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Ibn Hazm stated, "Intention is the secret of servitude and its spirit. Its place, with respect to deeds, is like the soul with respect to the body. It is inconceivable to consider a deed of servitude that is not accompanied with its soul. In that case, it is like a dilapidated body."2 Al-Ashqar also wrote, The truth to which the Quran and sunnah testify is that the real thing that is obligated by the shareeah rulings is the person's soul. The body is just a tool for it. If a deed is without what the soul has been ordered to fulfillwhich is purity of intentionthen the deed that the body performs is a type of useless play and straying.3 Allah asks of His servants purity in the hearts. Although this purity is reflected in the deeds itself, it is the purity as a result of intention that is the key to Allah being pleased with a certain deed. Allah created death and life in order to test mankind to see who are the best in deeds. He did not create mankind and test them to see who performs the most deeds with the least quality. Allah has stated, 1 Quoted in ibn Rajab, Jaami, vol. 1, p. 84. The only way this statement could be considered correct if it is understood in the above manner. Otherwise, the statement must be rejected as the soul gets a great deal from ikhlaas, including an increase in faith and great reward in the Hereafter. Allah knows best. 2 Quoted in al-Ashqar, Muqaasid, pp. 68-69. 3 Al-Ashqar, Muqaasid, p. 69. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi ,,,. .,. ,., ,.,. ;;;1,., J ... J .,. ., ,., 6,., / ..:,Jj.:J\ J_&- l>::UI Q $:Ll %& J5-' ' WJ X\ () l>::UI .!1P, / / ,,,., .,. Dž .... / J / J ',,,, } -'Y/.:.I\ ' . . ::1\ /} / .:i/ : '. / <> i <> ,....!.i <> } .Z\"/I 3 ;/:::._11/ J঵ ;.ௐ rJ J._ u-->- ௎ F௏ Ɛ J "Blessed is He in whose Hand is the dominion, and He is the One who Decrees all things, Who has created death and life, that He may test you which of you is the best in deed. He is the All-Mighty, the Oft-Forgiving" (al-Mulk 1-2). Commenting on this verse, al-Fudhail ibn Iyaadh stated that "best in deeds," means the most pure and most correct. He stated, "If a deed is sincere and pure but not correct, it is not accepted. If it is correct but not pure, it is not accepted. [It will not be accepted] until it is both pure and correct. It is pure if it is solely for the sake of Allah and it is correct if it is according to the sunnah."1 This is emphasized by Allah's statement, "So whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of His lord" (al-Kahf 1 10). The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Verily, Allah does not look at your shapes or your wealth but He looks at your hearts and your actions." (Recorded by Muslim.) This was the religion of all of the prophets and what all of mankind has been ordered to fulfill. As Allah has stated, "And they [the People of the Scripture] were commanded not but that they worship Allah, worshipping Him alone, purely, and establish the prayer, and pay the zakah, and that is the Right Religion" (al-Bayyinah 5). Hence, the outward deeds and the inner aspects must go together. The most important aspect and the driving factor is what is in the heart. This can be seen from this hadith, "Verily, all actions are but driven by intention." Ibn al­ Qayyim once wrote, 1 Quoted in ibn Rajab, Jaami, voL 1 , p. 72, Hadith #1 : All Actions are but by Intentions . . . The one who studies the sources of the shareeah will know the relationship between the external actions of the limbs and the actions of the heart. The deeds are not [beneficial] without the actions of the heart. The actions of the heart are more of an obligation upon the person than the actions of the limbs. Isn't a believer distinguished from a hypocrite simply due to the actions in their hearts that are different from each other? Can anyone enter into Islam except by the actions of his heart before the actions of his limbs? The servitude and worship of the heart is greater, more and longer lasting than the servitude of the limbs. They are obligatory in every moment. This is why faith is always obligatory upon the heart. However, the [specific] submission of the limbs is obligatory only at certain times. The seat of faith is the heart and the seat of Islam [submission] is the external limbs.