When the Example Comes from Kashmir

Praise be to Allah (SWT) and Blessings on Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

You are indeed the best community that has ever been brought forth for humanity [for its well-being]: you require [and authorize] the doing of the common good and you disallow [and interdict] the common wrong, and you are committed to Allah. […] [Ali ‘Imran, 3:110]

This week’s attempt by India’s central government to impose a uniform khutbah on the khateebs of Jammu and Kashmir should invite us to reflect on the need for us to keep the power to decide the content of our own khutbahs. Indeed, the Waqf Board of occupied Kashmir, which is headed by ulema in the pay of the government, decided unilaterally and without consultation, to impose a uniform khutbah whose content will be decided by the Board alone. Fortunately, many ‘alims and khateebs have raised their voices to express their opposition to this initiative, declaring that they are the ones who are aware of society’s problems, such as the drug situation or immorality, since they are closer to the masses.

They stated plainly their opposition to the interference of politicians in the khutbah. And the lesson to be learned: these molvis and other scholars affirmed a common position despite their differences in schools of thought, whether Deobandi, Barelvi or others. More than three years after we first began this reflection here on the need to revalue the khutbah, these developments in India allow us to prompt a new reflection within the Ummah on the need to give the mimbar the importance it deserves, and on its objectives. It is also worth recalling that in a large part of the Arab world, mosques are under the control of intelligence services. They decide who speaks and who delivers the Friday sermon. Those who refused to comply have ended up in prison.

Here at home, however, given the generally mediocre and soporific quality of khutbahs, the risk of the State imposing a uniform khutbah on us would be negligible, despite the presence of intelligence services in the masajid every Friday. Nevertheless, the Waqf Board’s control over Imams, in the form of an allowance, should make us vigilant.

[This is the fact of the matter]: the committed muslims are those who [eagerly] commit to Allah and His Apostle, and from there on have no second thoughts, and [who] strive and struggle with their wealth and selves in Allah’s [outlined] course [in life]: those are the ones who are true [to their divine commitment]. [Al Hujurat, 49:15]

As for the quality of the khutbah, can we hope that the mimbar, or the khateeb, will call for reflection on the effects of climate change, the scale of migration and human trafficking, or the Muslim’s position in the face of the ravages of drugs, gambling and social media addiction?

The khutbah is recognized as having three essential roles: to educate, to inform and to raise awareness. Most khutbahs in Mauritius focus on the first two, educating and informing the audience in order to guide it. It is also essential to recognize the khutbah’s spiritual role, that is, the desirable influence of its reminders on Muslims. The khutbah, as we know, is part of the Friday prayer and therefore deserves respectful attention and reflection.

Nevertheless, listening to sermons that are very often incomprehensible or disconnected from people’s reality has become an ordeal for those who think, or a custom accepted in spite of oneself. For the intellectual, there is no harder struggle than listening to mediocre, soporific speeches delivered from the mimbars. We dare not believe that the content of these khutbahs is part of a strategy to divert us from critical thinking.

It must be remembered that the mimbar is symbolically that of the Prophet Muhammad (saw), and speaking from it carries an enormous responsibility. It is a sanctified position. According to scholars, it is also a commitment between the speaker and the congregation, a pact of trust that the speaker will address the subjects most relevant to Muslims.

The khutbahs of the Prophet (saw) consisted, among other things, of reminding the faithful of the means to improve their moral and material condition; urging them to worship the Lord alone and to observe the Sunnah. The Prophet (saw) also denounced the control of thought and ideology by the Quraysh and called for commitment to making the deen of Allah (swt) prevail.

If the mimbar of the Prophet (saw) cannot grasp the scope of the discrimination and Islamophobia suffered by Muslims, if it cannot understand the aims of the genocide in the lands of Tawheed, then something is wrong with us. If the mimbar of the Prophet (saw) is indifferent to the threats of the Taghout system revealed by the paedophiles, cannibals and exploiters of young girls of the Epstein gang, it is a sign that the Ummah is heading toward its ruin, having agreed to submit to the new version of jahiliyyah.

On another note, the position that the khutbah should be apolitical or stay away from politics is nonsense in a world where all decisions are political. Remaining silent in the face of injustice and abuse is political, for it is indeed a stance: that of indifference. Yet the Prophet Muhammad (saw) urges us to practise hisbah, that is, to invite to good and forbid evil. By defying and condemning unjust practices in Makkah, the Prophet Muhammad (saw) assumed a role that was no less political. This is why his call to “La ilaha illa Allah” was met with so much opposition.

It must be acknowledged that many subjects fall under decisions made by political leaders and therefore cannot be detached from politics. Decisions that fall within politics, such as the legalisation of sodomy, the probable legalisation of civil gay marriage, or the envisaged decriminalisation of cannabis, are likely to affect our daily lives as Muslims.

He it is who has sent forth His Apostle [Muhammad] with the [task of spreading] guidance and the deen of truth, to the end that He may cause it to prevail over all [false] deen — however hateful this may be to those who ascribe divinity to anyone/anything beside Allah.  [At Tawbah, 9:33]

This verse urges us to make the deen of Allah, the Islamic ideology, prevail over other ideologies. If we held ourselves, for a moment, to the commands contained in this verse, we would realize how the mimbar of the Prophet (saw) has been devalued. The worshipper expects the khutbah to be a reminder, a prompt to reflection. Because of colonialism’s influence on our minds, the role of the mimbar of the Prophet (saw), of this institution that the khutbah represents, has been degraded and devalued. In the Muslim psyche, the khutbah has become merely a ritual, a formality.

Finally, the khutbah and the Friday prayer serve to promote fraternity, solidarity and a sense of belonging to society, qualities that strengthen the social fabric of the community. It is an immense opportunity to bring people closer to Allah and to the deen al-Islam.

All committed muslims are but brothers [of each other]. Hence, [whenever such conflict occurs] reconcile your two brothers and avoid Allah [His corrective power presence] so that you may be blessed. [Al Hujurat, 49:10]

May Allah (swt) guide and help us.