FAREWELL PLIGRIMAGE AND THE LAST SERMON (10AH)

• In the tenth year of Hijrah, the Prophet declared his intension to go for Hajj
• When this news spread outside Medina, people came to the city wanting to
accompany him.
• Throngs of people also joined him on the way. It is reported that over 30,000
followers accompanied him in the farewell pilgrimage.
• The performed tawaf at the Ka’ba and then proceeded to Arafat.
• Down in the plain of Arafat, he delivered a great sermon to the people while
sitting on his camel.
• The Prophet said: ‘’ O people! Listen to my words. I don’t know whether after
this year I shall be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to
you carefully and take these words those who could not be present here
today.’’
• Protection of life, property and honour: ‘’O people! Just as you regard this
month, this day and this city as sacred, so regard the life and property of
every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their
rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that
you will indeed meet your Lord and that He will indeed reckon your deeds.”
• Usury prohibited: ‘’Allah has forbidden you to take usury therefore all interest
obligations shall henceforth be waived (ignored)....’’
• Beware of Satan: ‘’ He (Satan) has lost all hope that he will ever be able to
lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.’’
• Pillars of Islam: O people! Listen to me in earnest. Worship Allah, say your
five daily prayers, fast during the month of Ramadan and give your wealth in
Zakat. Perform Hajj if you can afford to.’’
• Rights of women: ‘’O people! It is true that you have certain rights with
regard to your women, but they also have a right over you. If they abide by
your right, then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness.
Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners
and your committed helpers. And it is your right that they do not make
friends with anyone of whom you do not approve, as well as never to
commit adultery.’’
• Brotherhood and equality:‘’ You know that every Muslim is a brother of
another Muslim. You are all equal nobody has superiority over other except
by piety and good action.’’
• Rights of slaves: ‘’ See that you feed your slaves such food as you eat and
clothe them with what you wear; if they commit a fault which you are not
inclined to forgive then part from them and do not treat them harshly.’’
• Day of Judgement: ‘’Remember one day you will appear before Allah and
answer for your deeds. So beware, do not astray from the path of
righteousness after I am gone.’’
• Finality of the Prophet: ‘’ O people! No prophet or apostle will come after me
and no new faith will be born.’’
• Adherence to Qur’an and Sunnah: ‘’I leave behind me two things, the Qur’an
and my example, the Sunnah; and if you follow these, you will never go
astray.’’
• Message to be conveyed: ‘’ all those who listen to me shall pass on my words
to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my
words better than those who listen to me directly. Be my witness O Allah!
That I have conveyed Your message to them”
• When the sermon was over, the Prophet said his prayers and at this time the
last revelation came ‘’....This day I have perfected your religion for you,
completed my blessing upon you and chosen as your religion, Islam....’’
• He concluded his sermon with a question: ‘’O people! Have I faithfully
delivered Allah’s message?’’
• Everyone replied with a “yes”
• The prophet raised his right hand and said: ‘’Oh Allah’ bear witness!’’
• The Prophet completed his pilgrimage and returned to Madina
• The Prophet completed his pilgrimage and returned to Madina.
• He increased his seclusion
• Jibril reviewed the Qur’an twice with him.
• His illness began 13 days before his death; he moved into A’isha’s
apartment with the consent of his other wives .
• He continued leading the prayers
• Abu Bakr led prayers during his final days
• On the last day of his life, he came to the mosque and prayed behind
Abu Bakr and then returned to A’isha’s apartment
• Shortly afterwards, he passed away on 12th Rabi al-Awwal, 11AH
• The companions were overcome with grief
• Umar refused to believe that he had died
• At this time Abu Bakr addressed the crowd telling them that he had indeed
passed away
• He recited these verses: ‘’Mohammad is no more than a messenger: many
messengers that were before him passed away, if he died or were slain will
you then turn back on your heels?’’ (Quran)
 The Prophet died in 632. Write about the events of the final year of his life.
[10]

The Prophet received many delegations in the final year of his life. In 631/10AH,
the Prophet performed his final pilgrimage. The people knew that the Prophet
was going for pilgrimage and so many people came to join him on this journey.
They numbered 30 000 in total.
The performed tawaf at the Ka’ba and then proceeded to Arafah. At ‘Arafah the
Prophet addressed the people gathered there; this is considered his farewell
speech, in which he indicated he may not be there the following year.
In his sermon he asked the Muslims to take their guidance from the Qur’an and
sunnah. Revenge was prohibited and usury was forbidden; he gave
instructions for unlawful shedding of blood; the obligation towards looking
after wives was emphasised as well as the kind treatment of women; sticking
faithfully to the pillars of Islam was emphasised; the equality of humankind
was emphasised saying no Arab has superiority over a non-Arab and vice
versa; brotherhood was established.
He told them the Qur’an and sunna were left for them and reminded them they
would have to answer for their deeds. Then the verses 5.3 were revealed
(today your religion has been perfected).
 The Prophet completed his pilgrimage and returned to Madina. He increased
his seclusion. Jibril reviewed the Qur’an twice with him. Prophet ordered an
expedition to Syria under Usama. His illness began 13 days before his death.
He moved into A’isha’s apartment for the last week and continued leading the
prayers giving the congregation advice.
When he was no longer able to attend the mosque, he asked Abu Bakr to lead
the prayers in his absence, which made the companions very sad. He called
for Fatima, Hassan and Hussain and his wives.
The Prophet passed away on 12th Rabi al-Awwal, 11AH.
Candidates could go on to mention the grief of the Companions and the speech
that Abu Bakr gave them to remind them about worshipping God, but it is not
necessary for a full answer.
The Farewell Sermon given by the Prophet contains teachings for Muslims of
all times. Explain how two of these teachings can be applied today. [4]

The last sermon is considered a summary of the main elements of faith, as it

includes the five pillars, equality of humankind, ethics and morality. It can be
used in many modern day issues such as racism, inequality of women, the
financial structure (dealing in interest),adultery, responsibility of actions
(particularly in crimes), treating other Muslims as brothers, treating
slaves/servants well, and worshipping God.
Candidates can choose any two of these to write about but should elaborate on
how these points in the sermon can be applied in life today.
 Describe the Prophet’s pilgrimage in the final year of his life and his
Farewell Sermon.[10]

• In 631, the Prophet performed his final pilgrimage. The people knew
that the Prophet (pbuh) was going for pilgrimage and so many people
came to join him on this journey. They numbered 30,000 in total. They
performed tawaf at the Ka’ba and then proceeded to ‘Arafah. At ‘Arafah
the Prophet (pbuh) addressed the people gathered there; this is
considered his farewell speech, in which he indicated he may not be
there the following year. In this sermon he asked the Muslims to take
their guidance from the Qur’an and Sunna. Revenge was prohibited
and usury was forbidden; he gave instructions for unlawful shedding of
blood; the obligation towards looking after wives was emphasised as
well as the kind treatment of women; sticking faithfully to the pillars of
Islam was emphasised; the equality of humankind was highlighted
saying no Arab has superiority over a non-Arab and vice versa;
brotherhood was established.
• He told them the Qur’an and Sunna were left for them and reminded
them they would have to answer for their deeds and that no new
prophet (pbuh) or faith will come after him. He asked the pilgrims
‘And if you were asked about me what would you say?’ and they
replied, ‘We bear witness that you have conveyed the message and
discharged your ministry’. He then raised his forefinger to the sky
whilst saying, ‘Oh Allah, bear witness’. Then the verses 5.3 were
revealed (‘This day I have perfected your religion for you…’). After
that, he arrived at Muzdalifah and performed his fourth, Maghrib, and
fifth, Isha, prayer. At the break of dawn, he returned to Mina to carry
out the ritual of the Stoning of the Devil then ordered the sacrifice of
the sacrificial animals that he had brought with him. He then returned
to Makka, performed another tawaf and then spent the three days of
Tashriq in Mina. It set a precedent for the rites and rituals of Hajj that
are to be performed by Muslims. The Prophet (pbuh) completed his
pilgrimage and returned to Madina.
 In your opinion, what was the most important teaching from the
Farewell Sermon? Give reasons to support your answer. [4]

• The Five Pillars, because this is the basis of Islam and without
emphasising it, people may not have practised their religion as much.
The reminder of the Day of Judgment as this would encourage
Muslims to act in the best way to ensure they have good deeds when
giving their account. The equality of humankind, where no Arab has
superiority over a non-Arab and so this can help overcome issues of
racism. The treatment of wives and women in general could help deal
with the problems facing the inequality of women. The sermon
focused on a Muslim’s action, ethics and morality so answers related
to this can be credited if they have given an explanation of their
importance,