4:125 An-Nisaa (The Women)

أي: لا أحد أحسن من دين من جمع بين الإخلاص للمعبود، وهو إسلام الوجه لله الدال على استسلام القلب وتوجهه وإنابته وإخلاصه، وتوجه الوجه وسائر الأعضاء لله. { وَهُوَ ْ} مع هذا الإخلاص والاستسلام { مُحْسِنٌ ْ} أي: متبع لشريعة الله التي أرسل بها رسله، وأنزل كتبه، وجعلها طريقا لخواص خلقه وأتباعهم. { وَاتَّبَعَ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ْ} أي: دينه وشرعه { حَنِيفًا ْ} أي: مائلا عن الشرك إلى التوحيد، وعن التوجه للخلق إلى الإقبال على الخالق، { وَاتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ خَلِيلًا ْ} والخُلة أعلى أنواع المحبة، وهذه المرتبة حصلت للخليلين محمد وإبراهيم عليهما الصلاة والسلام، وأما المحبة من الله فهي لعموم المؤمنين، وإنما اتخذ الله إبراهيم خليلا لأنه وفَّى بما أُمر به وقام بما ابْتُلي به، فجعله الله إماما للناس، واتخذه خليلا، ونوه بذكره في العالمين.

ثم قال تعالى "ومن أحسن دينا ممن أسلم وجهه لله" أي أخلص العمل لربه عز وجل فعمل إيمانا واحتسابا "وهو محسن" أي اتبع في عمله ما شرعه الله له وما أرسل به رسوله من الهدى ودين الحق وهذان الشرطان لا يصح عمل عامل بدونهما أي يكون خالصا صوابا والخالص أن يكون لله والصواب أن يكون متابعا للشريعة فيصح ظاهره بالمتابعة وباطنه بالإخلاص فمتى فقد العمل أحد هذين الشرطين فسد فمتى فقد الإخلاص كان منافقا وهم الذين يراءون الناس ومن فقد المتابعة كان ضالا جاهلا ومتى جمعهما كان عمل المؤمنين "الذين نتقبل عنهم أحسن ما عملوا ونتجاوز عن سيئاتهم" الآية. ولهذا قال تعالى "واتبع ملة إبراهيم حنيفا" وهم محمد وأتباعه إلى يوم القيامة كما قال تعالى "إن أولى الناس بإبراهيم للذين اتبعوه وهذا النبي" الآية وقال تعالى "ثم أوحينا إليك أن اتبع ملة إبراهيم حنيفا وما كان من المشركين" والحنيف هو المائل عن الشرك قصدا أي تاركا له عن بصيرة ومقبل على الحق بكليته لا يصده عنه صاد ولا يرده عنه راد وقوله"واتخذ الله إبراهيم خليلا" وهذا من باب الترغيب في اتباعه لأنه إمام يقتدى به حيث وصل إلى غاية ما يتقرب به العباد له فإنه انتهى إلى درجة الخلة التي هي أرفع مقامات المحبة وما ذاك إلا لكثرة طاعته لربه كما وصفه به في قوله وإبراهيم الذي وفي قال كثير من علماء السلف أي قام بجميع ما أمر به وفي كل مقام من مقامات العبادة فكان لا يشغله أمر جليل عن حقير ولا كبير عن صغير وقال تعالى وإذا ابتلى إبراهيم ربه بكلمات فأتمهن الآية وقال تعالى إن إبراهيم كان أمة قانتا لله حنيفا ولم يك من المشركين الآية والآية بعدها وقال البخاري: حدثنا سليمان بن حرب حدثنا شعبة عن حبيب بن أبي ثابت عن سعيد بن جبير عن عمرو بن ميمون قال: إن معاذا لما قدم اليمن صلى بهم الصبح فقرأ واتخذ الله إبراهيم خليلا فقال رجل من القوم لقد قرت عين أم إبراهيم. وقد ذكر ابن جرير في تفسيره عن بعضهم أنه إنما سماه الله خليلا من أجل أنه أصاب أهل ناحيته جدب فارتحل إلى خليل له من أهل الموصل وقال بعضهم من أهل مصر ليمتار طعاما لأهله من قبله فلم يصب عنده حاجته فلما قرب من أهله بمفازة ذات رمل فقال: لو ملأت غرائري من هذا الرمل لئلا يغتم أهلي برجوعي إليهم بغير ميرة وليظنوا أني أتيتهم بما يحبون ففعل ذلك فتحول ما في الغرائر من الرمل دقيقا فلما صار إلى منزله نام وقام أهله ففتحوا الغرائر فوجدوا دقيقا فعجنوا منه وخبزوا فاستيقظ فسألهم عن الدقيق الذي منه خبزوا فقالوا من الدقيق الذي جئت به من عند خليلك فقال نعم هو من عند خليلي الله فسماه الله بذلك خليلا وفي صحة هذا ووقوعه نظر وغايته أن يكون خبرا إسرائيليا لا يصدق ولا يكذب وإنما سمي خليل الله لشدة محبته لربه عز وجل لما قام له به من الطاعة التي يحبها ويرضاها ولهذا ثبت في الصحيحين من رواية أبي سعيد الخدري أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم لما خطبهم في آخر خطبة خطبها قال " أما بعد أيها الناس فلو كنت متخذا من أهل الأرض خليلا لاتخذت أبا بكر بن أبي قحافة خليلا ولكن صاحبكم خليل الله " وجاء من طريق جندب بن عبدالله البجلي وعبدالله بن عمرو بن العاص وعبدالله بن مسعود عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال " إن الله اتخذني خليلا كما اتخذ إبراهيم خليلا " وقال أبو بكر بن مردويه: حدثنا عبدالرحيم بن محمد بن مسلم حدثنا إسماعيل بن أحمد بن أسيد حدثنا إبراهيم بن يعقوب الجوزجاني بمكة حدثنا عبدالله الحنفي حدثنا زمعة أبو صالح عن سلمة بن وهرام عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس قال: جلس ناس من أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ينتظرونه فخرج حتى إذا دنا منهم سمعهم يتذاكرون فسمع حديثهم وإذا بعضهم يقول: عجب إن الله "اتخذ من خلقه خليلا" فإبراهيم خليله وقال آخر ماذا بأعجب من أن الله كلم موسى تكليما وقال آخر فعيسى روح الله وكلمته وقال آخر آدم اصطفاه الله فخرج عليهم فسلم وقال "قد سمعت كلامكم وتعجبكم أن ابراهيم خليل الله وهو كذلك وموسى كليمه وعيسى روحه وكلمته وآدم اصطفاه الله وهو كذلك وكذلك محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: ألا وإني حبيب الله ولا فخر وأنا أول شافع وأول مشفع ولا فخر وأنا أول من يحرك حلقة الجنة فيفتح الله ويخلنيها ومعي فقراء المؤمنين ولا فخر وأنا أكرم الأولين والآخرين يوم القيامة ولا فخر " وهذا حديث غريب من هذا الوجه ولبعضه شواهد في الصحاح وغيرها وقال قتادة عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس أنه قال: أتعجبون من أن تكون الخلة لإبراهيم والكلام لموسى والرؤية لمحمد صلوات الله وسلامه عليهم أجمعين. رواه الحاكم في المستدرك وقال صحيح على شرط البخاري ولم يخرجاه وكذا روي عن أنس بن مالك وغير واحد من الصحابة والتابعين والأئمة من السلف والخلف. وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا يحيى بن عبدك القزويني حدثنا محمد يعني ابن سعيد بن سابق حدثنا عمرو يعنى ابن أبى قيس عن عاصم عن أبي راشد عن عبيد بن عمير قال: كان إبراهيما عليه السلام يضيف الناس فخرج يوما يلتمس أحدا يضيفه فلم يجد أحدا يضيفه فرجع إلى داره فوجد فيها رجلا قائما فقال: يا عبدالله ما أدخلك داري بغير إذني قال: دخلتها بإذن ربها قال ومن أنت قال أنا ملك الموت أرسلني ربى إلى عبد من عباده أبشره بأن الله قد اتخذه خليلا قال من هو فوالله إن أخبرتني به ثم كان بأقصى البلاد لآتينه ثم لا أبرح له جارا حتى يفرق بيننا الموت قال: ذلك العبد أنت قال أنا قال نعم قال فبم اتخذني ربي خليلا ؟ قال إنك تعطي الناس ولا تسألهم. وحدثنا أبي حدثنا محمود بن خالد السلمي حدثنا الوليد عن إسحاق بن يسار قال لما اتخذ الله إبراهيم خليلا ألقى في قلبه الوجل حتى أن خفقان قلبه ليسمع من بعيد كما يسمع خفقان الطير في الهواء وهكذا جاء في صفة رسول الله صلى أنه كان يسمع لصدره أزيز كأزيز المرجل إذا اشتد غليانها من البكاء.

Success is Only Achieved by Performing Righteous Deeds, not Wishful Thinking

Qatadah said, "We were told that the Muslims and the People of the Scriptures mentioned their own virtues to each other. People of the Scriptures said, `Our Prophet came before your Prophet and our Book before your Book. Therefore, we should have more right to Allah than you have.' Muslims said, `Rather, we have more right to Allah than you, our Prophet is the Final Prophet and our Book supersedes all the Books before it.' Allah sent down,

لَّيْسَ بِأَمَـنِيِّكُمْ وَلا أَمَانِىِّ أَهْلِ الْكِتَـبِ مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(It will not be in accordance with your desires (Muslims), nor those of the People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof),

وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ دِيناً مِمَّنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُ لله وَهُوَ مُحْسِنٌ

(And who can be better in religion than one who submits his face (himself) to Allah; and he is a Muhsin.) Allah then supported the argument of the Muslims against their opponents of the other religions." Similar statements were attributed to As-Suddi, Masruq, Ad-Dahhak and Abu Salih. Al-`Awfi reported that Ibn `Abbas commented on this Ayah 4:123, "The followers of various religions disputed, the people of the Tawrah said, `Our Book is the best Book and our Prophet (Musa) is the best Prophet. ' The people of the Injil said similarly, the people of Islam said, `There is no religion except Islam, our Book has abrogated every other Book, our Prophet is the Final Prophet, and you were commanded to believe in your Books and adhere to our Book.' Allah judged between them, saying, o

لَّيْسَ بِأَمَـنِيِّكُمْ وَلا أَمَانِىِّ أَهْلِ الْكِتَـبِ مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(It will not be in accordance with your desires, nor those of the People of the Scripture, whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof)." This Ayah indicates that the religion is not accepted on account of wishful thinking or mere hopes. Rather, the accepted religion relies on what resides in the heart and which is made truthful through actions. It is not true that when one utters a claim to something, he attains it merely on account of his claim. It is not true that every person who claims to be on the truth is considered as such, merely on account of his words, until his claim gains merit with proof from Allah. Hence Allah's statement,

لَّيْسَ بِأَمَـنِيِّكُمْ وَلا أَمَانِىِّ أَهْلِ الْكِتَـبِ مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(It will not be in accordance with your desires, nor those of the People of the Scripture, whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof), meaning safety will not be acquired by you or them just by wishful thinking. Rather, the key is in obeying Allah and following what He has legislated through the words of His honorable Messengers. This is why Allah said afterwards,

مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof,) Similarly, Allah said,

فَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيْراً يَرَهُ - وَمَن يَعْـمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ شَرّاً يَرَهُ

(So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it. And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it.) and it was reported that when these Ayat were revealed, they became hard on many Companions. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that `A'ishah said, "I said, `O Messenger of Allah! I know the hardest Ayah in the Qur'an.' He said, `What is it, O `A'ishah!' I said,

مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(whoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof,) He said,

«هُوَ مَا يُصِيبُ الْعَبْدَالْمُؤْمِنَ، حَتَّى النَّكْبَةِ يُنْكَبُهَا»

(That is what strikes the believing servant, even the problems that bother him.)" Ibn Jarir and Abu Dawud also recorded this Hadith. Sa`id bin Mansur recorded that Abu Hurayrah said, "When the Ayah,

مَن يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا يُجْزَ بِهِ

(whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof,) was revealed, it was hard on Muslims. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to them,

«سَدِّدُوا وَقَارِبُوا، فَإِنَّ فِي كُلِّ مَا يُصَابُ بِهِ الْمُسْلِمُ كَفَّارَةً، حَتَّى الشَّوْكَةِ يُشَاكُهَا، وَالنَّـكْبَةِ يُنْكَبُهَا»

(Be steadfast and seek closeness. Everything that afflicts the Muslim, even the thorn that pierces his skin and the hardship he suffers, will be an expiation for him.)" This is the wording collected by Ahmad through Sufyan bin `Uyaynah. Muslim and At-Tirmidhi also recorded it. Allah's statement,

وَلاَ يَجِدْ لَهُ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلِيّاً وَلاَ نَصِيراً

(and he will not find any protector or helper besides Allah,) `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said; "Unless he repents and Allah forgives him." Ibn Abi Hatim recorded it. Allah then said,

وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِنَ الصَّـلِحَـتَ مِن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ

(And whoever does righteous good deeds, male or female, and is a believer). Allah mentions the recompense for evil actions and that He will surely inflict its punishment on the servant, either in this life, which is better for him, or in the Hereafter, we seek refuge with Allah from this end. We also beg Allah for our well-being in this life and the Hereafter and for His forgiveness, mercy and pardon. Allah then mentions His kindness, generosity and mercy in accepting the good deeds from His servants, whether male or female, with the condition that they embrace the faith. He also stated that He will admit the believers into Paradise and will not withhold any of their righteous deeds, even the weight of a Naqir - speck on the back of a date-stone. Earlier, we discussed the Fatil - the scalish thread in the long slit of a date-stone, and both of these, along with the Qitmir -- the thin membrane over the date-stone were mentioned in the Qur'an. Allah then said,

وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ دِيناً مِمَّنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُ لله

(And who can be better in religion than one who submits his face to Allah.) meaning, performs the good actions in sincerity for his Lord with faith and awaiting the reward with Allah,

وَهُوَ مُحْسِنٌ

(and he is a Muhsin) following the correct guidance that Allah legislated in the religion of truth which He sent His Messenger with. These are the two conditions, in the absence of which no deed will be accepted from anyone; sincerity and correctness. The work is sincere when it is performed for Allah alone and it becomes correct when it conforms to the Shari`ah. So, the deed becomes outwardly correct with following the Sunnah and inwardly correct with sincerity. When any deed lacks either of these two conditions, the deed becomes null and void. For instance, when one lacks the pillar of sincerity in his work, he becomes a hypocrite who shows off for people. Whoever does not follow the Shari`ah, he becomes an ignorant, wicked person. When one combines both pillars, his actions will be the deeds of the faithful believers whose best deeds are accepted from them and their errors erased. Consequently, Allah said,

واتَّبَعَ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَهِيمَ حَنِيفاً

(And follows the religion of Ibrahim the Hanif (Monotheist). ) referring to Muhammad and his following, until the Day of Resurrection. Allah said,

إِنَّ أَوْلَى النَّاسِ بِإِبْرَهِيمَ لَلَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُ وَهَـذَا النَّبِىُّ

(Verily, among mankind who have the best claim to Ibrahim are those who followed him, and this Prophet), and,

ثُمَّ أَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْكَ أَنِ اتَّبِعْ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَهِيمَ حَنِيفًا وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ

(Then, We have sent the Revelation to you (saying): "Follow the religion of Ibrahim the Hanif (Monotheist) and he was not of the Mushrikin). The Hanif, intentionally and with knowledge, avoids Shirk, he goes attentively to the truth, allowing no one to hinder him or stop him from it.

Ibrahim is Allah's Khalil

Allah's statement,

وَاتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ إِبْرَهِيمَ خَلِيلاً

(And Allah did take Ibrahim as a Khalil (an intimate friend)!) encourages following Ibrahim Al-Khalil, because he was and still is an Imam whose conduct is followed and imitated. Indeed, Ibrahim reached the ultimate closeness to Allah that the servants seek, for he attained the grade of Khalil, which is the highest grade of love. He acquired all this due to his obedience to His Lord, just as Allah has described him,

وَإِبْرَهِيمَ الَّذِى وَفَّى

(And of Ibrahim, the one who fulfilled),

وَإِذِ ابْتَلَى إِبْرَهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَـتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ

(And (remember) when the Lord of Ibrahim tried him with (certain) commands, which he fulfilled), and,

إِنَّ إِبْرَهِيمَ كَانَ أُمَّةً قَـنِتًا لِلَّهِ حَنِيفًا وَلَمْ يَكُ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ

(Verily, Ibrahim was an Ummah, obedient to Allah, a Hanif, and he was not one of the Mushrikin). Al-Bukhari recorded that `Amr bin Maymun said that when Mu`adh came back from Yemen, he led them in the Fajr prayer and recited,

وَاتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ إِبْرَهِيمَ خَلِيلاً

(And Allah did take Ibrahim as a Khalil!) One of the men present commented, "Surely, the eye of Ibrahim's mother has been comforted." Ibrahim was called Allah's Khalil due to his Lord's great love towards him, on account of the acts of obedience he performed that Allah loves and prefers. We should mention here that in the Two Sahihs, it is recorded that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri said that when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave them his last speech, he said,

«أَمَّا بَعْدُ، أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ فَلَوْ كُنْتُ مُتَّخِذًا مِنْ أَهْلِ الْأَرْضِ خَلِيلًا، لَاتَّخَذْتُ أَبَا بَكْرِ ابْنَ أَبِي قُحَافَةَ خَلِيلًا، وَلكِنْ صَاحِبُكُمْ خَلِيلُ الله»

(O people! If I were to take a Khalil from the people of the earth, I would have taken Abu Bakr bin Abi Quhafah as my Khalil. However, your companion (meaning himself) is the Khalil of Allah.) Jundub bin `Abdullah Al-Bajali, `Abdullah bin `Amr bin Al-`As and `Abdullah bin Mas`ud narrated that the Prophet said,

«إِنَّ اللهَ اتَّخَذَنِي خَلِيلًا، كَمَا اتَّخَذَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ خَلِيلًا»

(Allah has chosen me as His Khalil, just as He has chosen Ibrahim as His Khalil.) Allah's statement,

وَللَّهِ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَمَا فِى الاٌّرْضِ

(And to Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth.) means, everything and everyone are His property, servants and creation, and He has full authority over all of this. There is no one who can avert Allah's decision or question His judgment. He is never asked about what He does due to His might, ability, fairness, wisdom, compassion and mercy. Allah's statement,

وَكَانَ اللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ مُّحِيطاً

(And Allah is Ever Encompassing all things.) means, His knowledge encompasses everything and nothing concerning His servants is ever hidden from Him. Nothing, even the weight of an atom, ever escapes His observation in the heavens and earth, nor anything smaller or bigger than that.

And who that is and none is fairer in religion than he who submits his purpose that is than he who is compliant and offers his deeds sincerely to God and is virtuous and declares God’s Oneness and who follows the creed of Abraham the one that is in accordance with the creed of Islam as a hanīf? hanīfan is a circumstantial qualifier that is to say one inclining away from all religions to the upright religion. And God took Abraham for a close friend as His elect one whose love for Him is pure.

The verse says:

وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ دِينًا مِّمَّنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُ لِلَّـهِ وَهُوَ مُحْسِنٌ وَاتَّبَعَ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَ‌اهِيمَ حَنِيفًا

And who is better in Faith than one who has surrendered his self to Allah and is good in deeds, and has followed the creed of Ibrahim, the upright...) (125)

It means that there can be no way better than the way of the person who is an embodiment of two virtues:

1. Firstly, 'surrenders his or her self to Allah.' In other words, acts for the good pleasure of Allah with all sincerity at one's command without ever contaminating one's deeds with hypocritical or materialistic motives.

2. Secondly, 'and is good in deeds.' In other words, the way in which one acts should also be correct. According to the great commentator, Ibn Kathir., the way in which one acts, the correct way, means that it will not be some self-invented way. On the contrary, this will have to be the unalloyed way of Islam as based on the injunctions of Almighty Allah and the teachings of His noble Messenger ﷺ .

Thus, we can see that there are two conditions for any deed to be acceptable in the sight of Almighty Allah. These are sincerity of intention and soundness of action, that is, being in accordance with the Shari’ ah and Sunnah. The first of the two conditions, Ikhlas or sincerity, relates to the heart, the inner most human dimension. The second condition, the compatibility with Shari’ ah, relates to the human exterior. Whoever fulfills both these conditions finds his or her exterior and interior perfectly synchronized. But, the moment one of the two conditions is found missing, that which is done becomes imperfect and unsound. The loss of sincerity makes one a hypocrite in practice while the failure in following the Shari` ah, the designated way, makes one go astray.

Nations go astray because they lack sincerity or do not act right.

The history of nations and faiths reveals that all deviant groups of peoples have either lacked sincerity or have not acted right. These very two groups have been indentified in Surah Al-Fatihah as those who have deviated from the straight path. Those referred to as مَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ (who incurred { Your) wrath) are people who lack sincerity, and those called ضَّالِّينَ (who have gone astray) are those who have not acted right. The first group is a victim of desires while the other, that of doubts.

Everyone generally understands the first condition, that is, the need for sincerity and the futility of acting without it. But, good conduct - that is, following the Shari'ah - is the condition even many Muslims ignore. They think a good deed is a good deed and could be done at one's choice although the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah have made it perfectly clear that good conduct depends exclusively on the teachings of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and on following the Sunnah, the example set by him. Doing less than that and doing more than that are both crimes. The way offering three raka` at of Zuhr prayers instead of the prescribed four is a crime, so, offering five is also a crime and sin of the same nature. The rule is: The condition set forth by Almighty Allah and His Messenger ﷺ for any act of worship is final. Any addition of conditions or restrictions from one's own side or taking to some form other than the one laid out by him are all impermissible and patently against the norms of good conduct, no matter how attractive they may appear to be on the surface. All new alterations (Bid` at and Muhdathat) in the established religion which the Holy Prophet ﷺ declared to be straying into error, and against which he left behind emphatic instructions for Muslims so that they can stay safe, are all of this nature. Ignorant people do this with 'sincerity' as an act of worship worthy of the reward and pleasure of Allah, but the deed of such a person goes waste or becomes even sinful in the light of the Shari'ah bequeathed by the noble Prophet ﷺ . It is for this reason that the Holy Qur'an has repeatedly stressed on good conduct, that is, on following the Sunnah. It appears in Surah al-Mulk: لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ أَيُّكُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًا (So that He tests you as to who among you is good in deed - 67:2). It will be noticed that the words used here are: أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًا (good in deed) and not اَکثَرُ عَمَلاً (outnumbering in deeds). It shows that the text is not talking about the numerical abundance of deeds. It is, rather, pointing out to the doing of good deeds - and a good deed is nothing but what is done in accordance with the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ .

This very concept of good conduct and the practical adherence to the Sunnah of the noble Prophet ﷺ has been identified in another verse of the Holy Qur'an in the words وَمَنْ أَرَ‌ادَ الْآخِرَ‌ةَ وَسَعَىٰ لَهَا سَعْيَهَا (17:19) It means that Allah accepts the efforts and deeds of those who intend to have the good of the Hereafter, pure and unadulterated by any temporal considerations, and that they are making the needed effort, and that the effort they are making is proper as well, and the proper effort is exactly what has been explained to the community by the Holy Prophet ﷺ although his word and deed. Any shift from this ideal of effort - whether increased or decreased - will not be accepted as the proper effort. Proper effort is nothing but what has been termed as good deed in the present verse.

Let us now recapitulate that the acceptance of any deed with Allah depends on the fulfillment of two conditions. These are sincerity and good deed. Good deed is another name of the act of following the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Therefore, everyone who intends to do a good deed with full sincerity must first find out how it was done by the noble Messenger of Allah and what instructions he has left behind for us in that connection, We must understand that any deed of ours which stands removed from the course set by our noble Prophet, known as his Sunnah, will stand unacceptable. There-fore, in all our deeds relating to Salah, Sawm, Hajj, Zakah, Sadaqat, Khayrat, Dhikr of Allah, Salah (durud) and Salam, it is necessary to keep in mind the way these were done by the Messenger of Allah and how he told us to do them.

At the end of the verse (125), an example has been cited, the example of sincerity and good conduct set by Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) the following of which has been declared as mandatory. By saying: وَاتَّخَذَ اللَّـهُ إِبْرَ‌اهِيمَ خَلِيلًا (And Allah has made Ibrahim a friend), it has been hinted that this high station bestowed on Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) has good reason behind it for he was absolutely and superbly sincere and his deed too was sound and correct with intimation from Allah.

Who is more beautiful in religion than he who submits his face to God while he is a beautiful-doer and follows the creed of Abraham, an unswerving man? And God took Abraham as a bosom friend. In this verse the Lord of the Worlds, the God of the world's folk, the Enactor who knows the hid- den, praises the self-purifiers and shows that He is pleased with self-purification in deeds. The first person to dress the Kaabah of deeds in the cloak of self-purification was MuṣṬafā, who said, “Deeds are only through intentions.” Self-purification in deeds does the work of color in jewels. Just as a jewel without the cape of color is a worthless stone, so also deeds without self-purification is to knock oneself out without hitting the mark. Maʿrūf Karkhī used to beat himself with a whip and say, “O soul! Purify thyself and be de- livered!” It has been said that knowledge is the seed, deeds are planting, and self-purification is the water. The work is done by self-purification, salvation lies in self-purification, and endless felicity lies in self-purification, but self-purification itself is exalted and does not come down just any- where, nor does it show its face to just anyone. The Exalted Lord said, “It is one of My secrets that I deposit in the hearts of those whom I love among My servants.” There was a worshiper among the Children of Israel. He was told that in such-and-such a place there is a tree that people worship. For the sake of God and the zeal of the religion he became angry, left his place with a mattock over his shoulder, and went to dig up the tree by its roots. Iblis went into the road with the attributes of an old man. He asked him where he was going and he replied, “To that place to dig up the tree.” Iblis said, “Go, busy yourself with your worship, for this will not done by your hand.” Iblis struggled with him and fell, and the worshiper sat on his chest. Iblis said, “Let go of me and I will speak some beautiful words to you.” He let go of him, and Iblis said, “O worshiper, God has prophets. If this tree needs to be dug up, He will command a prophet to dig it up.