Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.....It is narrated on the authority of Amirul Mu'minin, Abu Hafs 'Umar bin al-Khattab, radiyallahu 'anhu, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, say:
"Actions are (judged) by motives (niyyah), so each man will have what he intended. Thus, he whose migration (hijrah) was to Allah and His Messenger, his migration is to Allah and His Messenger; but he whose migration was for some worldly thing he might gain, or for a wife he might marry, his migration is to that for which he migrated." (Bukhari & Muslim)
Every deed is initiated by intention (niat).
Sometimes, what we do may not reflect waht our intentions are. But the Only One who Knows is of course Allah. The AlMighty Judge. For example, two persons going to perform Hajj may look like they are executing one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
However, one of them may have other intentions, like he may want to shop for souvenirs more than he wanted to perform ibadah towards Allah. And in contrast, the other person wished to perform Hajj with the intention of elevating his Iman. And according to the hadith above,
they both will be granted what they wished for.During the time of Hijrah,
there was this man who wanted to migrate to Madinah because he wished to marry a woman. Whereas the others who were embarking the exodus, they had the intention of liberating Islam from oppression in Makkah. Well, Rasulullah said, the man and the rest of the pack will get what they wished for and they will be repaid by Allah according to their respective intentions.
However, speaking of purity of intentions, the most divine and highly deed emanates from a heart full of aspiration towards strengthening the iman towards Allah Taala. the deed is not necessarily ibadah, it could be anything that we do everyday. eat, sleep, drink, walk...as long as they were being credited towards Allah, because of ALlah.
what was being executed from right purposes, will retain a good status. however, if the deed emanated from a bad intention, thus the deed is indeed bad. although it may appear good.And be ye not like those who forgot Allah. and He made them forget their own souls! Such are the rebellious transgressors! (59:19)
Dan janganlah kamu menjadi seperti orang-orang yang telah melupakan (perintah-perintah) Allah, lalu Allah menjadikan mereka melupakan (amal-amal yang baik untuk menyelamatkan) diri mereka. Mereka itulah orang-orang yang fasik - derhaka.(59:19)
Imam Nawawi classified our deeds into 3 parts.
1. the deed was being performed on the grounds of fearing Allah. This kind of deed is called the
Deed of Servants (Ibadah Hamba)2. the deed was being performed on the grounds of attaining rewards and Jannah from Allah. this kind of deed is called the
Deed of Merchants (Ibadah Saudagar)3. the deed was being performed on the grounds of executing his obligations as a fearful servant of Allah, to justify his gratitude towards Allah and always feel cautious if his deed was not being accepted by Allah because of his carelessness or oblivioussness. This deed is called the
Deed of the Liberated (Ibadah yang Merdeka).The categories of deeds above are all rightful intentions.
Thus when Aishah Radiallahuanha asked Rasulullah, why was he so insistent in performing ibadah every night, without fail until his feet were sore and bruised, although he was guaranteed Jannah in the end. Now, we can understand why Rasulullah answered "I just wanted to prove my gratitude towards ALlah,"
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The conclusion here is, know your intentions. know your priorities. get them right.
if you plant the right seed, the flower will come out right, healthy and beautiful. nothing can go wrong because you started right. you will end up at the rightful path, InsyaALlah.
Wallahu a'lam..
