Book reference: p.91 — "Explain Human Rights granted in Islam in the light of the last sermon of the Holy Prophet (PBUH)?"; Q.5 (Question Bank, p.viii) — "'The Last Sermon of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) is the basic document for awakening of consciousness of mankind for human rights.' Discuss."

Context

• Delivered by the Prophet (PBUH) at Arafat during the Farewell Pilgrimage, 10 AH (632 CE), before roughly 100,000-140,000 pilgrims.
• Widely regarded by scholars as history's earliest universal human rights charter — predating the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) by over 1,300 years.

Key Declarations in the Sermon

• Sanctity of life, honour and property
  • Declared "as sacred as this day, in this month, in this city."
• Racial equality
  • "No superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab except by piety."
• End of pre-Islamic blood feuds
  • All blood claims and revenge killings from the pre-Islamic era formally abolished.
• End of Riba (interest/usury)
  • All interest-based debts of the pre-Islamic era declared void, starting with the Prophet's own family's claims.
• Rights of women
  • "Treat women well"; husbands' obligations toward wives explicitly stated.
• Accountability of rulers and preservation of the Qur'an and Sunnah
  • The famous closing instruction to hold fast to "the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger."
• Unity and equality of the Ummah
  • Declared all Muslims brothers, with no superiority of one over another except piety.

Hadith Evidence (The Sermon Itself)

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إِنَّ دِمَاءَكُمْ وَأَمْوَالَكُم عَلَيْكُم حَرَامٌ كَحُرْمَةِ يَوْمِكُمْ هَذَا

اردو: بےشک تمہارے خون اور تمہارے مال ایک دوسرے پر ایسے حرام ہیں جیسے تمہارا یہ دن، اس مہینے میں، اس شہر میں حرام ہے۔

English: "Your blood and your property are sacred to one another until you meet your Lord, just as this day of yours is sacred, in this month of yours, in this city of yours."

— Sahih al-Bukhari 1739; Sahih Muslim 1679

لَا فَضْلَ لِعَرَبِيٍّ عَلَى عَجَمِيٍّ إِلَّا بِالتَّقْوَى

اردو: كسی عربی کو کسی عجمی پر کوئی فضیلت حاصل نہیں مگر تقویٰ کی بنا پر۔

English: "An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab except by piety and good action."

— Musnad Ahmad 23489

تَرَكْتُ فِيكُمْ مَا إِن اعتَصَمْتُم بِهِ لَن تَضِلُّوا أَبَدًا: كِتَابَ اللَّهِ وَسُنَّةَ نَبِيِّهِ

اردو: میں تمہارے درمیان دو چیزیں چھوڑے جا رہا ہوں، جب تک انہیں مضبوطی سے تھامے رکھو گے، ہرگز گمراہ نہ ہو گے: اللہ کی کتاب اور اس کے نبی کی سنت۔

English: "I am leaving among you two things; as long as you hold fast to them, you will never go astray: the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet."

— Al-Muwatta of Imam Malik 1594

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Why It Is Called a "Human Rights Charter"

• Covers civil rights (life, property), economic rights (end of Riba), gender rights, racial equality, and rule-of-law/accountability — the full breadth of what modern human-rights instruments cover, in a single address.
• Universal in scope — addressed to "O people," not to Muslims exclusively in every clause.
• Legally and morally binding, not aspirational — immediately implemented as state policy upon the Prophet's (PBUH) return.

CSS Exam Tips

• Quote at least 3-4 distinct clauses of the sermon (sanctity of life, racial equality, end of Riba, rights of women) with Arabic where possible.