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From: Sister in Islam
Sent: Monday, March 13, 2006 10:26 AM
Subject: Sincerity
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Sincerity
by 'Alî Abd-ur-Rahmân al-Hudhaifî
Imâm al-Madîna al-Munawarrah
21 Dhul-Qa dah, 1421 (February 16,
2001)
All praise is due to Allaah Who revealed the illuminating verses and guides
with them, those whom He wishes from the darkness to Light. I thank Him for His
blessings. I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship save Him and that
Muhammad r is His Servant and Messenger. O Allaah! Bestow peace and blessings
upon the Prophet, his household and companions and all those who follow
them.
Dear Muslims! Fear Allaah for the fear of Allaah is your
provision for the hereafter and a guarantee of good life in this world. You
should be aware that Allaah is Self-Sufficient Who needs nothing from His
creatures. He benefits not from the obedience of the pious ones among you, nor
does the disobedience of the sinful ones hurt Him. He says:
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Whosoever does a good deed, it is for his
ownself, and whosoever does evil, it is against (his ownself). Then to
your Lord you will be made to return. (Al-Jaathiyah
45:15).
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Since man is created for the worship of Allaah, Allaah has explained all
types of worship for him in the Quraan and Sunnah so that he can move closer to
Allaah by doing all that Allaah enjoins and abstain from all that He forbids.
Allaah says:
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O you who believe!
Bow down, and prostrate yourselves, and worship your Lord and do good that
you may be successful. (Al-Hajj 22:77). |
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He also says:
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And whatsoever the
Messenger gives you, take it and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from
it). (Al-Hashr 59:7). |
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The Prophet saws also said:
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Whatever I forbid you, abstain from it and whatever I
command you to do, do what you are able to therefrom; for, those before
you destroyed not but for their incessant questions for their Prophets and
their disagreement with them.
(Al-Bukhaaree & Muslim).
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Worship is a way of seeking closeness to Allaah through recommended acts
with love, humility and total submission to Allaah. He says:
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And turn in
repentance and in obedience with true Faith (Islamic Monotheism) to your
Lord and submit to Him, (in Islam), before the torment comes upon you,
then you will not be helped. (Az-Zumar 39:54). |
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Brothers in Faith! Pleasure of Allaah cannot be attained except through
worshipping Him and abstaining from sins according to His Light. The Messenger
of Allaah saws said:
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Whoever performs a deed
upon which there is no command from us will have it rejected.
(Muslim). |
The condition for accepting acts of worship is to be sincere in the act. It
is sincerity that purifies a deed, increases it and makes it blessed. it is in
fact, a trial that Allaah test His servants with. He said:
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(It is He) who has
created death and life, that He may test you which of you is best in deed.
And He is the All-Mighty The Off-Forgiving. (Al-Mulk 67:2).
He also said:
Verily, We have made that
which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them
(Mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. (Al-Kahf 18:7).
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Ibn Katheer said in his exegesis of the above verse:
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Allaah did not say more
in deeds but says: best in deeds. A deed can not then become good
except when it is done sincerely for the sake of Allaah alone and in
accordance with the path of the Prophet saws. Whenever a deed losses one
of these two conditions it becomes null and void.
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Allaah has enjoined sincerity when carrying out acts of obedience to Him
and when abstaining from forbidding things when He said:
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And they were
commanded not, but that should worship Allah, and worship none but Him
alone (abstaining from ascribing partners to Him), and perform As-Salat
(Iqamah-as-salat) and give Zakat; and that is the right religion.
(Al-Bayyinah 98:5). |
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He also says:
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So worship Allah
(alone) by doing religious deeds sincerely for Allahs sake only, (and not
to show-off and not to set up rivals with Him in worship). Surely, the
religion (i.e. the worship and the obedience) is for Allah only.
(Az-Zumar 39:2-3). |
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Umar Ibn Al-Khattaab ra said: I heard the Prophet saws saying:
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The reward of deeds
depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according
to what he has intended. So whoever emigrated for worldly benefits or for
a woman to marry, his emigration was for what he emigrated for.
(Al-Bukhaaree & Muslim). |
The meaning of sincerity is to purify ones intention and deeds from all
things that can render it void like showing-off and innovations. Actions can
have same form and shape but may differ in reality according to the truthful
intention and sincerity and bad intention and insincerity. The one who is
sincere in his actions will be among the nearest ones to the pleasure of Allaah
and the insincere one will be among the accursed and punished ones. Allaah
describes those who are sincere in their intentions and deeds and mentioned
their rewards when He says:
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But the Messenger
and those who believed with him (in Islamic Monotheism) strove hard and
Fought with their wealth and their lives (in Allahs cause). Such are they
for whom are the good things, and it is they who will be successful.
(Al-Tawbah 9:88). |
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As for those who are insincere He says:
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Verily, the
hypocrites will be in the lowest depth (grade) of the Fire; no helper will
you find for them. (An-Nisaa 4:145). |
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To further underline the importance of sincerity and the gravity of
hypocrisy, Allaah categorized those who do good to two groups. One will be in
Paradise and the other will be in Hell. As for those who will be in Paradise,
they are the ones who carry out their deeds in sincerity to Allaah and the
second group that will be in the Hell are those who show-off. The following
Hadeeths give a vivid illustration of the importance of sincerity. The Messenger
of Allaah saws said:
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Benefits of this world are
for four men only. A servant of Allaah whom Allaah favoured with wealth
and knowledge. He fears Allah, does good to his kin and recognizes
Allaahs rights in that wealth; this servant is of the best rank. The
second one is a servants whom Allaah favours with knowledge and does not
give him wealth but he is sincere and says: If only I had money I would
do like so and so. He and the first person will be equal in terms of
reward because of his good intention. The third one is a servant whom
Allaah blessed with wealth without knowledge, spends his wealth uselessly,
does not fear his Lord, nor do good to his kin and neither recognizes
Allaahs rights in that wealth. This one is of the worst rank. The fourth
one is a servant whom Allaah neither blessed with wealth nor knowledge and
he says that: If only I had wealth, I would do like so and so; he and the
third person will be equal in sin because of his mischievous intention.
(Al-Tirmidhee). |
The Messenger of Allaah saws also said:
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The first person to be
judged on the day of Resurrection are: a man who was martyred; he will be
brought to the presence of Allaah, Allaah will let him know his favour on
him and he will know it, Allaah will then ask him as to how he used the
favour. He will reply that he fought in the cause of Allaah until he was
martyred. Allaah will then say: You have lied. You only fought so that
people might say: He is brave and it has been said. Then Allaah will
command that he be dragged on his face and thrown into Hell. Then a man
who learnt knowledge and taught it and read the Quraan will be brought
forward. Allaah will tell him -after making him recognize His favour on
him-: What have you done with it? He will say: I learnt knowledge and I
read the Quraan for Your sake. Allaah will say: You have lied. You only
learnt knowledge that it may be said: He is Aalim and you read the
Quraan, so that it may be said: He is Qaaree and it has been said. He
will then be ordered to be dragged on his face into Hell. Then a man whom
Allaah enriched with different kinds of properties will be brought forth.
Allaah will make him recognize His favour on him and when he recognizes
it, Allaah will ask him: What have you done on it? He will answer: I
have not left a cause in which You like that a spending be made except
that I have spent in it for Your sake. Allaah will then tell him: You
have lied. You only spent so that it may be said: He is generous and it
has been said. He would then be commanded to be dragged on his face and
thrown into the Hell. (Muslim). |
Aboo Hurayrah ra narrated that he said:
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O Messenger of Allaah! Who
will be the luckiest person to win your intercession? He replied: He who
says: Laa ilaaha illa Allaah [There is no deity worthy of worship save
Allaah] from his heart with sincerity. (Al-Bukhaaree).
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Dear brethren! If we continue quoting evidences on the importance of
sincerity it will be exhaustive. Therefore let us be among the sincere ones for,
they are those who enjoin the protection of Allaah and His immunity. They are
immunized from tricks and insinuations of Satan and they are really His
prosperous party. Allaah says of Satan:
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He (Satan) said: O my Lord! Because You misled
me, I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (Mankind) on the
earth, and I shall misled them all. Except them You chosen, (guided)
slaves among them.
(Al-Hijr 15:39). |
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Further, the major requisite for accepting ones repentance is the
actualization of sincerity in deeds. Allaah says:
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Except those who
repent and do righteous good deeds, hold fast to Allaah, and purify their
religion for Allaah (by worshiping none but Allaah, and do good for
Allahs sake only, not to show-off), then they will be with the believers.
And Allah will grant to the believers a great reward. (An-Nisaa
4:146). |
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Umar Ibn Al-Khattaab ra wrote a letter to Aboo Moosa Al-Asharee ra in
which he said:
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Whoever gets his
intention purified, Allaah will suffice him in whatever is between him and
people.. |
Alee ra said:
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Do not be concerned with
smallness of deed; rather be concerned with the acceptance of that deed.
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One of the devotees said:
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Indeed there are some
servants of Allaah who understand. They acted upon that understanding and
they were sincere in their acts; then their sincerity summoned them to all
the gates of good. |
Dear Muslims! Hold fast to this great pillar and seek with your deeds the
pleasure of Allaah and the everlasting abode of hereafter. Purify your
intentions and motives for Allaah Alone and seek nearness to him only with acts
that were done and recommended by your Messenger saws. Allaah says:
"Whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him work
righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.
(Al-Kahf 18:110)
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