The outer (apparent) of every person is his sayings and actions, and the inner (what is not apparent) is what resides in his heart. Only Allah (swt) knows what is in the heart of a person, but He (swt) enables us to have a slight insight into a person’s intentions and character via their actions, as actions are the manifestations of what is concealed in the heart.
Prior to this however, let us first define Eemaan. According to the understanding of the Saviour Sect, Ahl us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah (the Messenger Muhammad [saw] and his companions [ra]), Eemaan is to believe in the heart, testify by the tongue and willingly implement this conviction and testimony by the limbs. It therefore goes without saying that any other understanding of the term Eemaan is a false and deviant one.
Eemaan is to believe in the heart
“When the hypocrites come to you they say: ‘We bear witness that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah.’ Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are liars indeed. They have made their oaths a screen (for their hypocrisy). Thus they hinder (men) from the Path of Allah. Verily, evil is what they used to do. That is because they believed, then disbelieved, therefore their hearts are sealed, so they understand not.” (EMQ al-Munaafiqoon, 63: 1-3)
In the above verses, Allah (swt) states that the Munaafiqoon (hypocrites) pretend to have Eemaan and Islam in their actions but they disbelieve in their heart. Therefore it is not enough just to testify by your tongue and perform good deeds…you MUST also believe in the heart. Furthermore, Allah (swt) says in the Qur’aan:
“And of mankind, there are some (hypocrites) who say: "We believe in Allaah and the Last Day" while in fact they believe not.They (think to) deceive Allaah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!”(EMQ al-Baqarah, 2: 8-9)
The hypocrites will always claim to be believers and publicly show Islam, but in their inner (baatin) they conceal kufr and hatred for Islamic laws. Imaam al-Qurtubie said in his Tafseer (explanation) of these aayaat: "They (the hypocrites) try to deceive Allah (swt) and the believers but they deceive none but themselves."
Because of their false impressions and lies, Allah (swt) informs us that the Munaafiqeen will be in the bottom of Hellfire, simply because they testify to that which they do not believe in:
“Verily, the hypocrites will be in the lowest depths (grade) of the Fire; no helper will you find for them.” (EMQ an-Nisaa’, 4: 145)
Also in the most famous hadeeth, quoted even in Imaam an-Nawawie’s ‘Forty Ahaadeeth’, the Messenger Muhammad (saw) said:
"Every action is done by intention..." (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, book of revelation #1)
Again, this hadeeth confirms the simple principle that action is the manifestation of intention. Therefore, when a person does something that is kufr, it is not our duty to check his heart and his intention; we leave this to almighty Allah (swt). Rather, our duty is to judge the action, as this hadeeth states that the intention behind every action is apparent in the action.
When a person fornicates and there are a sufficient number of witnesses, that person will be lashed, regardless of his intention! If we judged by intention, what if the intention of a fornicator was to have children and bring them up as ‘Ulamaa (scholars)? Would he then be pardoned from the punishment? Likewise a thief may have the intention of stealing in order to support the Mujaahideen! Do we judge his intention or action? Allah (swt) and the Messenger Muhammad (saw) never instructed us to judge by intention as only Almighty Allah knows what is in the heart. Therefore, we are obliged to judge the action of mankind and not their heart.
And it has also been narrated by Abu Hurayrah (ra) that the Messenger Muhammad (saw) said:
"The one who testifies that ‘there is none truly worthy of worship but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah’ sincerelyfrom his heart, Allah will forbid upon him hell-fire." (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, book of knowledge #128)
Therefore, it is beyond doubt that one of the pillars of Eemaan is to believe in the heart. The only people who say that Eemaan is only to testify by the tongue, are a sect called al-Karamiyyah who are from the Mu’tazilah (rationalists). They believe that if you say something and do not fulfil it you are a Munaafiq (hypocrite). The Karamiyyah do not believe anything is settled in the heart as they interpret qalb(heart) to mean "mind". However, the Karamiyyah generally do not exist today, but they can be found in some remote parts of the world.
Eemaan is to testify by the tongue
It has been narrated by ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar that the Messenger Muhammad (saw) said to his uncle Abu Taalib on his death bed:
"Say: ‘Laa ilaaha illaa Allah’ and I will testify for you on the day of judgement that you are a believer." (Saheeh Muslim, book of Eemaan #24)
His uncle then said: "…It is only because my people may think that I have turned my back on them, otherwise you would see tears of happiness." In other narrations he said: "Nobody is more trustworthy than Allah (swt) and there is no Deen (what you believe in, live by and die for) like the Deen of Islam, but I will never like what my people dislike." His uncle Abu Taalib rejected to testify the Kalimah, even though he believed in his heart. Allah then informed His Messenger that He (saw) does not have the power of guidance and it is only Allah (swt) that guides (al-Qasas, 28: 56).
Imaam an-Nawawie (rh) also said: "The condition of Eemaan is to testify (the Kalimah) verbally, believing in it and all what the Prophet (saw) gave."
And Ibn Taymiyyah (rh) said in his book al-Fataawaa: "The one who does not testify but is capable of doing so is a kaafir (disbeliever), by the consent of the Muslims and the four Imaams."
Eemaan is to practice willingly by the limbs
“And Allah would never make your Eemaan (prayers) to be lost (i.e. your prayers offered towards Jerusalem). Truly, Allah is full of kindness, the Most Merciful towards mankind.” (EMQ al-Baqarah, 2: 143)
Imaam al-Qurtubie (rh) said in his Tafseer of this verse: "Eemaan is Salaah as it requires niyyah (intention), sayings and action. People used to pray towards Jerusalem but then Allah changed the Qiblah (direction of prayer) and they thought that their previously performedSalaah had been wasted (invalid)."
Imaam Maalik (rh) also said: "The saying ‘Salaah is not (a manifestation or part of) Eemaan’ is the saying of the Murji-ah (those who separate Eemaan from action i.e. they are misguided)."
The Messenger Muhammad (saw) was also once asked:
‘‘What is the best action?’ He (saw) replied: ‘to believe in Allah and his Messenger.’’ (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, book of Hajj #1519)
In this hadeeth, the Messenger Muhammad (saw) was asked regarding the best action that one can do. He replied, "to believe in Allah and His Messenger." Hence Eemaan is action.
It is also narrated that the Messenger Muhammad (saw) said:
"Eemaan is over 70 branches. The highest is to say Laa ilaaha illaa Allah…and the lowest is to remove harm from street." (Saheeh Muslim, book of Eemaan #35)
This hadeeth again indicates that Eemaan is action as He (saw) said that the lowest form of Eemaan is to remove harm from the street - which is obviously an action. Imaam al-Bukhaari even said himself that: "Eemaan is sayings and actions that increases (by good deeds) and decreases (by bad deeds)."
We judge the apparent (actions) in matters of Eemaan and Kufr
Usaamah bin Zayd (a great companion of the Messenger Muhammad [saw]) was once sent on an expedition towards al-Hurqah (a place of the tribe Juhaina) and he killed a man after he testified the Kalimah of Tawheed. When the Prophet (saw) heard about this He said:
"O Usaamah! Did you kill him? Usaamah said: ‘Yes! He said it only to save himself from me.’ The prophet (saw) replied:‘Did you open up his heart and check his intention? What will you do when Laa ilaaha illaa Allah comes to you on the Day of Judgement?’ Usaamah (ra) said: ‘The Prophet (saw) kept repeating that so often that I wished I had not embraced Islam before that day.’" (Saheeh Muslim, book of Eemaan, chapter 41 hadeeth #96)
This hadeeth shows clearly how we should only judge people by their apparent i.e. their sayings and actions. Usaamah bin Zayd, may Allah be pleased with him, was dispraised for killing this Mushrik (non-Muslim) due to the fact that he tried to judge his heart. If somebody testifies the Kalimah, we must accept it (except if it is under duress) and not judge his intention as that is for Allah to judge. Likewise, if a person commits an action that is kufr or shirk akbar (i.e. takes you outside the fold of Islam), such as to bow down to an idol or rule by kufr law, it is not our job to judge the person’s heart or intention, rather we judge his action. When a person commits kufr akbar and has no preventions of Takfeer, that person will become an apostate and his intention will be left for Allah (swt) to judge.
Another example of judging a person’s actions is when a Sahaabi (companion of the Messenger Muhammad [saw]) Haatib bin Abee Balta’ah was exposed by Allah (in chapter al-Anfaal, 8: 27) for giving information about the Muslim army to the Quraysh, which is an act of apostasy, though it was only through sign language i.e. he signalled to them that the army of Muhammad (saw) was coming to slaughter them. When the other companions heard about this they rose immediately to kill him. ‘Umar bin Khattaab declared him an apostate and said to the Messenger of Allah (saw) "Allow me Oh Messenger of Allah! Let me kill that kaafir!" The Messenger of Allah (saw) never told his companions not to call him kaafir, rather he consented to their takfeer. However, Allah revealed the verses in the Qur’aan (al-Anfaal, 8: 28-29) explaining that what Haatib did was not kufr akbar (great kufr) but rather kufr asghar (minor kufr) as he did it in order to protect his family. This incident is narrated in Saheeh Muslim, chapter 36 hadeeth #2494.
This scenario shows us that when a person commits kufr akbar we do not judge their intention but their actions, just as the Sahaabah did. However, only Haatib bin Abee Balta’ah can be excused from this form of apostasy as Allah (swt) revealed a verse for him (specifically) and he was also a man who fought in the Battle of Badr. Had the verse not been revealed, he would have been killed as an apostate.
Eemaan does not mean "faith" or "belief"
One of the greatest mistakes in translation is the term Eemaan. Many people translate Eemaan to mean faith or belief. The greatest scholars of Ahl us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah understood Eemaan to be three pillars which can never be separated – conviction, sayings and actions. This great mistake of translating Eemaan as "faith" will open the doors of Irjaa’ (separating Eemaan from actions) - one of the greatest diseases in the Muslim Ummah today. This is because the term "faith" is restricted to the heart and not associated to any actions of the limbs. Therefore, as followers of Ahl us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah, we should never use the terminology of the deviants and misguided.
It is vital for us to understand Eemaan the way Ahl us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah did. Firstly, because Allah (swt) has made it an obligation upon us to follow them and believe the way they believed; and secondly because the understanding of Eemaan will greatly affect all other actions.
The reason why people insist on trying to justify that Eemaan is only in the heart is simply because they want to close their eyes to the great possibilities of becoming kaafir or an apostate. Believing in the separation of Eemaan from actions will allow you to do whatever you want and never leave the fold of Islam, and this suits the hypocrites and the rebellious sinners perfectly.
However, if you believe the way the Messenger Muhammad (saw) and His companions (ra) did, that Eemaan is sayings and actions as well as believing in the heart; one will always be cautious of his/hers actions in order to make sure they do not commit any actions that negate their Eemaan and Tawheed.
Jazaak Allah Khairan for reading.
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