The Concept of Worship.
Ibn Abdullāh
In the name of
Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;
All the praise and
thanks is due to Allāh, the Lord al-‘ālameen. I testify that there is none
worthy of worship except Allāh, and that Muhammad, Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam
is His Messenger.
A Muslim should engage his life
remembering the purpose of his creation and the objective for which he exists
in this world. Allāh Almighty Subhānahu wata’ala clarifies to us this
objective saying: “And I created not the jinn and humans except that they should worship Me
(alone).” [Adh-Dhariyat,
51:56]. This verse plainly explains the purpose of our creation; that our
lives should not be spent except in worshipping Allāh Almighty . Solah,
fasting, alms giving, Hajj, truthfulness, trustworthiness, being dutiful to
parents, supplication, reading the Qur’an, hoping for Allāh’s mercy and being
afraid of His punishment are all acts of worship.
The Best Deeds.
The greatest type of worship is to perform
that which Allāh Almighty makes obligatory on His servants and to refrain
from all that He forbids.
Abu Hurayrah (radiyallāhu’anhu) narrated
that Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Allāh says: ‘The most beloved deeds with which my slave comes nearer
to me are what I have enjoined on him.’” [Al-Bukhari].
Ibn Al-Qayyim (rahimahullāh) said: “Since the Salaf lived their whole life in worship, it
is then necessary for us to know with which type of worship they started, and
which one have they given priority.” He then answered: "The best acts of
worship are the most pleasing to Allāh Almighty in that particular
time. The best act of worship during the presence of a guest is to take care of
him and not to be distracted from that by other recommended acts of worship.
This is also in performing one’s duties towards one’s wife and family. The best
act of worship in the night is to be occupied with prayer, reciting the Qur’an,
supplication and dzikir. The best thing during the time of the Azan (i.e. the
call for solah) is to leave whatever worship one is doing and answer the
Mu`asin (i.e. the one calling the Azan) by repeating what he says. The best
thing during the time of the five obligatory prayers is to exert one's efforts
in their prompt performance. The best thing when the poor is in dire need of
assistance is to assist him and give that preference over supererogatory
dzikir. The best thing to do when your brother is sick or dead is to visit him,
attend his funeral, and give that priority over your supererogatory dzikir. And
the best thing to do when you are afflicted and suffer people’s harm is to be
patient and not to run away from them."
It indicates that the Muslim should be
moving in between stations of servitude. If you see the scholars you see him
with them; if you see those who are devotedly performing acts of worship, you
see him with them, and if you see those giving generously in charity, you see
him with them!
The Conditions of Accepting an Act of Worship.
Indeed what has afflicted Muslims in the
course of their long history and what is afflicting them today is a consequence
of their deviation from the real concept of worship and application of the two
conditions for acts of worship to be accepted, which are: sincerity and
following the path of the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam). While abandoning sincerity leads to directing acts of worship that are
solely Allāh’s to others besides Him; lack of following the path of the Prophet
(Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) leads to the appearance of various kinds of
worship for which there is neither permission from Allāh Almighty nor
recommendation from His Prophet(Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) .
However, some people restrict the concept
of worship to rituals only. Whenever this set of people works, they abstain
completely from worship and whenever they worship, they keep away completely
from work. This is unfortunately the most common belief. It is the people who
hold this concept who say, “What
does religion have to do with a woman’s dressing and her work?" "What
does religion have to do with our personal behaviour?" Their purpose is to remove religion from one’s life
and confine it only to the mosque. That is why you see someone who prays,
fasts, and reads Qur’an, yet he cheats, bribes, takes bribes and wrongs others.
You also see a woman who prays yet she disobeys laws of Allāh
Almighty by dressing immodestly and mingling with men.
Deeds which one performs habitually become
acts of worship through good intentions. The farmer in his farm, the laborers,
the trader, or the practitioner of any other profession is capable of turning
his occupation into an act of worship, provided that he does not tarnish it
with cheating, lying, tricking etc. This is the concept of worship in its wider
sense. To have a full imagination of acts of obedience makes a Muslim full of
good, mercy, and benefits for his fellow human beings, thereby encouraging him
to do more acts of worship and assist his nation.
It is possible for you to add a viable
brick into the structure of this nation and add to your scale of good deeds
weighty works, which may appear insignificant to you. Listen to what the
Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Do you want me to tell you of what is better than the rank of fasting,
solah and charity?” The Companions said: “Yes, O Messenger of Allāh.” He said: “Conciliating
between people among whom there is discord.” [Abu Dawud]
Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) also said: “Whoever visits a sick person or a
brother of his for Allāh’s sake, a caller will call him thus, ‘You are good and
your passage is good. May you take Paradise for an abode’ ” [At-Tirmidzi].
Abu Hurayrah (radiyAllāhu’anhu) reported
that the Messenger of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) said: “While a man was walking along the road,
he saw a branch of a tree with thorns lying on the road and he removed it, so
Allāh appreciated his deed (and thus rewarded him) for that and forgave
his sins.” [Muslim].
It is also reported that the Messenger of
Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Deeds of my nation – both the good and
evil – were shown to me and I found that among their good deeds is the removal
of harmful things from the pathway.” [Muslim].
Restricting righteous deeds to special
acts of worship makes seekers of piety spend all their time in repetition of
limited deeds as if they do not see that other ways lead to the pleasure of Allāh
Almighty .
Worship Covers All Aspects Of Life.
Worshipping Allāh Almighty does
indeed necessitate using all one’s limbs in the obedience of Allāh
Almighty and carrying out His orders. One can worship Allāh
Almighty by preventing his eyes from gazing at unlawful things and
using them to look at what Allāh Almighty loves, like a copy of the Qur’an,
books of knowledge etc. He can also worship Him by preventing his ears, hands
and feet from all that Allāh Almighty forbids and using them in
things that He enjoins and loves.
Allāh Almighty says: “Say (O Mohammad);
verily my solah, my sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allāh, the Lord
of the ‘Alamin (mankind, jinn’s and all that exists). He has no partner. And of
this I have been commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims.” [Al-An ‘am, 6:162-163].
As for the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) love of worship has penetrated deep into his heart and the
greatest manifestation of his worship is that he submitted his whole life to
Allāh Almighty in all his conditions.
Allāh Almighty says: “And who can be better in religion than one who submits his face (himself)
to Allāh and he is a Muhsin (a doer of good).” [An-Nisa’ 4:125].
The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) used to fear Allāh Almighty and always seek for His
forgiveness. The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “By Allāh! I indeed invoke Allāh for forgiveness and repent to
Him more than seventy times a day.” [Al-Bukhari]
The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) used to worship Allāh Almighty in the night and would
keep on standing until his legs became swollen and when his wife, ‘Aishah
(radiyallahu’anha) asked the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) : “O Messenger of Allāh! You do this when
your former and latter sins have been forgiven?” Prophet (Sallallāhu
‘alayhi wa sallam) replied: “Should I not then be a grateful slave?” [Al-Bukhari and
Muslim]
However, the most wonderful aspect of the
Prophet’s (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) worship is that astonishing
combination of the highest level of worship and performance of his role as the
head of his nation.
Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) said: “By Allāh! I am the most fearful of
Allāh among you, but I fast, and eat; I pray and I sleep and I marry
women. Whoever differs from my way is not of me.” [Al-Bukhari]
Ibn Taimiyyah (rahimahullah) said: “The heart cannot be good, prosper, have
felicity and easiness, enjoy and have tranquility except through the worship of
its Lord alone. Even if it attains all pleasures of this world it will not get
peace and tranquility, for it has a natural spontaneous need to its Lord
because He is its Lord…”
Nullifiers of Worship, And Reasons for Rejecting it.
Not fulfilling the two conditions of
accepting a deed (namely, sincerely and coinciding with the way of the Prophet,
(Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam), are the foremost reasons one's deed may be
rejected as we have mentioned before.
One of the Salaf (the righteous
predecessors) said: “Indeed,
Allāh has bestowed His favour upon His servants and commanded them to be
grateful as much as they can, for gratitude, however little it may be, is a
price for the favour, however big it may be. If one is not grateful, he has
exposed the favour to extinction…”
The Effort Exerted By the Salaf in Worship.
Our Salaf, people whose hearts were full
of love for Allāh Almighty in all their conditions , they then
became delighted, their souls became tranquil … peace ruled over their limbs
,then, thoughts of love replaced those of disobedience … the will to move
nearer to Him replaced that of displeasing Him , movements of the tongue became
that of obedience or contrary to disobedience.
When Naafi’ was asked about the activities
of Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallahu’anhu) at home, he replied: “He used to perform wudhu’ for every solah
and recite Qur’an in between them [i.e. in between wudhu’ and solah.]”
Al-Hasan Al-Basri (rahimhullah) said –
while describing efforts of Salaf in worship, “I have met people and I have
accompanied groups. They (i.e. the people I have met and accompanied) did not
use to rejoice at whatever came their way of the beauties of this world; nor
did they use to get sad over whatever departed from them of this world. Rather,
the world was less significant to them than the soil over which they walked.
They would act by the book of their Lord and the Sunnah of the Prophet (Sallallāhu
‘alayhi wa sallam). During the night they stood up in prayer, prostrated their
faces and wept out of fear of Allāh.”
Whenever Ibn ‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu)
missed a congregational solah, he would atone for that by a day of fasting, a
night vigil (in prayer) and manumission of a slave.
The wife of ‘Umar ibn Abdul-‘Aziz
(rahimahullah) said: “I have never seen anyone who prayed, fasted and feared Allāh more
than him (meaning her husband). He would pray ‘Isya’ prayer and then sit
mentioning Allāh until he was overcome by slumber. He would remember some
of the issues of the Last Day while he was on his bed and tremble like a
sparrow and then sit down weeping. I would then cover him with a sheet.”
Wakee’ said: “Al-A’mash never missed the opening Takbir (in a
congregational solah) for almost seventy years and I visited him for more than
six years, and I have never seen him performing a missed Rak’ah.”
Suleiman Ibn Hamzah also said: “I have never prayed an obligatory solah alone except
twice and even then I felt as if I had not prayed it at all.” It should be
noted that he was almost ninety years old when he died.
Through worship, a believer’s soul becomes tranquil,
that tranquility energizes it and tells it, “O soul! Be happy, for the
home is near and reunion is imminent”. Therefore, do not terminate your
journey and thus be denied reaching the home of the loved ones.
The Al-Ihsan before Allāh Almighty
The word Muhsin (a doer of good) was mentioned in one of the quoted
verses of the Qur’an which is derived from Al-Ihsan which is the performance of good;
but what then is Al-Ihsan (excellece
deeds) that attracts such a high position
before Allāh Almighty and makes the slave deserving of such a great
description?
The answer was provided by the Messenger
of Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) when he said:
“Al-Ihsan is to worship Allāh as if you see Him. And even though you
do not see Him, He sees you!” [Muslim].
This narration means that man should
worship Allāh Almighty , mindful of his closeness to Him and his standing
before Him just as if he is seeing Him plainly. This state brings about Allāh
Almighty -consciousness and love of Allāh Almighty and purifies
ones acts of worship.
Anas
bin Mālik (radiyallāhu’anu) narrated that a man said: “O
Messenger of Allāh! Tell me a short word that could benefit me.” The
Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Perform solah as if you are in your
farewell solah, for if you do not see Allāh, He sees you.” And the
meaning of the phrase “if you do not see Him, He sees you” is that if one
cannot worship Allāh as if one sees Him, he should then worship Him with the
conviction that Allāh does see him and that none of his affairs is concealed
from Allāh.
Harithah
related: “The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) told me: “O Harithah! How do you find yourself this morning?” I
replied: “A true believer.” then the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)
told me: “Watch what you say, for every word has a reality, so what confirms
what you claimed” I then said: ‘O Messenger of Allāh! I keep myself away from
the (leisure of this) world, spend my nights in solah and fast during my days.
I am now as if I am looking at the throne of my Lord appearing. I am also as if
I am looking at the inhabitants of Paradise as they visit one another. And it
seems as if I am looking at the dwellers of hell as they howl therein!” The
Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) then said: “You have indeed seen (what
you claimed to have seen). Therefore continue on your state of worship, O slave
whom Allāh has illuminated his heart with faith!”
Al-Ihsan is to observe solah in the best form, moving
closer to Allāh and beseeching Him secretly during the night when people
are asleep, and it is also being benevolent to people.
Allāh Almighty Says:“Verily, they were before this Muhsins -
plural of Muhsin (i.e. Doers of good). They used to sleep but little by night
(invoking their Lord and praying with fear and hope). And in the hours before
dawn they were (found) asking (Allāh) for forgiveness. And in their properties
there was the right of the beggar (who asked) and the poor (who do not ask
others).”[Adh-Dhariyat,
51:17-19].
Al-Ihsan also means striving against one’s soul, struggle
against Shaytan, hypocrites and unbelievers.
Allāh Almighty Says:“And many a Prophet fought (in Allāh’s
cause) and along with him (fought) large bands of religious learned men. But
they never lost heart for that which did befall them in Allāh’s way, nor did
they weaken nor degrade themselves. And Allāh loves the patient ones. And
they said nothing but, ‘Our Lord! Forgive us our sins and our transgressions
(in keeping our duties to you). Establish our feet firmly and give us victory
over the disbelieving folk! So Allāh gave them the reward of this world,
and the excellent reward of the hereafter. And Allāh loves the Muhsins
(doers of good).” [Al-‘Imran,
3: 146-148].
It is also an aspect of Al-Ihsan to spend in the way of Allāh whether one is rich
or poor and to suppress ones anger and forgive the ignorant ones when they
misbehave.
Allāh Almighty Says:“Those who spend (in Allāh’s cause) in
prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger and who pardon men; verily,
Allāh loves the Muhsins (doers of good).” [Ali-‘Imran, 3: 134]
It is a part of Al-Ihsan to surrender to the truth, to love it and to
listen to the revealed Book of Allāh with sound and healthy minds and
attentive ears.
Allāh Almighty Says: “And when they listen to what has been
sent down to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflowing with tears because
of the truth they have recognised. They say, “Our Lord! We believe; so write us
among the witnesses. And why should we not believe in Allāh
Almighty and in that which has come to us of the truth (Islamic
monotheism)? And we wish that our Lord will admit us (in Paradise on the Day of
Resurrection) along with the righteous people (Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu
‘alayhi wa sallam) and his companions). So because of what they
said, Allāh rewarded them with gardens under which rivers flow (in
Paradise), they will abide therein forever. Such is the reward of the Muhsins
(doers of good).” [Al-Maidah,
5: 83-85]
Allāh Almighty has promised a
great reward for the Muhsins in this world and the next. He promises them
protection and good things of this life when He Says: “Truly
Allāh is with those who fear Him (keep their duty unto Him), and those who
are Muhsins (doers of good).”[Al-Nahl, 16:
128]
Among the reward of good deeds is that it
makes Muhsins win Allāh’s love.
Allāh Says: “Verily, Allāh loves the Muhsins
(doers of good).” [Ali-‘Imran,
3: 134]
Among the rewards of good deeds is that
Allāh Almighty will impart knowledge into the heart of the Muhsins,
which will enable him to differentiate between lawful and unlawful things, and
between truth and falsehood. Allāh Almighty Says about Yusuf: “And when he (Yusuf) attained his full
manhood, We gave him wisdom and knowledge. Thus We reward those who are Muhsins
(doers of good).” [Yusuf, 12: 22].
Allāh Almighty also
rewards Muhsins by praising them and making His slaves praise them as well.
The Almighty Says about Prophet Nuh (Noah, ‘alayhissalam) : “Salam (peace) be upon Nuh (from Us) among the ‘Alamin
(mankind, jinn and all that exists).” [As-Saffat,
37: 79]
About the reward of the Muhsins in the
hereafter, Allāh Almighty Says: “For those who have done Al-Ihsan are
the best (reward i.e. Paradise) and even more (i.e. having the honour of glancing
upon the countenance of Allāh Almighty ). Neither darkness nor dust nor
any humiliating disgrace shall cover their faces. They are the dwellers of
Paradise, they will abide therein forever.” [Yunus, 10: 26]
The word “more” means having the prestige
of seeing the Countenance of Allāh Almighty as it has been
successively related in many narrations that the believers will see their Lord
on the day of Judgement. As a matter of fact, having the privilege of seeing
the Gracious Countenance of Allāh Almighty on the Last Day is a
suitable reward for Al-Ihsan, since Al-Ihsan means
to worship Allāh Almighty in this world as if one sees Him. Glancing
at His Gracious Countenance plainly on the Day of Judgement then becomes the
greatest reward for Muhsins. As regards the unbelievers, their eyes will be
screened from seeing Allāh Almighty on that day, as their hearts
were veiled from knowing Allāh Almighty and fearing Him in this
world.
The Consequence of Abandoning Worship.
One should fear Allāh Almighty and
beware of all things that invalidate worship or remove its reward. Among these
are associating partners with Allāh Almighty and showing off.
Allāh Almighty says:“If they had joined in worship others
with Allāh all that they used to do would have been of no benefit to
them.” [Al-An ‘am, 6:88].
Another act that invalidates worship is
innovation. The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “Whoever does a deed upon which there is no order from us will have it
rejected.”[Muslim]
Injustice to others also Destroys one’s Worship.
The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) said: “The bankrupt among my Nation is the one who comes on the Day of
Resurrection with prayer, charity and fasting and yet has abused someone,
slandered someone, taken someone’s money illegally, shed someone’s blood and
beaten someone. Each of these people will be given for his good deeds (by way
of compensation). If his good deeds however finish before judgement is passed
on him, parts of their sins will be thrown on him, and he will then be cast
into Hell.” [Muslim].
Of these things that invalidate one’s
worship is filthy words uttered by some people without thinking of their
consequences.
The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) said: “A man may utter a word (carelessly) which displeases Allāh without
thinking of its gravity and because of that he will be thrown into the
Hell-fire.” (Ibn
Mājah).
The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa
sallam) also told us of a man who said: “By Allāh! Allāh will not forgive
so and so.” Allāh then said: “Who is that person swearing by Me that I
will not forgive so and so? I have indeed forgiven him and render your own
deeds fruitless!” (Muslim).
The Fruits of Worship.
Worship has many praiseworthy and
beneficial results, such as:
1.Making the entire life of the Muslim for
the sake of Allāh Almighty and in His service. One of the most obvious
results of worship can be noticed in the performance of prayer;
Allāh says: “…Indeed,
solah prohibits immorality and wrongdoing…” [Al-Ankabut, 29:45]
2. Resulting in one leading a
prosperous life, as Allāh Almighty Says: “Whoever does righteousness, whether
male or female, while he is a believer – We will surely cause him to live a
good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according
to the best of what they used to do.” [Al-Nahl, 16:97]
3.Worship is training for the soul and the
source of its satisfaction.
4. Freeing the person from being
enslaved to other than Allāh Almighty.
5.Purifying the believer.
6.Reforming the community.
7. Being granted victory from Allāh
Almighty . He Says:“…And
Allāh Almighty will surely support those who support Him [i.e., His
cause]. Indeed, Allāh is Powerful and Exalted in Might. [And they are]
those who, if We give them authority in the land, establish solah and give
Zakah and enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. And to Allāh is
the outcome of [all] matters.” [Al-Hajj, 22:40-41]
Having possessed honour and having been
worthy of the support of Allāh Almighty , the Muslims then neglected Jihad
and favoured lives of comfort and relaxation over this act of worship. They,
therefore, began following their vain desires, endeavoring to fulfil every one
of them to the maximum, which resulted in them losing the support of Allāh
Almighty to become subdued, oppressed and controlled by their
enemies.
8. Entitling the person to the
protection of Allāh Almighty. Jundub bin ‘Abdullah (radiyallahu’anhu) reported
that the Messenger of Allāh(Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “When anyone offers the
Solah Fajar , in congregation, he is under the protection of Allāh
Almighty .” [Muslim]
9.Enabling oneself to be safeguarded and
preserved by Allāh Almighty ; Ibn ‘Abbas reported that the Messenger of
Allāh (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)said: “Be watchful of (the commandments of) Allāh
Almighty and He will (therefore) preserve you.” [At-Tirmidzi]
10.The angels supplicate for the
worshipper.
11.Entitling the person to the love of
Allāh Almighty .
12.Attaining tranquility.
13.Relieving the person during times of
hardship, as in the story of the three men who were trapped in a cave and
received relief from Allāh Almighty due to their righteous deeds.
14.Elevating one's rank in Paradise.
Conclusion.
It has become evident that the most
important and the greatest obligation for the slave of Allāh to fulfil is
his servitude to Allāh. The core of this servitude is to perform all types of
worship such as prayer, fasting, pilgrimage and others, sincerely and
exclusively for Allāh. Included in this is obeying Him in all He has commanded
and refraining from that entire He has prohibited. Additionally, these acts of
worship must establish according to the teachings and guidelines of the Sunnah
of the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) as adhering to the Sunnah
is what leads to people's prosperity.
And Allāh Almighty Knows best.
[Via Islam Web]
