The importance of IKHLAS and NIYYAH in Islam (purity of purpose and presence of mind)

Today we are discuss the importance of IKHLAS and NIYYAH in Islam.  As people who do a lot of good things everyday, it is very important that we know this.  If we do not understand this, surely many of our good deeds will not be rewarded by Allah.

Introduction

We do a lot of good every day, and we do a lot of good for a lot of fellow human beings.  We do many acts of worship.  But have we ever wondered if our purpose is pure?  Whether there was a definite mindset in these matters.  Come to think of it, the answer for each of us is often no.  Islam is a religion that gives great glory to the purity of purpose and the presence of the right mind.  Our topic of discussion today is the importance that Islam places on the purity of purpose and presence of mind.

What is the meaning of IKHLAS in islam?

Have purity of purpose in our words and actions.  Ikhlas means that every action should be sincere. Once Jibreel (a) came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and asked him many questions.  One of the important questions was what is sincerity.  

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Worship Allaah as you see Him, and He sees you even though you do not see Allaah.

What does the Qur'an say about IKHLAS and  NIYYAH (purity of purpose and presence of mind)?

Allah tells us in the Holy Qur'an, "Allah does not look at your body or your wealth, but at your heart and your deeds." Allah does not look at how much wealth we have or how beautiful our bodies are.  Instead, Allah looks at the purity of our intentions and the goodness of our actions.  In short, we can understand that in order to escape from Allah, one must perform acts of worship with good intentions.

On the other hand, Allah tells us: "The most pious before Allah are the most pious."  Instead, Allah accepts from us only sincere deeds.

Allah says: "The blood and flesh of those sacrificial animals will not reach Allah, but Thaqwa from you will reach Allah." (BAYYINA:5) What matters is who we sacrifice for.  It does not matter if the sacrificial animal is fat, expensive or symptomatic.  If we make that sacrifice for the sake of Allah, it will surely reach God.

All our prayers, almsgiving and other acts of worship should be for the purpose of worshiping Allah.  We want nothing but the pleasure of God.  Our actions should not be for the sake of being seen by others or to gain the respect or status of others.  If we worship for the sake of others or to please them, then Allah will never accept our worship from us.

Allah says: "Allah knows what is in your hearts, whether you conceal it or reveal it." (AALU IMRAN: 29) God knows what is in our hearts.  If good intentions are behind our deeds, then surely Allah will accept our deeds.  But if there is any other motive behind it, then surely Allah knows it.  Because Allah can know what is inside us whether we reveal it or not.  So all we have to do is set our goals.

What does Prophet (S) say about IKHLAS and NIYYAH (purity of purpose and presence of mind)?

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) also taught about the importance of purpose.  The Exodus of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) to Madinah for all of us.  The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) left his homeland and went to Madinah because he could not bear the persecution of the enemies of Islam.  At that time some followers followed the Prophet.  Later the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said about this .  Quote from Hazrat Umar Binul Khattab.  He said.  I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: "Indeed, deeds are accepted according to intentions. Each person gets only what he intends. If anyone escapes to Allah and His Prophet, then his escape is to Allah and His Prophet, and if one's escape is for worldly gain, then he will get it if he marries a woman.  In short, it's only a matter of time before someone escapes. " (Muttafaqun alaihi)

Leaving one's homeland, home and family can be a daunting task for a person.  Take care of yourself, we will leave our country. If we live in another place, we will find it difficult in a short time.  We will soon have an insatiable desire to return to our homeland.  The Companions of the Prophet at that time also faced such a situation.  It was very difficult for them to leave their homeland and family and flee to Madinah.  The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever (waytoislam.online) flees to Allaah and His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), it is accepted, but whoever escapes for any material purpose, he has received it.”  As mentioned, all good deeds are the same as the Hijra, and the purpose for which they are done will be obtained by it.

Is there a reward for wanting to do good in Islam?

Now we have good intentions but we can not do any of those things but we will get equal reward for doing that good deed.  In short, only if we have good intentions can we get a great reward from Allah.

Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We were with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in a battle (Tabuk).  He said: "There are some people in Madinah who will be with you when you go to war and when you cross the mountains. The disease has prevented them.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said here about people who wanted to go to the battle of Tabuk but could not because of illness.  Those who go to war in the matter of reward will receive the same reward from Allah.  In short, we can understand that if the intention is good, there will be a reward for what is not done.

Hazrat sa'adu bin abi vakhas said: (one of the ten who were told the good news of heaven) 

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) visited me during the last Hajj of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).  I said: O Messenger of Allah!  I am rich and have only one daughter as heir.  So should I donate two-thirds of my land? "The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:" No. "I asked:" Should I donate half? "  The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Yes, but it is more.  Better a poor horse than (waytoislam.online) no horse at all .  Surely you will be rewarded for giving your wife food for whatever you spend seeking the pleasure of Allah. "

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) visited me during the last Hajj of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).  I said: O Messenger of Allah!  I am rich and have only one daughter as heir.  So should I donate two-thirds of my land? "The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:" No. "I asked:" Should I donate half? "  The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Yes, but it is more.  Better a poor horse than no horse at all.  Surely you will be rewarded for giving your wife food for whatever you spend seeking the pleasure of Allah."

In short, if we have good intentions within us, surely whatever we do will be rewarded by Allah.  It is the duty of a husband and wife to feed their wives and children.  But even for that, Allah will reward us.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) once said: "Whoever kills and kills when two Muslims fight with the sword is in Hell." I asked: "O Messenger of Allaah, what is the condition of the one who kills? The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:" He too longed to kill his friend. "

Here two Muslims clash with the intention of killing each other.  In it one’s intention succeeds.  The other person's intention fails.  So both are guilty.  That is why they are in the limelight.  From the above prophetic teachings we can understand that our reward is determined according to our intentions.

The importance of IKHLAS and NIYYAH in the daily life of a Muslim

We Muslims do a lot of good deeds.  Many of us do a lot of charity work.  We paid Rs 1 lakh per person and our intention was to see our advertisement printed in the newspapers.

Or people were just saying he was a great man.  In that case, we will never be rewarded by Allah for the good we have done.  If we donate at least one rupee instead of expecting a reward from Allah, we will surely get its reward.  As mentioned earlier, Muslims are the ones who do or should do a lot of good.  Surely our intentions are to seek the pleasure of Allah alone.

Conclusion

In short, whatever we do, we must keep good intentions in mind.  Our niyyath should be good.  Do things with the right mindset.  Islam is a religion that places great importance on all such things.