In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Echoes from the pulpit.
Salman al-Farisi, may Allah be pleased with him.
A sermon by the honorable Sheikh,
Khalid Ibn 'Abd al-Hammudi, may Allah preserve him.
Praise be to Allah, the Generous, the Self-Sufficient,
The Powerful, the Protector.
Praise be to Allah, the Magnificent, the Forbearing,
The All-Wise, the All-Knowing,
The Benign, the Merciful.
Praise be to Allah in times of ease and hardship.
Praise be to Allah for blessings that none can enumerate save Allah.
O Allah, to You belongs all praise; we cannot count the praises due to You.
You are as You have praised Yourself.
And I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship but Allah, alone, with no partner.
“All that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth glorifieth Allah; unto Him belongeth Sovereignty and unto Him belongeth praise, and He is Able to do all things.” (64:1)
He mends the broken,
He consoles and enriches the poor.
O you who are in pain, be patient,
For after patience comes glad tidings.
O you who weep in the night,
The light of dawn shall surely come.
O you who are broken, tell me,
Does Allah ever leave a heart broken forever?
O dear heart, be calm,
For after hardship comes ease.
And I bear witness that our master, our Prophet, and our beloved, Muhammad, is the servant of Allah and His Messenger,
His chosen one and His intimate friend.
Tender-hearted,
Of excellent companionship,
Whoever saw him stood in awe of him,
And whoever knew him loved him.
Gentle in nature,
A kind companion,
He never turned away a seeker; a beloved whom hearts adore.
You are the beloved, and what love could ever ascend
To the station of your love, my master, and its heights?
May the blessings of Allah be upon you as long as the passage of time
Is spoken of by those who follow; how magnificent you are.
O Allah, send blessings, peace, increase, and grace
Upon Your servant, Your Messenger, Your Prophet, and Your beloved, Muhammad,
And upon his family and his Companions,
And those who are guided by his guidance,
And who follow his path and tread in his footsteps,
And grant him abundant peace until the Day of Judgment.
Now then, servants of Allah,
I advise you and myself to fear Allah.
“O ye who believe! Observe your duty to Allah with right observance, and die not save as those who have surrendered (unto Him)” (3:102)
“O ye who believe! Observe your duty to Allah with right observance, and die not save as those who have surrendered (unto Him)” (3:102)
O community of believers,
Whoever seeks guidance sincerely and strives for it as it deserves,
Shall be granted success by the permission of Allah.
The Almighty says:
﴾ And those who strive for Us - We will surely guide them to Our ways. ﴿
“As for those who strive in Us, We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good.” (29:69)
And with us today, O servants of Allah,
Is the story of an intelligent, ambitious young man,
Who loved truth, sincerity, and clarity,
And sacrificed his wealth, his family, and his soul for its sake.
A bold and adventurous youth,
Who left his family and his land,
And traveled between countries,
Serving the elderly,
In search of the true religion.
A youth of sound intellect,
High aspirations,
Strong resolve,
And persistent patience.
Yet, he lived the first part of his life
In a Magian, pagan environment,
That worshipped fire.
He lived in the region of Isfahan,
In the land of Persia,
In Iran.
His father was the leader of the village and its chief,
And he was wealthy and formidable,
Possessing power and authority.
This father
Loved his son with a great love,
So much so that, out of the intensity of his love for him,
He feared for him and confined him to his house,
Just as a slave girl is confined.
In an extraordinary story,
Which we shall learn about today, by the permission of Allah.
So, have you recognized who this young man is?
The adventurous and ambitious one,
The seeker of guidance and truth?
He is the noble Companion,
Salman al-Farisi,
May Allah be pleased with him and grant him satisfaction.
Salman, may Allah be pleased with him, says:
"I strove in the Magian religion,
Until I became the servant of the fire,
The one who tends it,
Never letting it go out for a moment.
My father had a vast estate,
And one day he was occupied and could not attend to it,
So he said to me, 'My son,
I have been kept busy today from my estate,
So go and do such and such there,
And do not stay away from me,
For if you stay away from me,
You will distract me from all my affairs.'
So I went out, intending to go to the estate,
But I passed by one of the churches of the Christians.
When I heard their voices,
I entered to see what they were doing.
Their prayer impressed me,
And I became interested in their faith.
By Allah, I did not leave them
Until the sun set,
And I neglected my father's estate,
And did not go to it.
I asked them,
'Where is the origin of this religion?'
They said, 'In Ash-Sham (Syria).'
So I returned to my father,
Who had sent people in search of me,
And had been distracted by me from all his affairs.
When I came to him, he said,
'My son,
Where were you?'
I said, 'I passed by a church of the Christians,
And I was impressed by what I saw of their religion.'
He said, 'My son,
Your religion and the religion of your forefathers
Is better than that.'
I said, 'No, by Allah,
It is better than our religion.'
He feared for me,
So he put shackles on my legs,
And imprisoned me in his house.
I sent word to the Christians, saying,
'If a caravan from Ash-Sham comes to you,
Then inform me.'
When merchants from the Christians arrived,
They informed me about them.
When they intended to return to their country,
I cast off the iron from my legs,
And went out with them,
Until I arrived in Ash-Sham.
I asked,
'Who is the most knowledgeable of this religion?'
They said, 'The bishop in the church.'
So I went to him and said,
'I have become interested in this religion,
And I would like to be with you,
To serve you and learn from you,
And pray with you.'
He said, 'Enter,'
So I entered with him.
But I realized he was a bad man;
He would command them to give charity,
And encourage them to do so,
But when they collected something,
He would hoard it for himself,
And would not give it to the poor,
Until he had collected seven jars of gold and silver.
I hated him with an intense hatred,
When I saw him doing what he was doing.
Then he died,
And the Christians gathered to bury him.
I said to them,
'He was a bad man,
He used to do such and such,'
And I showed them his hoard.
When they extracted it, they said,
'By Allah, we will never bury him.'
So they crucified him and pelted him with stones.
Then they brought another man,
And placed him in his stead.
I have never seen anyone better than him,
Nor more ascetic in this world,
Nor more desirous of the Hereafter.
I loved him with a great love,
And I stayed with him for a time.
Then death approached him,
So I said to him,
'Death has approached you, as you see,
So to whom do you entrust me?'
He said, 'My son,
By Allah, I do not know anyone today
Who is upon what I was upon,
Except a man in Mosul, in Iraq,
Who is so-and-so,
So join him.'
So I traveled to him,
And told him my story, and he said to me,
'Stay with me.'
So I stayed with him,
And I found him to be upon the way of his companion.
It was not long
Before death approached him.
I said to him,
'Death has approached you from Allah, as you see,
So to whom do you entrust me?'
He said, 'My son,
By Allah, I do not know a man
Who is upon what we were upon,
Except a man in Nusaybin, in Ash-Sham,
Who is so-and-so,
So join him.'
When he passed away,
I set out until I reached the master of Nusaybin.
I came to him,
and told him my story.
He said, "Stay with me."
So I stayed with him,
and I found him to be upon the same path as his predecessor.
By Allah, it was not long before death came upon him.
I said to him,
"To whom do you entrust me?"
He said, "O my son,
by Allah, I know of no one
who remains upon our way
except for a man in Ammuriya,
in Turkey.
If you wish, go to him,
for he is upon our way."
When he passed away, I set out
until I reached the master of Ammuriya.
I told him my story,
and he said, "Stay with me."
So I stayed with him,
and he was upon the guidance of his companions.
Then I earned a living,
until I possessed some cows
and a small flock of sheep.
Then the decree of Allah came upon him.
When he was near death, I said to him,
"To whom do you entrust me?"
He said, "O my son,
by Allah, I know of no one
who remains upon what we were upon.
However,
the time has cast its shadow for a Prophet who will be sent
with the religion of Ibrahim.
He will emerge in the land of the Arabs,
and will migrate to a land between two lava fields,
among which are date palms.
He has signs
that are not hidden:
he eats from a gift,
but does not eat from charity,
and between his shoulders is the seal of prophethood.
If you are able
to reach that land, then do so."
He said: Then he died.
I remained in Ammuriya
for as long as Allah willed that I remain.
Then a group of merchants passed by me,
and I said to them,
"Carry me to the land of the Arabs,
and I will give you these cows of mine
and my small flock of sheep."
They said, "Yes."
So I gave them to them,
and they carried me with them.
Then they wronged me,
and sold me to a Jewish man.
I remained with him as a slave.
While I was with him,
a cousin of his arrived from Medina,
and he bought me from him,
and took me to Medina.
By Allah, it was not long
after I saw it
that I recognized it by the description my master had given me.
So I stayed there.
Then the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was sent.
He remained in Mecca for as long as he remained,
then he migrated to Medina.
By Allah,
I was at the top of a palm tree belonging to my master,
working on it,
and my master was sitting beneath it,
when a cousin of his approached
and stood before him.
He said, "O so-and-so,
may Allah fight the Banu Qayla,
the Aws and the Khazraj.
By Allah, they are gathered right now at Quba
around a man who arrived from Mecca today,
claiming that he is a Prophet."
When I heard this,
a trembling seized me,
until I thought I would fall upon my master.
I climbed down from the palm tree,
and began saying to his cousin,
"What are you saying?"
My master became angry,
and struck me a severe blow.
Then he said, "What do you have to do with this?"
Salman said:
I said, "I only wanted to verify the news."
When evening came,
I took some food
that I had collected,
and went to the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
while he was at Quba.
I entered upon him
and said to him,
"It has reached me
that you are a righteous man,
and you have companions with you who are strangers
and in need.
This is something I had for charity,
and I saw that you are more deserving of it than others."
He said: So I brought it near to him.
The Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to his companions,
"Eat,"
but he held back and did not eat.
I said to myself,
"This is one."
Then I turned away from him.
I gathered something else,
then I came to him after he had moved from Quba
to Medina.
I said to him,
"I saw that you do not eat charity,
and this is a gift
with which I honor you."
He said: So the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, ate from it,
and ordered his companions, so they ate with him.
I said to myself,
"These are two."
Salman said:
Then I came to the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
while he was at Baqi' al-Gharqad,
following a funeral of one of his companions,
and he had two cloaks upon him.
I greeted him,
then moved behind him,
looking at his back
to see if I would see the seal
that my master had described to me.
When he saw me move behind him,
he knew what I wanted,
so he cast his cloak off his back.
I looked at the seal,
and I recognized it.
I threw myself upon him, kissing him and weeping.
He said to me, "Move around."
So I moved to be in front of him,
and I told him my story,
and it pleased him,
and he liked for his companions to hear it.
Then Salman
was occupied by his state of servitude,
until he missed two battles:
Badr and Uhud.
The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to him,
"Make a contract of manumission, O Salman."
So he made a contract with his master
for three hundred palm saplings
to be planted for him in the soil,
and that he would also pay him forty
ounces of gold.
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said
to his companions,
"Help your brother."
They helped me: this one
with thirty saplings,
and this one with twenty,
each according to what he could afford,
until there were gathered for me
three hundred saplings.
He said to the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
"Go, O Salman,
and prepare the ground for them,"
meaning: dig for them.
"And when you have finished,
come to me,
so that I may be the one to place them with my own hands."
I went and prepared the ground for them,
then I came to him and informed him.
He, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, went out with me to them,
and we began bringing the saplings to him,
meaning the small palm shoots,
and the Messenger of Allah,
peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, placed them with his own hand.
When we had finished,
by the One in whose hand is the soul of Salman,
not a single sapling died.
So I fulfilled the palm trees,
but the money remained upon me.
Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was brought
something like an egg of gold.
Then he said,
"What has the Persian who is under contract done?"
He said: So I was called to him.
He said, "Take this,
and pay off what is upon you, O Salman."
I said, "And where would this reach
"What is upon me, O Messenger of Allah?"
He said, "Take it."
"For Allah will fulfill it on your behalf."
So I took it.
And I weighed out for them from it.
By the One in whose hand is the soul of Salman,
it was forty ounces.
So I paid them their full due.
And after that, Salman was able
to witness with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
the Battle of the Trench.
And he is the one who suggested digging it.
Thereafter, he did not miss a single battle with him.
He passed away, may Allah be pleased with him, during the caliphate of 'Uthman.
In the year thirty-three of the Hijrah.
May Allah be pleased with Salman and grant him satisfaction.
And with all the Companions.
I say what you hear.
And I ask Allah for forgiveness for myself and for you.
So seek His forgiveness.
For He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.
Praise be to Allah.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And the ultimate outcome belongs to the righteous.
And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah.
And I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
To proceed, servants of Allah:
In the story of Salman, may Allah be pleased with him, there are many lessons and morals.
Among them is the importance of a sound natural disposition (fitra).
For Allah blessed Salman with a sound natural disposition.
And He made the truth beloved to him until he preferred it over everything else.
His father was a man of wealth and the leader of his people.
And he loved him with an intense love.
Yet, he sacrificed all of that in order to reach
the true religion and the truth.
The second point:
That whoever strives finds.
And whoever sows reaps.
For Salman al-Farisi, may Allah be pleased with him, was
a man who strove with the utmost diligence.
He first strove in the religion of Zoroastrianism,
until he reached the rank of the servant of the fire.
Then he reached the highest ranks in the religion of Christianity.
Then he reached in the religion of Islam
a status beyond which there is no further.
The third point:
That an open mind,
one that searches for the truth,
is the greatest trait of the successful,
after the guidance of Allah.