The importance of intention in the life of a Muslim

In a time where trials spread, desires prevailed, materialism surpassed everything in our lives, and the change of people except those upon whom Allah bestowed mercy to just machines and their biggest concern is collecting money by all means and seeking worldly pleasures, but many people forgot the following question which is: how long they shall live in this world? The question seems to be weird because all people know for sure that the answer of this question is one of unseen matters which Allah (may He be Exalted) kept from Himself. He says: "And with Him are the keys of the Ghaib (all that is hidden), none knows them but He." [Surat Al An`am: 59]. Allah (may He be Exalted) says: "Verily Allâh, with Him (Alone) is the knowledge of the Hour, He sends down the rain, and knows that which is in the wombs. No person knows what he will earn tomorrow, and no person knows in what land he will die. Verily, Allâh is All-Knower, Well-Acquainted (with things)." [Surat Luqman: 34]. Imagine with me that you shall live for 70 years in this world because of the Prophet's saying: "The ages of my followers (nation) will be between sixty and seventy years. However, few of them who will surpass that." [Sahih Al Jami` No. (1073)]. If we take that for granted, have you ever thought about how this lifetime end very fast and days, months, and years are passing by like a rapid lightening without even you feel?! Some of us may wonder: Do you remember Ramadan last year as if it happened yesterday? Do you remember how did the different times of you lifetime pass? Thus life goes on without even we feel, and this is one of the signs of the Hour as the Prophet (peace be upon him) told in the Hadith: "The Hour will not come till time draws near and a year becomes like a month, a month like a week, a week like a day and a day like an hour and an hour like a burning piece of wood." [Sahih Al Jami` No. (7422)].

• Suddenly, you find yourself before the Angle of death, then on the Day of Recompense you shall see your life, which you spent in this life, as an hour. Allah (may He be Exalted) says: "On the Day when they will see that (torment) with which they are promised (i.e. threatened, it will be) as if they had not stayed more than an hour in a single day." [Surat Al Ahqaf: 35]. perhaps what makes things worse on that day is that you see your lifetime you had lived in this world -which we believed to be 70 years- was not entirely for Allah, but had wasted 13 years before charging and lost food, drink, work, and transportations, and in many actions of which what is necessary and we cannot dispense with it and what is not necessary and indispensable. Imagine how many years a person spent in necessary and indispensable matters, and that what we will explain in the following table:

• Whether we agree to this table of not, you may imagine that more than half of lifetime is spent in necessary and indispensable actions for anyone unlike different matters that we cannot detail here are necessary, but they are secondary matters such as: Waiting for transportations, standing in the bread queue, going to barbers, family visits, solving solutions, getting ID card, etc. Therefore, lifetime is short, but you find someone wastes his time on the Internet, someone sits before play station, someone speaks for hours on the phone about backbiting, tale bearing, and unuseful speech, someone goes to stadium to watch matches and wait for the referee's whistle to declare the winning of his team. We remind such people with the Prophet's saying: "Man's feet will not move on the Day of Resurrection before he is asked about his life, how did he consume it, his knowledge, what did he do with it, his wealth, how did he earn it and how did he dispose of it, and about his body, how did he wear it out." [Good, Sahih Al Jami` No. 7299]. And to change their course and dedicate their entire lifetime to Allah by abandoning sins, repent to Allah, and dedicate their entire actions to Allah.

It was said: A believing servant is between two fears: between a time that passed and you do not know what Allah will do about it and a time will come and we do not know what will happen therein. A servant should dedicate himself for worship to save himself, dedicate part of his world to his Hereafter, dedicate part of young age before old age, and from life to death. By Allah, there is no apology after death and there is no abode after the world except Paradise or Hell, so let the one who lost his life weep for not having a share in life.

[Tanwir Al Adhhan min Tafsir Al Bayan].

Therefore, what is the way to change our course? Where we can find salvation? How to dedicate all our lifetimes to Allah?

Before talking about reaching salvation, changing course, and dedicate our entire lifetimes to Allah, we have to know the hidden truth except those upon whom Allah bestowed mercy which is: answering the question: Why did Allah create us?

* The answer to this question is not clear to many Muslims and do not know it well, but if they know it, they understand it wrong, so why did Allah create us?

Indeed, Allah created us in this world for one goal which is: worship. He says:

"And I (Allâh) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)." [Surat Az-Zariyat: 56].

Indeed, Allah created us to worship Him, and Allah shall resurrect the creation after death to reckon them for this worship; this is the justice of Allah (Glory be to Him). Allah (may He be Exalted) says: "Or do those who earn evil deeds think that We shall hold them equal with those who believe (in the Oneness of Allâh - Islâmic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, in their present life and after their death? Worst is the judgment that they make. * And Allâh has created the heavens and the earth with truth, in order that each person may be recompensed what he has earned, and they will not be wronged." [Surat Al Jathiyah: 21 - 22].

Allah (Exalted be He) says: "And We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them without purpose! That is the consideration of those who disbelieve! Then woe to those who disbelieve (in Islâmic Monotheism) from the Fire! * Shall We treat those who believe (in the Oneness of Allâh - Islâmic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds as Mufsidûn (those who associate partners in worship with Allâh and commit crimes) on earth? Or shall We treat the Muttaqûn (the pious), as the Fujjâr (criminals, disbelievers, the wicked)?" [Surat Sad: 27 - 28].

This is the wisdom of Allah (Glory be to Him) so it is impossible to create this creation and provide it with spirit and reason in vain without work and without resurrection and reckoning for that work. Allah (may He be Exalted) says: "Did you think that We had created you in play (without any purpose), and that you would not be brought back to Us?" [Surat Al Mu'minun: 115].

Sheikh Hafizh ibn Ahmad Al Hakamy summarized this goal for which Allah created humans in his poem saying:

Let it be known that Allah (Glory be to Him)

did not abandon the creation without reckoning

but created them to worship Him

and single Him out with godship [1].

Many people may understand the meaning of worship wrongly by believing that the meaning of worship is to stay in the Masjid to offer Salah, invoke Allah, show humbleness, cry out of His Fear, fast the day, and stay up awake at night for worship. This is not the complete meaning of worship, but only a part of the meaning of worship, and we do not deny or belittle the worship side such as fasting, Salah, Zakah, Hajj, and charity.

Rituals of worship have importance and status but they are not the entire acts of worship but they are part of the worship which Allah wants because the concept of worship is comprehensive and is not limited to obligatory duties only because the entire life is in the hand of Allah. Islam does not differentiate between the worldly and Hereafter way and not between acts of worship and morals, but makes every moment in Muslim's life connected with his belief in order to direct himself to Allah, execute His Commands, and keep away from His Prohibitions to achieve his mission on earth. Allah (Glory be to Him) says: "Say (O Muhammad peace be upon him): Verily, my Salât (prayer), my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allâh, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinn and all that exists)." [Surat Al An`am: 162][2].

Therefore, Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah bestow mercy on his soul) defined as:

"Worship is a comprehensive name for apparent and hidden actions and sayings which Allah loves and satisfies because worshipping Allah is the ultimate goal for which He created the creation. Allah (Glory be to Him) says: "And I (Allâh) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)." [Surat Adh-Dhariyat: 56] and with which He sent down all Messengers."[3]

• Therefore, a smart Muslim should know well that he leading a life that will deliver him to Paradise at the end -We ask Allah to make us from its residents- or to a Hell -We ask Allah to direct it away from us, and in current life a person does things that draw him near Paradise of Hell.

First, what is the problem?

Knowing the reason of the problem contribute in solving this problem later on because knowing the disease is the start of reaching a medication.

However: Is there a real problem? And if there is any, what is the solution?

Indeed, there a problem facing many people whose lives turned into just a stereotype regarding all actions and words, so you find them without vigor or activity, but you may say: Just machineries that have a start and an end.

• The great ordeal is that routine sneaked into the religious side leading people to be a stereotype in regard to performing the acts of worship without these acts of worship affect them.

Some Muslims keep to Salah in congregation, some memorize the whole volume of the Qur'an, some spend for the sake of Allah, and some perform Hajj and `Umrah; all these kinds of people exist today in Muslims, but the great shock is when you look at their conditions, moral aspect, and transactions, you will find them away from religious teachings. This terrible separation between the two sides is dangerous and it is not part of Islam but it is one of the causes that lead to turning away from the way of Allah.

Look at their conditions after Allah had bestowed His Favor on them, nothing changed, and the following Ayah is applicable to them: Allah says: "Verily, Allâh will not change the (good) condition of a people as long as they do not change their state (of goodness) themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allâh)." [Surat Ar-Ra`d: 11].

The memorizors of the Qur'an are numerous but where are them from morals and transactions? How does the Qur'an affect them? Did they change their manners after they had memorized the Qur'an? If they were bad neighbors, have their manners changed for the better?

If nothing changed, memorizing the book of Allah would be a proof against them.

How many Muslims travel for Hajj and `Umrah every year?! Have Hajj and `Umrah affected them positively after they returned home?

Their conditions should have changed for the better, but why not? The Prophet (peace be upon him) told his Companions about the reward of Hajj saying: "Whoever performs Hajj for Allah's pleasure and does not have sexual relations with his wife, and does not do evil or sins then he will return (after Hajj free from all sins) as if he were born anew." [Sahih Al Bukhari 1449 from the Hadith of Abu Hurayrah, in the book of Friday, chapter on the virtue of accepted Hajj].

If you want to make sure, look at their conditions after descending from `Arafat: Some of them smoke, some backbit, and some have no objection to watch movies and series when returning home, nothing new but the title "A pilgrim".

* You may put the previous example as a standard for all acts of worship such as Salah whose performers keep to it in masjids, but usurp people's money without right, look at forbidden scenes, deal with usury, mistreat his wife, and treat his children cruelly.

Do you know why these actions affect them positively?

If you search for the real reason, you will find out that they had no intentions in the first place, but they are just actions which they perform without intentions as most people do, or they had bad intentions which caused them to gain no benefit and no fruit. Then these conditions reflected on the general condition of the nation until it became miserable, but where is the solution?

Soon in sha' Allah you will find out the solution.