The day of Arafah and the day of Eid

Dear brothers, as mentioned in last week’s khutba, we are now in the month of Dhul-Hijjah.

This is the month in which the Hajj is performed by millions of Muslims all over the world and followed by Eid.

We also mentioned last week how the Prophet SAWS spoke of the first ten days of this month leading up to Eid and that specifically they are days in which good deeds are worth more to Allah SWT.

The day of Arafa also holds great importance in Islam because this is the day when Allah SWT completed his revelation on his messenger SAWS. It was on the day of Arafah when the following verse from Sura Al-Maidah was revealed:

This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed my favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.

The imam mentioned the hadith also of the prophet SAWS in which he explicitly revealed to us that the reward for fasting on the day of Arafah is that it removes the sins from the previous year and forgives the sins for the year ahead. And so, this is a day we cannot afford to treat like another.

And so, we conclude with 3 tips we can adhere to in order to make the most of this day:

1. Fast. Our beloved Prophet SAWS recommended non-pilgrims to fast on this blessed day as it removes the sins of the past year and the sins of the upcoming year.

Dear brothers, what greater incentive do we need here? To fast next Friday for just under 13 hours will remove two years’ worth of sins.

• Pray. Try to perform even 2 units of obligatory prayer. Remember, this is the day in which the deeds weigh heavy and what is an extra 2 minutes or so in front of your Lord in comparison?

• Supplicate. There is no better day to ask from your Lord than this day. Just imagine dear brothers, you have fasted on the day of Arafat, performed obligatory prayers during your fast and on the moment, you open your fast you ask of your Lord. Wouldn’t you want that moment for you, your family and your afterlife?

We also have the day of Eid that follows and similarly, we have the opportunity to make the most of this day. It is a day where celebration is permitted to us and we should celebrate as this is the correct way. We should take time off our usual routine like work or study and we should spend it with family and close friends.

Regarding the day itself, there are etiquettes we ought to follow. They are repeated in today’s reminder so that we can seek the reward from Allah SWT. They are:

1. Recite takbeer. The masjid usually does this before the prayer so arrive early and participate with the others.
2. Perform the sacrifice. This can be done either in person or via the various charities that offer this service.
3. On the day, perform ghusl, put on your best clothes and come to the masjid on a different route to the one you leave.
4. Pray your Eid prayer and stay for the khutba that is said afterwards, this is an equally important part of your worship.
5. Lastly, show happiness and positivity to your family, your neighbours and to everyone you meet. Let them understand that this is a day that Muslims celebrate, within permitted boundaries of course!

Dear brothers, we have a great opportunity to reap the reward in a challenging year for us all. Let us adhere to this reminder and be from amongst those who were referred to by the Prophet SAWS when he said that there isn’t a day in which Allah SWT forgives His slaves from the hellfire than the day of Arafah.