دولـة الإمـارات العـربية المتحـدة
الجمعة: 18 شعبان 1444هـ
الهيئة العامة للشؤون الإسلامية والأوقاف
الموافق: 10/3/2023م
Suppressing one's Anger
First Khutbah
All praises are due to Allah, who has encouraged His slaves to suppress and control their anger and promised them forgiveness for their sins. O Allah to You belongs all praise. We believe in You, Your Angels, Your Divine Books, Your Messengers, in the Last Day, and in Your Divine decree, both its good and the apparent bad. We testify that there is nothing worthy of worship except You, the uniquely One, who has no partners in His one-ness. We are content with You as our Lord, Islam as our religion, and our Sayyid, Sayyiduna Muhammad, as our Prophet. O Allah, send Your peace and blessings upon him and upon his family, his companions and whomsoever follows him in guidance until the Last Day.
To Continue: I advise you, O slaves of Allah and myself, with the Taqwa of Allah, for verily Allah says:
وَسَارِعُوا إِلَى مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ* الَّذِينَ يُنْفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ
And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a garden as wide as the heavens and earth, prepared for the righteous. Who spend [in the cause of Allah] during ease and hardship and who restrain anger and who pardon the people - and Allah loves the doers of good. [Qur'an: 3:133-134]
In these two verses, the Lord of all the worlds makes clear that controlling one's anger is from the attributes of the people of Taqwa and the people of Ihsan. The word "Ghaydh" means extreme anger, so the people who control their anger when it rises, they are those who in states of such anger are able to control it, and to safeguard people from any harm that may come as a result of not controlling such anger. They are those who because of their control can hope for a great reward from Allah, which Allah magnifies as recompense for their efforts. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: مَا مِنْ جُرْعَةٍ أَعْظَمُ أَجْرًا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ؛ مِنْ جُرْعَةِ غَيْظٍ كَظَمَهَا عَبْدٌ ابْتِغَاءَ وَجْهِ اللَّهِ
There is nothing that is swallowed greater with Allah in reward than a slave of Allah who swallows and contains his anger out of purely seeking for the pleasure of Allah.
[Ibn Majah]
Similarly, Sayyidina Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
لَمْ أَرَ جُرْعَةً أَحْلَى عَاقِبَةً مِنْ كَظْمِ الْغَيْظِ
I have not seen anything swallowed sweeter and of greater consequence than the swallowing of anger.
So, the swallowing or controlling of anger bequeaths a sweetness in one's soul, and a contentment in one's heart, as well as a love and acceptance in the hearts of creation. This also instills mercy and compassion in the hearts of people, allowing for love and affection to continue between them.
O Believers: Indeed, the controlling and suppressing of anger is a lofty characteristic and attribute, this is why we find it is from the Prophetic character. Anas Ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates:
كُنْتُ أَمْشِي مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ وَعَلَيْهِ ثَوْبٌ غَلِيظُ الْحَاشِيَةِ، فَجَبَذَهُ رَجُلٌ بِرِدَائِهِ جَبْذَةً شَدِيدَةً، أَثَّرَتْ فِي عَاتِقِهِ ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ، مُرْ لِي مِنْ مَالِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي عِنْدَكَ. فَالْتَفَتَ إِلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَتَبَسَّمَ، ثُمَّ أَمَرَ لَهُ بِعَطَاءٍ
I was walking with Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) who was wearing a Najrani cloak with a very thick border when a bedouin happened to meet him. He took hold of the side of his cloak and drew it violently. I noticed that the violence of jerk had bruised the neck of Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The bedouin said: "O Muhammad! Give me out of Allah's wealth that you possess." Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) turned to him and smiled and directed that he should be given something.
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
So, whoever truly follows the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), will seek to control and suppress their anger and increase their gentleness and compassion. Such a person can hope to come on the Day of Judgment rejoicing in their reward, finding their heart filled with hope in their Creator, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: وَمَنْ كَظَمَ غَيْظَهُ وَلَوْ شَاءَ أَنْ يُمْضِيَهُ أَمْضَاهُ؛ مَلَأَ اللَّهُ قَلْبَهُ رَجَاءً يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ
Whoever suppresses his anger, even though he could fulfill his anger if he wished, Allah will fill his heart with hope on the Day of Judgment [al-Muʻjam al- Saghir]
So, such people will be content with Allah, out of their hope in Allah and His raising of their ranks. Hence, we ask Allah that He give us the ability to suppress our anger, and to make us from those who are blessed in Paradise and that He accept all of us for His obedience and bless us with obedience towards His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and obedience towards those whom He has ordered us to show obedience towards, in accordance with His saying:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ
O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. [Qur'an: 4:59]
I say this and I seek forgiveness for myself and for you, so seek His forgiveness, indeed He is the most forgiving, most Merciful.
Second Khutbah
All praises are due to Allah, the uniquely One. And may peace and blessings be upon our Sayyid, Sayyiduna Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and upon all of his companions. I advise you slaves of Allah and myself with the Taqwa of Allah, so have Taqwa of Him.
O Believers: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) clarified for us those things that will aid us in suppressing our anger, so he encouraged us to abstain from those means that will increase our anger. Hence when a companion asked him for advice, he said: لَا تَغْضَبْ
Do not get angry. [Bukhari]
For how many situations are there in which a person does not suppress their anger, and the result is that they find this lack of control brings about a corrupting of their relationships, a breaking of their bonds, and a continuation of difficulties and problems in their lives. So, the wise person is the one who when they find anger come to them, find that they are able to overcome it and control their own selves, holding their tongues and ensuring it does not say anything that they later regret. We are advised in such situations to seek refuge from the Shaytan, and to reflect on the great reward and honor that Allah has prepared for those who control their anger, for such people will be summoned over the rest of creation on the Day of Judgment, as the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: مَنْ كَظَمَ غَيْظًا وَهُوَ قَادِرٌ عَلَى أَنْ يُنْفِذَهُ؛ دَعَاهُ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَى رُؤُوسِ الْخَلَائِقِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ
If anyone suppresses anger when he is in a position to give vent to it, Allah, the Exalted, will call him on the Day of Judgment over the heads of all creation. [Abu Dawud]
When such people will be called on the Day of Judgment, they will then have all of their sins forgiven, after which they will be entered into Paradise, which will be shown to them as a reward. As Allah says: أُولَئِكَ جَزَاؤُهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَجَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ
Those - their reward is forgiveness from their Lord and gardens beneath which rivers flow [in Paradise], wherein they will abide eternally; and excellent is the reward of the [righteous] workers. [Qur'an: 3:136]
So, may we be of those who attain unto this great reward, who attain unto this rank through their controlling and suppressing their anger. May we be of those who have beautiful character, and interpersonal dealings in all of our relationships, may we show this character in our homes with our families, at work with our work colleagues, with our relations and neighbors, with our friends and companions, and all of the people we interact with.
With this we ask You O Allah that You send Your prayers and blessings upon all of the Prophets and Messengers, especially on the seal of them, our master, our Prophet, Sayyiduna Muhammad. O Allah send Your peace and blessings upon him, and upon his family, his companions, all of them. And send your blessings upon the righteous and rightly guided Khulafa: Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, Sayyiduna Umar, Sayyiduna Uthman and Sayyiduna Ali, and upon all of the companions and those of the righteous who come after them, may Allah be pleased with them all.
O Allah, grant success to the UAE President HH Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to the Vice-President and his Brothers, their Highnesses, the Rulers of the Emirates and guide them to all that which is good and what pleases You. O Allah, bestow your mercy on the late Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Maktoum, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed and the other late UAE Sheikhs who have passed on to Your mercy. We ask you to admit them into Paradise by Your grace. O Allah have mercy on those martyred for Your sake, and grant them intercession for their people, and grant their families patience and a great reward. And have mercy, our Lord, upon all of the believers, the living and the dead. Believers, remember Allah and He will remember you, forget Him not, lest you be forgotten. Be grateful for your blessings and you will be increased therein. So, stand up for prayer.
