XLIII.—THE KHUTBAH, OR THE
FRIDAY'S SERMON.
The Khutbah is the oration or sermon delivered in the mosque every Friday, and on the chief festivals,[1] after the meridian prayer. After the usual ablutions, the four Sunnat prayers are recited. The Khatíb, or preacher, then seats himself on the Mimbar (pulpit), whilst the Muazzin proclaims the Azán; after which he stands up on the second step,[2] and delivers the sermon, which must be in the Arabic anguage, and include prayers for "Muhammad, the Companions, and the King." There are several books of Khutbahs published for the use of preachers. The most celebrated of these preachers' manuals is the Mujmuaʾ Khitáb, printed by Abdur Rahman of Cawnpore. The sermons are arranged for every Friday in the year, and are the compositions of various Muslim divines. It is remarkable that short sermons are meritorious; for it is related that the "Prophet" remarked that "the length of a man's prayers and the shortness of his sermon are the signs of his sense and understanding; therefore make your prayers long and your Khutbah short."
The following is a translation of the third Khutbah in the book of sermons already mentioned; it is a fair specimen of an average Khutbah, both as to its length and matter:—
"In the name of God, the compassionate, the merciful.
"Praised be God. Praised be that God who hath shown us the way in this religion. If He had not guided us into the path we should not have found it.
"I bear witness that there is no deity but God. He is one. He has no associate. I bear witness that Muhammad is, of a truth, His servant and His Apostle. May God have mercy upon him, and upon his descendants, and upon his companions, and give them peace.
"Fear God, O ye people, and fear that day, the day of judgment, when a father will not be able to answer for his son, nor the son for the father. Of a truth God's promises are true. Let not this present life make you proud. Let not the deceiver (Satan) lead you astray.
"O ye people who have believed, turn ye to God, as Nasuá[3] did turn to God. Verily God doth forgive all sin, verily He is the merciful, the forgiver of sins. Verily He is the most munificent, and bountiful, the King, the Holy One, the Clement, the Most Merciful."
The preacher then descends from the pulpit, and sitting on the floor of the mosque, offers up a silent prayer. He then, again, ascends the Mimbar, as before, and proceeds thus:—
"In the name of God, the compassionate, the merciful.
"Praised be God. We praise Him. We seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness of sins. We trust in Him. We seek refuge in Him from evil desires and from former sinful actions. He who has God for his guide is never lost; and whomsoever He leadeth aside none can guide into the right path.
"We bear witness that there is no deity but God. He is one. He hath no partner.
"Verily we bear witness that Muhammad is the servant and apostle of God, and may God have mercy upon him, who is more exalted than any being. May God have mercy upon his descendants, and upon his companions! May God give them peace! Especially upon Amír-ul-Mominín Abu Bakr Sadíq (may God be pleased with him). And upon him who was the most temperate of the "friends" Amír-ul-Mominín Omar Ibn-ul-Khattáb (may God be pleased with him). And upon him whose modesty and faith were perfect, Amír-ul-Mominín Osmán (may God be pleased with him). And upon the Lion of the powerful God, Amír-ul-Mominín Ali ibn Abu-Tálib (may God be pleased with him). And upon the two Imáms, the holy ones, the two martyrs, Amír-ul-Mominín Abu Muhammad Hasan and Abu Abdullah Husain (may God be pleased with both of them). And upon the mother of these two persons, the chief of women, Fatimah-uz-Zárah (may God be pleased with her). And upon his (Muhammad's) two uncles, Hamza and ʾAbbás (may God be pleased with them). And upon the rest of the "companions," and upon the "followers" (may God be pleased with all of them). Of Thy mercy, O most merciful of all merciful ones, O God, forgive all Musalmán men and Musalmán women, all male believers, and all female believers. Of a truth thou art He who wilt receive our prayers.
"O God, help those who help the religion of Muhammad. May we also exert ourselves to help those who help Islám. Make those weak, who weaken the religion of Muhammad.
"O God, bless the king of the age, and make him kind and favourable to the people.
"O servants of God, may God have mercy upon you. Verily, God enjoineth justice and the doing of good, and gifts to kindred; and He forbiddeth wickedness, and wrong, and oppression. He warneth you that haply ye may be mindful.[4]
"O ye people, remember the great and exalted God. He will also remember you. He will answer your prayers. The remembrance of God is great, and good, and honourable, and noble, and meritorious, and worthy, and sublime."
The preacher then descends, and taking up his position as Imám, facing the Mihráb,[5] conducts two rakʾat prayers. The Khatíb, however, does not always officiate as Imám.
In the above Khutbah we have inserted the petition usually offered up in behalf of "the king" in India, although it does not occur in the collection of sermons from which we have translated. Until the Mutiny of 1857, we believe that in the majority of mosques in North India it was recited in the name of the King of Delhi, and even now we are informed that some bigoted Imáms say it in the name of the Sultan of Turkey. The recital of the Khutbah serves to remind every Muhammadan priest, at least once a week, that he is in the land of warfare (Dár-ul-Harb); and the fact that Muhammadans under Christian rule are in an anomalous position, is a source of trouble to many a conscientious Muslim. A few years ago, a celebrated Muhammadan divine sent for a native Christian officer, as he wished to obtain his aid in an important matter. The nature of the good man's difficulty was as follows:—The Friday prayer, or Khutbah, must, according to Muhammadan law, be said in the name and by the permission of the ruler of the land. He had been saying the Friday prayer without permission of the ruler, and he feared that these prayers had, consequently, not been accepted by the Almighty. He, therefore, asked the Christian officer to obtain the necessary permission from the magistrate of the district. The Christian was also a man versed in Muslim law, and he quoted authorities to prove that the permission of an "infidel"? ruler was not what Islám enjoined.
In Turkey and Egypt, and in other countries under Muslim rule, it is the custom for the Khatíb to deliver the Khutbah whilst he holds a wooden sword reversed.
The prayer for the reigning monarch, if he be a Muslim, would be offered up in the following manner:—
"O God, aid Islám, and strengthen its pillars, and make infidelity to tremble, and destroy its might, by the preservation of Thy servant, and the son of Thy servant, the submissive to the might of Thy Majesty and Glory, whom God hath aided, our master Amír Sher ʾAlí Khán, son of Amír Dost Muhammad Khán, may God assist him and prolong his reign. O God, assist him, and assist his armies. O Thou God of the religion and Lord of the world, assist the armies of Muslims; frustrate the armies of infidels and polytheists, thine enemies, the enemies of the religion."
- ↑ The ʾId-i-Fitr and the ʾId-ul-Azhá.
- ↑ The Mimbar is the pulpit of a mosque. It consists of three steps, and is sometimes a moveable wooden structure, and sometimes a fixture of brick or stone built against the wall. Muhammad, in addressing the congregation, stood on the uppermost step, Abu Bakr on the second, and Omar on the third or the lowest. Osmán, being the most modest of the Khalifs, would have gladly descended lower if he could have done so; but this being impossible, he fixed upon the second step, from which it is still the custom to preach.
- ↑ Nasuá, is a name which occurs in the sixth verse of the Súrat-i-Tahrímah (lxvi.) in the Qurán; it is translated "true repentance" by Sale and Rodwell, but it is supposed to be a person's name by several commentators.
- ↑ The ninety-second verse of Súrat-i-Nahe (cxvi.) of the Qurán.
- ↑ The Mihráb is the centre of the wall of a mosque, facing Mecca, to which the Imám (priest) prays. It usually consists of a circular niche in the wall.