My dear brothers and sisters! My khutba today is on the topic of success and salvation in the light of Surat al-‘Asr,
وَالْعَصْرِ () إِنَّ الإِنْسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ () إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ ()
“By the fleeting time; indeed man is in loss, except for those who believe, do good deeds, urge one another to the truth, and urge one another to steadfastness” (al-‘Asr, 103:1-3).
Surat al-‘Asr is made up of only three ayat. It is one of the shortest surahs of the Qur’an. Although we are familiar with it; we recite it in our prayers; we know it by heart; we teach it to our children, and we even understand its general meaning, yet we should be fully aware of the depth of meaning that this surah conveys so profoundly in a few simple words.
Its significance can be appreciated from the sayings of Imam al-Shafi (d. 820 CE) who said that had there been nothing revealed in the Qur’an except Surat al-‘Asr, it would have been sufficient for the salvation of mankind. That is how profound this surah is. The words of this blessed surah are so simple and straight forward that one need not be a scholar to understand them.
This surah starts with Allah (SWT) swearing by the fleeting time. Time is a ceaseless flux. It does not stop. It keeps moving. Once gone, it cannot be brought back. It is the most vital and precious thing that one can have. One cannot afford to squander it. The maxim, “time is money,” is well known. To a believer, it is more than that. The true believers—the mu’minun understand the value of time and are mindful not to indulge in time-wasting, useless, and frivolous activities. The Qur’an tells us about them,
قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ () الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ () وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنِ اللَّغْوِ مُعْرِضُونَ
“Successful indeed are the believers; those who are humble in their prayer; those who turn away from all that is frivolous” (al-Mu’minun 23:3).
Hence they value time as it should be valued. Thus, it is the flight of time by which Allah (SWT) swears in the first ayah of this surah. What follows in the next ayah is a general—a generic message of truth that all humans are in a state of loss. This universal truth is ordained by Allah Almighty for the entire humanity. However, the third and final ayah of the surah exempts all those from this divine decree who believe, do righteous deeds, support one another in propagating the truth, and exhort patience and perseverance to one another in the face of adversities that may befall them.
Imam Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, one of the greatest exegetes of the Qur’an, while expounding this surah said that there was a great threatening from Allah (SWT) in this surah because He had already decreed loss to all humanity except for those who fulfill the four requirements mentioned in the surah. It should be realized and understood that our success and salvation in the hereafter, which means to be successful in absolute terms, is dependent upon holding on to all the four things without the exclusion of any one of them. It follows; therefore, that iman (faith) by itself is not sufficient for salvation. It is not enough to verbally declare the two testimonies of faith (“I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship other than Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.”) and be complacent without doing righteous deeds.
What is iman? According to a hadith, “Iman is knowledge in the heart, an articulation with the tongue, and an activity with the limbs.” In its generalized form, the ulama (scholars of Islam) say that iman implies believing in Allah (SWT) as He is in His names and His attributes, and in accepting all His commands and teachings mentioned in the Qur’an and the ahadith of the Prophet (SAW). It is only through these original sources from where we get the knowledge of the Shari’ah (Islamic Law), which unfortunately has become one of the most derogatory, despised, and misunderstood terms in the contemporary Western political discourse. It is incumbent upon us to first educate ourselves and then the non-Muslims about Shari’ah and its noble objectives—the Maqasid al-Shari’ah.
It is only through conviction of faith in the heart; manifested through one’s righteous deeds (al-’Amal al-Salih) that one can be considered to possess true iman. On one occasion the Prophet (SAW) pointed his index finger towards his heart and said التقوى ههنا three times, meaning “Taqwa (i.e., God consciousness/ piety/righteousness) is here, in the heart.” And only Allah (SWT) knows what is in the heart of a person. Righteous deeds include obeying all the commands of Allah (SWT) and His Prophet (SAW) through all modes of worship with their ordained rituals, and fulfilling all the rights due to Allah (SWT), to His Prophet (SAW), to oneself, to one’s family members and to others.
It is to be noted that according to Surat al-’Asr, even Iman and al-‘Amal al-Salih in themselves do not guarantee salvation. The third thing that has to be done by the believers is to join together in the mutual teaching of truth, which means, exhorting people to do good and forbidding them from doing evil.
كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ
“You are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah…” (Aal ‘Imran 3:110).
There is no ummah that is to come after this ummah. There is no Prophet or Messenger who is to come after Muhammad (SAW). But the message of truth is eternal and has to be carried forward. Therefore, after the demise of our beloved Prophet (SAW), the burden of spreading the truth is upon the believers. We are also aware that truth is bitter (مُرٌّ (الحقُّ Therefore, to tread on the path of truth and to spread the message of truth to others is bound to be accompanied with trials and tribulations from all quarters, especially from the agents of Shaytan (Satan), whether they are from the jinns or the humans.
The noble companions of the Prophet (SAW) were persecuted, both verbally and physically, for declaring and preaching the truth of tawhid. It is in encountering the opposition, the resistance, and the impediments, which come in the way of saying the truth by enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong that the believers have to remain together, supporting one another with patience and perseverance. This is the fourth criterion or condition that is required for salvation.
أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين
وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا
“Hold fast to God’s rope all together; and do not split into factions…” (Aal ‘Imran, 3:103).
The turbulence engulfing the world by way of revolutions, disasters, and calamities in diverse shapes ranging from tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes, fires, wars, political unrest, and economic depression around the world, to a general, overall lack of peace and tranquility is a clear sign of God’s wrath and displeasure. We have to realize the exigency of the situation and embark immediately on the path of salvation.
According to the meaning of a hadith, this duniya (world) was created for us (to use it as a means and not as an end) and we were created for the hereafter. We have to use whatever has been bestowed upon us to reach others by ordaining good and forbidding evil.
May Allah (SWT) bless us with the insight to comprehend this blessed surah and act upon its teachings because it is only in doing so that our success and salvation are guaranteed by the will of Allah (SWT).
