The Close Relatives

The First Khutbah

All Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Majesty and Honour, and of Bounty and Sublime Grace, Who ordered us to keep and maintain family ties and promised great rewards for doing so. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah Alone, Who has no partner, and I bear witness that our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, is the Servant and Messenger of Allah, the greatest of those who kept and maintained family ties and the best of those who treated their next of kin with kindness and respect. O Allah, send blessings, salutations and benedictions on our Master and Prophet, his family, all of his Companions, as well as those who follow them in goodness until the Day of Reckoning.

To Continue: I advise you, dutiful servants of Allah, and myself, to adhere to a heartfelt consciousness (Taqwa) of Allah. For He, the Most Gloriously Transcendent, states:

 And fear Allah , through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer. [Qur’an:4:1]

O Muslims:

Allah Most High exhorts us to strengthen family bonds and bolster our relationship with our blood relatives. Allah Almighty says:

…But kindred by blood are closer to one another (in terms of duties and rights) in the Book of Allah. [Qur’an:8:75]

That is to say, they are closer to one another as regards maintaining family ties, being benevolent to one another, being compassionate to one another and honouring one another. Ulul-Arham (Blood relatives i.e. those related by birth) comprise all relatives such as brothers and sisters, grandparents, paternal and maternal uncles and aunts and all of their descendants. The word “rahim” (the singlular of “arham” which literally means ‘wombs’) is derived from one of Allah’s Most Beautiful Names, namly, “al-Rahman”. Allah Most High says in a hadith qudsi (i.e. a hadith in which the Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him – narrates from His Lord):

I am al-Rahman (the Most Gracious and Compassionate), and I created the Rahim (womb), and derived and extracted it from My Name. So whosoever keeps good relations with it (i.e. the womb which unites blood relatives), I will keep good relations with him, and whosoever severs and breaks off relations with it (i.e. the womb which unites blood relatives), I will sever and break off relations with him.

[Narrated by Ahmad and Abu Ya‘la]

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) counseled his companions saying:

Your blood relatives, your blood relatives!

[Narrated by Ibn Hibban]

Meaning, “Maintain good relations with your blood relatives and be kind and benevolent towards them”

This is also what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) counseled Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) with in statement in which Abu Dharr says: “My beloved friend (meaning the Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him) counseled me to keep good relations with my next of kin even if they turn away from me (sever relations with me)”.

Maintaining good relations with next of kin is among the greatest of devotional deeds that draw one closer to Allah and the strongest of religious obligations. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

Learn of your lineages the extent of which enables you to maintain ties of kinship.

[Narrated by al-Tirmidhi]

Thus, parents should acquaint their children with their blood relatives such that they are able to keep relations with them and be kind and benevolent towards them. Moreover, maintaining good relations with next of kin is one of the signs of iman (faith in Allah). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) says:

He who believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him maintain good ties with his blood relatives.

[Narrated by al-Bukhari]

Maintaining good relations with next of kin is among the most beloved and pleasing deeds to Allah Most High. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked about the most beloved and pleasing of deeds to Allah, and he mentioned in this category:

Maintaining good relations with next of kin.

[Narrated by Abu Ya‘la]

It is also of attributes and the character traits of the Ulul-Albab (People of Sound Intellect and Profound Understanding). Allah Most High says:

Only the Ulul-Albab – People of Sound Intellect and Profound Understanding – will remember and take heed, those who fulfill the promise to Allah, and do not violate the covenant, and those who join (in terms of relations) that which Allah has commanded to be joined [Qur’an:13:19-21]

So Allah Most High rewards them in the Afterlife with the Ultimate Abode of Jannah (Paradise).

Therefore, O Worshippers of Allah, you should keep and maintain good relations with your next of kin, because therein lies that which is pleasing to your Lord and Cherisher, and good and wholesome for you in both your present life and your afterlife.

O Muslims: Certainly, the one who maintains good relations with his blood relatives is he who hastens to be good and benevolent towards them and rushes to honour and venerate them and pardon and overlook their shortcomings. A man once said: O Messenger of Allah. I have blood relatives whose relations I maintain while they sever them, whose faults I pardon while they wrong me, and whom I treat with kindness and benevolence while they treat me with cruelty and malevolence, am I to reciprocate them, that is, treat them in kind (the way they treat me)? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,

No … instead, be gracious and act with benevolence, and maintain good relations with them

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

The one who maintains ties of kinship is not the one who reciprocates. The one who maintains ties of kinship is the one who, when his relatives cut him off, maintains ties of kinship (with them).

[Narrated by al-Bukhari]

Likewise, maintaining good relations with next of kin also takes the form of visiting them, seeing to their needs, sharing and rejoicing with them in their moments of happiness, inquiring after their wellbeing, making sure that they are fine, bringing joy and happiness to them, giving them gifts and presents, keeping contact with them and greeting them. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

A man’s paternal uncle is of the same status as his father . [Narrated by Muslim]

That is to say, he is his father’s equal and peer (having the same status). He should take care to visit his maternal aunts, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say:

The maternal aunt has the same status of the mother. [Narrated by al-Bukhari]

And from his guidance (peace and blessing be upon him) is that he used to visit the sick from his close relatives and he used to ask for their healing. He would also be avid and encourage the spending of money on them, saying:

Giving charity to a poor person is charity, and (giving) to a relative is two things, charity and upholding the ties of kinship. [Sunan an-Nasa'i]

So the best of charity is that which brings about purity of heart in the close relatives and purifies their thoughts, strengthening the bonds between them. For the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) said:

Indeed the best form of charity is the charity given to the relative who is cut off [to bring them close].

[Ahmad]

In other words, charity given to someone who is cut off, who otherwise has ignored his family bonds is great because the joining of his heart through such money helps grow love between the wider family, bringing close what was distant. Not only does this strengthen the family unit, but in a wider sense this strengthens society as a whole.

So may Allah make us from those who join between the family bonds, being pious and respectful of our parents and elders. And may He make for us true happiness in this world and safety in the next, by entering us into His Paradise. And may He  assist us all in the way of piety and obedience. Piety towards Your trustworthy Messenger, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), the ability to be dutiful towards those You have commanded us to be dutiful towards, in accordance with Your words: O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. [Qur’an: 4:59]

May Allah bless me and bless you with the Noble Qur’an and with the Way (Sunnah) of His Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). I say this, and I seek forgiveness for me and for you, so seek His forgiveness, for He is the All-Forgiving and the All-Merciful.

The Second Khutbah

All praises are for Allah, the Generous, the Oft-returning. The One who rewards and takes to account. And I bear witness, with every facet of my being, that there is nothing worthy of absolute love and adoration, except Allah, the Uniquely One, having no competing second in that One-ness. And I bear witness that our Leader and Master, our Prophet, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon his name), is the perfect example of dutiful servanthood towards Allah, and is His sent Messenger unto the entirety of the created universe. O Allah: We ask you to bestow Your peace, blessings and grace upon him; his family; all of his companions; and whomsoever follows and seeks to emulate him in the best of ways till the Last Day. I advise you, O servants of Allah, and myself, with Taqwa of Allah (glorified be He).

O You seeking to join between relatives:

Indeed Allah brings forward His reward in this world for those joining bonds between their relatives. As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

There is nothing in which Allah is obeyed in which is swifter in bringing its reward than joining between relatives. [Bayhaqi]

So Allah casts the love of those who join family bonds into the hearts of his family, his close as well as distant relatives. He also expands the provision for such people, for the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) said:

For indeed keeping the ties of kinship encourages affection among the relatives, increases the wealth, and increases the lifespan. [Tirmidhi]

And in the hereafter, Allah will enter such a person into a Paradise under which rivers flow. A man once said to the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him): Direct me to a deed which draws me near to Paradise and takes me away from the Fire. Upon this the Prophet said:

Worship Allah and never associate anything with Him, establish prayer, and pay the Zakat, and join the bonds between your kin. [Muslim]

So let us be avid to join and honour the bonds we have with our relatives, and to strengthen the bonds between us. Let us encourage in this our children, such that they can attain the pleasure of their Lord and increase in their societal bonds.

And with this, let us send our peace and blessings upon the one we have been commanded to send our peace and blessings upon, as Allah says: Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [ Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [ Allah to grant him] peace. [Qur’an: 33:56]. So, O Allah, bestow Your peace, blessings and grace upon our Master, our Prophet and upon his family and all of his companions. And may Allah be pleased with the Righteous Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali; and the noble companions of the Prophet, the Sahaba, may Allah be pleased with all of them.