Note: The following transcript was generated using AI and may contain inaccuracies.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
And with Him I seek help. And I pray and I send greetings to the Master of the Prophets and Messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be the best prayer and the most complete submission. As for the rest, indeed, the favours of Allah are many.
And Allah said, "And if you count the favour of Allah, you will not count it."
Indeed, the greatest favour that Allah, the Exalted in His Glory, bestows upon the servant is the favour of Islam. It exceeds the favour of wealth, the favour of health, and the rest of the favours. It is from the Grace of Allah, the Exalted in His Glory, upon the parents and from His care for them, that Allah, the Exalted in His Glory, guides me to supplication: "O my Lord, grant me to thank You for the favour that You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and that I should do righteousness that pleases You."
Being kind to one's parents is great. From this is to thank man for the favour that Allah, the Exalted in His Glory, bestows upon him and upon his parents. Some scholars have mentioned that the meaning of the word Shukra, the favour, is the greatest and most important thing.
It is to introduce the servant to the Oneness of Allah and to guide him to accept this Oneness of Allah and to act in obedience to Allah, the Exalted in His Glory. This is the greatest favour that has been mentioned, and it was intended by the people of knowledge in this statement.
We find in the words of the predecessors of the Companions, the followers, and the Imams of Islam, many statements in favor of this great religion. This favour is the favour of Islam. From this is that Abdullah ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, and the rest of the Companions say, "I have never been happier with anything in Islam than the fact that nothing of these desires has entered my heart."
The happiest thing in the religion of Islam is the fact that nothing of these desires has entered my heart. We find in the words of Imam Mujahid, may Allah have mercy on him, when he says, "I do not know which of the two favours is better, to be guided to Islam or to be protected from desires." The favour of Islam is a great favour.
But if you become Muslim and follow the desires, you may be misguided, miserable, and leave the favour of Islam. Islam is a favour. Monotheism is a favour. The Sunnah is a favour. With monotheism and the Sunnah, you remain and remain firm on the religion of Islam. Ikrimah, may Allah have mercy on him, and this is not in accordance with the law, but from the point of view of the lesson, he says, "A Prophet from among the Prophets complained to Allah, the hungry and the naked, and Allah revealed to him, 'Are you not pleased that I have blocked the door of polytheism from you?'" As I said, this needs proof, to a Prophet from among the Prophets, but the lesson is that monotheism is the greatest favour.
The favour of food, the favour of clothing, the favour of money, the favour of luxury—this world, with all its luxuries, no matter how great these favours are, they are not equal to the favour of Islam. So, praise be to Allah for this religion.
Praise be to Allah for Islam, for the understanding of the Ummah's predecessors, who, out of their obligations, is the sole unification of Allah. Out of his obligation is to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet, and out of his obligation is to stay away from the people of innovation, their ways, and their methods. We ask Allah for success and success.
We also find traces in the statement of the favour of Islam, the favour of monotheism, and the favour of the Sunnah, as stated by Abu Al-Aaliyah, may Allah have mercy on him. "I do not know which of the two favours is greater for me, if Allah has brought me out of monotheism to Islam, or if He has made me strong in Islam, that I become from the people of innovation." Sufyan Ibn Uyayyina, may Allah have mercy on him, says, "Allah has not bestowed upon His servants a favour that is greater than that He has introduced them to the fact that there is no god but Allah."
That is why it is one of the greatest favours upon you, and it is greater than that Allah has introduced you to Islam, to the Sunnah, to monotheism, and to innovation. The favour of Islam is a great favour, so congratulations to those who have been raised as Muslims, but Allah should be praised for this favour, and Allah should ask for steadfastness for this favour. Allah should be grateful for this favour, and gratitude should be with the heart, and with the tongue, as a praise to Allah and a gratitude, "O our Lord, for the favour of Islam."
And it should be through action, by obeying Allah, by obeying the commandments of Allah and the commandments of His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, and by abstaining from all that Allah has forbidden. This is how gratitude should be. As for those whom Allah has honoured with guidance and by entering the religion of Islam, then congratulations to them and congratulations to them.
How? By the mercy of Islam, by the mercy of the religion of Islam, by the mercy of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Allah, the Exalted, has allowed man, after entering Islam, to be driven away from it, to be taken away from it, to be cast out from it, all the evils, no matter how great they are, and the biggest of them is polytheism and disbelief in Allah. Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, destroys what is before it. Add to that that Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, honors him by saying that whatever good he did prior to his disbelief is preserved for him after his Islam.
Polytheism is a waste of work. If it remained on his disbelief and polytheism, it would not benefit him in any good deed. But when he became Muslim, Allah erased from him all the evils, including polytheism and disbelief, and the good deeds remained for him, and whatever good he did prior to his Islam, all of that is preserved for him.
And do you find a favor and generosity greater than this generosity? No, by Allah. Man disbelieves in his Lord and polytheists. And Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, by His repentance, and it may be a year or a month or a day prior to his death, and Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, by His generosity, honors this servant by his Islam, and by his monotheism, and by his concern for the Sunnah, and to keep away from polytheism, creativity, and whims, that the good deeds remain for him prior to his Islam, even if it remained on his disbelief.
We thank our Lord for all the favors that are required, but the greatest favor that Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, has bestowed upon us is the favor of Islam. This is why our Lord, Glorified and Sublime be He, says, "And remember the favor of Allah upon you, when you were enemies, and He brought your hearts together, and you became, by His favor, brothers, and you were on the edge of a pit of fire, and He saved you from it." Allah is the Greatest.
Islam brought security, brotherhood, love, enmity, hatred, and they became, by the favor of Islam, brothers. The greatest favor is how they were disbelievers, polytheists, on the edge of a pit of fire. If one of them died, he would go to hell.
But Allah, Glorified and Sublime be He, honored them by entering this great religion. This is a reminder from our Lord, Glorified and Sublime be He, from His fruits, that man should thank his Lord for this favor. May Allah praise Him for this favor, that He guided him to Islam.
We must, with gratitude to Allah, ask Allah for stability. We ask Allah for stability in this religion. Praise be to Allah for what our Lord has blessed us with.
And we ask Him to bless us and honor us, as He honored us with Islam, with stability in this religion. I ask Allah to give me and you stability. And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And peace and blessings be upon the Master of the Prophets and Messengers.
