Have you applied the ten messages from the Farewell Sermon to your life?
In the tenth year after migration to Madinah, the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed his first and last Hajj since they arrived in Madinah. On that day, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stood on Arafah and it was Jummuah. The Prophet (peace be upon him) delivered his memorable Final Sermon over the blessed days of Hajj. His main focus was on ten things. They form his wasiyya (last will) to the Ummah.
There were about 120,000 Hajjis and the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught them how to perform the rituals of Hajj correctly, as they had become corrupted since the time of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and the way he used to perform Hajj. Many rituals had been altered, some removed and some added. It was time for the Prophet (peace be upon him) to reset the Hajj, and thus he told them repeatedly,
“Take your rituals from me”, (Muslim)
He was highlighting that this would be the final way and all Hajj thereafter should be in accordance with his teachings.
He performed tawaf, sa’i and stood on Arafah on his camel so that he was clearly visible. Among the miracles that Allah gave the Prophet (peace be upon him) was that the Hajjis could all hear him, without modern technology. They reported that they could hear his voice in their tents when he was standing on Arafah. In the barren plains of the desert there was no mountain for his voice to echo, yet he needed no microphone. Therefore Allah Almighty enabled even the furthest Hajji to hear his words.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) delivered his final addresses in Mina, on the Day of ‘Arafah, and once again in Makkah. In all of them, he declared:
“Your blood, your wealth, and your honour are sacred to you, like the sanctity of this day, in this month, in this city.” (Bukhari)
This means that it is absolutely forbidden to kill one another, to steal from one another, or to insult or violate each other’s dignity.
He emphasised that these matters are inviolable. Furthermore, he confirmed that riba (interest/usury) is strictly prohibited. To show the seriousness of this command, he began with his own family. He announced that all riba is cancelled, starting with the riba owed to his own uncle, ‘Abbās ibn ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib, who had been one of the biggest lenders at the time. From that day forward, no one was to give or take riba ever again.
He said all practices that contradict the shariah are not allowed. The fifth thing he mentioned was not to treat women badly. Domestic violence is not permissible. Women must be treated well. Women are either your mothers, wives, sisters or daughters, so be kind to them.
The sixth point he made was that we should cling to the Book of Allah and his Sunnah. The seventh point was the importance of passing on the message to others.
He (peace be upon him) said:
“Let those who are present convey the message to those who are absent.”
With these words, the Prophet (peace be upon him) reminded us that the message of Islam is not to be kept to ourselves; it is a trust to be passed on, sincerely and clearly, to those who were not there to hear it directly. This is a responsibility for every generation. He received the final ayah of the Quran:
اليوم أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِى وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ ٱلْإِسْلَـٰمَ دِينًۭا
“This day I have perfected for you your religion, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” (5:3)
Thus, Allah completed the Quran on that very day. So, the Prophet (peace be upon him) wants us to celebrate this day every Eid al Adha, not the story of the sacrifice of Ibrahim (peace be upon). He wants us not just to celebrate the completion of the message, but to live by it.
Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) emphasised the importance of the unity of the Ummah, saying
“Do not turn back after me as disbelievers, striking the necks of one another.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
He was aware his Ummah would later fall into factions and internal conflict, leading to bloodshed and division. He warned us because he foresaw how this disunity would weaken the Ummah, causing it to lose its strength, dignity, and the respect of others.
Finally, he (peace be upon him) confirmed that he was the final messenger sent to humanity, the Seal of the Prophets. No one would come after him.
The ten action points from the Farewell Sermon::
1. Sanctity of life,
2. Sanctity of property
3. Sanctity of honour :
4. Abolishment of riba and pre-Islamic customs
5. Rights of women:
6. Equality:
7. Adherence to the Qur’an and Sunnah
8. Delivery of the divine message:
9. Unity of the Ummah:
10. Completion of religion:
These ten points are something we should check ourselves for on a daily basis – our relationship with Allah and our relationship with those around us and our transactions. We have to ask our self: how is our relation with the Quran and Sunnah, that we were instructed to cling to; how are we in rejecting the practices of culture, but not following cultural practices that contradict the Shariah; how is our relationship with our mothers, wives, daughters and sisters? Is our income halal or is it tainted? Are we involved in riba? It is difficult to avoid riba, but we need to make sacrifices to please Allah. We need to be creative and find new ways to generate profits in a halal way, rather than succumbing to riba. Are we united as a family or fragmented? How are we within the community and Ummah, in forming strong building blocks for the Ummah? Unity does not parachute on us, it starts with our family and then develops. It is not easy to unite the Ummah and it took the Prophet (peace be upon him) 23 years to unite the believers. Yes, he was supported by Jibril and the revelation, but the Companions also played a part in working towards uniting. We too need to unite our families.
It is sad that some families do not visit members of their own family at Eid because they have issues with them. And yet wish for our Ummah to be victorious. Unless we can unite our families, we cannot dream of uniting our Ummah. Let’s try our best to stay on the right path that will please Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him).
Based on the Khutbah of Shaykh Haytham Tamim on 6th June 2025