A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah.
A misunderstanding of sincerity (ikhlas).
Some well-meaning people abandon certain righteous deeds,
Fearing that they lack sincerity in them or that it is too difficult to achieve.
Until this leads them to passivity,
And refraining from acts of righteousness, calling to Allah, enjoining good, and forbidding evil.
This is one of the devil’s adornments and his dangerous avenues of approach,
Where sincerity is transformed into a negative force that hinders one from doing good.
The truth is that a person must strive against his own soul to achieve sincerity in all his acts of obedience,
And press forward toward every deed that pleases Allah, the Almighty and Majestic.
He should not pay heed to the whisperings of the devil,
Which urge him to abandon what Allah loves and is pleased with,
Out of fear of showing off or lacking sincerity in those deeds.
For sincerity should be a positive, internal action of the heart,
That drives a person to perform everything he is capable of that Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, loves,
Seeking thereby the pleasure of Allah alone.
A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah.