Explanation of Important Lessons (For Every Muslim) (H/B)

Devotion’ (So worship Allah with devotion to His Religion.). Prophet Muhammad (saw) said ‘Allah Most High only accepts deeds which are solely devoted to Him, and for His sake.’ Thus, devotion is the measure of accepting or refusing all our deeds. By Dr. ‘Umar al-Ashqar and translated to English.

In “Devotion”, Dr. ‘Umar al-Ashqar thoroughly discusses devotion and sincerity in Islam, along with the erroneous concepts which have crept into Muslims’ understanding concerning them.

Readers will find answers to the following questions:

1. What is devotion in Islam?
2. What is Islam’s position concerning devotion in acts of worship?
3. What are the erroneous ideas concerning devotion?
4. What are the difficulties of having sincerity and devotion?
5. Why is Allah the aim and none other than He?
6. Can the worshipper have multiple sincere intentions at one time?
7. What are the elements of ill-intentions?
8. What are the steps to remedy hypocrisy?
9. What is the influence of the intention upon ones deeds?
10. What is the influence of intention in forbidden acts?

a small excerpt from the book:

“And those who disbelieve say: “Why is not the Quran revealed to him all at once?” Thus (it is sent down in parts), that We may strengthen your heart thereby. And We have revealed it to you gradually, in stages.”[1]”[2]

Al-Zarnooji -rahimahullah- said, “Imam Sharf ul-Din al-Uqayli – rahimahullah- used to say, “My opinion regarding learning knowledge is in agreement with what our teachers taught us. They used to teach beginners level one books because they are understandable, easy to memorize, enjoyable, and common. A beginner should not write down something he does not understand because it numbs the intelligence and is a waste of time. Instead, a beginner should focus on the task of understanding his teacher through deep thinking and repetition. Significantly, the smaller the portion in one class with repetition the more progress in understanding. A famous saying states: Memorizing two letters is better than hearing two loads, and understanding two letters is better than memorizing two loads.”[3]

In this era of confusion, innovation, and division, it is essential for Muslims to monitor their beliefs and their approach to Islam, so that they may be certain that they are following the path of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and the early generation of pious Muslims (the salaf). Without careful attention, a Muslim may live his or her whole life following a deviant path filled with innovation, thinking that he or she is doing the right thing, only to find out – when it is too late – that this path only leads to hell. Islamic Beliefs: A Brief Introduction to the ‘Aqeedah of Ahl as-Sunnah wal-Jamâ‘ah is written in a straightforward style, distilling the knowledge of the scholars and making it accessible to the ordinary Muslim. It touches on the main points of ‘aqeedah (fundamental Islamic beliefs or creed) and explains the main features of the path of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the early generation, with brief references to deviant groups in order to show the contrast between the path of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the paths of the deviant groups, between light and darkness, guidance and misguidance. The straightforward approach of this book will allow the reader to follow its arguments and develop a clear picture of the proper approach to and interpretation of the Qur’an and the Sunnah. This is a book which should be on every Muslim’s bookshelf, so that they will have at their fingertips a concise and readily-accessible reference for the basic issues of their religion.