…Eid-ul-Fitr requires no introduction and it undoubtedly is an occasion specific to happiness and joy all around. However, in observance a Muslim must not forget that these celebrations need to be thanked for, and in celebrations one also needs to make the less fortunate a part of it so that they could also celebrate Eid, and the spirit of this blessing is revived.
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Bestower of Mercy
Verily, all good praises are for Allah. We seek His help and His forgiveness. We seek refuge with Allah from the evil of our own souls and from our bad deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides will never be led astray, and whomsoever Allah leaves astray, no one can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, He is alone without any partner and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.
“O you who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islam (as Muslims) with complete submission to Allah.” [Surah Ali Imran, 3:102]
“O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person, and from him He created his wife, and from them both He created many men and women, and fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (do not cut the relations of) the wombs (kinship) Surely, Allah is Ever an All-Watcher over you).” [Surah An-Nisa’, 4:1]
“O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allah and fear Him, and speak (always) the truth. He will direct you to do righteous good deeds and will forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger (Pbuh) he has indeed achieved a great achievement (i.e. he will be saved from the Hellfire and made to enter Paradise).” [Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:70-71]
Verily the best of speech is the Book of Allah and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (Pbuh). The worst of affairs are the newly-invented affairs (in the religion) and every newly invented affair in the religion is an innovation and every innovation is misguidance and all misguidance is in the hellfire. As to what proceeds:
Servants of Allah! With the start of the month of Ramadan, where Muslims plan how they are going to spend each and every moment of this month with good deeds, prayer and worship of Allah Almighty, they also plan on how they are going to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr that would come at the end of Ramadan.
O Muslims! The Eid after Ramadan is one of the most awaited events among Muslims, and Muslims from across the globe make special preparations for this day, as it is a day of spreading and sharing of joy and happiness. My today’s Sermon discusses the Eid-ul-Fitr as a blessing and the major duties and obligations a Muslim must undertake and perform, pertinent to Eid-ul-Fitr.
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Brothers and Sisters! Besides the fact that on the day of Eid there is joy and bliss all around, the festival of Eid-ul-Fitr itself is a blessing from Allah Almighty. Therefore, the notion that Muslims celebrate this Eid as an end of Ramadan, in commemoration of someone or as an occasion that has been fabricated by latter Muslims is wrong. Rather it has existed since the time of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) and it is a blessing of Allah which He bestowed upon Muslims. Anas (RA) narrates about Eid in the following way:
“Noble Prophet (Pbuh) came to Madinah, the people had two days in which they used to entertain and amuse themselves. He asked: “What are these two days?” They said: “We used to amuse ourselves and take pleasure in these two days during the Days of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah). The Messenger of Allah said: “Allah has substituted for you something better than these two; the Eid of Adha (sacrifice) and the Eid of Fitr.” [Sunan Abi Dawud]
Therefore, both the festivals of Eid are, actually, occasions of joy and happiness given by Allah Almighty to Muslims, hence, there is no attribution of Eid to anyone else, nor are there any connotations.
My respected people! Although Eid-ul-Fitr is an occasion of joy and happiness, however, this joy and happiness does not come with the general connotations where celebrations are without any boundaries and abrupt. Rather, the celebrations of Eid also come with certain constraints in the form of duties and obligations. These duties and obligations come in the form of Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) and the things he used to do on the day of Eid.
My people! The first major obligation pertaining to Eid-ul-Fitr is the offering of Eid prayer. Eid being an occasion of celebration does not mean that on that day a Muslim can forget Allah and indulge in pure pleasures and merry making. Rather, praying to Allah on the day of Eid means that a Muslim understands and realises the fact that all the joy and pleasure in his life is a blessing of Allah and He needs to be thanked for it. Jabir bin Samurah tells about the offering of Eid prayer by Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) in the following way:
“I prayed with the Messenger of Allah the two Eid prayers more than once or twice, without an Adhan or Iqamah.” (Sahih Muslim)
Therefore, the offering of Eid prayer was a routine of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh), hence every Muslim must also try to offer this prayer and start the day of Eid-ul-Fitr with the worship of Allah and by being grateful to Him.
Dear Brothers and Sisters! Islam is a religion that pays great emphasis on giving charity. The emphasis on charity increases even more when there is the need of making joy and happiness available from it to the less fortunate ones. The celebrations of Eid-ul-Fitr are a perfect occasion when being charitable can lead to others being happy and joyful. In this regard, Islam gives the concept of Sadaqah-tul-Fitr, which is alms giving that has to be offered before the offering of Eid-ul-Fitr prayer. The right time for offering this Sadaqah is between the Fajr and Eid-ul-Fitr prayer. However, the Sadaqah can also be offered during the month of Ramadan so that the less fortunate can have time to buy necessary things with which they can celebrate their Eid in a better way. Therefore, a Muslim must consider this Sadaqah as an obligatory act pertaining to the celebrations of Eid-ul-Fitr and offer it before the prayer.
Fellow Muslims! For a sincere Muslim the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) is the best example and every one wishes to imitate Him as much as possible. Pertaining to Eid-ul-Fitr, besides the prayer of Eid and the Sadaqah Fitr, there are other elements of Sunnah of Prophet (Pbuh) specific to that day. Some general Sunnahs, which a Muslim must try to observe during Eid day, are as follows:
The first Sunnah is of waking up early in the morning. Eid day does not mean that a Muslim is free from the obligatory prayer of Fajr, rather on the day of Eid as well, a Muslim must wake up at the time of Fajr and offer the prayer.
After the prayer one should prepare the dress and other wearable things that are to be worn when going for the Eid prayer. Therefore, the things need to be ready once a person goes for a bath.
Taking shower on the day of Eid before wearing new clothes is a Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) and a Muslim must also make sure that before wearing on clean clothes he is also clean in bodily respect as well.
If the clothes are new then well and good. If new ones are not available then one must wear the best clothes and on those best clothes one must apply perfume as well to ensure that one is best prepared for the prayer.
It is also a Sunnah that before going for prayer, a Muslim should eat breakfast or anything that is available in the house. The same thing is done after the prayer in the case of Eid-ul-Adha.
Offering the Eid-ul-Fitr prayer with congregation is also a Sunnah. Therefore, unless there are any dire circumstances, other than that, a Muslim must offer the Eid prayer with the congregation.
Pertaining to Eid-ul-fitr, another Sunnah of Prophet (Pbuh) was that he would go to the Mosque from one way and come back home from the other way so that He could meet and greet as much people as possible on the day of Eid.
Servants of Allah! As mentioned above, the festivity of Eid is known to every person in the globe and it is a ritual, which is celebrated by Muslims to commemorate the end of Ramadan, to rejoice in the blessings afterwards. The literal meanings of Eid are happiness and joy because Muslims all over the world celebrate it with zeal and fervour. As per the Islamic calendar, there are two Eids, Eid-ul-fitr and Eid-ul-Adha, the former comes after Ramadan and the later comes after performing Hajj.
Muslims celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with more energy than the rest because they have fasted throughout the month of Ramadan and have worshiped and prayed exclusively and extensively. When Eid approaches, Muslims consider this festivity as their reward, whereas in the other Eid, Muslims have no motivation left to celebrate it with the same passion except in the remembrance of Sacrifice that dated back to Prophet Ibrahim (AS)’s historic and imperative sacrifice of his son in the path of Allah.
The festivity of Eid-ul-Fitr, as I said, is not a fabricated and self-proclaimed festival but a gift from Allah to reward the Muslims. It is neither celebrated in the remembrance of anyone or any event but is totally a reward from Allah for all the worshippers who have done a great Ibadah, a great worship in the path of Allah and have done Tarawih, long standing throughout the night of Ramadan. Companions of Prophet Muhammad have narrated routines of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh), which he used to do on this blessed day of Eid.
Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) started his day with the offering of Eid Salah (Prayer) about which it is narrated:
“I prayed with the Messenger of Allah the two Eid prayers more than once or twice, without an Adhan or Iqamah.” [Sahih Muslim]
Eating food or especially sweets is something that is a must thing to do on this day. It was the routine of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) to eat dates as a sweet thing on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr before performing Eid prayers:
“Prophet (Pbuh) did not go (to the place of prayer) in the morning on the days of Eid-ul-Fitr till he ate some dates, and he used to eat an odd number.” [Sahih Bukhari]
Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) was accustomed of changing paths while walking back from prayers and going to the Mosque on that special day:
“On the day of Eid the Noble Prophet (Pbuh) used to return by a different route from the one he had taken when going out.” [Sahih Bukhari]
Brothers and Sisters! There are a few practices, which you can adopt and act upon on the blessed day of Eid:
Sleep Early: Yes, this is odd yet beneficial on this imperative day. What we all usually do is to shop late into the night in the market, and then end up sleeping late, making us not to go early for Eid prayers. Sleeping early is the best practice, which will let you awake in the morning fresh, without any dizziness during the offerings of Salah (Prayer) in the morning.
Prepare Yourself In The Night: On this occasion, we all wear new clothes especially to the Mosque. Prepare yourself early in the night for the next big day so that you are not late for prayers. Take out your new clothes and shoes and press it, make all the preparations which are required for the Eid day and then arrange them accordingly.
Waking Up For Fajr: Fajr is the time when peace prevails and every living creature is in worship with Allah. Ramadan makes us in shape for offering Fajr prayer hence you should offer the prayers and make it a habit. Kickstart your Eid day with Eid prayers and make it a blessed one.
My people! In a nutshell, Eid-ul-Fitr requires no introduction and it undoubtedly is an occasion specific to happiness and joy all around. However, in observance a Muslim must not forget that these celebrations need to be thanked for, and in celebrations one also needs to make the less fortunate a part of it so that they could also celebrate Eid, and the spirit of this blessing is revived.
I ask Allah to give us the ability to restrain our desires and to willingly submit ourselves to His will.
Oh Allah, the Almighty, make our country Nigeria safe and the other Muslim countries in general. Oh Lord of the universe, jinn and mankind assist our Acting President Osinbajo in governing this great country. Bless him with the power, the wisdom, the knowledge, and the energy to take Nigeria to a greater heights.
Oh Allah, protect our safety, our Iman and our peace in our native lands and rectify those placed in authority over our affairs (our leaders), and don’t hold us to account for that which the foolish amongst us have done, and protect us from trials the apparent and hidden of it.
Oh Allah, show us the truth for the truth and help us to follow it, and show us the falsehood for falsehood and help us to stay away from it, and make Iman the most beloved to us and beautify it in our hearts, and make disbelief, lewdness and rebellion most hated to us and make us from those who are guided.
Oh Allah, rectify our leaders, guide them to that which is good for themselves and to that which is good for us. Oh Allah make them a means for our safety, and make them a means for our word (unity) to be one, and make them a cause for our coming together, Yaa Al-Hayyu, Oh The Ever Living, The One who cannot die, Yaa Al-Qayyum, The Self Sustainer, Yaa Saami’, The Hearer of the supplication.
Oh Allah, safeguard our country. Oh Allah bring ease to the Nigerians from that which they face from sufferings. Oh Allah give us immediate ease. Oh Allah, give us victory with a happy outcome. Oh Allah, make ease for the Nigerians from every difficulty and from every suffering, Oh Hearer of the supplication, Oh Reliever from every distress, Oh answerer of the supplication, Oh Helper of the grieving, Oh ever living, Self Sustaining, Oh Hearer of the supplication, Oh Owner of Loftiness and Nobility!
Oh Allah! The Sustainer of Mankind! Remove the illness from our President Muhammadu Buhari, cure his disease. You are the One Who cures. There is no cure except Your cure. Grant us a cure that leaves no illness.
I ask Allah, the Mighty, the Lord of the Mighty Throne, to cure President Muhammadu Buhari.
Oh Allah! Our Lord and Sustainer! Grant us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and save us from the Fire of Jahannam (Hellfire).
I seek protection in the might of Allah and His power from the evil of what President Muhammadu Buhari is experiencing and of what he fear.
I ask Allah to assist us in living by the Quran and Sunnah. I pray that He lets us recognise the truth for what it is and helps us to follow it, and that He lets us see falsehood for what it is and helps us to avoid it.
O Allah! Guide us and protect us from the causes of ignorance and destruction! Save us from the defects of ourselves! Cause the last of our deeds to be the best and most righteous! And forgive all of us. Ameen.
My respected people! Anything good I have said in my today’s Khutbah (Sermon) is from Allah the Almighty, and any mistakes are my own and we seek refuge in Allah from giving wrong advice and from all forms of calamities and fitnah. And I ask Allah’s forgiveness if I stepped beyond bounds in anything I said or I do.
May Allah be praised; and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His Messenger Muhammad and upon his family and Companions.
With this I conclude my Khutbah (Sermon) and ask Allah, the Almighty and the sublime, to forgive all of our sins. So seek his forgiveness, He is all forgiving Most Merciful.
This Jumu’ah Khutbah (Friday Sermon) was prepared for delivery today, Friday, Ramadan 28, 1438 A.H. (June 23, 2017), By Imam Murtadha Muhammad Gusau, the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and Alhaji Abdurrahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene Kogi State Nigeria. He can be reached through: +2348038289761
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