The Last Sermon of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W) Our Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) is the last of the Prophets. Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) was born in 571 AD at Makkah Saudi Arabia, in a respected Quraish family. The Quraish used to worship idols and did not believe in one God. Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), asked the Quraish not to worship their false gods. He told them that he was the Prophet of Allah and asked them to accept Islam and to worship the One and only true God. Most of them refused to accept Islam. They thought that he was against their gods and their ancestors. They opposed this new faith so much that the Prophet (S.A.W) had to ask the believers to migrate to Yathrib, a city 320 km (200 miles) north of Makkah.
But, with time, as many people started accepting his message and converting to Islam, the Quraish became more aggressive and started making attempts on his life. Hence, when Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) got positive signals from Yathrib, he also decided to emigrate there. After eight days' journey, he reached the outskirts of Yathrib, on 28th June 622; but he did not enter the city directly. He stopped at a place called Quba', a place some miles from the main city, and built a mosque there.
On 2nd July 622, Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) entered the city. This event is known as “Hijra” and marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Yathrib was soon renamed Madinat un-Nabi (literally "City of the Prophet"), but un-Nabi was soon dropped, and its name became "Madina", meaning "the city".
At the time of arrival of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) in Madina, the city had four broad groups of people. There were the Muslims; including those who were from Madina and those who had emigrated from Makkah. Then, there were the hypocrites; that is those who embraced Islam in name only, but actually were against it. Additionally, there were the people from Aws and Khazraj, who were still pagans but were likely to accept Islam. Finally, there were the Jews, who were huge in number and formed an important community there.
In order to ensure that all these people lived peacefully with each other, Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) invited the leading personalities of all the communities to discuss this matter. He wanted the different groups to reach a formal agreement for harmony among the communities and for the security of the city of Madina. He succeeded in drawing up the Constitution of Madina, also known as the Charter of Madina, through which a kind of understanding was developed among all the communities living in Madina. It mentioned the rights and duties of the Muslims and the Jews of Madina, gave freedom of religion, and prohibited any alliance with the outside enemies. It also declared that any dispute would be referred to Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) for settlement. In later years, he unified the different Arab tribes under Islam, carried out social and religious reforms, and administrative developments that further consolidated the Islamic community in Madina.
In the year 10 A.H., Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) undertook his farewell pilgrimage to Makkah. This farewell pilgrimage is one of the most significant historical events for the Muslims, for it was the first and last pilgrimage made by Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), as well as an occasion when he taught Muslims how to perform the Hajj. Moreover, it was during this Hajj, that he delivered his last sermon in the Uranah valley of Mount Arafat, on the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah, 10 A.H. (6th March 632). There were countless Muslims present with the Prophet (S.A.W) during his last pilgrimage when he delivered his last Sermon. Delivering his last sermon, Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) first of all praised and thanked Allah, and then said, "O people, lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether, after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore, listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.”
Then, amongst other things, he gave the following messages: “O People! 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.”
“Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He 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.”
“O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have rights over you.”
“All mankind is from Adam and Adam was created from dust. The noblest of you in Allah’s sight is the most God-fearing. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over a black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white, except by piety and good action. I, therefore, crush under my feet all the false claims to greatness and superiority founded on blood or wealth.”