Khutbah First

All praises are due to Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most ‎Generous, the One who has revealed the Quran in the month ‎of Ramadan. O Allah, our Lord, to You belongs all praise. We ‎believe in You, Your Angels, Your Divine Books, Your ‎Messengers, in the Last Day, and in Your Divine decree, both ‎its good and the apparent bad. We testify that there is nothing ‎worthy of worship except You, the uniquely One, who has no ‎partners in His one-ness. We are content with You as our ‎Lord, Islam as our religion, and our Sayyid, Sayyiduna ‎Muhammad, as our Prophet. O Allah, send Your peace and ‎blessings upon him and upon his family, his companions and ‎whomsoever follows him in guidance until the Last Day.‎

To Continue: I advise you, O slaves of Allah and myself, ‎with the Taqwa of Allah, for verily Allah says: ‎يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ ‏‏‌اعْبُدُوا ‌رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

O mankind, worship your Lord, who created you and those ‎before you, that you may become righteous [Qur'an: 2:21]‎

O You who are Fasting: Allah tells us:

‎شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِي أُنْزِلَ ‏فِيهِ الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِنَ الْهُدَى ‌وَالْفُرْقَانِ فَمَنْ شَهِدَ مِنْكُمُ ‏الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ

The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed ‎the Qur'an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of ‎guidance and criterion. So, whoever sights [the new moon ‎of] the month, let him fast it [Qur'an: 2:185]‎

Allah has singled out the month of Ramadan not just as as an ‎obligation to fast in, but as the month in which the Qur'an ‎was revealed. It was also the month in which the Angel Jibril ‎used to regularly meet the Prophet (peace and blessings of ‎Allah be upon him):

‎‏‌فِي كُلِّ لَيْلَةٍ مِنْ رَمَضَانَ فَيُدَارِسُهُ ‌القُرْآنَ

Jibril used to meet him every night during Ramadan to ‎revise the Qur'an with him. [Bukhari]‎

So, there is in fasting and in the recitation of the Qur'an a ‎common means by which we can bring about Taqwa in ‎ourselves. For they both regulate the manner in which we ‎spiritually proceed towards Allah, they represent means by ‎which we can purify our souls, and spiritually ascend in our ‎dispositions. As Allah says about fasting:

‎يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا ‏كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ ‌تَتَّقُونَ

O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it ‎was decreed upon those before you that you may become ‎righteous [Qur'an: 2:183]‎

About the Quran Allah says: ‎ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لَا رَيْبَ فِيهِ ‌هُدًى ‏لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance ‎for those conscious of Allah [Qur'an: 2:2]‎

So, the people of Taqwa are those who honor Allah as He ‎should be honored, this entails that they honor the Qur'an as ‎it should be honored and who recite it as it should be recited, ‎who reflect and ponder upon its verses as it should be ‎pondered. As Allah says:‎

كِتَابٌ ‌أَنْزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ مُبَارَكٌ لِيَدَّبَّرُوا آيَاتِهِ وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُولُو الْأَلْبَابِ

‎[This is] a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, [O ‎Muhammad], that they might reflect upon its verses and ‎that those of understanding would be reminded. [Qur'an: ‎‎38:29]‎

In other words, Allah is informing us that this Book which He ‎has revealed to us, contains much good, has deep benefit, ‎tremendous barakah, so that those who possess intellects and ‎deep understanding, who reflect upon its verses will attain ‎unto its deep meanings and then act upon what it is telling ‎them to do. As Allah says ‎وَهَذَا كِتَابٌ ‌أَنْزَلْنَاهُ مُبَارَكٌ فَاتَّبِعُوهُ

And this [Qur'an] is a Book We have revealed [which is] ‎blessed, so follow it. [Qur'an: 6:155]‎

So, the following of the Qur'an is what bequeaths lights in the ‎heart, contentment in ourselves, and true unconditional ‎happiness in our lives. As Allah says:

‎كِتَابٌ ‌أَنْزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ ‏لِتُخْرِجَ النَّاسَ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِمْ إِلَى صِرَاطِ الْعَزِيزِ ‏الْحَمِيدِ

‎[This is] a Book which We have revealed to you, [O ‎Muhammad], that you might bring mankind out of ‎darknesses into the light by permission of their Lord - to the ‎path of the Exalted in Might, the Praiseworthy [Qur'an: ‎‎14:1]‎

Allah is True when He says: ‎إِنَّ هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ يَهْدِي ‌لِلَّتِي ‌هِيَ ‏‏‌أَقْوَمُ

Indeed, this Qur'an guides to that which is most suitable ‎‎[Qur'an: 17:9]‎

O Allah aid us in our fast and recitation of Qu'ran, and bless ‎us with devotion to You, and accept all of us for Your ‎obedience and bless us with obedience towards Your ‎Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and ‎obedience towards those whom You have ordered us to show ‎obedience towards, in accordance with Your saying‏:‏

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ

O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the ‎Messenger and those in authority among you. [Qur'an: 4:59]‎

I say this and I seek forgiveness for myself and for you, so ‎seek His forgiveness, indeed He is the most forgiving, most ‎Merciful.‎

Second Khutbah

All praises are due to Allah, the uniquely One. And may peace ‎and blessings be upon our Sayyid, Sayyiduna Muhammad ‎‎(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and upon all of his ‎companions. I advise you slaves of Allah and myself with the ‎Taqwa of Allah, so have Taqwa of Him.‎

O Fasting Believers: Indeed both the fast and the recitation of ‎the Qur'an will intercede for their people on the Day of ‎Judgment. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon ‎him) said:

‎إِنَّ الصِّيَامَ وَالْقُرْآنَ ‌يَشْفَعَانِ لِلْعَبْدِ، يَقُولُ الصِّيَامُ: رَبِّ، ‏مَنَعْتُهُ الطَّعَامَ، وَالشَّهَوَاتِ بِالنَّهَارِ، فَشَفِّعْنِي فِيهِ، وَيَقُولُ الْقُرْآنُ: رَبِّ، ‏مَنَعْتُهُ النَّوْمَ بِاللَّيْلِ، فَشَفِّعْنِي فِيهِ، فَيَشْفَعَانِ

Fasting and the Qur’an intercede for a man. Fasting says, ‎‎‘O my Lord, I have kept him away from his food and his ‎passions by day, so accept my intercession for him.’ The ‎Qur’an says, ‘I have kept him away from sleep by night, so ‎accept my intercession for him.’ Then their intercession is ‎accepted. [Ahmad]‎

So, let us be of those who take advantage of these blessings O ‎slaves of Allah, these days and nights of Ramadan are limited ‎brothers and sisters. Let us do them justice. Let us recite the ‎Qur'an, ponder upon its meanings, for through this Allah ‎sends down His baraka and His peace and His mercy, through ‎this He increases blessings and raises our ranks. As the ‎Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:‎

مَنْ قَرَأَ حَرْفًا مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ فَلَهُ بِهِ حَسَنَةٌ، وَالْحَسَنَةُ بِعَشْرِ أَمْثَالِهَا

If anyone recites a letter of God’s Book he will be credited ‎with a good deed, and a good deed gets a tenfold reward. ‎‎[Tirmidhi]‎

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:‎

يُقَالُ لِصَاحِبِ الْقُرْآنِ: اقْرَأْ، وَارْقَ، وَرَتِّلْ كَمَا كُنْتَ تُرَتِّلُ فِي الدُّنْيَا، ‏فَإِنَّ ‌مَنْزِلَتَكَ عِنْدَ ‌آخِرِ ‌آيَةٍ تَقْرَؤُهَا

The one who was devoted to the Qur’ān will be told to ‎recite, ascend and recite carefully as he recited carefully ‎when he was in the world, for he will reach his abode when ‎he comes to the last verse he recites. [Tirmidhi]‎

So O Allah intercede for us with the Qur'an and the fast, and ‎make it a means by which we can increase in our faith, guide ‎us in our characters, give us baraka in our homes, light in our ‎lives, healing in our hearts, and a raising in our ranks, ‎increase our good, and send your mercy upon us, o Most-‎Merciful of the Merciful. And send Your prayers and ‎blessings upon all of the Prophets and Messengers, especially ‎on the seal of them, our master, our Prophet, Sayyiduna ‎Muhammad. O Allah send Your peace and blessings upon ‎him, and upon his family, his companions, all of them. And ‎send your blessings upon the righteous and rightly guided ‎Khulafa: Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, Sayyiduna Umar, Sayyiduna ‎Uthman and Sayyiduna Ali, and upon all of the companions ‎and those of the righteous who come after them, may Allah be ‎pleased with them all.‎

O Allah, grant success to the UAE President HH Mohammed ‎bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to the Vice-President and his Brothers, ‎their Highnesses, the Rulers of the Emirates and guide them to ‎all that which is good and what pleases You. O Allah, bestow ‎your mercy on the late Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Maktoum, ‎Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed and the other late UAE Sheikhs ‎who have passed on to Your mercy. We ask you to admit ‎them into Paradise by Your grace. O Allah have mercy on ‎those martyred for Your sake, and grant them intercession for ‎their people, and grant their families patience and a great ‎reward. And have mercy, our Lord, upon all of the believers, ‎the living and the dead. Believers, remember Allah and He will ‎remember you, forget Him not, lest you be forgotten. Be ‎grateful for your blessings and you will be increased therein. ‎So, stand up for prayer.‎