O Allah! enrich me with knowledge
First sermon
Praise be to Allah. He has taught us and bestowed upon us blessings. He has guided us with the Quran to that which is most suitable. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship, except for Him alone without any partners or peers. To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and whatever is within them. And He is over all things competent.
I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger, may the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, his companions and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
O Servants of Allah, I urge you and myself to be mindful of Allah the Almighty and obey Him in light of what He says, "And fear Allah. And Allah teaches you. And Allah is Knowing of all things." (Al Baqara: 282).
Dear believers,
One greatest blessing from Allah is providing us with the capacity to learn and acquire knowledge. He the Almighty says, "and He taught Adam the names - all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, "Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful. "They said, "Exalted are You; we have no knowledge except what You have taught us. Indeed, it is You who is the Knowing, the Wise." (Al Baqara: 31-32).
The knowledge imparted to our father Adam pbuh made him higher in position than angels, and so being a distinction of unique status. Truly Allah has honoured knowledge and those who possess it amongst people. He the Sublime says in this regard, "Allah will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge, by degrees. And Allah is Acquainted with what you do." (Al Mujadila: 11). On the same matter, Ibn Abbas said, "scholars are above believers one hundred degrees, between a degree and a degree one hundred years."
Dear Muslims,
Knowledge is a cure for souls and characters, an enlightenment for the mind and a source of happiness and integrity. While a little of it is still beneficial, much of it elevates further the rank of the individual. It is one's companion in solitude and his guide in thick and thin. Pursuing it is an act of worship, conveying it is an offering, and seeking its path is a sign of obedience to Allah. He the Almighty says, "Only those fear Allah, from among His servants, who have knowledge." (Fatir: 28). Thus for the importance of it and its high status, Islam has instructed us to seek learning, as evidenced by the first revelation: "recite in the name of your Lord Who created -created man from a clinging substance. Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous -Who taught by the pen -taught man that which he knew not." (Al Alaq: 1-5).
Dear Servants of Allah,
Please be advised that the call for knowledge in Islam was not a mere slogan, but is one of the main principles in the holy Quran. It has been reiterated clearly and beautifully, a cause for which the Prophet pbuh was sent and be the best educator of humankind. He pbuh said, "Allah did not send me to be harsh, or cause harm, but He has sent me to teach and make things easy."
Thus, our Master Muhammad pbuh taught his Comapanions religious sciences, and urged them to reflect on divine signs around them [in the universe]. Abu Dhar al Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "when we left the Prophet (since he died before us), not even a bird would fly over but that we remembered by it some knowledge."
Knowledge and its people should be further highlighted as we are welcoming a new school year. Our Prophet pbuh used to encourage pupils and everyone seeking knowledge, and promised them the angels' satisfaction in return. He said in this regard, "the angels lower their wings for the seeker of knowledge out of pleasure at what he is seeking."
Dear students, please rejoice the angels' care and know that attending your classes is also an act of obedience to Allah, through which you please Him and serve your community and nation. In so doing, you are on the right way towards high status, which shall bring you closer to Paradise. On this account, our Master Muhammad pbuh said, "whoever takes a path upon which to obtain knowledge, Allah makes the path to Paradise easy for him."
Therefore, please enjoy learning, work hard and seek various sciences. And always bear in mind that the school and the university are the means for achieving your hopes. So do your best to excel and let your motto be: "O Allah, increase me in knowledge." (Taha: 114).
It was reported that Abdullah Ibn Masood when reciting this Aya would pray to Allah saying, "O Allah, increase my knowledge, faith and certainty." He was so dedicated to this Aya that he said, "by Him besides Whom there is no god, there is no chapter in the Book of Allah about which I do not know as to where it was revealed and there is no verse about which I do not know in what context it was revealed, and if I were to know of one having a better understanding of the Book of Allah than I (and I could reach him) on the back of the mule, I would have definitely gone to him on camel's back."
Dear Parents,
Fear Allah, fear Allah in educating your children, and remember that you are responsible towards them in the Day of Judgment. Our Prophet pbuh said, "all of you are guardians and are responsible for your subjects." So the greatest thing you should offer to your children is to guide them to the path of knowledge as Musaab Ibn al Zubair advised his son saying, "acquire knowledge, for it will adorn you if you are welathy. If you do not have money, it will make you wealthy."
Please remember that you are also responsible for helping your children with a good learning environment, including but are not limited to watching over their behaviour, monitoring their achievement, advising them to maintain school facilities and adhere to public ethics, and educating them to respect their teachers. It was narrated that Umar Ibn Al Khattab said, "get hold of knowledge and for it learn to be serene and tolerant. Be humble to those from whom you learn, and shall be humble to you those who learn form you."
Dear Teachers,
As you have been entrusted by people to educate their loved ones, please set yoursleves as good example, cooperate in righteousness and piety and urge students to follow the right path. Please also be modest, offer them counsel, nurture in them the love for their nation, appreciate the genius amongst them, encourage the less permforming ones and help them, lead your students to love knowledge and advancement, be firm and gentle [when appropriate] and treat them with patience and love.
Our Guide Muhammad pbuh promised you with abundant rewards when he said, "indeed Allah, His Angels, the inhabitants of the heavens and the earths - even the ant in his hole, even the fish - say Salat upon the one who teaches the people to do good."
Having this in mind, we seek Allah's favour to teach us from that which benefits us, and benefit us with that which He has taught us and increase us in knowledge. May Allah let us also be amongst His virtuous servants and help us to obey Him and those He has ordained upon us to obey in compliance with His orders: "O you who believe, Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you." (Annisaa: 59).
May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and benefit us all in whatever is in it of the Ayas and the Wise Dhikr. I say this and ask Allah the Great, the Most Honoured for forgiveness for me, you and all the Muslims for every sin, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.
Second sermon,
O Servants of Allah, I urge you and myself to be mindful of Allah the Almighty whether in secret or in public and know that we live in an age of accelerating growth and development, an era of states racing towards further advancement through knowledge and intellect. Allah the Sublime says, "Allah will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge, by degrees. And Allah is Acquainted with what you do." (Al Mujadila: 11).
Our beloved country under its wise leadership has always been aware of the value and the long-lasting impact of knowledge. It thus built schools, institutes and universities and manned them with the best teachers and staff. It also fitted them with all tools necessary to help students succeed in all aspects of their learning. So bear this in mind, dear students, and be loyal to your country by studying hard so you ultimately be able to carry out your responsibilities.
Dear Servants of Allah,
Bear in mind that you are asked to offer prayer and greetings upon our most noble Prophet pbuh for Allah says, "Indeed, Allah and His angels sends blessing upon the Prophet. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace." (Al Ahzab: 56).
On the same matter, the Prophet pbuh said, "for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten blessings from Allah." He also said, "Nothing turns back the Decree except supplication."
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: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
We pray to Allah, the Most Gracious, to preserve the UAE from all temptations, both apparent and hidden, and continue blessing the UAE and all Muslim countries with safety and security.
O Allah, may we ask You to help us with what gets us closer to Paradise and furthers us from hell. O Allah we seek Your grace to admit us, our parents, whoever has done a favour to us and all Muslims to Your Paradise.
O Allah guide us to perform good work and give up misdeeds. O Allah, make Iman (faith) beloved to us and beautify it in our hearts, and make us hate disbelief, immorality and disobedience. O Allah, I seek from You guidance, virtue, purification of the soul and being self-sufficient.
O Allah, Show us the essence of truth and grant us the will to follow it. May Allah also mend our intentions, grant that our spouses and our offspring be a joy to our eyes and make success be an ally to us. O Allah, we seek Your favour to raise our status, increase our good deeds, remove from us our misdeeds and cause us to die with the righteous.
O Allah, we implore You at this instant not to let a sin unforgiven, a distress unrelieved, an illness unhealed or a handicapped without relief, a dead without mercy or a debt unsettled. Our Lord, give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire.
May Allah grant our leader HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his Deputy, HH Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, success and provide strength and assistance to his brothers, Their Highness The Rulers of the Emirates, and his trustworthy Crown Prince HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
O Allah, forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead, and make blessings follow us and them. May Allah have mercy on Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Maktoum and all their brothers, the Late UAE Sheikhs. 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.
O servants of Allah, remember Allah and He will remember you. Be grateful for His benevolence He will increase His blessings to you. Allah, the Most High, says, "And establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Al Ankaboot: 45).
Translation
Mostapha El Mouloudi
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