Part One


Praise be to Allah. Praise be Allah, Who guides those who seek His guidance,


safeguards those who fear Him, and protects those who seek His good pleasure. All


praise is infinitely due to Him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, Who


has no partners, a testimony with which we hope to attain success and salvation; and I


bear witness that our prophet and master, Muhammad, is His servant and messenger, His


prophet and chosen one, His confidant and ally, and His favoured one with whom He was


most pleased. May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him and upon his family and


Companions as long as people hope for Allah’s forgiveness and mercy.


O Muslims!


Fear Allah, for fear of Allah is the best of all gains and obedience to Him is the


most honourable source of pride.


O you who believe! Fear Allah (by doing all that He has ordered


and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden) as He should be


feared. [Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him


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always], and die not except in a state of Islam [as Muslims (with


complete submission to Allah)]. (Al ‘Imran: 102)


O Muslims!


People are of different breeds, diverse types, and various natures and instincts.


Each person leans towards those who are similar to him, inclines to those who are close


to him in nature, and seeks the company of those who resemble him. Opposites cannot


meet and equals do not part. Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that


the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Souls are like


recruited troops; those who are of similar qualities are inclined to each other, but


those who have dissimilar qualities, differ” (Reported by Muslim).


Showing one’s affection to people is a form of generous giving, declaring one’s


love for one’s brothers is a sign of good grace, and confining such love and affection to


those who fear Allah is a mark of common sense. A truly sensible person is one who


keeps company with the virtuous and spends time with honourable people; he does not


make friends with strangers until he probes their inner nature and examines their deeds,


for each individual is judged by the company he keeps and is marked by the traits of his


friends. Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of


Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “A man is of the same religion as that of


his closest friend; so each one of you should consider whom he makes friends with”


(Reported by Abu-Dawud and At-Tirmidhi). The meaning of this hadith is that each one


should think carefully about those he keeps company with; if he approves of their religion


and moral character, then he can make friends with them. Otherwise, he should keep


away from them, for characters are contagious of one another and bad company is bound


to send one astray. Some of the best verses written on this are the following:


Put people to the test if you seek their company,


Ponder on their affairs and dig deep into their character.


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Should you come upon a trustworthy, pious person,


Then with delight and reassurance hold fast to him.


Al-Qarafi said, “Not everybody deserves to be a companion, a friend, or a


confidant.”


Keep company with men of faith to earn their friendship,


For one’s character is acquired from one’s company,


Like the wind that passes by, carrying anything on its way,


Be it foul-smelling or sweet-smelling.


Do not sit with the depraved,


For the traits of the foolish are infectious.


Keep company with the good, and you will emerge safe;


But if you keep company with the evil you will certainly regret it.


Abu Hatim said, “Whoever keeps company with vicious people will never be


safe, just as a person who treads the paths of evil will invite suspicion.” A Bedouin once


said, “Keeping company with the despicable and the depraved downgrades one’s esteem,


lowers one’s status, impairs one’s speech, and causes humiliation.” Sharik ibn Abdullah


said, “People used to say, ‘Do not travel with a disobedient person, for he may betray you


for a meal or a drink.’”


Al-Khattab ibn Al-Mu‘alla once advised his son saying, “Beware of keeping


company with the evil, for they betray those who accompany them and cause grief to


those who are truthful to them. Getting close to them is more contagious than mange, and


rejecting them is a sign of common sense.” It was also said, “Good company is like shiny


light while bad company is like contagious mange.”


Abu Musa Al-Ash‘ari, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet,


peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The similitude of good company and bad


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company is that of a musk seller and a blacksmith. The musk seller would either


give you some musk for free, or you would buy some from him, or at least you


would smell its pleasant scent. As for the blacksmith, he would either burn your


clothes or you would smell the repugnant odour [emanating from his work]”


(Agreed upon).


Therefore, avoid those who doubt the truth, reject those who are given to


disobedience, keep away from those who are into immorality, and shun foolish people


who neglect their duties. Such bad company has often given rise to numerous


punishments, taken away many blessings, caused a lot of disasters, and led to countless


afflictions.


… and whoever takes Shaitan (Satan) as an intimate; then what a


dreadful intimate he has! (An-Nisa’: 38)


As the poet said,


And if you take a crow as a guide,


It will make you pass over dog carcasses.


A man once asked a blind man to guide him, so the latter chanted the following


verse:


How can a blind man guide one endowed with eyesight!


Lost indeed are those who are guided by the blind!


Those who seek the guidance of the misled, the disobedient, and the blind to the


truth will bite at their hands on the Day of Judgement in bitter regret and deep remorse:


And (remember) the Day when the Zalim (wrong-doer, oppressor,


polytheist) will bite at his hands, he will say: “Oh! Would that I had


taken a path with the Messenger (Muhammad, peace and blessings


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be upon him). Ah! Woe to me! Would that I had never taken so-andso


as a Khalil (an intimate friend)! He indeed led me astray from the


Reminder (this Qur’an) after it had come to me. And Shaitan (Satan)


is to man ever a deserter in the hour of need. (Al-Furqan: 27-29)


Successful indeed are those who understand the truth and follow it, and happy are


those who seek to get closer to their Lord!


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Part Two


Praise be to Allah for His great favours, and all forms of gratitude are due to Him


for His abundant bounties. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, Who has


no partners, a testimony that we hope will keep us safe from His punishment; and I bear


witness that our master and prophet, Muhammad, is His servant and messenger, the


intercessor who will be granted permission by Allah to intercede on the Day of


Reckoning. May Allah bestow His peace and blessings upon him and upon his family and


Companions till the Day of Judgment.


O Muslims!


Fear Allah and be watchful of Him. Obey Him and never break His commands:


O you who believe! Keep your duty to Allah and fear Him, and


speak (always) the truth. He will direct you to do righteous good


deeds and will forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah


and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), he has indeed


achieved a great achievement (i.e. he will be saved from the Hell-fire


and will be admitted to Paradise). (Al-Ahzab: 70-71)


O Muslims!


How excellent good company is, and what a beautiful adornment it is!


By your life! A person’s wealth is by no means a supply,


It is the trusted friends who make the true supply.


Ibn As-Sammak was once asked, “Who is it amongst friends whose company is


worthier of maintaining?” He said, “The one whose faith is strong, whose understanding


is mature, who is not bored in your presence, and who does not forget about you in your


absence. If you try to get closer to him, he lets you get close to him; if you keep away


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from him for any reason, he remains concerned about you; if you ask him for support, he


supports you; and if you are in need of him, he comes to your help.” ‘Alqamah ibn Labid


said in a piece of advice he gave to his son, “O son! If you ever need to have friends, then


make friends with the one who adorns your character, who protects you if you do him a


favour, who comes to your help when you are in need, and who praises you for your


merits and covers your faults.”


O Muslims!


The best companions and friends are those whose sight reminds you of Allah,


whose wisdom benefits you in your life, and whose advice and conduct help you in


showing obedience to Allah.


And keep yourself (O Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon


him) patiently with those who call on their Lord (i.e. your


companions who remember their Lord with glorification, praising in


prayers, etc., and other righteous deeds) morning and afternoon,


seeking His Face; and let not your eyes overlook them, desiring the


pomp and glitter of the life of the world; and obey not him whose


heart We have made heedless of Our Remembrance, and follows his


own lusts and whose affair (deeds) has been lost. (Al-Kahf: 28)


Remember the following verse revealed by Allah, the Protector, the Most Great in


His Clear Book:


Friends on that Day will be foes one to another except Al-


Muttaqun (pious). (Az-Zukhruf: 67)


Ask Allah to bestow His peace and blessings on Prophet Ahmad, the guide and


the intercessor for all mankind, for whoever invokes Allah to bless him once will be


blessed for it by Allah ten times over.


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To mankind he was sent as a mercy and was indeed merciful,


So ask Allah to bestow His peace and blessings upon him.


O Allah! Bestow peace and blessings upon Your servant and messenger


Muhammad. O Allah! Be pleased with the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs, whose way is to


be followed, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali, along with all the Prophet’s family and


all his Companions, and with those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of


Judgment, and also be pleased with us together with them, by Your grace, generosity, and


benevolence, O Most Merciful of all the merciful!


O Allah! Grant power and glory to Islam and Muslims. O Allah! Grant power and


glory to Islam and Muslims. O Allah! Grant power and glory to Islam and Muslims,


subdue polytheism and the polytheists, and destroy the enemies of the religion. O Allah!


Make this country and all other Muslim countries – and all other Muslim countries, and


all other Muslim countries – safe, secure, and prosperous, O Most Merciful of all the


merciful!


O Allah! Guide our imam and ruler, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, to


what You love and accept, lead him to the way of righteousness and piety, and make


good his retinue, O Most Generous! O Allah! Guide him and guide the Crown Prince to


do that which gives power and glory to Islam and that which realizes the good of


Muslims.


O Allah! Save us from rise in prices, plagues, usury, adultery, fornication,


earthquakes, trials, and evil tribulations, apparent and hidden, in this country of ours and


in all Muslim countries, O Lord of the Worlds!


O Allah! We seek refuge in You from the stabs of enemies, from pestilence, from


plagues, and from afflictions that strike our souls, our families, our property, or our


children.


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O Allah! Grant victory, support, and assistance to our fellow Muslims in


Palestine, Syria, and Burma, O Lord of the Worlds!


O Allah! Have mercy on our dead, cure the sick among us, relieve the distress of


the afflicted among us, release our prisoners, and grant us victory over our enemies, O


Lord of the Worlds!


O Allah! Answer our prayers. O Allah! Answer our prayers. O Allah! Answer our


prayers and supplications. O All-Hearer! O Near! O Responsive!