‘Deeds are by intentions’
Source: Mahfuz Ahmed
Everyone has heard the hadith (or part of it) that mention ‘deeds are by intentions’. It is the first hadith mentioned in most ahadith books including the saheeh sittha (the six most authentic hadith collections). But what is the origin of this hadith and what does it truly mean? Here, Shaykh Riyadul Haq explains. The hadith in full is as follows:
Umar ibn Khattab (RA) said: I heard Allah’s Messenger saying, “The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So whoever emigrates for worldly benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration will be for what he emigrated for.”
The Prophet (SAWS) said this on the occasion of someone’s emigration from Makkah to Madinah which was not for the sake of the Islamic cause but to marry a woman who had stipulated that he should emigrate if he wanted to marry her.
Imam Bukhari starts with his hadith because he wants to draw people’s attention to the fact that everyone should check and review their intention before seeking ilm or doing any aspect of ibaadah. We do not know the end result or the rewards or punishment of our deeds, whether good or bad, without taking recourse to the Quran and Ahadith. These good deeds can only be performed and be accepted by Allah by having a sincere intention and a pure motive.
This particular hadith appears seven times in the collection of Bukhari. This hadith is in itself abridged on this occasion. In the other six times that this hadith appears, it is in its original version and not abridged. The full, unabridged, version is:
“The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So whoever’s emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS) then indeed his emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS). And whoever emigrates for worldly benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration will be for what he emigrated for.”
Imam Bukhari has left out the sentence, “… So whoever’s emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS) then indeed his emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS)…”The question arises as to why Imam Bukhari omitted this part of the hadith on this narration but then included the full version in the six other narrations.
The hadith can be split into two parts. The first part is about sincerity of intention so doing deeds with the right intention i.e. ultimately seeking the pleasure of Allah. The second part is about insincerity – doing what seems to be good deeds externally but the inner motive and intentions are insincere i.e. doing it to show off in front of others or to gain fame, fortune or veneration etc.
Imam Bukhari, even after being who he was, considers himself to be from this second category. Imam Bukhari fears his whole endeavour of collecting ahadith may be insincere. He feels he has no right in mentioning the first part of the hadith in case he or others consider him to be sincere and then be adorned with reward. For this reason, he has abridged this hadith in this instance but then included the full hadith in the other narrations. This abridgement is only done by Imam Bukhari himself. Even his teacher did not abridge it.
Imam Shafi’i has commented that this hadith forms one third of ilm. Abu Dawud has narrated that he has collected 500,000 ahadith. From this he selected 4,800 ahadith for his book, ‘The Sunan of Abu Dawud’. Abu Dawud has stated that of these 4,800 ahadith there are only 4 ahadith that are sufficient for a man’s religion:
1. This hadith.
2. The hadith where Rasoolullah (SAWS) said; Part of the beauty of a man’s religion is that he abandons and leaves aside that which does not concern him”
3. The hadith narrated by Nu’ man bin Nashir – “Halal is clear. Haram is clear. And in between them there are ambiguous matters.”
Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal has further narrated that the foundation of Islam rests on three ahadith:
1. This hadith.
2. The hadith narrated by Aisha (RA) recorded in Muslim – “Whoever introduces into this affair of ours (Islam) that which is not of it then it is rejected.”
3. The hadith narrated by Nu’ man bin Nashir – “Halal is clear. Haram is clear. And in between them there are ambiguous matters.”
All acts of religion can be related to any of these three ahadith, whether its prohibitions, deeds or sins etc. For example, in abstaining from that which is haram and staying within that which is halal (hadith no. 3), we should do it according to the Sunnah and not innovate (hadith no. 2). And even when we do all that, Allah will only accept the deed if it’s done with a sincere intention and motive (hadith no. 1).
The lesson to be learned is that everyone should check and review their intentions before doing any deed or act of worship. We must ensure deeds are only done for the sake of Allah. Allah will only accept those deeds that are done for Him and Him alone. A person may strive and suffer in doing something but if it’s not done with sincere intention it will be rejected. Whoever ascribes a partner to Allah in any act of worship then Allah is independent and the least interested of all that and He will abandon that person as well as his shirk. Rasoolullah (SAWS) has also stated that the majority of the martyrs in this Ummah will die on their bed. As for the ones who die in Jihad, only Allah knows their true intention.
In a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA) recorded in Muslim is the story of the Mujaahid, the Aalim and the one who gave abundantly in charity. Allah will ask the Mujaahid what he did. The Mujaahid will say that he strived to make Allah’s Word supreme and ultimately gave his life for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to him, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how brave and courageous you are. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will then instruct the angels to fling him into the Hell Fire. Allah will then ask the Aalim what he did. The Aalim will say he learned the Quran and taught others for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to the Aalim, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how knowledgeable you were. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will instruct the angels to fling him into the Hell Fire as well. Finally, will ask the person who gave abundantly in charity about what he did. This person will say he gave charity for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to him, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how generous you were. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will again instruct the angels to fling this person into the Hell Fire as well. So even after doing all this apparent good deeds, the Mujaahid, the Aalim and the one who gave in charity were flung into Jahannam because of the insincerity of their intentions.
It goes to show that a person may strive and struggle to do good deeds; a person may go through hardships and difficulties and through fitnah. A person may, ultimately, give his life. But if the intention is not for the sake of Allah then all that effort, all that sacrifice and struggle, all that strife will be of no use. Rather, in spite of all this, the person will be flung into the Hell Fire because of the insincerity that is concealed in the heart.
May Allah Subhana wa Ta’ala give us all the tawfeeq to ensure that all our deeds and actions are sincere and solely for His Pleasure.
TopThe Prophet (SAWS) said this on the occasion of someone’s emigration from Makkah to Madinah which was not for the sake of the Islamic cause but to marry a woman who had stipulated that he should emigrate if he wanted to marry her.
Imam Bukhari starts with his hadith because he wants to draw people’s attention to the fact that everyone should check and review their intention before seeking ilm or doing any aspect of ibaadah. We do not know the end result or the rewards or punishment of our deeds, whether good or bad, without taking recourse to the Quran and Ahadith. These good deeds can only be performed and be accepted by Allah by having a sincere intention and a pure motive.
This particular hadith appears seven times in the collection of Bukhari. This hadith is in itself abridged on this occasion. In the other six times that this hadith appears, it is in its original version and not abridged. The full, unabridged, version is:
“The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So whoever’s emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS) then indeed his emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS). And whoever emigrates for worldly benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration will be for what he emigrated for.”
Imam Bukhari has left out the sentence, “… So whoever’s emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS) then indeed his emigration is to Allah and His Messenger (SAWS)…”The question arises as to why Imam Bukhari omitted this part of the hadith on this narration but then included the full version in the six other narrations.
The hadith can be split into two parts. The first part is about sincerity of intention so doing deeds with the right intention i.e. ultimately seeking the pleasure of Allah. The second part is about insincerity – doing what seems to be good deeds externally but the inner motive and intentions are insincere i.e. doing it to show off in front of others or to gain fame, fortune or veneration etc.
Imam Bukhari, even after being who he was, considers himself to be from this second category. Imam Bukhari fears his whole endeavour of collecting ahadith may be insincere. He feels he has no right in mentioning the first part of the hadith in case he or others consider him to be sincere and then be adorned with reward. For this reason, he has abridged this hadith in this instance but then included the full hadith in the other narrations. This abridgement is only done by Imam Bukhari himself. Even his teacher did not abridge it.
Imam Shafi’i has commented that this hadith forms one third of ilm. Abu Dawud has narrated that he has collected 500,000 ahadith. From this he selected 4,800 ahadith for his book, ‘The Sunan of Abu Dawud’. Abu Dawud has stated that of these 4,800 ahadith there are only 4 ahadith that are sufficient for a man’s religion:
1. This hadith.
2. The hadith where Rasoolullah (SAWS) said; Part of the beauty of a man’s religion is that he abandons and leaves aside that which does not concern him”
3. The hadith narrated by Nu’ man bin Nashir – “Halal is clear. Haram is clear. And in between them there are ambiguous matters.”
Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal has further narrated that the foundation of Islam rests on three ahadith:
1. This hadith.
2. The hadith narrated by Aisha (RA) recorded in Muslim – “Whoever introduces into this affair of ours (Islam) that which is not of it then it is rejected.”
3. The hadith narrated by Nu’ man bin Nashir – “Halal is clear. Haram is clear. And in between them there are ambiguous matters.”
All acts of religion can be related to any of these three ahadith, whether its prohibitions, deeds or sins etc. For example, in abstaining from that which is haram and staying within that which is halal (hadith no. 3), we should do it according to the Sunnah and not innovate (hadith no. 2). And even when we do all that, Allah will only accept the deed if it’s done with a sincere intention and motive (hadith no. 1).
The lesson to be learned is that everyone should check and review their intentions before doing any deed or act of worship. We must ensure deeds are only done for the sake of Allah. Allah will only accept those deeds that are done for Him and Him alone. A person may strive and suffer in doing something but if it’s not done with sincere intention it will be rejected. Whoever ascribes a partner to Allah in any act of worship then Allah is independent and the least interested of all that and He will abandon that person as well as his shirk. Rasoolullah (SAWS) has also stated that the majority of the martyrs in this Ummah will die on their bed. As for the ones who die in Jihad, only Allah knows their true intention.
In a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA) recorded in Muslim is the story of the Mujaahid, the Aalim and the one who gave abundantly in charity. Allah will ask the Mujaahid what he did. The Mujaahid will say that he strived to make Allah’s Word supreme and ultimately gave his life for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to him, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how brave and courageous you are. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will then instruct the angels to fling him into the Hell Fire. Allah will then ask the Aalim what he did. The Aalim will say he learned the Quran and taught others for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to the Aalim, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how knowledgeable you were. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will instruct the angels to fling him into the Hell Fire as well. Finally, will ask the person who gave abundantly in charity about what he did. This person will say he gave charity for the sake of Allah. Allah will say to him, ‘You lie. You only did that so people could say how generous you were. People have said that in the Dunya; there is no share for you in the Hereafter.’ Allah will again instruct the angels to fling this person into the Hell Fire as well. So even after doing all this apparent good deeds, the Mujaahid, the Aalim and the one who gave in charity were flung into Jahannam because of the insincerity of their intentions.
It goes to show that a person may strive and struggle to do good deeds; a person may go through hardships and difficulties and through fitnah. A person may, ultimately, give his life. But if the intention is not for the sake of Allah then all that effort, all that sacrifice and struggle, all that strife will be of no use. Rather, in spite of all this, the person will be flung into the Hell Fire because of the insincerity that is concealed in the heart.
May Allah Subhana wa Ta’ala give us all the tawfeeq to ensure that all our deeds and actions are sincere and solely for His Pleasure.
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