In the name of Allah Most Gracious and Most Merciful

Translation of Khutba : Masjid Otsuka: Friday, November 19 2021

All praise is due to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the entire universe. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, having no partners, and Muhammad is His servant and Messenger
O servants of Allah! Allah says in the Qur’an in Surah Ahzab:
“O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance.”  “And glorify Him

in the morning and the evening.”  (S.33 V.41–42)
The topic for today will be about the dhikr of Allah. In this ayah just mentioned, Allah commands the believers to engage in His dhikr. And Allah then clarifies how this should be done by saying “dhikran katheera” which means that it should be done in abundance. One should always try to be in a state of dhikr and engage in it as much as one can. For most deeds there is a limit to it, but for dhikr there is no limitations placed on it. So the more dhikr one does, the better. The ayah also states: “And glorify Him in the morning and the evening.”   Meaning that you should keep your tongue busy with saying Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah,Allahu Akbar and Laa ilaaha illa Allah.And this should be done in whatever state one is in whether in a state of purity or impurity, minor or major.Allah says in the Qur’an in Surah Al-i-Imraan:

“Those who remember Allah, standing, sitting and lying on their sides.…”  (S.3  V.191)
So this ayah again emphasize the point made before that dhikr can and should be done in all situations. It can bedone while one is standing, sitting or lying down. It should be done during the night and the day, on land and on sea, on travel and during residency, in richness and in poverty, in health and in sickness and secretly and openly.

Allah also says in the Qur’an in Surah Baqarah:

“Remember Me and I will remember you. …”  (S.2  V.152)
This is another ayah which commands us to engage in dhikr. And the reward for it as mentioned here is that Allah will in turn remember us. This indicates towards the nobility of dhikr in that for all other good deeds, the reward for it in the aakhirah. But the response of dhikr is immediate. At the time that you engage in dhikr Allah responds to it by remembering you. This is why one of the pious predecessors used to say: “I know exactly when Allah remembers me.” He was asked how this could be. And he replied by quoting this ayah.According to Sai’d bin Jubair RA the meaning of this ayah is: “Remember Me with obedience and I will remember you with reward and forgiveness.”  And he also said: “Dhikr means obedience to Allah. Because the one who does not obey Him does not remember Him even if he does a lot of tasbih, tahlil the reward of dhikr with Allah is very great. In fact it is the best deed that one can do. There are no limitations place done it – it can be done at all times and in all situations. If one does engage in it, then Allah in return remembers Him. So we should all of us try to always be in a constant state of dhikr and we ask Allah to make this easy for us. May Allah protect us and all our brothers from trials and tribulations. Aamin

May the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon prophet Muhammad SAW, his family and all of his Companions. May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all those who will follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment.

O Allah! Accept our prayers and all our ibada.
O Allah! Accept all of our good deeds and forgive us for our sins.
O Allah! Guide us to the right path and accept all our worships
O Allah! Accept all of us Dawah worker in Japan
O Allah! Give rizq in abundance to all Muslims in Japan
O Allah! Grant safety and security in Japan and all over the world. Aamin ya Rabbil Aalamin

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Masjid Otsuka- Friday, November 19 2021.EN.(PDF)