The Shaykh beings this beautiful lecture by praising Allāh who has guided us to this great blessing of Islām, and who has favoured and honoured us with it; praising Allāh three times to show this gratitude. He then continues by mentioning that Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿāla) has made this nation one which He has bestowed His mercy upon, and an example of this mercy is that He made every good deed that is done ten times its fold up to seven hundred times, and Allāh increases for those whom He wills; and likewise, an evil deed that is done Allāh rewards it with the like of that evil deed; and from the seasons that Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿāla) has blessed is this month now. It is these days that Allāh has made that which the people who strive, the competitors, this is what they compete for; and the sābiqūn, those who race to do good deeds they race for. Allāh has blessed us in these days and these are the days Allāh has sworn upon in the Qurʾān, in Sūrah al-Fajr, in the first two verses, saying,

By the Dawn, By the ten nights (i.e. the first ten days of the month of Ḍhu al-Ḥijjah).

[Fajr: 1-2]

These are the days the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallam) said,

‘There are no days that the good actions that are done in those days are better than in these days, (meaning these ten days of Ḍhul Ḥijjah,) the Companions said to the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallam), ‘Not even the one who fights in the way of Allāh in Jihād’; he replied, ‘Not even the one who makes Jihād except for the one who goes out to make Jihād with his wealth and self and does not come back with any of them.’  [Al-Bukhārī]

So everybody in these ten days, it is upon them to look at their actions and to ponder over them, and see do they have the two wings that they need in order to fly to the acceptance of Allāh (subhānahu wa taʿalá) those two wings; one being al-ikhlās for Allāh and the other being muṭāba’ah, following of the Sunnah of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallam). So if he finds that he, in fact, has implemented and has these two wings in each of his actions, then he should praise Allāh, and ask Allāh for thabāt, to keep firm and help him to continue in performing those actions; and if he doesn’t find these things then let him treat himself because verily this affair is something that is very important and dangerous for the one who does not implement it. So the Muslim should be conscious of protecting these affairs and continuing to perform his actions in these ten days more than on any other ten days during the year.