Intention: Distinguishing Our Habits From True Worship

The Importance of Intention (Niyyah)

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ — Alhamdulillah wa kafa, wa salamun ala ibadihil ladheen. As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ وَسَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Habit vs. Worship: The Role of Intention

Allah has made our external actions have a secret ingredient that will distinguish us from others in the akhira. Many of us, if we were to ask ourselves — why did you come to the masjid? — we would respond: because we're Muslims, we have to pray every Jumu'ah. We have to come and pray on Fridays. Ask the same question: why do we use a car? Why do we make wudu? Why do we do these different actions? Why does a parent support a child? Why would a mother raise her child? Why would she nurse her child? Many of us might answer these questions by simply saying, well, it's my habit. I go to work daily. I need to provide a living.

But in our deen, we're not supposed to just have a habit of doing things. Because for a habit, a person isn't rewarded for doing a habit. But a person is rewarded for doing that action for the sake of Allah. And one important key factor for that is having an intention — a niyyah — to do our actions.

In this day and age, we're not dealing with only the difficulty of having sincerity, but rather the difficulty is having an intention in the first place. We don't even make intention for what we do. Every single thing — Allah has made our deen beautiful in such a way that every single thing you can do, you can have a good intention for.

Actions can be divided into something which is permissible, impermissible, and generally those which are mubah — nothing has really been said about them. Obviously the impermissible actions, you can't turn them into good actions with your intention. But it's those mubah, those permitted actions — with a simple intention for the sake of Allah, you can turn that into ibadah.

A niyyah distinguishes a habit from actual ibadah.

The Hadith of Fasting with Iman and Ihtisab

Look at the hadith of Nabi ﷺ which we hear frequently at the time of Ramadan:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 38; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 760)

The person who fasts with iman and with ihtisab — meaning you actually have desire for the reward, your niyyah is there for the sake of Allah, for the sake of acquiring Jannah, and for the sake of the reward — if your niyyah isn't there and present, you're not going to get reward for the action.

And if you were to analyze our own selves, the majority of the actions we do are void of any intention — to the extent of how we raise our children, to the extent of getting married, to the extent of having children. These things we may consider as just a person's own nature, their own need. But that nature and need of yours, you can turn that into actual worship and get reward for it.

One of the Salaf as-Saliheen asked his wife, "Why are you nursing the child?" And she said, "Because I'm the mother, I have to nurse the child." He said, "There's no difference between you and an animal then." Because the animal automatically knows: give birth to the child, nurse the child, take care of the child. You are supposed to be doing it for the sake of Allah. If Allah had given an opposite command, you wouldn't do it.

Allah told us — it is part of the sunnah of Nabi ﷺ to get married. It's not just for fulfilling your own desires. You have to have a niyyah for this, doing the action for the sake of Allah.

Those Held Back by Illness: Rewarded by Intention

This niyyah is such that on the Day of Judgment, we might see people whom we thought in the dunya weren't able to do righteous good deeds. But we don't know what was inside their heart. On the Day of Judgment, we might find that they will have mountains of good deeds that they might even surpass us in. And why? Because Nabi ﷺ mentioned in a hadith that Jabir ibn Abdullah رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ narrates:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2839; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1911)

We were in a battle with Nabi ﷺ, traveling. And Nabi ﷺ said, addressing the people who were with him in the battle: "Indeed, there are certain men and individuals in Madinah al-Munawwarah who were with you when you traversed this entire journey. They were with you when you crossed the valleys. But what happened? Sickness had held them back. They were extremely sick, and hence they weren't able to travel with you and go out and fight for the sake of Allah."

Nabi ﷺ is showing here that they weren't present with you physically, but spiritually they were present with you because of their intentions. Many times you will find that a person is preoccupied with looking after their family and children, but they have the intention to do different a'mal and different good deeds — maybe become a hafidh of the Qur'an, become a scholar of deen. Or they don't have a lot of money but they want to donate, but they have their basic faraid and necessities to take care of. Because of the person's intention, Allah will reward the person in accordance to that.

The Hadith Qudsi: Good Deeds, Bad Deeds, and Intention

That's why Allah, in a hadith qudsi — Nabi ﷺ narrating it — says:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6491; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 131)

Allah decreed all the different good deeds and bad deeds and He clarified them. A person that intends a good deed — and he had inclination towards doing that good deed, it wasn't just a passing thought, he had rujhan, he had preference in doing it if he had the ability — but he didn't do it, for whatever circumstances, something came about, he wasn't able to. Then Allah will write for him one complete good deed.

And if a person actually went through with doing that good deed, then Allah will write at least ten good deeds — up to seven hundred manifold, and more — when a person actually does that good deed.

And now look at the mercy of Allah: a person intends a bad deed and had the desire to do it, but they didn't do it — they stopped themselves. What does Allah do? Allah writes one good deed for that person. And if he intends that bad deed and actually acts upon it, Allah will write only one bad deed for the person. It's all based upon the intention.

The Meaning of Niyyah: The Date Seed

If you look at the Arabic — niyyah itself. The root letters are Nawaya. One of the words derived from this is Nawat. Nawat is the date seed.

If you look at a date seed and you plant it — after a year, two, three, four years, after a decade — what happens with the seed? It turns into a huge tree. That tree provides so much benefit. The leaves are so sturdy that some of the date trees, people can stand on the leaves — that's how strong they are. The leaves provide shade not only for birds but for human beings and other large animals. Additionally, you have clusters of dates growing from it, that not only humans can benefit from but animals, birds, squirrels — whatever animal it may be. From that one seed, there is so much benefit and so much yield. But when did that occur? When the seed was taken care of properly. You planted it in good soil, you watered it, you looked after it, you took out any weeds around it, you made sure there was fertilizer.

That is the power of a niyyah. One intention — when a person makes a proper intention to do a good deed and they take care of that intention, they make it khalis, solely for the sake of Allah — then what eventually happens is that niyyah will turn into a fruit. It will turn into a tree which will bear fruits that not only you can benefit from, but others around the entire world can benefit from also.

The Example of Nabi ﷺ and the Da'wah Intention

And you find so many people — the prime example is of Nabi ﷺ. His intention in going and giving da'wah to different individuals, despite whether they accepted Islam or not:

Allah telling Nabi ﷺ: You will not be able to guide those whom you love, even if you have intense greed and desire for their guidance — you won't be able to guide them. Only Allah guides whom He wills. But still Nabi ﷺ is commanded to give da'wah. Because who knows — he planted the seed within that individual. They might not have accepted Islam, but their children or grandchildren would. And as a result of that effort of Nabi ﷺ, so many accepted Islam at the end of his life. We know that approximately 120,000 Sahaba accompanied him to perform Hajj. And that was based upon Nabi ﷺ's effort and his intention. What a person intends will create wondrous and magnificent things that you can't even possibly imagine.

The Intention of Mawlana Qasim Nanotwi (Rahimullah)

We know the great story of Mawlana Qasim Nanotwi رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ. At the time when the British were controlling India before it was divided, his intention was to liberate India and to create an establishment by which Muslims could establish their deen and thrive. With that one intention, he started a madrasa — what wasn't even a formal madrasa by what we know today: just a student and a teacher studying under a tree. But if you look at the establishment that grew — not only that establishment itself, but all around India, Pakistan, South Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia — we all branch off from that. From that one effort. And that effort came down to his initial intention.

When a person has an intention and tries to follow through with it, Allah will create wonders that he can't even imagine. But the problem is we have to have the intention in the first place.

The First Hadith: Actions Are by Their Intentions

This is why many books of hadith start off with the first hadith:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1907)

The actions are based upon their intentions. Because the author is telling you: first fix your intention. Why are you reading this book? Every single action — you may think it's very difficult, but it isn't. Going to the bathroom, relieving yourself — it's a natural human quality, an instinct. But that habit, again, can turn into ibadah when you're doing it for the sake of Allah. You're eating, you're drinking, you're spending time with your children and wife, joking with your children — when you have a proper intention, that action will carry reward, and not just be a habit.

And this is what Nabi ﷺ taught the Sahaba. If you look into their lives, every single action they did was done for the sake of Allah and they had an intention behind it. Nabi ﷺ — all the different sunan he practiced. You read Shama'il al-Tirmidhi — from combing his hair, the way he walked, the way he talked. It had an intention behind it. There was a reasoning behind why he did things a certain way, why he walked a certain way, why he repeated statements and kalam three times. There was intention behind it. And Nabi ﷺ was trying to teach the entire ummah that you need to have intention for whatever you do.

The Truthfulness of Intention

It's based upon your intention that on the Day of Judgment you will find good deeds that you didn't even do in the dunya. But you had the intention and desire, and you were held back due to certain circumstances. Now it's also necessary that we are truthful in our intention. Because if a person makes an intention to do a good deed, but when they have the opportunity to actually do it and the need arises, they don't — then the person was actually lying in their intention.

For example, if a person intended that once they have a hundred thousand dollars, or a million dollars, they want to build a masjid, or an Islamic school, or a madrasa, or help the poor. Now, if Allah did grant that individual that amount of money and that person decided to keep it for himself and use it for his own desires, then the person was not truthful in their intention.

So the niyyah must also be truthful. When Allah opens up the opportunity for the niyyah to come to life and turn into an actual deed — that is the moment when a person will see whether their intention was genuine or not, whether they were truthful or lying.

Intention Leads to Ikhlas

For every single action a person does — coming to the masjid, why a person comes to the first saf, listening to the khutbah, praying salah — when you have a proper intention, not only will you get reward for that, but you will start to create ikhlas. The epitome of our deen is to have sincerity in all of our actions — meaning you're doing that solely for the sake of Allah. Not for your nafs, not for the dunya, not for shaitan, not for anyone else.

But in order to acquire ikhlas, you have to first make an intention. And at the time of making intention, you will see how shaitan will come, and your nafs will come, because they want a part of that action. You may want to do it for the sake of showing off to others, being ostentatious, or doing it for your nafs so that you feel happy. But a true sign that a person has sincerity is that your nafs doesn't want you to do it, but Allah wants you to do it — and you go against your nafs.

So may Allah give us the tawfiq to always make intentions for all of our actions, and grant us ikhlas. وَآخِرُ دَعْوَانَا أَنِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Announcements

All brothers and sisters, please come and fill the first saf. Do not leave any gaps in between, and make space for others. Please pass the donation boxes from left to right and donate generously. Sadaqah wards off calamities and draws the mercy of Allah.

Sunday School starts this weekend. Still accepting admissions for age groups 6–7 and 8+. Come for our weekend adult classes and your children can be in Sunday school at the same time, learning about the Quran, Sunnah, Hadith, Adab, and Du'as.

The Tafheem Weekend Program enrollment for Fall 2022 is now open at masjids.org. Classes began this weekend, open to brothers and sisters, offered both onsite and online. The Tafheem Program focuses on providing educational opportunities for eager learners of all ages on a part-time basis.

HOOP Finesse Basketball Camp at Dar es Salaam is a 3-day exclusive camp for boys ages 7–18. Camp includes free camp t-shirts, short Islamic talks, an all-star game, award ceremony, and pizza party. Starts today at 4pm and continues through the weekend. For more information and to register, visit mrhoopfinesse.com.

Boroughs Islamic Society (BIS) is based out of Westborough, Massachusetts. BIS aims to be the first masjid established in a 21-mile radius spanning 9 suburbs. Please support them in any way you can on your way out.

We are hiring female Hifz teachers, and male math and science teachers for middle and high school students.

Our weekly programs are continuing. Tuesday's Tafheem Program after Maghrib — we are currently covering Surah Taha with Mufti Abdul Aziz Arzimuddin. Saturday's team Fajr will continue tomorrow. Fajr iqamah will be at 5:30am, followed by community breakfast.

Request for Du'as: A musalli's wife is going through heart surgery. We request du'as that Allah makes it successful and grants her complete and kamil shifa afterwards.