

The following are the two basic dangers, among others, that may unavoidably strike every individual and also the society as a result of application of al-Riyaa in one’s acts of worship or good deeds:ġ.Al-Riyaa is more Dangerous than Dajjal This is one of the teachings of the Prophet (S.A.W.). (II): The Danger Of Al-Riyaa To Every Individual And The Society If one or part of them is noticed in any individual, such a person will automatically be among the losers in respect of their deeds on the Day of Resurrection if they refuse to redress the balance by restoring to the grace of Allah (S.W.T.) with sincere repentance, followed by good deeds while on earth.ġ-To be indolent or negligent in all acts of worship when one is alone.Ģ-To be energetically active and zealous to attain piety and also eager to do good deeds when one is amongst the people.ģ-To increase one’s good deeds and strive to do more mainly because of accolade and admiration one receives from the people for one’s performance.Ĥ-To reduce one’s good deeds or stop them completely because of the people’s abuse, condemnation, harshness, aversion or their lack of recognition and admiration. The fraud of the eyes, for example, is when one keeps a normal expression on his face to show acceptance but dissembles refusal Allah (S.W.T.) is fully aware of what one conceals and what one reveals – He is the All-Knower of the unseen and seen.Ĭoming to the sings of al-Riyaa, there are basically four of them. He decorates his deeds for people to see and marvel and forgets the Lord of all that exits – the Being Who knows the fraud of the eyes (Q. He has in mind fear of the people, not that of Allah (S.W.T.).

A hypocrite, who exhibits al-Riyaa, regards people attentively, he does not regard Allah (S.W.T.).

In Islam it is axiomatically indisputable that this attitude is a great nullifier of ‘Ibadah and good deeds. Just like the word ‘Rabb’, we shall need like seven words to be able to adequately translate it and have the meaning demystified: All-Possessor, Master, Deity, All-Reformer, All-Manager, All-Restorer and All-Existent. By considering these words, the meaning of al-Riyaa is distinctly discerned. Going by this definition, al-Riyaa literally means insincerity, duplicity, hypocrisy, showing off and eyeservice. It is evident, whenever al-Riyaa is considered, that people are the main factor and drive behind the action, not Allah (S.W.T.). (I): What Is Al-Riyaa And What Are Its Signs?Īl-Riyaa is an act of discharging or offering acts of worship (‘Ibadah) with a deliberate intention of making people see the act so that they can praise or commend the doer and also people can be made to admire him because of his performance. Al-Riyaa and its signs, the danger of al-Riyaa to every individual and society, types of al-Riyaa and how best can one be saved from al-Riyaa? In an attempt to comprehensively understand the concept of al-Riyaa, we are very decided to concisely sift its four components, viz. Furthermore it attracts condemnation and Perdition of Allah (S.W.T.) if not checkmated, may Allah (S.W.T.) save us from this spiritually perennial loss. Al-Riyaa, in its essence, completely renders any act of worship invalid however magnificent or delightful it is. In order to practically get this done and not fall prey to Shaytan (The Devil), his traps and his associates, one needs to sanitize one’s acts of worship (‘Ibadah) from being affected by this great nullifier of ‘Ibadah which is al-Riyaa. Here comes the religion, Islam taking him away from the path of destruction to the path of salvation. Man luxuriously abandons himself in his natural tendency of showing off in all his actions, which is a path of destruction. It is fact-based to realize that the maximal importance of worship as far as Islam is concerned is to make it absolutely safe from being shattered by any nullifier. A situation where any act of worship is done for the sake of something else beside Allah (S.W.T.) is known as al-Riyaa and as such totally proscribed because of the fact that it nullifies all acts of worship. One of the challenges is the ability to carry out this task with utmost sincerity such that all acts of worshiping Allah (S.W.T.) will be absolutely for His sake. It is indeed herculean task to adequately succeed in carrying out this divine task prescribed for humanity because of the demanding challenges involved. No doubt the real goal of human existence is to worship only Allah (S.W.T.).
