الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين.
In sha Allah, in today’s khatira, I intend to share some thoughts with you on the concept of ikhlas or sincerity, which is an essential part of Islam. What is ikhlas? It is the intention to please Allah in whatever we do. The opposite of ikhlas is nifaq (hypocrisy) or riya’ (showing off), both of which destroy faith and spoil good deeds. A believer must be a sincere person in every aspect of his or her life. Allah has commanded us to be sincere in our deen which means in our entire life.
قُلْ إِنِّي أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَعْبُدَ اللَّهَ مُخْلِصًا لَهُ الدِّينَ
Say, I have been commanded to worship Allah, with sincere devotion.” (al-Zumar, 39:11)
قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِي وَنُسُكِي وَمَحْيَايَ وَمَمَاتِي لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Say, My prayer, my sacrifice, my life, and my death are all for Allah, the Lord of the worlds.” (Al-An’am, 6:120)
There is a hadith—a rather scary one, about a scholar, a martyr and a charitable man on the Day of Judgment. They all expected to enter Paradise because of their good deeds. Instead, they were sent to the hell fire, because their deeds were done with the intention of pleasing people—not with the intention of pleasing Allah.
On the other hand, there is the story of the unchaste woman who was rewarded Paradise for giving water to a thirsty dog. What truly got her into Paradise? Was it just her simple act? It could not have been, because the acts of the scholar, the martyr, and the charitable man were far more virtuous and meritorious. However, they were thrown in hell because they wanted praise from the people which they got; they were insincere in their relation with Allah. But the woman was helping the dog for Allah’s sake only. Look how the sincerity of intention elevates a person’s deeds. This is why the scholars have said that ikhlas or sincerity is the most important act of worship of the heart. The driving force of one’s acts should always be to seek the pleasure of Allah.
Iblees promised to Allah that he will lead all the human beings astray except those who were are “sincere and purified.”
قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ () إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ
“Iblis said, ‘By Your Honor, I will lead all of them astray, except for those among them who are Your sincere / purified / devoted / chosen servants” (Sad, 38:82-83).
We are told in the story of Yusuf (AS) that he was saved from falling into the trap of Aziz’s wife, who tried to seduce him, because he was sincere and purified.
وَلَقَدْ هَمَّتْ بِهِ وَهَمَّ بِهَا لَوْلَا أَن رَّأَىٰ بُرْهَانَ رَبِّهِ كَذَٰلِكَ لِنَصْرِفَ عَنْهُ السُّوءَ وَالْفَحْشَاءَ إِنَّهُ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا الْمُخْلَصِينَ
“And she desired him and he would have desired her, had it not been that he saw the proof of his Lord. Thus We warded off evil and indecency from him, for he was one of our servants; sincere and purified.” (Yusuf, 12:24)
The Qur’an tells us about the story of the mother of Maryam having a beautiful private conversation with Allah. Expecting that she would give birth to a male child, she told Allah that she would pledge the child in her womb to His service. And for the sincerity of her intention, even though she gave birth to a female child, Allah accepted that female child to fulfill her mother’s pledge. And we know that Maryam (AS), mother of ‘Isa (AS) is among the best women described in the Qur’an.
We learn from the stories of the Sahaba that Khalid bin al-Walid (RA) was removed from his post as commander of the Muslim army by ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA). This was not done to humiliate Khalid bin al-Walid in any way. This was done to let the Muslims realize that it was not because of Khalid’s bravery and military leadership that they won every battle under his command but it was basically because of Allah’s favor upon them. After being demoted, instead of being offended and refusing to fight, Khalid bin al-Walid fought with even more vigor. When he was asked the reason for this, he said: “I fight for Allah and not for ‘Umar.”
Even a small deed done with ikhlas is extremely valuable. Once Mu’adh ibn Jabal (RA) asked the Prophet (SAW) for an advice, and the Prophet (SAW) said to him, أَخْلِصْ دِينَكَ يَكْفِكَ الْعَمَلُ الْقَلِيلُ “Be sincere in your deen; even a small deed will be enough for you.” Only Allah knows the sincerity of a person. Some scholars say: Ikhlas is a secret between the human being and Allah. Even the Angels don’t write it down because they don’t know it. Reflective of this is the story of the martyr, the scholar and the charitable man that was mentioned above. The Angels had written down their good acts, but it was Allah who exposed their intention behind those acts.
There are several ways of measuring ikhlas. One is to look within, examining our emotions and contemplating our sense of closeness to Allah. Are we performing our actions only for Allah? How indifferent are we to what others think of us, whether positively or negatively? Are our hearts and minds actively engaged in what we do? Yet as valuable as these questions are, there is a danger in only turning inward, as all spheres of life are ultimately interconnected in Islam. The interior is fundamentally inseparable from the exterior.
Consider the following scenarios, all of which should raise a question: A Muslim says, “I love Allah,” but does not pray. A Muslim says, “I love the Prophet (SAW),” but does not follow the Sunnah. A Muslim says, “O Allah, I repent”, but then defiantly persists in his disobedience. A Muslim tells his spouse, “I love you,” but then neglects her emotionally or abuses her physically. In all of these situations there is no connection between the intention and the action. A beautiful advice from our beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was: اتَّقِ اللَّهَ حَيْثُمَا كُنْتَ “Have Taqwa of Allah wherever you are…”
Taqwa, besides its meanings of righteousness, and piety, and saving oneself from harm, also means to be conscious and mindful of Allah. When we are truly conscious of Allah we will avoid actions that are displeasing to Him. Sincerity requires right intention and right action whether the action is done in private or in public. We must also keep in mind that not everything done with right intention is acceptable in Islam. It must be based on right actions as well. Only lawful, truthful and moral actions are good when done with the sincerity of heart.
أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
وَصَلَّ اللهُ عَلَى خيرِ خَلقِهِ مُحمَّدٍ وعَلَى آلِه وأصْحَابِه أجْمَعِين- بِرَحْمَتِكَ يا أرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِين
