Mawlana Abdol-Ghani Badri, vice-rector of Darululoom Zahedan, shed light on the special virtues of Dhul-Hijjah, Hajj (pilgrimage) and sacrificing animals in the last lunar month in the Friday sermon of Sunnis in Zahedan, Iran, on 11th Oct. 2013.
Counting some important messages and lessons of Hajj, he declared ‘full submission to Shari’ah and Islamic commands’ the most important lesson of this great worship.
Shaikh Badri began his sermon by reciting the initial verses of ‘Al-Fajr’ chapter of the Noble Qur’an. He said, “Days and nights of the first decade of the month of Dhul-Hijjah have very special virtues. The Almighty Allah swears by only considerable things. The Mofasserin (interpreters of the Qur’an) state that ‘Al-Fajr’ in the Qur’an means the tenth day of Dhul-Hijjah. The chapter points to the ten nights of Dhul-Hijja, as well.”
He underlined ‘Hajj’ and ‘Sacrifice’ were the most important worships in the months of Hajj. Ramadan ends up with the Donation of Fitr, while the months of Hajj (Shawwal, Dhul-Qa’dah, and Dhul-Hijjah – almost 70 days) end with the sacrifice. Hajj teaches us to imitate whatever the Sublime orders; there is no need to ask for any reason and philosophy as the prophets, Ibrahim and Ismael fully submitted to the order of Allah Almighty without questioning it. Ibrahim, peace be upon him, didn’t look for a reason for the command that Allah Almighty gave him, nor did Ismael knowing that he was going to be sacrificed. Rather they both willingly accepted the decision of Allah.
Islam means full submission to the will of the Almighty. It is the Sunnah of the prophet Ibrahim to imitate Allah completely. The lesson we can learn from this is to submit to the orders of Allah whether Allah has given us a reason for them or not. So we know that Allah has many actions for us such as the prohibition of Riba (usury), pre-marital relations with the opposite sex and backbiting. We must submit to these rules completely without attempting to justify engaging in them based on our own rationale, he urged.
The interim Khateeb of Sunnis in Zahedan further said, “That is why, do not miss the particular rituals of these days; fasting on the day of Arafah, ninth Dhul-Hijjah that forgives sins of one year. ‘Takbiraat-e-Tashriq’, ‘Eid prayers’, and ‘Sacrifice’ are the other special deeds for Dhul-Hijjah.”
At the end, Shaikh Abdol-Ghani Badri pointed out to the issue of Sunnis’ Mosalla in Zahedan. He said it was decided to establish Eid al-Adha prayer in the new place but due to some disagreements between the authorities and Sunni scholars, the upcoming Eid prayer will be offered in the current Mosalla.