendar. I was born on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah and today is the 9th - I am 15 now, I will be an adult. I will be treated in this Deen as an adult. Everything I do will count. All my sins are forgiven today. If I die today, I go to Jannah.

Sacrifice for Allah's Sake

The migration of Rasul Allah teach us also the sacrifice. You sacrifice what you love for Allah's sake. Allah says in the Quran when it comes to spending:

You will not reach the stage of virtue or goodness of birr which is a high degree of taqwa and piety in Islam to be among Al-abrar. رجل بار بوالديه means he treats his parents with utmost respect. That is a person who is bar. Praying right, that's a person have birr in the salah. Treating people right, that is the person who have birr in treating people. So you have birr means you reach the top in whatever you do.

So when a person reaching birr all over, that's a major issue. Allah says you will not reach that degree unless you spend from what you love - not from what is extra. When I have hundred dollars, spending fifty cents or a dollar or the change that came, you know, and I'm putting in the side of my door passenger or I mean driver door, you know I put this change over there - this is the easiest thing to spend. You don't even feel it. You actually sometimes you want to get rid of it. Sometimes you actually want to get rid of it because it bothers you - too much change there. That is not what Allah is saying. No, Allah is saying that you go change this hundred to spend twenty out of it. That's something that you love. That's something dear to you.

The Test of Ibrahim

And now you can calculate with the thousands and millions and all of that until you spend from what you love. Why? Because you overcome that lust and the desire. That's called Tadhiyah. Tadhiyah and Eid Al-Adha comes from that - the day the Eid of sacrifice, Adha.

The test of Sayyidina Ibrahim was not merely slaughter your son and the sheep comes and mashallah, you know, story we tell our kids. No. A man who's ninety years old hoping for a child, then he sees a child in front of him growing and the child strong, beautiful, handsome, all of that. And then Allah said you slaughter that one. That's the dearest in your life you have to slaughter. And when he surrender ultimately ready with no doubt - that's it, you pass the test. That is the meaning of sacrifice.

And that's why we say in Eid Al-Adha my brother and sister, you slaughter a very nice sheep. Why? Because it costs you more. It will cost you more. It doesn't have to have a defect. What does that mean? Sometimes you say why so picky? That's not the point. The point is you strive more. It becomes harder for you to find. And when you find it you pay lots of money on it. And then you slaughter it, you see. That is the whole idea. But meat is meat.

Allah does not take the blood or how big or how small - this is not the idea. The idea is it costs you money, time, effort. It became dear to you, it's expensive. And then you put it down and slaughter it, then it's meat like any other meat. Who knows how your sheep look like in the Eid? Nobody knows, nobody even cares. But you care. Why? Because this is the best you could do and you sacrificed it for Allah. I hope we got the point of sacrifice. That is the meaning of sacrifice.

The Prophet's Love for Mecca

So Rasulullah, when he stood out of Mecca and look back and he says: "By Allah, you are the dearest land to Allah and the dearest to me. And Allah knows if I was not pushed out I would have not left." So you can understand now his attachment to that land. Yet he left it. Yet all the Sahaba left everything, even sometimes they separate between the family members, family members.

The Story of Umm Salama and Abu Salama

Umm Salama, who became wife of Rasulullah later, when she was married to Abu Salama from Bani Abdul Asad - Abdul Asad is the family of her husband - Bani Makhzum her family of her. Umm Salama - Bani Makhzum is the family of Abu Jahl. So this is Umm Salama's tribe and Bani Abdul Asad is the family of Abu Salama. They love each other. This is the best couple you can ever look at.

When hijrah comes, they have a small child, Salama, less than a year old. And then they are migrating. She said Abu Salama prepared his camel. He took me, his child, and we are on our way. So her family - her family spotted them. And her family is very strong, powerful family in Mecca. They said no. Now you made a decision to leave. We cannot fight you or fight your tribe, but this is our daughter, his wife Umm Salama. We cannot let her go with you. Her brothers, her father, her mother, her cousins, they all stood there and we are going to fight now. So you go, you can leave, and leave Umm Salama and her child.

So now they took the wife and the child, and the husband has to sacrifice. Now you understand - I want you to think about it - your position, you standing there. What would you do? Then you will understand what kind of sacrifice these people were doing. And he left and he said may Allah be with you. And he left. She told him leave. So the wife wants her husband to go because she knows the value of going to Medina by the order of Rasulullah. And he knows the value of that. So the husband leaves his wife and child while he is dying from inside. And she let her husband go while she needed him the most for the sake of whom.

That's not the end of the story. Comes his family now and saying alright, you separated the wife of our son Abu Salama and this boy is his - we take him. You take your daughter Umm Salama, but the Salama, the boy, he belongs to us. And his father cannot take care of him by himself and the mother will not allow to, so we take it.

So Umm Salama says the two tribes, each one was holding an arm - they dislocated the shoulder of the baby. That's how bad it was. So three in three different places: Abu Salama went to Medina, Umm Salama was her family Al Mughira Ibn Makhzoom, and her son Salama is with the family of his father.

One year. One year she said I never stopped crying. I never stopped crying until the family of her husband felt bad. What are we doing? It took them one year to feel bad, subhanallah. One year. So they said a child doesn't have anything - give him to his mom, give him to his mom. And then her family, when this happened, said you know what, we don't gain anything - let her go with her husband. They let her migrate.

But to see the sacrifice let them to be united, but after one year. That year was a year of sacrifice for that family. And that's why we are mentioning them today here in the center because of their sacrifice for the deen of Allah. 1439 years later we are talking about them. That's a value.

So what me and you are leaving behind for people to talk about only a month after we die maybe, or a year? And how long people will remember us? Sometimes they forget us once we die, you know. Once we die nobody mentioned the name of the person who died. When somebody doesn't - when is the janazah? We're gonna take the mayyit. He's dead, his name is gone. We refer to them as the dead. The dead body we're gonna take. The body. What you're gonna do with the body? Did you wash the body? Allahu Akbar. Your name is already forgotten the time you die. And your wealth is behind. So how much are you sacrificing for the deen of Allah? That is the second point today.

Reflection on Our Own Sacrifices

First point is most important thing is a calendar - is your deen based on that calendar. Second is how much are you willing to give for the sake of Allah? Can be very little and it can be very big, but are we ready? So when we're reading this history of Rasul Allah, when we're reading him standing there looking at his town, if you are in that position what would you do? When you read the story of Abu Salama and their son, if you are one of the three what would you do? What would you do? When you read the sacrifice of Ibrahim, if you are in that place of that father or you are in that place of that mother watching her husband and her son following the order of Allah and she was quiet, if you are that son, what would you do?

Your father actually is asking you with way less than that. Ya ibni go pray. Ya ibni fear Allah. My son, my daughter, wear hijab, my daughter. My son be straight forward, don't commit zina, do not drink, do not be with bad company. Way less than slaughtering. Your father is not saying son I'm going to slaughter you on the Eid day. Nobody say that anymore - only one person had to do it, finished. But your father is asking you with way less than that. And you are not expected to be like Ismail, you just expected to say yes dad, yes mom, in less than.

As a wife or as a mother, you are not asking to watch your son being slaughtered - just watch your son going to do hifz, take them to the masjid. As you care about their health, care about their Islamic religious well-being. So brothers, you are not asked to sacrifice your children physically, but you are asked to sacrifice your time, your wealth and your health for them to become good Muslims - way less than that sacrifice.

So when we rush and we slaughter in the Eid we should remember that. When we remember the hijrah we should remember these models of sacrifice. May Allah make us among those who follow the footsteps of Rasulullah and his Sahaba.

Never Give Up on Your Principles

Third point: that never quit. When you have a principle and you have a good goal - justified goal for the sake of Allah - and you have a principle, that's what I will live by and that's how I die. That's your principle. Cannot compromise. And your goal is to get to Jannah, is to please Allah and get to his Jannah. That's our foundation and that's our goal. Never lose sight.

We can do many things - differ, go up and down, right, left. Some even will do wrong. But always remember your foundation and your goal. Sometimes shaitan will trick us, but come back to your ground and don't lose sight of your goal.

Rasulullah never give up. When he had that solid ground, he goes and tell people in the hajj time: "Who can host me so I can deliver the words of Allah? Because my people prevented me from that. Quraish prevented me from delivering the words of Allah. So who would give me that chance to do it?" He's not telling them what they get. He's telling them what I want. You see the sacrifice and the principle.

Fifteen tribes he offers and rejected. Offers and rejected. Offers and rejected. Until he finds the Ansar. How many things we tried for fifteen times, brothers and sisters? You come to the masjid, you don't find the sheikh for a question. Do what I can do - I give my own fatwa, bismillah. One time only. Somebody late? Bismillah, we don't need anybody. Fifteen times Rasul himself. That tells you when you have a principle, you have a goal, you are educated, you do the things the right way.

We all do this in our businesses. We all do this in our business. You have a principle in your company, in your business. You have a goal to reach and you go on like this. Mistakes happen but you come back to it. You don't compromise that. We need to do this with our deen again.

Conclusion

Lessons of hijrah are too many my brothers and sisters, but I think those are enough. Islamic calendar for us is our identity. It is more than just moon sighting. It is way more than that. Our deen is based on it, ibadat based on it.

Remember when you read the hijrah or you read the sacrifice, how much can I do? If I was in that position what would have I done? Yet Allah is asking me with way less to sacrifice - just follow simple orders. How much am I willing to follow before I even sacrifice?

Last thing, my brothers and sisters: Never give up, never quit. Continue, continue, continue. Never give up on the community. Never give up on your leadership. Never give up on the masajid. Never give up on teaching your kids. Never give up on your self-learning Quran. Never give up on salah - suffer no problem, but never give up. Inshallah you will reach the pleasure of Allah.

May Allah make us among those whom he blessed today. May Allah protect us and our families and our children and our spouses. May Allah guide us along the straight path. May Allah forgive our sins, fix our deeds and define our goal. May Allah make us among those who listen and follow the best of what they listen to. May Allah forgive our sins and remove our sins. May Allah make us among the righteous.