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Summary

The following points below are summary from this week's Friday Sermon:

• After reciting Tashahhud, Ta‘awwuz and Surah al-Fatihah, His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad (aba) said that he would continue mentioning details regarding the Battle of Tabuk. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that after the Muslim army departed for the battle, the first place the Holy Prophet (sa) set up camp was Dhu Kushab, which was at a distance of a one-night journey from Madinah. It is recorded that for the duration of this journey, the Holy Prophet (sa) combined the early afternoon prayer (Zuhr) and the late afternoon prayer (Asr) and then also combined the early evening prayer (Maghrib) and late evening prayer (Isha). 
• His Holiness (aba) said that during the journey, the Holy Prophet (sa) performed ablution before prayer by washing his hands three times, washing his face, washing his arms up to the elbows, and passing his wet hands over his leather shoes. 
• It is also recorded that during the journey, Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Auf (ra) was appointed to lead the prayer. The Holy Prophet (sa) joined the prayer during the second unit of prayer, and after the congregational prayer was over, he stood up to complete his prayer. The other Muslims grew worried; however, after completing his prayer, the Holy Prophet (sa) appreciated them and said that they had done well to join the prayer on time. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that as the Holy Prophet (sa) passed by the valley of Hijr, he told the Muslims not to enter the area of those who had caused Muslims great grief, unless the Muslims were in a dire situation and had no other option. The Holy Prophet (sa) then used his cloak to cover his face, and according to another narration, he also covered his head. Hijr is where the Prophet Saleh’s (ra) people, Thamud, resided. This was a lush valley, and its people had been granted an abundance of bounties by God. However, the Prophet Saleh’s (as) camel was a sign for them, which they hamstrung, drawing the displeasure of God, who took their bounties away. These people have been mentioned in the Holy Qur’an as the People of Hijr, and there is a chapter in the Holy Qur’an titled al-Hijr. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that as the Holy Prophet (sa) was travelling to Tabuk, his camel Qaswah became lost on the way. The companions searched for the camel. Among them was Hazrat Ammarah (ra), who had also been present during the Battle of Badr. He had with him in his tent a Muslim who used to be a Jew; however, though he had apparently accepted Islam, he was in fact a hypocrite. When the camel became lost, he said that if the Holy Prophet (sa) was a prophet, then he should have known the whereabouts of this camel. Immediately, God informed the Holy Prophet (sa) of the exact whereabouts of the camel. Upon learning what this man named Zaid said, Hazrat Ammarah (ra) expelled him from his tent. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that during the journey, the Muslim’s rations became depleted. The Muslims asked the Holy Prophet (sa) if they could sacrifice some of their riding camels for their meat and fat. Upon this, Hazrat Umar (ra) said to the Holy Prophet (sa) that this would deplete their riding animals. He suggested that everyone should gather their remaining rations, and the Holy Prophet (sa) could pray over them. The Holy Prophet (sa) agreed and did exactly that. After praying over the rations, everyone was able to eat to their full satisfaction, with some still left over. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that during the journey, there was a fight between two individuals, causing their hands to become cut and for one to even lose his front teeth. The man who lost his teeth said to the Holy Prophet (sa) that he should be given blood money for his loss. The Holy Prophet (sa) said that blood money did not apply in this circumstance. Hence, this shows that recompense is given based on circumstances.
• His Holiness (aba) said that while on the journey, the Muslim army passed by a date orchard, and the Holy Prophet (sa) told the Muslims to guess the number of dates in this orchard. The Holy Prophet (sa) himself guessed that it would be 10 wasq. The Holy Prophet (sa) told the owner of the orchard to remember the weight of the dates when she picked them. On the way back from the battle, when the Muslims passed by the orchard and asked the owner about the weight of the dates, she said that it was 10 wasq in weight, exactly as the Holy Prophet (sa) had estimated. 
• His Holiness (aba) said that upon arriving in Tabuk, the Holy Prophet (sa) warned the Muslims that there would be a storm that night, and so he instructed that no one should remain standing, the camels should be tied, and no one should go out alone, but rather everyone should go out in pairs. That night, there was a severe storm, and if someone was standing, they would be swept off their feet and blown away. After the storm, the Muslims had no water. The Holy Prophet (sa) prayed, and a cloud appeared which rained down on them.

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Summary prepared by The Review of Religions