The Farewell Sermon

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) delivered a speech known as khuṭbat al-wadāʿ, the Farewell Sermon. There are various narrations of it — some in al-Bukhārī, some in Muslim, some in the books of sīrah, some in the other books of Sunan. Here is the one narrated by Imām Aḥmad, read in translation. And these are the final words of advice from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).

Do not be unjust; do not be unjust; do not be unjust. The wealth of a Muslim man is not permissible except with the goodwill of his soul. Verily, every blood, and wealth, and claim of pride that was in the Jāhiliyyah is under my feet until the Day of Resurrection; and the first blood to be abolished is the blood of Ibn Rabīʿah ibn al-Ḥārith ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib: he was nursed among Banū Saʿd, and Hudhayl killed him. Verily, every blood of the Jāhiliyyah is under my feet until the Day of Resurrection; and Allah has decreed that the first blood to be abolished is the blood of Ibn Rabīʿah ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. You have your capital, your wealth: do not be unjust; do not be unjust. Verily, time has come round to how it was on the day Allah created the heavens and the earth. Then he recited: verily, the number of months with Allah is twelve months in the Book of Allah, on the day He created the heavens and the earth; of them, four are sacred; that is the right religion, so do not wrong yourselves in them. Do not revert, after me, to being disbelievers, striking one another's necks. Verily, Shayṭān has despaired of being worshipped by those who pray, but not of stirring up strife between you.

And fear Allah concerning the women, for they are helpers with you; they have nothing for themselves; and they have a right over you, and you have a right over them: that no one should tread on your bedding except you, and that they should not admit into your homes anyone you dislike. So if you fear their disobedience, then admonish them, and leave them in their beds, and strike them with an unmerciful blow^*; and they are entitled to their provision and their clothing in kindness. You have taken them only by the trust of Allah, and made them lawful by the word of Allah; so whoever has a trust, let him render it to the one who entrusted it to him.

And he stretched out his hand and said: O people, do you know on what day, in what month, and in what land you are? They replied: on a sacred day, in a sacred month, in a sacred land. The Messenger of Allah said: your blood, your possessions and your honour are sacred to you, as this day of yours is, in this month of yours, in this land of yours, until you meet Him. And then he said: listen to me, and you will live.

Here is another translation of it. Do not do wrong; do not do wrong; do not do wrong. The property of a Muslim is not permitted to you except by his wish. All blood, money and deeds done in the Jāhiliyyah are crushed beneath these feet of mine until the Day of Judgement. The first blood that is abolished is that of Ibn Rabīʿah ibn al-Ḥārith ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib: he was fostered among Banū Saʿd, and Hudhayl killed him. All the usury charges of the Jāhiliyyah are abolished, and Allah has decreed that the first usury charges to be abolished are those of al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. Your capital is your own: no wrong should be done against you, and you should not wrong anyone.

So one can see that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was putting all of the Jāhiliyyah behind: this is a new era, and new laws, and the old era is gone. And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was applying these rules to himself and his family first. So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was saying: the first of the killings of the Jāhiliyyah is gone, and we are going to give up the case of Ibn Rabīʿah ibn al-Ḥārith ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib — who was the cousin of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), or the son of the cousin of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). This was a case that happened in the time of the Jāhiliyyah; and because these things led to wars and tribes fighting each other, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was saying: as for that blood, we forgive those who killed him for it — to put an end to the feudal system of Arabia. And then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) banned usury, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: the first ribā I am putting under my feet is the ribā of al-ʿAbbās. So al-ʿAbbās had been lending to people and charging them interest, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was saying: all that you can get back is your capital.

And then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: time has revolved as it was on the day Allah created the heavens and the earth (al-Bukhārī 4406). And then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recited the ayah:

The number of the months with Allah is twelve months, in Allah's ordinance, since the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred; that is the correct reckoning; therefore do not wrong yourselves regarding them. And this is in Sūrat al-Tawbah, verse 36. And then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) says: do not revert after me to being unbelievers, striking the necks of one another. Shayṭān has despaired of being worshipped by those who pray; however, he is present in the dissension among yourselves.

And this is why one finds a lot of dissension among the Muslims. Shayṭān does not care, does not bother, about causing dissension among the kuffār, because they are already kuffār and going to the Hellfire anyway; but he is concerned about the Muslims. Since he cannot make them kuffār, he makes them fight among themselves: he is always stirring up this waswasah in the hearts of the Muslims and causing fitnah among them.

Fear Allah in your relationship with women: they are captives with you. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), here in the last days of his life, is giving us naṣīḥah to care for our women. They are captives with you; they own nothing for themselves; they have rights over you, and you have rights over them: that they should not allow anyone other than yourselves to set foot on your furnishings, and that they should not give permission to anyone you dislike to enter your homes. If you fear those of them who are fractious, then admonish them, and leave them in their beds, and strike them, but not viciously. They have rights to their provision and their clothing in kindness. It was only by Allah's covenant that you took them, and it is by Allah's word that you are permitted access to them; and whoever has a trust should discharge it to the one who entrusted it to him (Muslim 1218).

These are the words of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) at the Ḥajj, a khuṭbah delivered to thousands of Muslims; and in them one finds tawḥīd; one finds advice on fiqh; and one also finds the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) giving us naṣīḥah to care for, and have concern for, the Muslim women.