Islamic Religious Council of Singapore
Eidul Fitri Sermon
20 September 2009M / 1 Syawwal 1430H
Eidul Fitri Reinforces The Value of Compassion for Muslims
Alhamdulillah, the highest of praises be to You O Allah, The Most Compassionate, The Most Merciful. You have completed your blessings to Your servants. You have chosen the path of success that You please for Your servants. You have granted help to Your servants to pursue all goodness. You fill the hearts of Your servants with compassion and kindness. There is no God worthy of worship except You O Allah. You deserve all praises and all gratitude.
Dearest Muslim brothers and sisters,
“He who purifies it (i.e. the soul) will indeed be successful. And he will indeed fail who corrupts it (i.e. the soul).” This is stated by Allah s.w.t. in Surah al-Shams verses 9-10.
On this glorious morning, may each of us, male and female, young and old, be more conscious of Allah s.w.t. through taqwa, after a whole month of training in Ramadan. May our hearts shine with the bright torch of iman (faith) and pureness.
On this victorious morning, let us reflect on ourselves for the past month, what has been the impact of Ramadan on our spirituality?
Has Ramadan made us shed tears, out of repentance and sincerity in seeking Allah’s forgiveness and mercy?
Has Ramadan reinvigorated our iman, so that we are more conscious of Allah s.w.t. through taqwa, at all places and times?
Has Ramadan rejuvenated our strive to continuously do al-birr and al-ma’ruf, that is all good acts and kindness, which will cheer up friends and families?
Has the Holy Quran, our companion throughout Ramadan, inject new life to our resolve to appreciate the beauty of the religion of Allah and His Prophet s.a.w.?
Has Ramadan made us more resilient individuals, who will not be easily weakened by adversity?
Has Ramadan made us into more patient and grateful human beings?
Has Ramadan inculcated in us the value of compassion and kindness?
May our answers to all these questions be ”Yes”. Indeed, O Allah, with the passing of Ramadan, we have repented and are more sincere to You. We are more conscious of You, O Allah. We want to continue doing good to those around us, O Allah. We are prepared to appreciate the beauty of Your religion, by understanding Your Holy Quran, and following Your Prophet and Messenger. We are more resilient, with a deeper spirituality. We are more patient and more grateful to You, O Allah.
Dearest Muslim brothers and sisters,
Such is how Allah s.w.t. and His beloved Prophet s.a.w. desire everlasting goodness and happiness for humankind. We are bestowed with the month of Ramadan, to reinvigorate and rejuvenate the human soul which can easily become weak and distracted, so that we can continue in our strive to do good in our lives. Through Ramadan, we are also equipped with values which can become our guide in leading a very challenging life.
Indeed, Ramadan reinforces the meanings of these noble values through all acts that we are encouraged to perform in that month. One of the most important values is rahmah, or compassion. Compassion is an attribute of Allah that we often recite
“In the name of Allah, The Most Compassionate, The Most Merciful.”
Our lives are full of the mercy and compassion of Allah s.w.t. He loves His servants, and constantly bestows upon us His blessings. Even when we commit wrong, He is ready to forgive those who repent and seek His forgiveness.
The value of rahmah has always been a key characteristic of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. His personality reflects this value very strongly. Read about him, whether in his family life, or community life, and indeed with his friends and enemy, you will find that the Prophet s.a.w. reflected the value of rahmah in everything he did and said.
We bear witness, O Messenger of Allah, that you carry the torch of rahmah, and that you are most compassionate to your ummah. We resolve to carry this responsibility of rahmah with sincerity and seriousness in our lives.
Dearest Muslim brothers and sisters,
Let us reflect on our activities in Ramadan, where we take our pre-dawn meal (sahur) and breakfast (iftar) together, and perform our prayers, both the obligatory and sunnah in congregation, and we pay the zakat and contribute to charity to help the poor and needy. All these acts will strengthen the compassion between us. They remind us of our weaknesses as individuals, and the beauty and strength of community and congregation life. They remind us of our need for others. In such situations, and in establising good relations with others, the value of rahmah and compassion should be our guiding principle. Infact, this value should colour all actions and words of the believers.
Our beloved Prophet s.a.w. said:
”Believers, in their love, compassion and care for each other, are like a single human body. If part of the body suffers from pain, the whole body feels the pain and goes sleepless with fever.” (Hadis narrated by al-Bukhari)
In another hadith, the Holy Prophet s.a.w. said:
”Your iman is incomplete, until you like for your brother, what you like for yourself.” (Hadis narrated by Muslim)
Dear brothers and sisters,
This modern world, with its advancements and luxury, with its speed and facility, with its economic progress and its expanse, have, and will continue to provide new contexts and meanings to rahmah or compassion. The value of compassion remains relevant till this day. Infact, it will become more critical and much more needed in our lives today.
If in the past, life in the villages and the spirit of gotong-royong (helping one another) had strengthened the value of rahmah, today, our busy lives may make us more distant from each other, and concomitantly, weaken the rahmah and compassion between us. Say our relationship with our parents. Do our busy schedules and our status in society distance us from our parents, or lessen our respect and compassion for them?
In our community life, although we may meet each other lesser today, there are still many opportunities, whether in our mosques, or during our Eid visits, for example, to continue with good relations between us.
Let us remember what Allah s.w.t. says in Surah al-Balad verse 17:
“Then will he be of those who believe, and remind each other about patience, (constancy, and self-restraint), and remind each other about deeds of kindness and compassion.”
If in the past, we have lived only within our community which was homogeneous, today, globalisation has made the flow of people all over the world easier and more frequent. There will be Muslims from other parts of the world in any community. Diversity will become a feature of our community.
Similarly, with better education of Muslims, diversity of views and opinions, even in matters of religion, will become a common feature. However, does this mean we will be obsessed with our views, and think of ours as the only right and superior ones, and all others as wrong and inferior?
On the contrary, the value of rahmah and compassion will unite all of us, in the purpose and goal to seek the truth and the best for our community. This value will also let us celebrate the diversity of views which are founded on sound principles and reasoning. This value of rahmah will encourage us to work together, help one another, and coordinate our efforts to overcome the challenges of our community collectively. It will prevent us from breaking apart. We will instead share the load. Despite this diversity of views and opinions, we love our brothers and we still respect them, Diversity is a challenge, and for this, Allah s.w.t. has reminded us about it, so that we are better prepared to deal with it.
“And if your Lord had pleased, He would certainly have made people a single nation, and they shall continue to differ. Except those on whom your Lord has mercy; and for this did He create them.” (Surah Hud verses 118-119)
If in the past, there may not have been much exposure to the outside world of our religious life. But today, we live in a very open world. Our neighbours and colleagues come from other cultures and religious traditions. This is a common feature of our community life today. But the value of rahmah and compassion will encourage and guide us to be good neighbours and colleagues as part of a diverse society. With rahmah, we will not exclude any groups from our contributions and assistance.
Allah s.w.t. reminds us in Surah Al-Mumtahanah verse 8:
”Allah does not forbid you respecting those who have not made war against you on account of (your) religion, and have not driven you forth from your homes, that you show them kindness and deal with them justly; surely Allah loves the doers of justice.”
Brothers and Sisters, may you be blessed by Allah s.w.t.,
Let us grow this value of rahmah (compassion) inculcated in us by the month of Ramadan. Live our lives on the basis of rahmah. Be compassionate with our family members. Be compassionate with our parents. Be compassionate with our wives, husbands and children. Be compassionate with our colleagues and friends. Be compassionate with our fellow brothers and sisters. Be compassionate with our community and all mankind. There is no better time for us to internalise and appreciate the value of compassion than this glorious morning of Eid. When we meet our brothers, shake their hands and seek forgiveness from each other, let us appreciate the value of compassion taught to us by Islam.
Let us make this very important reminder of the Holy Prophet s.a.w. as our guide and principle.
”Do not harbour envy towards each other, do not hate one another, do not turn away from your brother, do not cut your brother’s trade, be servants of Allah who are brothers to one another. Muslims are brothers to one another, thus he will not be unjust, nor will he insult, nor lie to him, nor curse him. Taqwa is here, (The Prophet s.a.w pointed to his heart 3 times). A Muslim should not insult his brother. Every Muslim is protected, his life, his wealth and his honour.” (Hadis narrated by Muslim)
O Allah, bless our unity and the relationship that we strive to establish between us. Unite our hearts in obeying You and Your beloved Prophet. Please accept our deeds, despite its shortcomings. Bless us with Your pleasure and acceptance. Help us to remain steadfast on Your chosen path. Bless us with Your mercy and compassion O Allah, The Most Compassionate, The Most Merciful.
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