Actions Depend Upon Their Intentions

On the authority of the chief of believers, Aboo Hafs  Umar Ibn al-Khattab (radiyallahu anhu), who said:

I heard the Messeneger of Allah (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) saying: “the reward for actions depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he intended. This he who’s migration was for Allah and His Messenger, his migration was for Allah and His Messenger, and he who’s migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or take a woman in marriage, his migration was for that which he migrated” (Bukhari and Muslim)

The scholars have said this Hadith is half of worship because it is the scale of inward actions. As well as the Hadith were the Messenger of Allah (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) said:

“whoever innovates into this affair of ours that which is not from it shall have it rejected” (Bukhari and Muslim)

This is the other half of the religion because it is the scale of the outward actions.

So every action has an intention and the person is rewarded, punished, or prohibited based upon his intention)

[Source: Explanatory Notes on Imam an-Nawawee’s Fourty Hadith, based on the works of Shaykh Muhammad Ibn Saalih al-Uthaymeen. Publisher: Tarbiyyah Publishing]

Belief in Allah

Belief in Allah, the one free from all defects, is to believe that He is the only true deity deserving of worship, as opposed to anything else that is worshipped. This is because he is the sole creator of the slaves, the granted of kindness and goodness to them, the one who takes charge of their provision and he is fully aware of both their secrets and that which they openly manifest. He is the one who rewards those who obey him and punishes those who disobey him.  Allah say:

“and I did not create jinn and mankind except to worship me alone. I seek no sustain acne from them nor that they should feed me. Verily Allah is the Provider, Lord of Power, the Strong” (51:56-58)

“O mankind! Worship your lord who created you and those who were before you so that you may become pious. The one who has made the earth as arresting place for you and the sky as a canopy, sent down rain from the sky and brought forth fruits their with as a provision for you. Then do not set up rivals to him while you know (that there is nothing similar to him” (2:21-22)

He sent Messenegers and Books in order to explain the reality of worshipping him alone, to call to it and warn others from it.

 “And verily, we have sent among every ummah ( community, nation) a messenger, proclaiming worship Allah alone and avoid taghut (everything worshipped besides Allah)” (16:36)

“and we did not send any messenger before you (O Muhammad) except we inspired him (saying): ‘La ilaha ilaa Anaa (none has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah). So worship Me (Alone and none else)” (21:2)

“This is a book whose verses are perfected (in every sphere of knowledge) and then explained by one who is all wise and well acquainted (with all things). (It says) worship none but Allah. Verily, I (Muhammad) am unto you one who warns and and brings glad tidings from him” (11:1-2)

Most of Quran was sent for this great principle.

“and your lord has decreed that you worship none but him” (39:2-3)

“so worship Allah, making the religion purely for him, even though the unbelievers hate it” (40:14)

Belief in Allah also includes belief in everything Allah has made obligatory on his slave.  Such as the five pillars of islam. Which are testifying that one has the right to be worshipped except Allah and that Muhammad (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) is the messenger of Allah, the prayer (salah), giving the charity (zakat), fasting in Ramadan, performing Hajj to the house of Allah for those who are able, and all the other obligations that come in the pure sharee’ah.

 Belief in Allah also include belief that he is the sole  creator of the universe, the one regulates and governs affairs of his creation in accordance with His Knowledge and Power, as and how he wills. He is the master of the world and the hereafter and the entire universe. There is no creator and lord except him. None shares with him in any of these qualities.

“Allah is the creator of all things and he is the Wakeel (trustee, disposer of affairs, Gaurdian, etc) of all things” (39:62)

“indeed your lord is Allah who created the heavens and the earth in six days and then he rose above the throne. He covers the night with the day, seeking it rapidly, and he created the sun, the moon, the stars subjected to his command. Surely his is the creation and the commandment. Blessed be Allah, The Lord of the universe.” (7:54)

Belief in Allah include believing in his beautiful Names and loft Attributes. They have been mentioned in the Quran and by his messenger Muhammad (sallalahu alayhi wasallam). We believe in them without distorting the word or the meaning, denying the attribute, asking how it is, or resembling it to the creation. It is obligatory to leave them as they came without without going into the nature of the attribute or how they are, while believing in the meaning they carry.

“there is nothing like him, and he is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer” (42:11)

This the aqeedah of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jammah (those who follow the way of the prophet and unite upon it) from the companions of the messenger and those who follow them in goodness.

[Source: The Correct Islamic Aqeedah & that which opposes it, By Skaykh Abdul-Aziz Ibn Baz. Publisher: Dar us-Sunnah]

Six Fundamentals Of Eemaan

The evidences in the book of Allah and the sunnah of his messenger (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) show the six fundamentals of  Eemaan are to believe in:

1) Allah

2) His Angels

3) His Books (original and unaltered)

4) His Messengers

5) The last Day (of Judgement)

6) Predestination – the good and bad of it.

These six matters are the fundamentals of Eemaan  and the correct Aqeedah with which Allah the Almighty revealed his book and sent his Messenger Muhammad (sallalahu alayhi wasallam).

All issues concerning the unseen and all that we have been informed of from Allah and his messenger (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) stem from the above principles and it is obligatory to believe in them.

The evidences from Quran and Sunnah are many. These include the sayings of Allah:

“it is not righteousness that you turn your faces to the east or the west (in prayers) but righteousness is to believe in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Books and the Prophets” (2:177)

“The messengers believe in what is sent down to him from his lord, as do the faithful believers. Each one believes in Allah, His Angels, His Books and His Messengers. (They say:) We make no distinction between one and another of his messengers.” (2;285)

“O you who believe! Believe in Allah, His Messenger (Muhammad), the Book (Quran) which he has sent down to his messenger, and the scriptures which he’s enter down to those before (him). Whosoever disbelievers in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day has strayed far away.” (4:136)

“Do you not Know that Allah knows all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth? Verily it is all in a record. Verily, that is easy for Allah” (22:70)

Theres also many authentic hadeeth that prove these fundamentals. Amongst them is the famous authentic hadeeth narrated by Muslim in his saheeh on the authority of the leader of the believers, Umar (radi allahu anhu), that angel Jibreel (alayhisallam) asked the prophet (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) about Eemaan. He replied:

“Eemaan is to believe in Allah,  his Angels, his. Books, his Messengers, the Last Day, and to believe in. Predestination – the good and the bad of it” 

All the Obligatory matters if belief relating to Allah, the Day of judgement and other matters of the unseen originate from these six principles.

[Source: The Correct Islamic Aqeedah & that which opposes it, By Skaykh Abdul-Aziz Ibn Baz. Publisher: Dar us-Sunnah]

Seeking Help from Someone who is Dead or Absent

Q: Is seeking help from someone who is absent or dead considered an act of major Kufr (disbelief)?

A: Yes, seeking help from someone who is dead or absent is considered an act of major Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) and doing so puts the doer outside the fold of Islam, for Allah (Glorified be He) says (what means), “And whoever invokes (or worships), besides Allâh, any other ilâh (god), of whom he has no proof; then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely! Al-Kâfirûn (the disbelievers in Allâh and in the Oneness of Allâh, polytheists, pagans, idolaters) will not be successful.” Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) also says, “Such is Allâh, your Lord; His is the kingdom. And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even a Qitmîr (the thin membrane over the date-stone). If you invoke (or call upon) them, they hear not your call; and if (in case) they were to hear, they could not grant it (your request) to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. And none can inform you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) like Him Who is the All-Knower (of everything).”

May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.

The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta’

`Abdullah ibn Ghudayyan

`Abdul-Razzaq `Afify

`Abdul-`Aziz ibn `Abdullah ibn Baz

[Source: http://alifta.com/Fatawa/FatawaChapters.aspx?View=Page&BookID=7&PageID=34&back=true&languagename=en ]

The Importance of Aqeedah for the Muslim

Question:

There is (one) here who is lax concerning the importance of aqeedah (creed) and he is of the opinion that eemaan (faith) is sufficient (for him). Do you have any clarification concerning the importance of aqeedah for the Muslim and how it reflects on his life, on his relationship with the (Muslim) society (as a whole) and with the non-Muslims?

Answer:

In the name of Allaah, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy. All praise is due to Allaah, the Lord of the all that exists. And may the peace and blessings be upon our Messenger Muhammad and upon his family and his companions. To proceed:
The correctness of aqeedah is the (most) fundamental principle. This is because bearing witness that Laa Ilaaha Illa Allaah Wa Anna Muhammaddan Rasool Allaah (there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad is His Messenger), is the first pillar of Islaam. And the Messengers called firstly, to the correction of the aqeedah because all acts of worship and behavior depends on it and without the correct aqeedah, there is no benefit from (these) deeds. The Most High said: “But if they had joined in worship others with Allaah, all that they used to do would have been of no benefit to them.”  (Al-An’am (6):88)

And their deeds became invalid.

And Allaah (سبحانه وتعالى) said: “Verily, whosoever sets up partners in worship with Allaah, then Allaah has forbidden Paradise for him, and the Fire will be his abode. And for the Dhaalimoon (polytheists and wrong-doers) there are no helpers.” (Al-Maa’idah (5):72)

And the Most High said: “And indeed it has been revealed to you (O Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم)), as it was to those (Allaah’s Messengers) before you: ‘If you join others in worship with Allaah, (then) surely (all) your deeds will be in vain, and you will certainly be among the losers.’” (Az-Zumar (39):65)

From these texts and other than them, it is clear that the correction of the aqeedah is from the important (affairs) and at the forefront of the da’wah. And the first (affair) to establish for the da’wah is the correction of aqeedah. And the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) remained in Makkah for thirteen years after his mission began, calling the people to the correction of the aqeedah and to at-Tawheed. And the faraa’id (obligatory acts of worship) were not revealed to him except in Madeenah.

Yes, and the salaat was made obligatory upon him in Makkah before the hijrah and the rest of the shar’iah was imposed on him after the hijrah. From this we have evidence that deeds are not accepted except after the correction of the aqeedah.

And this is for the one who says: That the eemaan (faith) is sufficient without having interest for the aqeedah.

This is contradictory because eemaan is not eemaan except if the aqeedah is correct. And if the aqeedah is not correct, then there is no eemaan, and (there is) no deen (religion).

Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan
Fataawa as-Siyaasah ash-Shar’iyyah, Question 1

[Source: http://www.fatwaislam.com/fis/index.cfm?scn=fd&ID=229

Eight Ways on How to Gain Knowledge that “None has the Right to be Worshipped except Allah”

Allah says in the Quran:

“Know that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah” (47:19)

Shaykh Ibn Sa’dee (rahimahullah) cites eight different ways in his Tafseer on how to gain knowledge that ‘none has the right to be worshipped except Allah, he said:

1. To contemplate upon the names and attributes of Allah, and his actions that show his perfectness, greatness and magnificence. This causes a person to exert themselves in devotion to Allah and worshipping the perfect lord whom his is all praise, glorification beauty and majesty.
2. knowing that Allah is the sole creator and disposer of affairs requires that a person also know that Allah is solely deserving of worship.
3. Knowing that Allah alone bestows all blessings hidden and apparent, worldy and religious, necessitates that his heart loves and becomes attached to Allah, and that he worships him alone without any partners.
4. The reward, victory and apparent favours Allah bestows upon his awliyaa (supporters) that single out Allah with everything that is specific to him; and the punishment he sends upon his enemies who associate partners with him. This clearly calls to the fact that only he, the most high deserves all worship.
5. knowing the characteristics of the idols, statues, and partners that are worshipped besides Allah and have been taken as gods, and that they are deficient from all angles and needy themselves. They have no power to benifit themselves or those who worship them. They have no power of giving life or raising the dead. They have no ability to make those who worship them victorious and they cannot benifit them even with an atom seed, whether it is bringing about good or repelling evil. Knowledge of this necessitates that a person know ‘none has the right to be worshipped except Allah’, and it attests that the divinity of those that are worshipped besides him is false and futile.
6. All the books are in agreement and conformity about this.
7. the finest of the creation, and these are the prophets, messengers and upright scholars who have the best intellects, manners, understanding, knowledge and opinions, all testify to this.
8. The evidences that Allah has established that are ufuqiyaah and naffsiyaah prove and proclaim in the greatest fashion that Allah should be singled out with all worship, and he has made visible his fine work, amazing wisdom and marvellous creation.

[Tayseer Al-Kareem Al-Mannaan fee Tafseer Kalaam Ar-Rahman by Allaamah As-Sa’dee (pg. 731-732)]

No Prayer No Islam – Talib Abdullah

Ten Things That Expiate the Sins – Abu Iyaad Amjid Rafiq

Types of Shirk

First: Major Shirk (Shirk al-Akbar)

Which Allah does not forgive. Allah says:

“this is the guidance of Allah with which he guides whosoever he wills of his slaves. But if they had joined in worship others with Allah, all that they used to do would have been of no benefit to them” (Al-Anam:88)

“it is not for the Mushrikun (polytheists, idolaters, pagans, disbelievers in the oneness of Allah), to maintain the masjid of Allah (i.e. To pray and worship Allah therein, to look after the cleanliness and the building, etc), while they witness against their own selves disbelief. The works of such are in vain and in hell they shall abide” (at-Tawbah:17)

The one who associates others with Allah and dies on this shirk will not be forgiven and jannah (paradise) is forbidden to him, as Allah, the Most Mighty and Honoured says:

” Verily, Allah forgives not that partners should be set up with him in worship, but he forgives except that anything else to whom he pleases, and whoever sets up partners with Allah in worship, he has indeed invented a tremendous sin” (An-Nisan:48)

“verily, whoever sets up partners with Allah in worship with Allah, then Allah has forbidden paradise for him, and the fire will be his abode. And for the zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers) there will be no helpers” (Al-Maidah:72)

Asking the dead or idols for help, slaughtering for them and making vows to them are examples of major shirk.

Second: Minor Shirk (Shirk Al-Asghar)

which is stated In the Quran and Sunnah but is not the same as Major Shirk. Riya (showing off), and swearing by other than Allah are examples of Minor Shirk. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said:

“of which I fear for you the most is Minor Shirk.” When he was asked what it was, he said, “Riya”

and he (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) also said:

“he who swears by other than Allah commits minor shirk”

This kind of shirk does not necessarily lead to disbelief from islam or an eternal stay in hell. It negates however the completeness of faith.

Third: Hidden Shirk

The prophet (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) said:

“Shall I not inform you of which I fear more for you than I fear of the Anti-Christ? They said, ‘yes, o messenger of Allah’, and he said, “the hidden Shirk, where one beautifies the way of praying only because another one is looking at him”

Alternatively Shirk could be divided into two kinds, Major and Minor. In this case the hidden shirk encompasses both the Major and Minor kinds depending upon the act committed. It is Major if it is the same as the Shirk of the hypocrites who hiss their false beliefs while showing off islam out of fear. It is Minor if it is the same as Riya (showing off).

[Source: Important Lessons for the Muslim Ummah, by Skaykh Abdul-Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz]

Aqeedah Comes First if Only They knew – Abu Muadh Taqweem Aslam