Our Precious Mothers

First Sermon All praise is due to Allah, who has made honouring mothers among the greatest acts of obedience, and disobedience to them among the gravest sins. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that our master and Prophet Muḥammad is His servant and Messenger. O Allah, send Your blessings, peace, and grace upon him, his family, his companions, and those who follow his guidance thereafter. To proceed: I advise you, O servants of Allah, and myself to have taqwā (consciousness of Allah). Allah, the Exalted said: إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي جَنَّاتٍ وَعُيُونٍ * آخِذِينَ مَا آتَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا قَبْلَ ذَلِكَ مُحْسِنِينَ “Indeed, the righteous will be among gardens and springs, receiving what their Lord has given them. Indeed, before that they were doers of good.” (Qurʾān 51:15–16) O believers: our talk today is about our precious, compassionate mothers—whose supplications are answered, and who are a source of blessings. In our Sharīʿah, they hold a lofty station and noble rank. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (may Allah be pleased with him) used to ask every delegation that came to him: “Is Uways ibn ʿĀmir among you?” He continued doing so until he met him and said: “Are you Uways?” He replied: “Yes.” ʿUmar said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: يَأْتِي عَلَيْكُمْ أُوَيْسُ بْنُ عَامِرٍ... لَهُ وَالِدَةٌ هُوَ بِهَا بَرٌّ، لَوْ أَقْسَمَ عَلَى اللَّهِ لَأَبَرَّهُ، فَإِنِ اسْتَطَعْتَ أَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرَ لَكَ فَافْعَلْ ‘Uways ibn ʿĀmir will come to you… He has a mother to whom he is dutiful. If he were to swear by Allah, Allah would fulfill it. So if you are able to ask him to seek forgiveness for you, then do so.’ (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim) So ʿUmar asked him to seek forgiveness for him, and he did. Reflect, O servants of Allah, how ʿUmar—this great Companion, one of those promised Paradise—was keen to seek the supplication of Uways solely because of his dutifulness to his mother. What a rank the mother holds with Allah! What an immense status she has with Him! So, much so that Allah commanded His prophets to honor her. ʿĪsā (peace be upon him) said: وَأَوْصَانِي بِالصَّلَاةِ وَالزَّكَاةِ مَا دُمْتُ حَيًّا * وَبَرًّا بِوَالِدَتِي “And He has enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I live, and [He made me] dutiful to my mother.” (Qurʾān 19:31–32) Meaning: fulfilling her rights, showing her kindness, honouring her, being gentle and compassionate toward her. Yes, O servants of Allah—it is the mother, whose virtue and efforts our Lord calls us to remember: وَوَصَّيْنَا الْإِنْسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُ وَهْنًا عَلَى وَهْنٍ “And We have enjoined upon man [care] for his parents; his mother carried him, increasing her in weakness upon weakness.” (Qurʾān 31:14) Did your mother not rejoice when she learned of her pregnancy? Your body grew from her body. She bore your weight despite her weakness, and the more you grew, the greater her hardship. In giving birth to you, she endured pains beyond description: حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُ كُرْهًا وَوَضَعَتْهُ كُرْهًا “His mother carried him with hardship and gave birth to him with hardship.” (Qurʾān 46:15) Yet when she saw you, she forgot her pain and attached all her hopes to you. Then she served you tirelessly—never falling short, never growing weary. She made her lap your bed, and her chest your nourishment. She would not sleep until you slept. She carried your worries, felt your pain, rejoiced in your joy, and was delighted by your smile. How much she deprived herself for your sake, preferring your comfort over her own needs! By Allah, even if you spent all your wealth to please her, you would never fulfil her right. So how can a person withhold a few coins from his mother and break her heart—when she never withheld from him her wealth and surrounded him with her tenderness? How can he wrong her with a harsh glance, a hurtful word, by raising his voice at her, or speaking harshly to her?! Has he not heard that the Prophet ﷺ said: إِنَّ اللَّهَ حَرَّمَ عَلَيْكُمْ عُقُوقَ الْأُمَّهَاتِ “Indeed, Allah has forbidden you from disobedience to mothers…” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim) O you who are dutiful to your mother: balance between the rights of your mother, your wife, your children, and your work. It is not just that you become preoccupied with others at the expense of your mother. Do you not know that she may spend her entire day waiting for your visit—so her heart may be delighted by seeing you—or for your call—so her soul may find comfort in hearing your voice? Have you not seen how our Lord described the state of the mother of Mūsā (peace be upon him) when her son was taken from her? وَأَصْبَحَ فُؤَادُ أُمِّ مُوسَى فَارِغًا “And the heart of the mother of Moses became empty.” (Qurʾān 28:10) So, what then of a mother who waits for you but does not see you, longs for your voice but does not hear it? When the day ends and her hope is unmet, her heart breaks. Where is your heart? Where is your dutifulness? How can you be distracted from her, when our Prophet ﷺ gave her precedence over all others? A man came to him and said: “O Messenger of Allah, who is most deserving of my good companionship?” He said: أُمُّكَ». «ثُمَّ أُمُّكَ». «ثُمَّ أُمُّكَ». قَالَ: ثُمَّ مَنْ؟ قَالَ: «ثُمَّ أَبُوكَ “Your mother.” Then your mother. Then your mother.” He said: “Then who?” He said: “Then your father.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim) And it is no surprise—for honouring one’s mother is among the greatest acts of obedience and the most complete forms of righteousness. Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: إِنِّي لَا أَعْلَمُ عَمَلًا أَقْرَبَ إِلَى اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ بِرِّ الْوَالِدَةِ “I do not know of any deed closer to Allah than honoring one’s mother.” (al-Bukhārī in al-Adab al-Mufrad) So, strive in honouring your mother, and act upon the saying of your Lord: “O you who believe, obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those in authority among you.” (Qurʾān 4:59) I say these words of mine, and I seek forgiveness from Allah for myself and for you—so seek His forgiveness. Second Sermon All praise is due to Allah alone, and peace and blessings be upon the one after whom there is no prophet. To proceed: O you who are dutiful to your mother—indeed your mother is a treasure before you and the greatest wealth you possess. So, seize the opportunity of her presence and hasten to honour her before she returns to her Lord. For then you will regret your shortcomings in her right and wish that you had kissed her hands and her head and taken your fill of her tenderness. You will wish that you had spent your life sitting before her, looking at her, and devoting yourself to her service. So, make up for what has passed, and hasten before it is too late. For the Prophet ﷺ said: رَغِمَ أَنْفُ، ثُمَّ رَغِمَ أَنْفُ، ثُمَّ رَغِمَ أَنْفُ رَجُلٍ أَدْرَكَ وَالِدَيْهِ، أَحَدَهُمَا أَوْ كِلَيْهِمَا عِنْدَ الْكِبَرِ، لَمْ يَدْخُلِ الْجَنَّةَ “May his nose be humbled in dust, then may his nose be humbled in dust, then may his nose be humbled in dust— the one who finds his parents, one or both of them, in old age, and does not enter Paradise.” (Ahmad) So, attend to your mother, strive in honouring her—for that is the command of your Lord, the guidance of your Prophet ﷺ, and the heritage of your society. Indeed, in the United Arab Emirates, we raise generations to honour mothers, fulfil their rights, and show them kindness. They are the ones who give birth to heroes and raise men—so they become a fortress for the nation, its shield, its strength, and its support. So, greetings of reverence and appreciation to them—and beware, beware of disobedience to them. For dutifulness and disobedience are debts that will be repaid. So, choose for yourself what you offer your mother, for you will reap tomorrow what you sow today from your righteousness. As for the one who has been afflicted by the loss of his mother—let him know that the doors of dutifulness have not been closed, and the paths of kindness to her have not been exhausted. So illuminate her grave with a righteous supplication and bring joy to her soul through a continuous charity. For the Prophet ﷺ said: إِذَا مَاتَ الْإِنْسَانُ انْقَطَعَ عَنْهُ عَمَلُهُ إِلَّا مِنْ ثَلَاثَةٍ: إِلَّا مِنْ صَدَقَةٍ جَارِيَةٍ، أَوْ عِلْمٍ يُنْتَفَعُ بِهِ، أَوْ وَلَدٍ صَالِحٍ يَدْعُو لَهُ “When a human being dies, his deeds come to an end except for three: a continuous charity, beneficial knowledge, or a righteous child who supplicates for him.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)   So, increase in supplication: وَقُلْ رَبِّ ارْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانِي صَغِيرًا “And say: My Lord, have mercy upon them as they raised me when I was small.” (Qurʾān 17:24) Seek forgiveness for her, fulfil her debts, honour her vows, carry out her commitments, fulfil her promises, and maintain ties with her relatives—especially her sisters. For: الْخَالَةُ بِمَنْزِلَةِ الْأُمِّ “The maternal aunt holds the position of the mother.” (Tirmidhī) A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “O Messenger of Allah, I have committed a grave sin—do I have repentance?” He said: قَالَ: «هَلْ لَكَ مِنْ أُمٍّ؟» قَالَ: لَا، قَالَ: «هَلْ لَكَ مِنْ خَالَةٍ؟» قَالَ: نَعَمْ، قَالَ: «فَبِرَّهَا “Do you have a mother?” He said: “No.” He said: “Do you have a maternal aunt?” He said: “Yes.” He said: “Then be dutiful to her.” (Tirmidhī) This—so send your prayers and peace, O Allah, and bless our master and Prophet Muḥammad, the Seal of the Messengers, and upon his family, his pure wives—the Mothers of the Believers—and his noble companions. O Allah, be pleased with Abū Bakr, ʿUmar, ʿUthmān, and ʿAlī, and with all the noble companions. O Allah, forgive us for our shortcomings toward our mothers, and grant us the ability to honour them in their lives and after their passing. O Allah, have mercy on our mothers as they raised us when we were young, and reward them on our behalf with the best of rewards. O Allah, we ask You for the completion of blessings, the continuity of well-being, the perfection of goodness, and the most beautiful gentleness. O Allah, protect the United Arab Emirates from all directions. O Allah, we entrust to You its leadership, its people, and all who live on its land. O Allah, protect our armed forces, support them, grant them success, guide them, and grant them victory—for they are our strong shield, our firm fortress, and a means of our safety and reassurance. O Allah, reward our brave soldiers with the best and most complete reward, the greatest and most generous recompense. Strengthen their resolve, guide their aim, and grant them victory over Your enemies and theirs. O Allah, deal with the aggressors who spread فساد (corruption) on the earth and do not reform, who plot against Your servants, and who violate the sanctity of the sacred month. O Allah, protect Sheikh Muḥammad bin Zayed, the President of the State, with Your protection. Be for him a helper, a supporter, a guide, and one who grants him success. Bless his life and his deeds. O Allah, grant success to him, his deputies, and his brothers—the rulers of the Emirates—and his trustworthy Crown Prince—in what You love and are pleased with. O Allah, protect our mother, the Mother of the Emirates, Sheikha Fāṭimah bint Mubārak. Grant her health and well-being, continue Your blessings upon her outwardly and inwardly, bless her life and her work, and place what she offers of goodness, initiatives, and care for mothers in the scale of her good deeds. O Allah, have mercy on Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Rashid, and the sheikhs of the Emirates who have passed on to Your mercy, and admit them by Your grace into Your spacious gardens. O Allah, envelop the martyrs of the nation in Your vast mercy and raise their ranks in Your Paradise. O Allah, have mercy on the believing men and believing women—the living among them and the deceased. O servants of Allah: remember Allah, the Great and Majestic, and He will remember you. Be grateful to Him for His blessings, and He will increase you. And establish the prayer.