The Sermons of Seydina Limamoulaye: A remedy against the ills of our time
“A tree is known by its fruit,” says a biblical proverb from Matthew 7:16-20. Faced with the many tumults that our time is going through, the last era (Aaxirou zamane), the message of Seydina Limamoulaye, the Mahdi (the Rightly Guided) in the form of sermons (khoutba) resonates as a source of guidance towards the path of eternal Salvation.
Seydina Limamoulaye who declared himself to be the Rightly Guided One expected at the end of time (Al Mahdi Muntazar) by launching God’s Call to men and jinns at the beginning of the 14th lunar century carried a message of justice and equity. As during the Yoff stage, commonly called “Yoor-Yoor Diamalaye” marking the day of the Call (1st Sha’baan), Imam Makhtar Laye revisits some passages from the noble teachings condensed in six sermons.
This precious legacy of the Mahdi, ahead of his time, constitutes a remedy for the diffuse and multi-form crises which exacerbate our era. “Know that our times are troubled, this means the end of times. Take for example water that is running out: what remains at the bottom of the container is always cloudy,” he describes in the first sermon to characterize our times. Religion is generous availability “Islamic solidarity in the face of current challenges”, theme of the 146th anniversary of the Call, was addressed in depth by Seydina Limamoulaye at through the triptych of love, mutual aid and religious fraternity. In the first sermon, the guide invites us to cultivate the values of love and to banish anything that deviates from them.
“Love one another. Do only good for each other,” he urges. According to him, religion is generous availability. In relation to the verticality, between man and his Lord, Seydina Lima-moulaye emphasizes that this availability consists of “recognizing his uniqueness, carrying out his commandments, moving away from what he prohibits and advising men to act in the same direction”. In relation to the Messenger of God, this, indicates the Mahdi, consists of believing in his mission, attesting to it, following his commandments, abandoning what he prohibits and practicing his tradition. The horizontal framework of religious availability (between humans) seems more complex in view of our current society where religious and Muslim guides are not spared from the salvos of slander and insanity widely spread with the phenomenon of social networks.
However, Seydina Limamoulaye had defined the nature of our relations with religious leaders. “It is to love them, follow their advice, help them in activities that concern religion, and advise men to adopt the same attitude towards them. »
The Rightly Guided indicates that the Muslim must love his neighbor. In this sense, he urged us to strengthen our relationships through love, because the people of paradise love each other. Thus, Seydina Limamoulaye fundamentally banishes everything that is hatred, enmity, gossip, bad suspicion (hearsay), backbiting, lies, slander, betrayal, jealousy, the act of belittling each other especially with regard to faith.
This last point, which takes on disproportionate proportions on social networks, undermines living together. Thus, in his sermon no. 3, the Mahdi emphasizes that polemics, disputes, rivalry are prohibited in religion. “May each of you, Muslims, follow the one who is your guide and your religious support, practice what he has ordered and imitate his qualities,” he invites.
Alms and zakat, two levers of solidarity “Know that I am your friend, I will not leave you until you enter paradise,” says Seydina Limamoulaye. Through the metaphor of the shepherd and his animals tied up in the stable, the Mahdi visits us about our fields of this lower world and the other world.
“I visit you about all parts of your body: your tongues, their words and their silences; of your travels and your rests,” he says. His recommendation encouraging us to move only towards a laudable goal and to refrain from going out when this can help avoid harm made perfect sense during the covid-19 pandemic with the proliferation of contact and community cases.
As for the 3rd pillar of Islam, Zakat, the Holy Master attaches great importance to it and is uncompromising regarding its complete payment and its time.
“I am not asking you to give me your goods, (…) I am asking you what belongs to God, (…), which is an obligation for you, the payment of Zakat,” he indicates in Sermon 3.
According to him, this tax intended for the needy must neither be subtracted nor eaten. As much as he insisted on the payment of zakat, he banned waste and disunity.
Mohamed Diene
