Every Darkness Lifts: The Eclipse, Signs of Allah, & Scales of Justice - Maulana Syed Muhammad Rizvi

Friday Juma KhutbaFriday August 14th, 2026- Wednesday's partial eclipse over Canada prompted the announcement to recite salatu 'l-ayat, the prayer connected to Allah's signs.- Before Islam, few understood eclipses; many read them as signs of divine anger and ended up worshipping the moon, sun, rivers, or seas.- Islam places the human being at the top of God's creation, with everything else created to serve humanity (Qur'an 23:14 — "so blessed is Allah, the best of creators").- If natural phenomena cause fear, we should remember they are all Allah's creation and can never be objects of worship.- Salatu 'l-ayat is prescribed for eclipses (solar or lunar, full or partial), earthquakes, or any sky or earth event that instills fear in most people.- Imam Musa al-Kazim (AS) narrates the solar eclipse in Medina on the day the Prophet's son Ibrahim died in 10 AH.- People claimed the eclipse occurred because of Ibrahim's death, attaching false spiritual meaning to a natural event.- The Prophet (s) ascended the mimbar and clarified that the sun and moon are two of Allah's signs, moving obediently by His command.- He stated plainly that they do not eclipse for anyone's death or birth, and that one should pray when an eclipse occurs.- The Prophet then descended and led the people in salatu 'l-ayat, modeling the correct response to such signs.- The core lesson: sun, moon, sea, and river are all ayat under Allah's command — we worship Allah, not His signs.- People past and present exploit such events for gain; Columbus manipulated a lunar eclipse to frighten natives into supplying his ship.- Believers are warned to beware of fake miracle-workers who weaponize ignorance of natural phenomena.- An eclipse can also be understood in a political sense: when the moon covers the sun, day turns to night, and something looms large enough to blot out the truth.- The US–Israel attack on Iran functions as such an eclipse, diverting the world's attention from ongoing aggression in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon.- More than 60% of the Gaza Strip remains under Israeli military occupation.- In the West Bank, settlers have grown so brazen in seizing land, destroying property, and harming people that even the US Ambassador to Israel called them "Israeli terrorists"; per the UN, 76 Palestinians, including 18 children, have been killed there.- In Lebanon, more than 4,000 have been killed, thousands injured, and 1.2 million displaced, with white phosphorus and incendiary bombs reportedly burning farmland, olive groves, and forests across the south.- The arrogant forget that no deed escapes Allah: even a mustard-seed's weight hidden in rock, heavens, or earth will be brought forth (Qur'an 31:16), for the scales of justice on the Day of Resurrection wrong no one (Qur'an 21:47).Donate towards our programs today: https://jaffari.org/donate/Jaffari Community Centre (JCC Live)