Exerting Efforts towards Accomplishing Sincere Righteous Actions (1/5)

Another cause for the increase and strengthening of Iman is for the Muslim to exert efforts towards enacting sincere righteous actions for the countenance of Allah; he should try to do more (good) deeds and to do them on a regular basis.

This is because for every action that Allah has legislated, which the Muslim undertakes and with which he makes his intention behind it sincere, it increases him in Iman, since Iman increases because of  obedience and  ample acts of worship.

Furthermore, the servitude that Allah has enjoined on His slaves and demanded them to enact, the obligatory and voluntary of them, are distributed among the heart, the tongue and the limbs. Each of them has a servitude specific to it.

Examples of the servitude of the heart that are specific to it are sincerity, love, tawakkul, inaabah, hope, fear, reverence, awe, contentment, patience and other actions of the heart.

Examples of servitude of the tongue that are specific to it are reading the Qur’an, takbeer, tasbeeh, tahleel, seeking forgiveness, praising and commending Allah, sending salah and salaam upon His Messenger and other actions that can only be done by the tongue.

As  for  the  servitude  of  the  limbs  that  are  specific  to  it, examples of this are sadaqah, hajj, prayer, ablution, proceeding towards the mosque and other such actions that are only possible with the use of the limbs.

Thus, these actions of the heart as well as those of the tongue and the limbs are all from Iman and are inherently present within the true meaning of the word Iman. To perform such actions and to increase in them will therefore result in an increase of Iman and to neglect them and to lessen the performance of them will result in a deficiency of Iman.

1. Actions of the Heart

In  reality,  actions  of  the  heart  are  the  foundation  of  the religion. They are its uppermost part and the most important of ordinances. In fact, apparent[1] actions are not accepted if they are void of any actions of the heart; the reason being that the acceptance of all actions are stipulated by sincerity to Allah and sincerity is an action of the heart.

This is why actions of the heart are mandatory upon everyone and the abandonment of such actions can never be deemed praiseworthy under any condition whatsoever.

People are of three levels with regard to the accomplishment of these actions, similar to the case with actions of the body: one who oppresses his own self, one who suffices with that which is obligatory and one who chases after the good.

Consequently, it is imperative of every Muslim that he starts with the purification and rectification of his heart and with having concern for it, before he concentrates with the rectification of his exterior, as no consideration is given to the rectification of the outer whilst the inner is corrupt.

In addition, when the Muslim does rectify his heart with purifying actions, sincerity, truthfulness and love for Allah and His Messenger, his limbs will turn upright as in the hadeeth of an-Nu'maan Ibn Basheer that is recorded in the two Saheehs. He said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah - sallallahu alaihe wa-sallam - say:

 “... Indeed, and within the body is a morsel of flesh; if it is sound, then the whole body will be sound and if it is corrupt, then the whole body will be corrupt. Indeed, it is the heart.””[2]

This hadeeth contains the greatest indication that the rectification of the slave’s outer movements is directly connected to the rectification of the activity of his heart and inner soul.

If his heart is pure, there being only love of Allah, love of that which Allah loves, fear of Him and of falling into that which He hates, the movements of his limbs will all become sound. This is in sharp contrast to a corrupt heart which is conquered by a love for desires, chasing lusts and placing the wants of the self-first. Whoever is in such a predicament, the movements of his limbs will all be corrupt.

For this reason, it is said that the heart is the king of the limbs and that the rest of the limbs are its soldiers. In addition to this, the limbs are an obedient army to the heart; they race to its obedience and towards the execution of its commands, not opposing it in any matter whatsoever. Thus, if the king is righteous, this army will be a righteous one. If on the other hand, the king is corrupt, the army will, because of this resemblance, also be corrupt.

Only the heart that is pure is of benefit before Allah, as Allah says:

“The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except for the one who comes to Allah with a pure heart.”[3]

“The pure heart is the one that is free of all diseases, blights and distasteful matters. It is the heart that contains nothing but love  of  Allah,  fear  of  Him  and  fear  of  anything that  will distance him from Allah.”[4]

Shaykh al-Islam says: “Moreover, the heart is the foundation, If it embodies knowledge and intention, this will take effect on the body without fail. It is not possible for the body to play truant to what the heart desires... so if the heart is righteous as a result of its knowledge and action on Iman, this absolutely necessitates the rectification of the body in apparent speech and action in accordance with complete Iman.” [see al-Fataawaa, 7/187]

Consequently, for one to endeavor to fully fight his self in rectifying his heart and to fill it with love of Allah and of statements and actions that Allah loves, is one of the most formidable ways in which one increases his outer and inner Iman.

Ibn Rajab says: “...the heart cannot be rectified unless there settles within it knowledge of Allah, His greatness, love of Him, fear and awe of Him, hope and tawakkul in Him and for it to be overflowing with this. This is the reality of tawheed and the meaning of none has the right to be worshipped except Allah.”

So there can be no question for the rectification of the hearts until its deity, which it worships, knows, loves and fears is one deity, having no partner. If there were in the heavens and the earth a deity being worshipped other than Allah, the heavens and earth would as a result become corrupt, as Allah says: “Had there been therein (i.e., the heavens and earth) deities besides Allah, then for sure both would have been ruined...”[5]

(Continued)