Riyadh Al-Salehin | Episode (2) | Chapter: Sincerity and having intention in all clear and hidden words and actions (2)

0:00 Riyadh al-Salihin (The Meadows of the Righteous),

0:03 from the words of the Master of the Messengers,

0:06 may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

0:09 Chapter on Sincerity and Cultivating Good Intentions in All Outward and Hidden Deeds and Words.

0:20 On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:

0:26 The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

0:30 "Indeed, Allah the Exalted does not look at your bodies or your forms,

0:37 but rather He looks at your hearts and your deeds."

0:42 Related by Muslim.

0:44 "He does not look at your bodies or your forms,"

0:49 meaning He does not reward you based upon them,

0:52 because man's physical essence is not subject to religious accountability;

0:56 rather, that which is mandated upon him

0:58 are the actions tied to his person.

1:03 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

1:05 The reward for deeds

1:07 is determined by what the heart firmly holds of sincerity and good intention.

1:12 Attending to rectifying the heart takes precedence over rectifying the limbs,

1:17 because the limbs follow its commands and prohibitions;

1:20 so if the heart is upright, the entire body is upright,

1:24 and if the heart is corrupted, the entire body is corrupted.

1:28 Man is responsible and held accountable for his intention and his deeds,

1:33 and therefore he must take great care of both.

1:36 A person's outward deeds may be righteous while his intention is corrupted,

1:41 yet he is treated according to his outward deeds,

1:45 while his hidden conscience is left to Allah the Exalted.

1:49 On the authority of Abu Musa, 'Abdullah ibn Qays al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:

1:56 The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was asked

2:00 about a man who fights out of bravery,

2:03 fights out of tribal zeal,

2:05 or fights out of ostentation:

2:08 which of these is in the cause of Allah?

2:11 The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied:

2:15 "Whoever fights so that the word of Allah remains supreme,

2:19 that is the one in the cause of Allah."

2:22 Agreed upon.

2:24 "Tribal zeal" (hamiyyah)

2:28 means chauvinism and defensive pride,

2:30 fighting to champion his clan, his family, or his companions.

2:35 "Ostentation" (riya')

2:37 means showing off before people so they witness his fighting,

2:40 thus earning praise and attaining thereby some personal worldly gratification.

2:45 "The word of Allah"

2:47 means the religion of Allah.

2:49 "He was asked":

2:50 the questioner here

2:52 was Lahiq ibn Damrah al-Bahili (may Allah be pleased with him).

2:56 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

3:01 Righteous deeds are credited through righteous intentions.

3:05 The merit of jihad belongs solely to the one who fights in the cause of Allah

3:09 to elevate the word of Allah,

3:12 so that all religion belongs purely to Allah.

3:15 The obligation of prioritizing knowledge before action;

3:18 this is implied in the questioner's inquiry,

3:21 as he did not fight first and ask later,

3:24 but rather inquired to know what is legitimately prescribed so he could act upon it.

3:28 The condemnation of coveting worldly prestige,

3:30 and of fighting for personal gratifications outside of obedience to Allah.

3:35 On the authority of Abu Bakrah, Nufay' ibn al-Harith al-Thaqafi (may Allah be pleased with him),

3:43 that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

3:47 "If two Muslims confront each other with their swords,

3:51 both the killer and the killed are in the Fire."

3:54 I said, "O Messenger of Allah,

3:57 this is the killer, but what is the state of the killed?"

4:01 He replied, "He was eagerly intent on killing his companion."

4:07 Agreed upon.

4:10 "Confront each other with their swords,"

4:13 meaning each of them actively intended to kill his companion.

4:19 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

4:21 Whoever firmly resolves upon a sin in his heart,

4:24 reconciles himself to committing it, and initiates its causes,

4:28 becomes deserving of punishment,

4:30 yet his affair rests with Allah:

4:32 if He wills, He punishes him, and if He wills, He pardons him.

4:36 Passing thoughts of the heart and inner whisperings are among the things pardoned.

4:41 A severe warning against Muslims fighting one another,

4:44 because that leads to their weakness and failure,

4:47 and incurs the displeasure of Allah upon them.

4:50 What is intended by the prohibited infighting

4:53 is that which is fought over worldly gain, out of ignorance, rebellion,

4:56 injustice, or following base desires;

4:59 it does not refer to aiding the truth

5:02 or fighting the transgressing faction.

5:04 “And if two parties of believers fall to fighting, then make peace between them. And if one party of them doeth wrong to the other, fight ye that which doeth wrong till it return unto the ordinance of Allah; then, if it return, make peace between them justly, and act equitably. Lo! Allah loveth the equitable.” (49:9)

5:07 Entering the Fire does not necessarily entail eternal residence therein.

5:12 On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:

5:18 The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:

5:22 "A man's prayer in congregation exceeds his prayer in his market or his house

5:28 by twenty-odd degrees.

5:31 That is because when one of them performs ablution and perfects his ablution,

5:36 then comes to the mosque intending nothing but prayer,

5:40 not prompted to leave except by prayer,

5:42 he does not take a single step without being raised one degree thereby,

5:47 and having a sin remitted from him thereby,

5:50 until he enters the mosque.

5:53 Then once he enters the mosque,

5:55 he remains in a state of prayer as long as the prayer holds him back,

6:00 and the angels supplicate for any of you

6:03 as long as he remains in his seating place where he prayed,

6:07 saying:

6:09 'O Allah, have mercy upon him;

6:11 O Allah, forgive him;

6:13 O Allah, turn to him in repentance,'

6:15 so long as he does not cause harm therein,

6:17 and so long as he does not break his ablution therein."

6:20 Agreed upon,

6:22 and this is the wording of Muslim.

6:24 And his saying (peace be upon him):

6:27 "yanhazuhu" (prompted)

6:29 means makes him go forth and moves him to rise.

6:34 "Bid'" (twenty-odd) denotes a number between three and nine.

6:38 "He perfected the ablution"

6:40 means he performed it thoroughly as commanded.

6:42 "Hutta" means wiped away.

6:45 "So long as he does not break his ablution"

6:47 means so long as his state of ritual purity is not nullified.

6:50 Points derived from the hadith:

6:54 Congregational prayer is superior to individual prayer

6:57 by twenty-odd degrees.

7:00 Among the duties of the angels

7:02 is supplicating for the believers

7:04 and seeking forgiveness on their behalf.

7:06 The recommendation of waiting from one prayer to the next.

7:11 The recommendation for a Muslim to remain in a state of ritual purity.

7:15 Sincerity is a prerequisite for attaining this reward.

7:19 Prayer is superior to other deeds,

7:23 in light of what has been mentioned regarding the angels' supplications for the worshiper.

7:27 On the authority of Abu al-'Abbas,

7:31 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with them both),

7:36 from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),

7:40 among what he relates from his Lord, Blessed and Exalted,

7:44 saying:

7:45 "Indeed, Allah has decreed the good deeds and the bad deeds,

7:49 then He clarified that:

7:51 whoever intends a good deed but does not perform it,

7:55 Allah, Blessed and Exalted, records it

7:58 with Himself as a full good deed;

8:01 and if he intends it and then performs it,

8:03 Allah records it as ten good deeds up to seven hundredfold,

8:08 and up to many times more;

8:11 and if he intends an evil deed and does not perform it,

8:15 Allah the Exalted records it with Himself as a full good deed;

8:19 and if he intends it and then performs it,

8:22 Allah records it as a single evil deed."

8:26 Agreed upon.

8:28 "Among what he relates from his Lord":

8:32 that is, from the hadith qudsi (sacred traditions),

8:35 which is what Allah conveyed to His Prophet (peace be upon him)

8:39 through divine inspiration or a true dream,

8:42 or through other modes of revelation,

8:46 which the Prophet (peace be upon him) then expressed

8:49 in his own words.

8:51 It does not carry the legal status of the Qur'an

8:53 in terms of miraculous inimitability and recurrent transmission,

8:56 nor the prohibition of carrying what contains its script

8:59 for one who is not in a state of ritual purity,

9:01 alongside other exclusive characteristics of the Holy Qur'an.

9:05 "Hamma" (intended) means firmly resolved.

9:08 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

9:11 The perfection of Allah's knowledge,

9:14 from which not even

9:16 an atom's weight in the heavens or on the earth escapes,

9:19 nor anything smaller than that,

9:21 and from Whom nothing hidden can remain concealed.

9:24 Among the duties of the angels

9:26 is recording good deeds and bad deeds,

9:29 for Allah has assigned to each servant noble, recording guardians

9:34 who know whatever he does

9:36 and transcribe all that he performs:

9:39 "Allah counted it while they forgot it."

9:41 The vastness of Allah's mercy and grace,

9:44 and the greatness of His generosity:

9:46 for He established justice regarding an evil deed

9:48 by not multiplying it,

9:50 and pardon regarding the mere inclination toward it;

9:52 while He established grace regarding a good deed

9:54 by multiplying it,

9:56 and manifested generosity in granting reward for it

9:59 merely upon intending it.

10:01 Reflecting upon good deeds

10:03 serves as a catalyst for performing them.

10:05 Mindfulness prior to sinful acts

10:08 acts as a deterrent against them.

10:10 Whoever intends an evil deed

10:12 and then refrains from it for the sake of Allah the Exalted,

10:14 not for any other motive,

10:16 will have it recorded as a good deed,

10:18 because desisting from resolving upon it is itself an act of goodness.

10:25 On the authority of Abu 'Abd al-Rahman,

10:27 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar ibn al-Khattab

10:29 (may Allah be pleased with them both), who said:

10:31 I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)

10:35 saying:

10:37 "Three individuals set out

10:39 from among those who came before you,

10:41 until nightfall drove them to take shelter in a cave,

10:45 and they entered it.

10:47 Thereupon, a boulder rolled down from the mountain

10:49 and blocked the cave against them,

10:51 So they said,

10:53 "Nothing can rescue you from this rock

10:57 except calling upon Allah the Exalted

11:00 by virtue of your righteous deeds."

11:02 One of them said,

11:05 "O Allah,

11:07 I had two elderly, aged parents,

11:10 and I would never serve the evening milk before them

11:13 to family or flock.

11:15 One day, the pursuit of pasturage took me far away,

11:18 so I did not return to them

11:20 until they had fallen asleep.

11:22 I milked their evening share for them,

11:25 but found them sleeping.

11:27 I was loath to awaken them,

11:30 and loath to serve before them

11:32 either family or flock.

11:34 So I remained, vessel in hand,

11:37 waiting for them to wake,

11:40 until dawn broke,

11:42 while the children were crying out with hunger

11:44 at my feet.

11:46 Then they awoke

11:48 and drank their evening milk.

11:50 O Allah, if I did that

11:53 seeking Your Face,

11:55 then relieve us of our predicament

11:58 caused by this rock."

12:00 So it shifted slightly,

12:02 yet they still could not exit through it.

12:06 The second man said,

12:08 "O Allah, I had a cousin

12:11 who was the dearest of all people to me;

12:14 and in another narration:

12:16 'I loved her as passionately as men ever love women.'

12:21 I solicited her for herself,

12:24 but she refused me,

12:26 until a year of severe drought struck her.

12:29 She then came to me,

12:31 and I gave her one hundred and twenty dinars

12:34 on condition that she surrender herself to me.

12:38 She agreed,

12:40 until when I overpowered her—

12:42 and in another narration:

12:44 'When I sat between her legs'—

12:47 she said,

12:49 'Fear Allah,

12:51 and do not break the seal except lawfully!'

12:54 So I moved away from her,

12:56 though she was the dearest of all people to me,

12:59 and I left the gold I had given her.

13:02 O Allah, if I did that seeking Your Face,

13:08 then relieve us of our predicament."

13:11 So the rock moved further,

13:13 but they still could not exit through it.

13:17 And the third man said,

13:19 "O Allah, I hired laborers

13:22 and gave them their wages,

13:25 except for a single man

13:27 who left what was his and went away.

13:30 So I invested his wage until wealth multiplied from it.

13:35 He came to me after a long time

13:37 and said,

13:38 'O servant of Allah,

13:40 pay me my wage.'

13:42 I said,

13:43 'All that you see is your wage:

13:46 camels, cattle, sheep, and slaves.'

13:50 He said,

13:51 'O servant of Allah,

13:53 do not mock me!'

13:55 I replied,

13:56 'I am not mocking you.'

13:58 So he took it all, drove it away,

14:01 and left nothing behind.

14:04 O Allah, if I did that seeking Your Face,

14:10 then relieve us of our predicament."

14:13 So the rock shifted completely,

14:15 and they walked out free.

14:18 Agreed upon.

14:20 The word *nafar*

14:22 is a collective noun designating a specific group of men,

14:26 having no singular form from its own root.

14:29 The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, clarified their number,

14:33 stating that they were three men.

14:36 "Night overtook them," meaning:

14:39 they entered the cave to spend the night therein.

14:42 "*La aghbiqu*" comes from *al-ghabuq*,

14:45 which is the evening drink,

14:47 whereas *al-sabuh*

14:48 is the morning drink.

14:50 The meaning is:

14:52 "I would never give precedence over them to anyone, whether wife, child,

14:56 slave, or servant girl,

14:58 nor would I ever prefer anyone over them."

15:01 "The pursuit of pasturage took me far away,"

15:04 meaning he wandered far with his sheep while grazing

15:07 until he was much further from his customary grounds than usual,

15:11 and was thus delayed.

15:13 "*Falam uriḥ*",

15:14 meaning: "I did not return."

15:16 "Dawn broke,"

15:19 meaning it shone forth.

15:20 "*Yatadaghawn*",

15:22 meaning they were crying aloud from extreme hunger.

15:26 "O Allah, if You know..."

15:29 This is not doubt regarding the perfection of Allah's knowledge,

15:32 for the believer knows with certainty that Allah knows all things;

15:37 rather, it expresses humility regarding his deed:

15:40 was it accepted by Allah or not?

15:44 This is among the qualities of the believer,

15:46 who fears that his deeds might not be accepted

15:49 despite his earnest striving and diligence.

15:51 "Seeking Your Face,"

15:53 meaning seeking Your pleasure with sincere devotion and pure intention.

15:57 "I solicited her for herself,"

15:59 meaning he sought from her what a husband seeks from his wife.

16:03 "*Alammat biha*",

16:05 meaning: befell her.

16:07 "*Al-sanah*"

16:08 means drought and hardship.

16:10 "Do not break the seal,"

16:12 meaning do not breach it;

16:14 the seal is a metonym for virginity.

16:17 And the meaning is:

16:19 "Do not take my chastity except through a lawful marriage."

16:23 "So I invested his wage,"

16:26 meaning: I multiplied his wage

16:28 through productive growth until it became vast wealth.

16:32 Among the benefits derived from this hadith:

16:35 the recommendation of supplicating in times of distress,

16:39 and that distress is a circumstance where supplications are answered;

16:43 the legitimacy of making *tawassul* to Allah through righteous deeds,

16:48 as well as through Allah's names and attributes,

16:52 and through the supplication of a righteous living person;

16:56 whereas seeking *tawassul* through the physical essences or graves of prophets and saints

17:00 has no basis in the religion;

17:02 rather, it is a doorway leading to *shirk*;

17:05 among the means of having supplications answered

17:08 are sincerity in calling upon Him

17:10 and maintaining mindfulness of Allah in times of ease,

17:13 for these faithful men

17:17 recalled righteous deeds

17:20 through which they had drawn near to Allah during prosperity,

17:24 hoping that their Lord would acknowledge them in return during hardship;

17:30 the great virtue of dutifulness toward parents and serving them,

17:33 prioritizing them over children and family,

17:36 and enduring hardship for their sake;

17:39 the urge toward chastity

17:41 and refraining from forbidden acts,

17:43 especially after having both the capability and the resolve to commit them;

17:48 the virtue of fulfilling trusts, keeping covenants,

17:52 and magnanimity in business transactions;

17:55 the affirmation of the miracles (*karamat*) of the righteous allies of Allah,

17:59 who are those who believe and remain mindful of Him,

18:02 and who conceal their deeds out of fear of ostentation;

18:06 “Lo! as for those who believe and do good works - Lo! We suffer not the reward of one whose work is goodly to be lost.” (18:30)

18:10 the answering of supplications for whoever turns to Allah the Exalted with truthfulness and sincerity in times of hardship,

18:17 especially one with a prior record of righteous deeds;

18:21 and Imam al-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, concluded the chapter with this hadith

18:28 to indicate that sincerity is the lifeline of salvation and the path of deliverance,

18:33 and that none will be saved from the tribulations of this world and the terrors of the Hereafter

18:37 except the truly sincere.

18:39 *Riyad al-Salihin*.

Riyadh Al-Salehin | Episode (2) | Chapter: Sincerity and having intention in all clear and hidden words and actions (2)

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