The good deeds we do are rewarded depending upon the intention behind them. Do we do them for show off, wanting people to see and praise us, or we do them seeking solely the pleasure of Allah? Read below for details about the subject.
It is narrated on the authority of Amirul Mu’minin, Abu Hafs ‘Umar bin al-Khattab, radiyallahu
‘anhu, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, say:
“Actions are (judged) by motives (niyyah), so each man will have what he intended. Thus, he whose migration (hijrah) was to Allah and His Messenger, his migration is to Allah and His Messenger; but he whose migration was for some worldly thing he might gain, or for a wife he might marry, his migration is to that for which he migrated.”
[Al-Bukhari & Muslim]
Background
This hadith was said by the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam, at the time when a man emigrated from Makkah to Madinah during the Hijrah for the sake of marrying someone and not for the sake of Islam. It is considered to be one of the greatest hadiths in Islam.
Al-Imam al-Shafie said: This Hadith is one third of the knowledge of Islam; related to about 70
topics of Fiqh.
Al-Imam Ahmad (with reference to al-Imam al-Shafie’s statement) said: Islam is based on three fundamentals (all are among the 40 hadiths ):
i. Hadith 1: which is stated above.
ii. Hadith 5: “Whosoever introduces into this affair of ours (i.e. Islam) something that does
not belong to it, it is to be rejected.”
iii. Hadith 6: “Truly, what is lawful is evident, and what is unlawful is evident, and in
between the two are matters which are doubtful which many people do not know…”
These three hadiths are agreed upon by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.
These hadiths can be seen as three criteria to help Muslims evaluate and judge what they do and say “as an ibadah” in their daily life:
i. Hadith 1 – To evaluate and judge our internal actions (actions of the heart).
ii. Hadith 5 – To evaluate and judge our external actions (actions of the limbs).
iii. Hadith 6 – To evaluate and judge our dealings “mu’amalat” (interaction between people).
Niyyah (intention) has two meanings:
i. The intention before an ibadah (e.g. prayer)
ii. The willingness
The second meaning (ii.) is what is meant in this hadith
Hope these evidences are enough to satisfy you. If you think they are not still enough, follow me keenly and get before you other equally thirst quenching evidences about the subject. In fact you can even educate others about it better than I’m doing. Be concerned about what concerns you yet seek knowledge, for ignorance is a prison wherein the inmates are those who are reluctant when it comes to seeking knowledge. When you learn, you lead others aright and save them from captivity. But you don’t just learn anything, you seek beneficial knowledge and wisdom from the right sources with the proper ethics. Look for the write up on ethics of seeking knowledge.
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