When you realise you can only complain when you are ALIVE. Alhamdullilah for life. We want to grow old and grey/gray. Wishing you long life and good health. Jummah Mubarak
Full text of the Last Sermon (Khutbatul Wada’) delivered by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) during his final pilgrimage at Mount Arafat on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah, 10 AH (632 CE).
“O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether after this year I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.
O People, just as you regard this month, this day, and this city as sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds.
Allah has forbidden you to take usury (interest), therefore all interest obligations shall henceforth be waived. Your capital is yours to keep. You will neither inflict nor suffer any inequity. Allah has judged that there shall be no interest, and that all the interest due to Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib (Prophet’s uncle) shall henceforth be waived.
Beware of Shaytan, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.
O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have rights over you. Remember that you have taken them as your wives only under Allah’s trust and with His permission. If they abide by your right, then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them, for they are your partners and committed helpers.
And it is your right that they do not make friends with anyone of whom you do not approve, as well as never to be unchaste.
O People, listen to me in earnest: worship Allah, offer your five daily prayers, fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your wealth in zakat. Perform Hajj if you can afford to.
All mankind is from Adam and Eve. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over a black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white—except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood.
Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves.
Remember, one day you will appear before Allah and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.
O People, no prophet or messenger will come after me, and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand my words which I convey to you.
I leave behind me two things, the Qur’an and my Sunnah (example), and if you follow these you will never go astray.
All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others, and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly.
Be my witness, O Allah, that I have conveyed your message to Your people.”
Why I Admire Islam, Honour Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and Respect Muslims
Someone asked me why, though I am not a Muslim, I love Islam and respect Muslims. He said it was 'eye service'. Here is my answer. I am a follower of the Jewish Rabbi who was named Yeshua while on Earth. However, when I study Islam, it has guidelines for everything a person will do from the moment they come out of their mother till the moment they return to Mother Earth.
How to wake, pray, bath, use the toilet, eat, drink and work. Who to marry, when, and why. What to do in sickness and health. Even how to be buried and what becomes of your estate.
In the short span between birth and death, Islam provides guidance without ambiguity. This clarity gives your life stability.
I will follow Yeshua until I die. Yet, I can read the entire Tanakh and Gospels and have direction on many things. But al-Quran and/or the Hadiths give Muslims instructions on the proper way to do something as quotidian as taking a bath or urinate.
Another thing is that, and here there are exceptions to the rule, Muslims tend to respect prophet Muhammad, Sallallahu Alayhi Wasalaam, more than Christians or Jews rever Yeshua (Jesus) or Moses.
You will hear Christians (largely with the exception of Orthodox Christians) call the name Jesus or Jesus Christ when they are angry, irritated, or using profanity, or in any number of casual situations. And some Jews will say things like 'Holy Moses' as an exclamation to express surprise, amazement or cluelessness.
Have you ever heard that from a Muslim with the name of their prophet? It is hard to expect others to respect your prophet or Saviour when many of your adherents do not even reverence their names.
In terms of what will happen to you when you leave this world, I do not believe that anybody, living or dead, gave as much clarity as Yeshu'a.
However, on the matter of how to live life on this Earth, I have yet to see a body of inspired literature as detailed and all-encompassing as the Quran.
The issue here is that most Christians and Jews have padlocked their minds against any form of unbiased study of the Quran, and too many Muslims have the same attitude against the Torah and the New Testament.
This failure to understand each other has led to Muslims observing dogmas of different so-called Christian denominations and concluding that those precepts represent what Nabi Isa taught.
On the opposite side, many Jews and Christians have observed the behaviours of extremists and juxtaposed those behaviours on all Muslims.
If you, as a Christian, say you can never study Islam because you reject it, then you are not Christlike.
Yeshua did not accept the Samaritan religion at all. Yet, He was completely aware of all facets of that faith, and we see this in John 4:22:
You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.
Additionally, even though Yeshua did not validate the Samaritan faith when asked to define who a good neighbour was, He cited the example of the Samaritan that Christians have nicknamed the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37.
What do we learn from the account of the Good Samaritan? That others can have a religion to which you disagree, yet they can still be good.
If this were not so, then the account of the Good Samaritan would be invalid. By virtue of his religion, he should have been bad. Yet, Yeshua described him as a good neighbour.
Imam Abubakar Abdullahi, who in 2018 saved 262 Christians in Barkin Ladi, Plateau State, when armed herders came to avenge the alleged killings of their people, is a good neighbour.
Reno Omokri
Gospeller. Deep Thinker. #TableShaker. Ruffler of the Feathers of Obidents. #1 Bestselling author of Facts Versus Fiction: The True Story of the Jonathan Years. Hodophile. Hollywood Magazine Humanitarian of the Year, 2019. Business Insider Influencer of the Year 2022. 21st Most Talked About Person in Africa, 2024.