Detecting The Motivations Behind Ikhlās By Imam al-Sh’arāni
“From the blessings that Allah, Blessed and Exalted be He, has bestowed upon me is my ability to distinguish my own happiness from the His rights.
So, I feed myself knowing that I am a servant of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, not for the pleasure I find in eating, and I quench my thirst and clothe myself with that attitude. If I observed those things with a mix of piety and my pleasure, that would be negligence of Allah.
loving What He ﷻ Loves
Similarly, I do not wish that Allah, the Exalted, pardons me merely because of the comfort it brings to myself, but rather I love His pardon because He, Glorified and Exalted, informed us that He loves it. Were it not for the love of Him, the Exalted, for pardon, I would not have loved it. If a small part of me does desire His pardon for the sake of bodily comfort, it is a very weak desire. And this is a state I have observed; I have found few of my contemporaries who taste this except a minority.
Adversity & Ease Reveal States
The pain from the cold I felt begrudgingly observing proper wudu during winter benefited me so that when the I observed it properly on hot summer days, enjoying the refreshing cold water and feeling relief, I check my soul, ‘Your enjoyment now in this proper wudu is due to its alignment with your own desires-cooling off, not in compliance with the lawgiver’s command for thorough ablution (because he disliked it in discomfort, but in a state of comfort he likes it). There, my soul’s, if its intention is false; its argument collapses because of the contradiction. Were it not for its suffering with the water during winter, I would not have recognized the distinction between the command of Allah and my subtle desire.
So, my brother, act upon this character, for every act whose intentions and sayings are not for the sake of compliance with the command of Allah, Glorified and Exalted be He, is ruined. So base your dislikes for anything except on the motivation induced by the love of entering Paradise.
I pray Allah take care of your guidance, and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. Pure actions follow the truth, Glorified and Exalted be He, and nothing undermines that even if by chance.”
In a time when comfort is easily found in worship, we must examine our worship and comforts. A teacher years ago told me: “Three things are easy today, so examine your intentions: Hajj, learning and people saying such and such is a guide or pious. Fear Allah by loving what He ﷻ loves. You will stay safe.”
Suhaib Webb