Day of ^Ashura'
Speaker: Dr. Ali Ghazzawi
When: Friday Muharram 7, 1444 H / August 5, 2022
Where: Masjid Omar, Upper Darby PA
الحمدُ للهِ صباحَ مساءَ وفى الضَّرََّاءِ والسَّرَّاء• والصلاةُ والسلامُ على رسولِ الله الآمِرِ بصومِ عاشوراءَ• وعلى ءالِه وذُرِّيَّتِه ومنهم المَفْجُوعُ به فى كَرْبَلَاءَ• وبعدُ. عبادَ الله اتقوا اللهَ القائلَ: ﴿يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَلۡتَنظُرۡ نَفۡسٞ مَّا قَدَّمَتۡ لِغَدٖۖ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرُۢ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ ١٨﴾ (الحشر).
A week ago, the year 1443 H ended with the termination of Dhul-Hijjah, and the year 1444 H entered with the advent of the month of Muharram.
The day of ^Ashura' is the tenth day of Muharram. Significant incidents have occurred on it over time. It is full of goodness and lessons, and famous among the early and later generations. It has great virtue and ancient sanctity.
On the tenth of Muharram of the year 61 H in Karbala', Iraq, out master al-Husayn, may God accept his deeds, with about seventy men of his relatives: his children, the children of his brother al-Hasan, the children of his paternal cousin ^Abdullah Ibn Ja^far, the children of his paternal cousin ^Aqil Ibn Abi Talib were slaughtered after intense fighting with the soldiers of ^Ubaydullah Ibn Ziyad, Yazid’s governor of Kufah.
No one survived except his son ^Aliyy Zaynul-^Abidin, who was sick and did not participate in the fighting, and a child of his brother al-Hasan.
Al-Husayn, may God accept his deeds, was killed at the age of nearly fifty-seven years. Thirty-three stab wounds with a spear and thirty-four blows with a sword were found in him. Then a hard-hearted man came down and cut his head off, then took it to ^Ubaydullah Ibn Ziyad to collect the prize.
When the head was brought to him, Ibn Ziyad had a rod. So, he put it on al-Husayn's mouth. In his presence was an elderly Companion of God’s Messenger. When he saw him doing that with the mouth of al-Husayn, he said to him: I bear witness that I saw God’s Messenger, kissing this place that you are prodding with the rod. Then he was overwhelmed by tears. Sadly, ^Ubaydullah Ibn Ziyad cussed him. The elderly Companion left the session.
May God have mercy on al-Husayn and his honorable family, and may God punish the wrongdoers with what they deserve.
In his Musnad, Imam Ahmad narrated: “The Prophet ﷺ passed by some Jews who had fasted on the day of ^Ashura', and he said: ‘What is this fasting?’ They said: ‘This is the day that God saved Moses and the Children of Israel from drowning, and on which Pharaoh drowned. And this is the day on which the ark (of Noah) came to rest on al-Judiyy. Thus, Noah and Moses fasted on it, out of thanking the Almighty God.’ The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘I have more right to Moses and more right to fast this day.’ He ordered his Companions to fast.”
The Messenger of God was asked about fasting on the day of ^Ashura', and he said: “It expiates the previous year.” (Muslim). Our scholars said that it expiates minor sins. If there were no minor sins, it is hoped that the major sins will be reduced, and if there are none, ranks are raised.
It is also recommended to fast the ninth of Muharram because the Prophet ﷺ said: “If I live until next year, I will fast on the ninth.” (Muslim) However, he ﷺ died before that. Ash-Shafi^iyy stated the recommendation of fasting the three days (9th, 10th, 11th).
نسألُ الله تبارَك وتعالى أن يرفعَ عنا الوَباءَ والغَلاءَ، وأن يرزقَنا الصَّبرَ كلَّما كَرَّ بَلاءٌ. أقول قولىَ هذا وأستغفِر اللهَ لى ولكم
الحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله وبعد. عباد الله اتقوا الله.
Also, among the blessings of this day is what the Messenger of God ﷺ said:
"مَن وَسَّعَ عَلَى عِيَالِهِ يَوْمَ عَاشُورَاءَ وَسَّعَ اللهُ عَلَيْهِ السَّنَةَ كُلَّهَا"
It means: “Whoever is generous to his dependents on the day of ^Ashura', Allah will be generous to him throughout the year.” (Al-Bayhaqiyy) Hence, it is desired to be generous to the family, dependents, and relatives with food, drink, and clothing on the night and day of ^Ashura' without extravagance, hypocrisy, or argument. It is preferred to give charity to the poor and needy without being pretentious. If one does not find something to give, let one be generous in one’s own manners and refrain from committing injustice.
Fellow Muslims, fasting ^Ashura', expressing joy, and extending spending to one’s dependents were prescribed before that great calamity at Karbala' (61 H) occurred on this blessed day. We do what the master of the creation did, and what those whom we met of our scholars and teachers of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama^ah did, including those who were from the household of the Messenger of God, and even those whose lineage ends with al-Husayn, may God accept his deeds.
We disavow before God all those who killed, participated, ordered, and accepted the killing of those pure descendants. Moreover, we believe that loving the Prophet’s faithful wives and relatives is religiously obligatory because of the their specified merit and kinship to the best of God’s creation, peace be upon him.
We ask Allah to restore this occasion to us with goodness, blessing, and safety.
اللهمَّ اغفر للمؤمنين والمؤمنات.
Friday Muharram 7, 1444 H / August 5, 2022
Masjid Omar, Upper Darby PA