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on Niyyah (Intentions) and Riya (Showing off)
on Niyyah (Intentions) and Riya (Showing off)
The term Niyyah translates to “Intention” and it defines as the intention of the heart to get closer to Allah during a worship service.
Whereas, the term riya’ is translated as “showing off,” which means doing something to please others or to gain their approval and admiration,
Whereas, the term riya’ is translated as “showing off,” which means doing something to please others or to gain their approval and admiration,
instead of focusing on pleasing Allah and receiving his approval, satisfaction, and pleasure. Riya’ is the antonym of the work ikhlas (Sincerity)
An example of riya is when a person shows off that they've given a lot of money to charity in front of others and they did this to..
An example of riya is when a person shows off that they've given a lot of money to charity in front of others and they did this to..
gain the reputation of being a charitable person in the community. Rather, that form of charity was an invalid act because the sincerity was mixed with a desire to show off.
Sadly in this Ummah a lot of people do riya’ and they do not realise that it could make a pure act of worship, such as prayer, void of any reward and could even result in God’s punishment.
The Prophet (ﷺ), said:
"Shall I not inform you of what I fear for you more than the Masih ad-Dajjal? It is the hidden shirk. It is when a man stands up for prayer, then beautifies his prayer for another to look at."
[Ibn Majah 2604]
"Shall I not inform you of what I fear for you more than the Masih ad-Dajjal? It is the hidden shirk. It is when a man stands up for prayer, then beautifies his prayer for another to look at."
[Ibn Majah 2604]
The Prophet (ﷺ), said:
"What I fear for u the most is the minor shirk, that is ar-riya. Allah will say on the Day of Judgement when He is rewarding the people for their actions: Go to those for whom u did riya for in the world then see if u find the reward with them."
[Ahmad]
"What I fear for u the most is the minor shirk, that is ar-riya. Allah will say on the Day of Judgement when He is rewarding the people for their actions: Go to those for whom u did riya for in the world then see if u find the reward with them."
[Ahmad]
Don’t both of these Hadiths just show you the dangers of having impure intentions? Riya is an evil tribulation that annihilates our good actions. It is crucial as Muslims that we have Pure Intentions because it will play a huge part on the Hereafter.
These hidden desires have even weakened the stands of senior scholars in the past. Always remember, the first of people to enter Jahannam are those who showed-off because they took enjoyment from the results of their actions in this dunya. So stay far away from Riya!!!
It is crucial to have the right niyyah before fulfilling a good deed as Intentions are the roots of every action. It reflects the underlying motives of why we plan something or do what we do. It is good practice to always identify the purpose of our goals rather than rushing...
...to fulfill them so that we can reap the most benefit out of it.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said,
"Actions are (judged) by intentions (niyyah), so each man will receive what he has intended for.” [Bukhari]
This underlines that intention is the ultimate foundation of our actions.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said,
"Actions are (judged) by intentions (niyyah), so each man will receive what he has intended for.” [Bukhari]
This underlines that intention is the ultimate foundation of our actions.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said:
“Verily, Allah does not look at your appearance or wealth, but rather he looks at your hearts and actions.”
[Sahih Muslim 2564]
“Verily, Allah does not look at your appearance or wealth, but rather he looks at your hearts and actions.”
[Sahih Muslim 2564]
Just think.. Are all these acts of worship that you’re doing purely for the Sake of Allah or are they being done with the intent to gain praise and admiration by others? Are you only praying because your parents told you to or because you fear Allah?
We must start to rather do the acts of worship to fulfill our obligations to Allah, to be forgiven, to gain His pleasure, to abstain from sin and to become nearer to and increase our love for Him.
Start worshipping Allah not because you want to show others ur a good Muslim but..
Start worshipping Allah not because you want to show others ur a good Muslim but..
...because you want to increase your imaan and taqwa so it benefits you on the day of Qiyamah.
Imagine u can have multiple intentions for a single action to maximise the reward. For e.g. u could go sleep with the intention of waking up for Fajr and if you oversleep u can still get reward! Because of ur sincere intention, u will nevertheless receive the reward of praying!
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Whoever goes to his bed with the intention of getting up and praying during the night, and sleep overcomes him until the morning comes, he will have recorded for him what he had intended, and his sleep…
will be a charity for him from his Lord. [Ibn Majah]
Allah’s Mercy is limitless upon us سبحان الله
Allah’s Mercy is limitless upon us سبحان الله
So, let’s start looking deeper into our hearts and ask ourselves what we truly want, the temporal pleasures such as human recognition or monetary rewards or are they built upon sincere intentions that enable us to gain His recognition?
May Allah keep our intentions pure and grant us guidance to act upon them. اَمِين يَارَبَّا لْعَالَمِيْن
