
Jump to:
Khutbahs
Dhul Hijjah: Don't Miss The Point | Khutbah by Dr. Omar Suleiman
Why are the first 10 days of Dhul Hijjah considered the best days of the entire year?
In this Khutbah, Dr. Omar Suleiman discusses the spiritual rewards of this sacred month and shares the essential deeds we should all strive to perform.
Whether you are seeking to renew your faith, increase your rewards, or make the most of these blessed days, this reminder provides a practical roadmap for your worship.
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings.
We begin by praising Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala by bearing witness that none has the right to be worshipped or unconditionally obeyed except for Him. And we bear witness that Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam is His final Messenger.
We ask Allah to send His peace and blessings upon Him, the Prophets and Messengers that came before Him, His family and companions that served alongside Him, and those that follow in His blessed path until the Day of Judgment. We ask Allah to make us amongst them. Allahumma Ameen.
Dear brothers and sisters, as we come upon the most blessed days of the year, the days in which the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said in the authentic hadith of Ibn Abbas Radi Allahu Anhu,
"There are no days in which good deeds are more beloved to Allah than these days,"
being the first ten of Dhul-Hijjah. I wanted us to reflect on a few things.
And the very first of those things is the idea that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala brings everything together so perfectly throughout human history
to where the timings and the practices that we are engaging were engaged by people that came before us.
And Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, who coordinates the timings and coordinates the places and decrees with precision and perfection,
has made it so that we walk the footsteps of people that came before us so that we can understand the depth of these days.
So when Allah Azza wa Jal tells us about as-siyam, fasting, "Fasting has been prescribed upon you as it was prescribed upon those before you, so that you may attain taqwa,"
Fasting was prescribed upon you the way it was prescribed on those who came before you so that you could gain God consciousness. Every ummah fasted. Every single ummah, despite the differences in legislations, they fasted in some way.
And every single ummah received its book in Ramadan, as the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam says in the authentic hadith, the Torah was revealed in Ramadan, the Injeel was revealed in Ramadan, the Zabur was revealed, the Psalms of David, they were revealed in Ramadan.
The Suhuf of Ibrahim Alayhi Assalam, they were revealed in Ramadan. And this Qur'an was revealed in Ramadan on Laylatul Qadr.
And so it's the same practice that people came before and engaged in so that they could gain the same outcome, which was taqwa.
It's the month in which you engage the greatest of Allah Azza wa Jal's revelations, being the Qur'an throughout the month, and you fill your soul with it. And it's the month in which every single revelation came before.
When we talk about Ashura, we fast the day of Ashura. And we know that this is the day that Musa Alayhi Assalam, prior to us, was given victory over the Pharaoh.
And prior to Musa Alayhi Assalam, perhaps the day that Nuh Alayhi Assalam, in one of the narrations in tafsir, was also brought to safety on that day, the Ark of Nuh Alayhi Assalam.
That something of this sort had happened, a day that represents and culminates in victory. Now we come to the ten of Dhul-Hijjah, the best ten days of the entire year.
What happened in these ten days and what does that mean for us? Before us, these are the days that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala has sanctified.
So much so that when Allah Azza wa Jal speaks of that moment when He called Musa Alayhi Assalam, when He called Moses to Him, and He says, "We completed them with ten," we gave him thirty days, an appointed term of thirty days,
and we completed it with ten. That those are the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah that Allah Azza wa Jal gave him tawfiq, gave him success. And allowed for his period with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala to match the greatest period of the year of these ten days of Dhul-Hijjah.
It is in these ten days that we as an Ummah of Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam look back. And it is in this time that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says, "Today I have perfected for you your deen,"
completed my favor upon you, and I have chosen Islam as your religion. And I was pleased with Islam as your religion. When was that revealed?
It was in these ten days that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala completed the revelation to the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam in regards to the rituals and the commands. That all the major revelations and all of the awamir, all of the commands from Allah and the obligations from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala,
were complete in the Hajj of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. In this revelation in Surah Al-Ma'idah. And so the religion was completed for us in these ten days.
It is in these ten days, and this is one of the wisdoms that Al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab Rahimahu Allah mentions that makes these ten days greater than any ten days, that makes these 10 days greater than any 10 days,
that you have the combination of all 5 of the pillars of Islam and that doesn't exist throughout the entire year. There is no time outside of the year, outside of this period of the year,
that you have obviously the testimony of faith, Al-Shahada. You have the Salah, you have the Siyam, you have the Zakah in the general sense, and you have the fasting that is implemented.
Not just Siyam Ramadan, but some element of fasting in these 10 days of virtue. And you have the Hajj as well. And the Hajj only exists at this time of the year,
even if George Bush had suggested long ago that we should have 2 Hajj's in a year so that we could split the crowd. There is only Hajj at one time of the year. So you get 5 pillars implemented, manifested at this time of the year,
and that doesn't happen anywhere else where the practices of the 5 pillars are manifested. There is something so beautiful, it's completeness, it all comes together. People walk this path before you.
Time that you are engaging was engaged at the same time by others that were your pious predecessors that you look towards, starting with the MBI, the prophets themselves.
But now, I want to strip it back to its basics. That's why it's so virtuous. But the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said to us that you can miss the entire point of your Ibadah.
Just like with Ramadan, and the beauty of these 10 days of the Hajj is they're so close to Ramadan to where we still have the memories of the khutbahs before Ramadan and the promises we made in Ramadan.
And you know, it's sort of like when you haven't worked out for a long time versus when you just worked out and you've relinquished it for a month and a half. Your spiritual muscles of the last 10 nights of Ramadan are still kind of there where you can get back into it.
It's not too far away. But didn't the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam tell us that you can miss the point of your Ramadan altogether? Whoever does not give up, مَنَمْ يَدْعَ قَوْلَ الزُّورِ Whoever does not give up false speech amongst you,
and acting in accordance with that false speech, Allah has no need of you to give up your food and your drink and your desires, because you're missing the point. It's an amazing practice.
And the practice had a specific outcome that it was supposed to achieve, which was taqwa, God consciousness. And if you engage Ramadan, and you gave up all of these halal things,
but you fail to stop consuming, you fail to discipline your appetite of haram, of backbiting and gossip and slander and lying,
and what the eyes consume and what the ears consume, then you're missing the point. And so it passes you by. And there's something remarkable here.
The same thing is true when we come to these 10 days of Dhul Hijjah. At the culmination of these 10 days is the sacrifice. And subhanAllah, think about this. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala takes us back
to the very first act of ritual worship on planet Earth. The sons of Adam عليه السلام, Qabeer and Habeer, offering their sacrifices.
And as they offer their sacrifices, long before Ibrahim عليه السلام will offer his sacrifice, this act, this ritual act of worship, the qurbani that's meant to bring us close to Allah عز و جل, that is to show a greater sacrifice.
You're not just sacrificing the ram, you're sacrificing your ego, you're sacrificing your desires, you're sacrificing your attachments, you're sacrificing anything that gets in between you and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
Allah عز و جل takes us back to the first moment where two brothers are offering a sacrifice. And Allah عز و جل accepted from one. And he did not accept, did not.
يَتَقَبَّل, did not accept from the other. And Allah said, إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ Allah only accepts these sacrifices
from people of God consciousness, from people of piety. One of the two brothers missed the point. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, while you're watching it, and it looks so identical. They're both holding the same blade.
They're both sacrificing the same animal. They look the same. They're blood brothers. Humanity is a very small sample size at this point. If you're watching it from the outside, similar to when you're in tawaf,
everyone looks like they're doing the same thing. But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is saying, He accepted one and He rejected the other. Because one of them missed the point. Allah accepts only from people of piety,
people of God consciousness. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says specifically about the sacrifice. He says, لَن يَنَالَ اللَّهَ لِحُومُهَا وَلَا دِمَاءُهَا
وَلَكِن يَنَالُهُ التَّقْوَى مِنكُمْ It is not the blood or the meat that reaches Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala from your sacrifice. What reaches Him, what ascends to Him, is the taqwa, is the piety,
the God consciousness inside of you. The same word that we were taught about Ramadan, taqwa, taqwa, taqwa, God consciousness, God consciousness, God consciousness, piety, is being used over and over and over again
that the point is taqwa. The point is that you connect to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala at a deeper level. So when you put the blade down and you finish, the meat is there. And especially to Quraysh,
this was an important message because sacrifices were a spectacle to them. When they sacrifice for their idols, and they brought forth 10 or 20 or 30, it was a spectacle, right? Like it's all quantity-based,
how many sacrifices did I make, did I put forward? Allah is saying that's not the point. You're missing the point. The point is taqwa minkum, the piety, the connection to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
that you're supposed to achieve. Where even when you can have millions of people doing the exact same thing that millions of people before did, and they look physically identical,
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala does not accept from them all. And that's why Ibrahim alayhi assalam, when he finished building that Ka'bah with his son Ismail alayhi assalam, he understood it.
That Ka'bah which will become the visual focal point of us all in these next few weeks, he understood it. And that's the first thing that he said, رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا
Our Lord, accept this from us. Because if Allah doesn't accept it, it doesn't matter how tired you got, it doesn't matter how exhausted you were,
it doesn't matter how much money you spent, it doesn't matter what the spectacle looks like at the surface level, رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا O Allah, accept our fasting, O Allah, accept our charity,
O Allah, accept our hajj, O Allah, accept our 'umrah. Because there is no way to...
...physically capture that. It's deeper, it's something that's spiritual, but I want to go a step deeper. Bi idhn illah ta'ala. Why are these 10 days even greater than the days of Ramadan?
And you know, so many people will miss out on these days because they don't have the same ceremonious aspect as Ramadan has.
Ramadan, the masajid full for taraweeh, you've got iftar, you've got all these spectacles, some of them praiseworthy, some of them not. Actually, let me take that back—not a praiseworthy spectacle, gatherings, congregation.
But the point is that you have many praiseworthy communal aspects of Ramadan. It's easy to get into Ramadan with your community. It's easy to join the tawaf of the masajid in Ramadan.
But if you're not in hajj in the first 10 days of Dhu al-Hijjah, it's easy to treat it just like another day. It's easy to just go through these days and say, "Yeah, whatever, do a little bit of dhikr, maybe fast a Monday or a Thursday along the way," not the first 9 days.
Arafah is here. Okay, let's fast the day of Arafah. It's so much deeper than that. What is the depth of it, dear brothers and sisters?
When the 'ulama look at the virtues of the practices surrounding these two seasons and the things that happened to people before us in these two seasons, because that's what we're supposed to be tying into.
Why do we fast 'Ashura? The victory of Musa alayhi assalam. There's something about tapping into the true meaning of nasr, the true meaning of what victory is.
So whether you're martyred like al-Husayn, or whether you have victory like Musa alayhi assalam in the physical and material sense, it's victory, it's nasr. We're tapping into the deeper meaning of sacrifice and struggle.
And that victory is found with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala—nasr or shahada. It's all victory. Victory in the physical sense or victory in the spiritual sense. It's all victory with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. You're tapping into the deeper meanings of what that season represents.
Ramadan, you're doing the same thing. So what about Dhu al-Hijjah? What are we tapping into? We're tapping into the meaning of sacrifice—deep sacrifice.
If Ramadan is about disciplining your appetite, Dhu al-Hijjah is about disciplining your attachments.
Imagine Ibrahim alayhi assalam in those moments where he's commanded to sacrifice the most beloved thing in the world to him.
It's one thing when it comes to your daily consumption and your appetite and your shahawat. It's another thing when you move beyond appetite into attachment. Ramadan is about appetite; Dhu al-Hijjah is about attachment.
How did he feel having to make that sacrifice before Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala brought about what He brought about? You go back to the hadith of the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
when he mentioned that there are no ten days that are more beloved than these ten days of Dhu al-Hijjah. They said, "And not jihad in the way of Allah?" I mean, these are people that went through Badr and Uhud and Khandaq.
Not even that? Not even going out in battle for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? And the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, said, "And not jihad in the way of Allah, unless you go out
with yourself and your wealth and you come back with none of those things." Meaning complete sacrifice. Meaning what it represents. The theme of Dhu al-Hijjah: complete sacrifice.
Plug Ibrahim alayhi assalam into that hadith of Dhu al-Hijjah. Ibrahim alayhi assalam sacrificed his family in Iraq. Sacrificed his reputation.
He was stripped down and thrown into a fire. Sacrificed his safety. Sacrificed his homeland in the process of hijrah, in the process of migration. And now he had to sacrifice his son.
His one son at the time whom he waited for, for all of this time. The most beloved thing in the world to him, in his heart.
As Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala was making his heart for Him, only for Him, subhanahu wa ta'ala. If there's anyone that went out fi sabilillah bi nafsihi wa malihi, it's Ibrahim alayhi assalam—with his self and his wealth.
But he's tapping into the deeper meanings of what it means to sacrifice for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
You see, dear brothers and sisters, so much as the 'ulama mention of our deen comes down to sabr, to patience.
So when the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, said that a person is not given something better or awsa or more expansive than patience as a gift from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala—patience.
Ramadan represented to us patience with shahawat, with desires. The things that you do on a daily basis and you think about regularly.
Are you making these daily transactions for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and restraining yourself for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala from the temptations of the day?
But the other side of patience is as-sabr alal bala, patience with test and trial. And it's less about what you do and more about how you react to what happens to you.
And that's where Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala really brings out your true character. When you get put in a situation where something that you deeply love, something that you are deeply attached to, and you have to make a judgment.
Am I going to sacrifice this for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala or not? How am I going to react when Allah takes from me what He took from Ibrahim alayhi assalam?
Will I hold firm or not?
So when you're tapping into these ten days, and perhaps, just as some people when they go to hajj—may Allah aza wa jal accept the hajj of all of the hajjaj. Allahumma ameen.
And the intention of all of those who wish they could go to hajj with a full hajj. Allahumma ameen. Just as when someone goes to hajj, they're usually willing at that point to say, "I'm going to make sacrifices that I don't even make in Ramadan."
Like, in Ramadan, you make promises to Allah. When a person goes to hajj—I've seen it, I take people for hajj. People will set these life goals. People will set goals 10–15 years in advance for their hajj.
"Alright, I'm coming to hajj. This is the time that I'm going to quit my haram job. This is the time I'm going to wear my hijab. This is the time I'm going to start doing this." Now is the time. Hajj is the time where it's like the ultimate now turn. I'm making that full-on sacrifice.
Because the struggle is higher, therefore the stakes are higher. I do Ramadan every year. Hajj is a once-in-a-lifetime—if it even happens. There's a mindset that people have when they go to hajj.
You're supposed to have that same mindset when you're here. There's a reason, dear brothers, when you offer your sacrifice, that the sunnah—or even it's to a point of prohibition—
according to the hadith of Umm Salamah, radiyallahu anha, from the first of Dhu al-Hijjah to the point that your sacrifice is offered, for you to take the hair and the nails from your body. Because you're connecting to a person that's in ihram, as Imam ash-Shawkani, rahimahu llah ta'ala, beautifully illustrates.
You are connecting. It's like you're there, even though you're not there. You're on your own hajj. You have your own sacrifice. There's a reason why you're fasting the day of Arafah, even though you're not in the place of Arafah. You're there.
And so here's my challenge to you. Those of you that are going to hajj, and those of you that are not going to hajj, which I presume is the majority. My challenge to you is to actually put yourself in the mindset of someone that's going to hajj.
And you're looking at your life and you're saying, these are some major changes that I have to make, some major sacrifices I have to make right now in my life, that usually comes with the physical and financial toil
of going to hajj and recognizing this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. When you go in these ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, what's that stubborn quality that you failed to get rid of in terms of your behavior and your character?
Or that stubborn relationship? Or that stubborn sin? Or that stubborn sacrifice you really need to make right now? What is it? Put yourself in that mindset.
And if you can't think of some major change that you need to make in your life in terms of giving up a sin, then think of a foundational and fundamental change in regards to your practice of good deeds that you're going to make now. Because some people go to hajj with that.
I'll never miss my sunnah again. If that's your level, alhamdulillah. That's your level, alhamdulillah. That's where you're at right now. You're not missing fard. And you never want to miss sunnah again. And I'm going to hajj. And from now on when I go to hajj, I'm never going to miss my sunnah again.
Or I've been saying I'm going to memorize the Qur'an my whole life. Now is the time I'm starting. This year I'm starting. And I'm giving myself a plan for the next eight years even. That I'm going to finish the memorization of the Qur'an. Or I'm going to learn this or do that.
But think like someone who's physically going on the journey of hajj and making a major sacrifice now. Because there is no way I'm stepping on a plane and going through that entire process
and then coming back to the same life that I had before. We're all in that state when we go into these ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, dear brothers and sisters. That's the deeper point. Ramadan taught you to discipline appetite. Now you need to discipline attachment.
لَنْ تَنَالُوا الْبِرَّ حَتَّى تُنْفِقُوا مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَ You will not achieve true righteousness until you spend of what you love most.
Ibrahim, alayhi assalam, lived every one of those ayahs. And that's why إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَبِيًّا What a man of truth. True to his word. True to his promises to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala.
Every ayah that you take in the Qur'an that demonstrates a good quality, you can find an equivalent in the story of Ibrahim, alayhi assalam. Just as you can find an equivalent in the one, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam His descendant,
Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam كَانَ خُلُقُهُ الْقُرْآنُ His character was the Qur'an. You can find an equivalent in the seerah of the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam Allow us to fully engross ourselves
in the power of these ten days to make the lifetime changes that are necessary, the lifetime sacrifices that are necessary to truly enjoy His qurb to truly enjoy His closeness. Allahumma amin. Aqulu qawli hadha
wa astaghfirullaha li wa li-jumiah al-muslimin. Fa-istaghfiruh, innahu huwa al-Ghafur ar-Rahim. If I can ask the brothers to please come forward as much as possible, insha'allah.
Alhamdulillah
wa assalatu wa assalam alayhi rasul Allah wa alayhi wa sahbihi wa man tabiah Allahumma aghfir al-mu'minin wa al-mu'minat wa al-muslimin wa al-muslimat al-ahya' minhum wa al-amwat Innaka Sami'un Qarib Mujeeb ad-du'a' Allahumma aghfir lana wa arhamna
wa a'fu anna wa la tu'adhdhib-na Rabbana, zalamna anfusana wa in lam taghfir lana wa tarhamna lanakun-anna min al-khasirin Allahumma innaka Afu Karim, tuhib al-afu fa'fu anna Allahumma aghfir li walidayna Rabbi arhamhuma kama rabbayani saghra
Rabbana hab lana min azwajina wa dhurriyyatina qurrata a'ayni wa j'alna li-al-muttaqin imama Allahumma ansur ikhwan al-mustadh'afin fi mashariq al-ardh wa magharibaha Allahumma ansuruhum fi Filastin wa fi assuddan wa fi kulli makan Allahumma alayhi bi-a'da'ika a'da'a ad-din
Allahumma arina fi az-zalimin ajab qudratika Allahumma ahlk az-zalimin bi az-zalimin wa akhrijina wa ikhwana min baynihim salimin 'Ibad Allah Innallah ya'mur bi al-'adl wa al-ihsan wa ita' dhi al-qurbah wa yanha 'an al-fahsha' wa al-munkar wa al-baghi
Ya'izukum lallakum tadhhakkarun Fadhkuru-llah yadhkurkum wa ashkuruh 'alayhi an-ni'am yazid lakum wa la-dhikru-llah akbar wa-llah ya'lam ma tasna'un wa aqim assalah

































































































































































































































































































