Giving Thanks
| Khatib : |
Sadullah Khan |
| Khutbah No: |
125 |
| Khutbah Date: |
11/26/04 |
[i]We created the human being from a drop of mingled sperm, in order to test him:We gave him the faculties of hearing and sight and provided him with guidance; whether he be grateful or ungrateful (depends on him).[/i] [Qur’an 76: 2-3] Being thankful/grateful is an essential part of our faith and way of life and there are over seventy verses in the Qur’an pertaining to shukr/thankfulness.[b]Thankfulness to the Creator[/b]The concept of being grateful to Allah, is to realize and acknowledge that every kind of grace and favor is granted ultimately by Allah. In the Qur’an,[Q 2:152][Q 14:7] the opposite of [i]shukr[/i] being grateful/thankful is defined by the term kufr disbelief, which is synonymous here with being ungrateful. This definition indicates the importance attached to being grateful and equates thankfulness to worship. [i]O you who believe! Eat of the good things that We have provided for you, and be grateful to Allah, if it is Him you worship.[/i] [Q2:172] The choice of a person in this world being grateful or ungrateful is explicitly considered a clear sign of faith or disbelief.[i]“If you would calculate up the favors of Allah, never would you be able to enumerate them: Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” [Q 16:18][/i] Let alone counting up the favors of Allah, it not conceivable to categorize them. Since there is no limit to the favors of Allah, a believer should unceasingly keep himself occupied with the remembrance of Allah and express his gratefulness to Him. Some people wait for special occasions only to render thanks to Allah; settlement of a major problem, recovering from a serious sickness, often before (but rarely after) exams … However, if one reflects for a moment, he would instantly comprehend that he is always surrounded with infinite favors, at every moment, every minute, there is an uninterrupted flow of favors reaching him; life, good health, intelligence, consciousness, five senses, the air we breaths; in brief, everything that makes life possible is given to the human being as a [i]ni’mah[/i]/favor and an [i]amaanah[/i]/trust. In return for all these, a person is expected to serve Allah in gratitude. Those who are heedless of these favors and accordingly neglect to turn to Allah for expressing their gratefulness, only acknowledge the importance of these favors when they are deprived of them.[b]Thankfulness to Creation[/b]Being grateful is to render one’s thanks to someone who has shown favor, to express gratitude and to appreciate.The ethical dimension to gratitude demands genuine thankfulness proportionate to the blessings received, never to deny those blessings nor devalue the worth of those who so bless us. It is perchance with this in mind that our beloved Prophet reminded us:[i] "Whosoever is not thankful to people is not thankful to God."[/i]Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was asked,[i] “Who are the best of people?”[/i]. The Prophet replied; [i]Those who are cheerful when they do good, who repent when they do wrong, who are grateful when they receive, who show patience when in difficulty and pardon when they are angered.[/i]
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