Bismillah, is a real praise, and all praise belongs to Allah, the One and only, the Irresistible, the Exalted, and the Forgiver of sins. Praise belongs to Allah, the One Who makes the day turn into night that those who have hearts take warning. We praise Him with due praise and testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah alone and He has no partner. All Sovereignty is for Him, and all praises are for Him, and He is the Omnipotent.
The narrator, al-faqir, testify also that Muhammad Rasool AIlah (ﷺ) who conveyed the Message, invited us to the upright religion, and guided us to the Straight Path. May the blessing and peace of Allah be upon him, his fellow Prophets and the Messengers, and their families.
The Noble Quran has clearly defined the purpose for the creation of men and jinn. One should know that Allah is the Creator and Originator of every thing and every being. They were created to worship Allah Subhanahu wa-ta'Ala, and thus, they should pay attention to the purpose of their creation. They should bear in mind that this life is transitory, it is not eternal; and they should therefore elevate their souls from its temporary delights. It is a bridge over which they are crossing to the Hereafter. The most important thing that Allah ordained for Adam’s son to learn and to do, before praying, paying zakat, or any other act of worship, is to believe in the oneness of Allah and to avoid belief in any other deity. It was for this reason that Allah created the creatures, sent the Prophets, revealed the Books. One class of the signs of Allah Subhanahu wa-ta'Ala is the creation of animals, with all their qualities, species, appearances, uses and services, colours, and other unseen wonders. The Qur'an reiterates many of the signs, stresses them time and again, exhorting humans to reflect on them with insistence.
Imam Malik, may Allah have mercy upon him, said, "People are of various types, just like birds, pigeons go with pigeons and kites associate with kites, ducks with ducks and small birds with small birds, Similarly, every man associates with his kind." Furthermore, Imam Ibn Qayyim, may Allah have mercy upon him, said, "“The heart on its journey towards Allah Almighty is as if it were a bird. Love is its head, and fear and hope are its two wings. When the head is secure, then the two wings will fly well. When the head is cut off, the bird will die. When either of the two wings is damaged, the bird becomes vulnerable to every hunter and predator." Some of the righteous predecessors said, "The best of states is to balance hope and fear and to let love prevail over them. Love is the vehicle and hope and fear are its two drivers, and Allah will bring them to His blessings and generosity.”
The narrator, al-faqir, attribute all that is good in his work to the favor of Allah The Almighty, and yet he remain human and human effort can never be completely free of error. Al-faqir ask Allah to grant us sincerity and accept our work, and to enable us to perform all that pleases Him. Al-faqir, with his ignorance, with imperfect knowledge, telling stories,
Once upon a time, in the Land called Kampong Bayan, when the birds and all other creations were allowed to speak—whether this was true or false, or perhaps only the composition of the narrator, whose mind was not yet perfect to convey knowledge—the birds were gathering. The Parrot, who was appointed to be the first teacher of the nation, said, "Praise be to Allah alone, Rabb of the heaven and earth, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful to all His servants. Indeed, in seeking knowledge, there is no age difference and no time limit. Thus, learning is not only for the young, but also for the elderly."
In response to the Parrot, each bird showed different attitude. There were birds excited to the invitation, but there were also reluctant to follow it. The Falcon said, "O Parrot, my brother, I've forgotten the knowledge I've ever learned." The Pigeon, who enthusiastically responded to the invitation, replied, "We should not be fooled by the desire to gain wealth, the birds have a character that are easily neglected by the worldly life and the luxury of excessively eating. It will eliminate the knowledge that has been acquired and, we will forget the deed which must be done. So, before all of our knowledge are gone, and we regret that the knowledge can not be applied, we better answer the existing problems as a means to remember the knowledge that has been gained so far."
The white-rumped shama, who was well versed in poetry—he had a large collection of poems from famous poets, especially poems from far-far-away land—and also designated as the second teacher of the nation, welcomed the solemn invitation, saying, "Indeed, knowledge of the Book of Allah should be sought after. By sutdying the Book and understand it correctly, we will be able to live our life in safe and sound. The book of Allah contains various knowledge, including social science, laws, economics, even marriage are all arranged in it, so there is no reason not to learn the Book of Allah."
The birds began to argue each other, some showed positive attitude, others showed negative attitude. Then, the Parrot said, "Surely, all actions are but driven by intentions and, verily, every man shall have but that which he intended." Hearing this, the birds silence. The Falcon said, "O Parrot, now I remember, the words you are saying, it is from our beloved Prophet (ﷺ). So, tell us more about the hadith." The Parrot continued, "On the authority of the Commander of the Faithful Abu Hafs Umar ibn al-Khattaab who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saying, “Surely, all actions are but driven by intentions and, verily, every man shall have but that which he intended. Thus, he whose migration was for Allah and His Messenger, [then] his migration was for Allah and His Messenger; and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take a woman in marriage, his migration was for that which he migrated.” This hadith was recorded by al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasaai, ibn Maajah, Ahmad, al-Tahaawi, al-Daaraqutni, ibn Khuzaima, ibn Hibbaan, ibn Asakeer, ibn al-Jarood, al-Baihaqi, Abu Awaana, Abu Nuaim and many others.
This is one of the most comprehensive hadith of the Prophet (ﷺ). It touches upon almost every deed of Islam. Imam Abu Dawood stated that this hadith is one-half of Islam; that is, Islam comprises what is apparent, the deeds of Islam, as well as what is not apparent, the intention behind the deeds. Al-Shafi'ee also said that it encompasses half of knowledge, meaning that the religion concerns both what is external and what is internal. The deeds are the external aspect and the intention behind them is the internal aspect. This hadith covers one-third of knowledge. Al-Baihaqi explained this statement by saying, “This is so because the person earns rewards with his heart, tongue and body. Thus, intention is involved in one of these three components .”
Imam Ahmad stated that the foundation of Islam revolves around three hadith, “Actions are but by intention,” “Whoever introduces anything into this affair of ours that is not from it shall have it rejected,” and, “The permissible is clear and the forbidden is clear .” Abu Dawood stated that fiqh revolves around five hadith: “Actions are but by intentions,” “The religion is sincere advice,” “The permissible is clear and the forbidden is clear,” “There is no harming or reciprocating of harm,” “Whatever I forbid you, remain away from. Whatever I order you to do, fulfill as much as you can.”
The basis of any good deed is sincerity to Allah as Allah revealed His books, sent His messengers and created this creation for the purpose of His worship. Therefore, the pious forefathers preferred to begin all their meetings and gatherings with this hadith. Similarly, many scholars preferred to begin their works or collections with this hadith, such as al-Bukhari in Sahih al-Bukhari.
Some say that intention is seeking something. Some say that it means seriousness in one's seeking. In Arabic, intention is niyyah. The meaning of niyyah can be described in English as: endeavor, intention, purpose, resolution, goal, aim, resolve, determination, and so forth. It is not just a thought that comes to one’s mind but it is a determination, want and aspiration to do something. Therefore, if one has the intention or niyyah to do something it means that he will do it as long as there is nothing preventing him or as long as he does not change his intention. For example, if one intends to fast on Monday and then Monday comes and there is nothing to prevent him from fasting, yet he does not fast, this means that he did not truly have the intention once Monday actually arrived.
According to ibn Taimiya, the scholars agree that the "place of the niyyah" is the heart or the conscience. A person's intention may be noble or evil. However, for the believer, the goal is to make his intention, that is, the motive for his deeds, purely for the sake of Allah. Before embarking upon any act of worship, one must make certain that he is doing that act of worship purely for the sake of Allah. If he strays from that goal, then he is either committing a major form of shirk (acribing partners to Allah) that takes him out of Islam or a minor form of shirk.
Although the word niyyah and its derivatives may be found throughout the hadith, the Quran usually uses different words that are equivalent to niyyah. These words are al-iraada (volition), al-qasd (purpose) and al-azm (determination). These words are all very close to each other in meaning but they each have some specific characteristics that separate them from each other. They all imply the want to do or not to do something specific. In fact, they are all sometimes used for the same meaning in Arabic. The niyyah is a subset of what iraada or will encompasses. Iraada, according to al-Qaradai, encompasses intention, resolve, consideration, desire, purpose, choice and will. One sees that the place of it is the heart.
Qasd (purpose) implies turning toward something and desiring it. It is sometimes used to mean the same thing as niyyah. Indeed, it is very close in meaning to it. However, the term qasd can be used for what a person wants for himself as well as what he wants from others. The word niyyah cannot be used in the former sense. Second, the word qasd can only be used for an act which is within the ability of the person himself while niyyah can be used for an act that is beyond a person's ability. That is, a person can have the intention that if he had a specific amount of money, he would give it all away. He may have that intention although that act may not be in his power since he does not have that money. For something like that, the word niyyah can be used but not qasd.
The third word is azm. Azm is the resolve of the heart to fulfill a matter. This word can be found in the Quran also. In fact, in the Quran it has four meanings: purpose, patience, resolve and fulfillment. It also implies resolve to do something without any hesitation or doubt concerning that matter. Of the different terms, azm is the strongest with respect to having a resolve to do something. In fact, intention, want and purpose all precede azm. Azm is the end all of these different concepts.
Niyyah, qasd and iraada all imply knowledge and action. First there must be knowledge of the act that one wants to fulfill. Then action must follow, as long as there are no preventative factors. In fact, no action will be completed unless it has three components: knowledge of the act, want to do the act and ability to do it. No one wills something that he does not know and no one can do something that he has not the ability to do. When intention (niyyah) is related to an act being done at present, it is also called qasd. If it is in relation to an act to be done in the future, it is called azm. lraadah is used for both present and future acts.
The statement, "Verily, all actions are but driven by intention" applies to all types of deeds: statements and physical deeds, obligatory, recommended or permissible deeds. It should also be realized that any deed that is not done for the sake of Allah will not be accepted by Allah. If a deed is done with the sincere intention of pleasing Allah and following His commands, then that deed will be rewarded by Allah regardless of what aspect of life that deed deals with. The act could be related to an act of worship, a business transaction, treatment with friends or neighbors and so forth.
So, this hadith clearly demonstrates that a Muslim must have knowledge before acting. A person must have the intention to do an act which is proper or, at least, permissible. However, he cannot have such an intention unless he first knows that the act is proper or permissible. If a person does an act without knowing the ruling of that act, then he cannot claim that his intention was pure. His intention is characterized by his understanding of that act and whether or not that act is permissible. If he did not care whether the act is permissible or not, then he did the act with a careless intention. That is, his intention was that he did not care if the act was permissible or not.
Intention is one of the actions of the heart and, in general, the actions of the heart are under the control of the person and fall under his personal choice. He is ordered to make his intention pure, unadulterated and to define what is his purpose. He is forbidden to commit shirk in his intention, not to purify it or to deviate in his intention to something that he is not ordered to do. That is all under the ability and capability of the responsible person. If that were not the case, the order to have purity and prohibition of shirk would be an obligation that one could not fulfill.
Therefore, the person has the ability to define his intention and to direct it and make himself pure in the same way that he has the ability to turn his intention away from what he is legally not supposed to do. This is because Allah has given humans intelligence and has given them will and free choice. Allah has made clear for them the path of goodness. He has clarified it for the human. He has called the human to it. He has promised the doer of good a great reward and abundant recompense. He has also made clear to them the path of evil, has warned them about it, has threatened the one who follows it and has shown the consequential punishment in this life and the Hereafter. Furthermore, He has sent messengers, revealed books, given proofs and arguments, and has made all the arguments clear.
The Muslim must do his best to be sincere to Allah and to seek to please Him by following those means that will take him closer to Allah — such as trying to know Allah better, pondering over His creation and blessings, recognizing His attributes and so on. By doing so, the person will drive himself to obey Allah more and be more sincere towards Him. If this sincere intention overtakes him, his heart will be filled with the love of Allah, fear of Him and hope in Him; therefore, it will be simple for him to desire what Allah asks of him to perform and to work solely for His cause. In that case, his intention will be to sincerely serve Allah and his soul will automatically drive him to do those deeds that please Allah.
A person is helped to reach this state by understanding what kind of forces may be working upon his heart. By understanding these, a person knows where to turn for help. He also understands the sources of his problems and his straying from the straight path.
Al-Haarith al-Muhaasabi has stated three types of forces working upon one's heart. The first is a source of inspiration and guidance from Allah that He has put into the hearts of the believers. This is the first source that aids a person in being sincere to Allah in his heart. Beyond that, if and when he truly turns to Allah, Allah turns to him in an even greater way. However, the other two forces working on a person's heart are Satan, through his whisperings and enticements, and the soul itself. Sometimes the straying from being sincere to Allah is due to whisperings from Satan while at other times it is more related to desires and passions that a person has developed in his own soul. If the person turns to Allah, Allah will remove the effect of Satan from his heart.
Hence, the individual must always strive to be aware of these forces acting upon his heart. He must always try to be awake and never let himself become neglectful. If he becomes neglectful, he will stray from his one purpose in life: being true and sincere to Allah in his worship of Him. He must always try to follow those steps that will increase his faith and keep him from straying. He must always turn to Allah and ask Allah to guide him to sincerity and purity for His sake."
The Parrot then said, "O my brothers and sisters, every conscious, "free-willed" act has an intention behind it that is driving it and bringing it about. A person will achieve whatever he intended. If he intended good, good will come about. If he intended evil, evil will come about — that is, the result will be evil for him. If a person does a proper deed solely for the sake of Allah, his purpose would have been met and the deed would be accepted by Allah. Even such noble deeds as emigrating, that should be done for the sake of Allah, may be performed with a less noble intention. In such cases, the person will only get what he intended. This world and the opposite sex in particular are two aspects that drive a person to perform certain deeds. They can have great influences over a person, to the extent that one may even perform noble deeds not for the sake of Allah but for their sake.
Hence, the striving Muslim should try, to the best of his ability, to perform every act in a completely conscious manner. He should think about what he is doing before he does it. He should think about the purpose and the goal of his action, no matter what kind of action that might be. No matter how mundane the act might be, if the person really thinks about why and for whom he is doing it, it can move to the realm of worship of Allah."
"And they were not commanded except to worship Allah, [being] sincere to Him in religion, inclining to truth, and to establish prayer and to give zakah. And that is the correct religion." [QS.98:5]
Reference :
- Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo, Commentary On The Forty Hadith Of Al Nawawi Volume 1, Al-Basheer Publications
