Nawawi Pair 1 & 2: Foundations of Faith

Part One: The Deed Is Measured by the Heart Behind It

Brothers,

Today we take up the first two hadith of Imam Nawawi’s collection, and it is no accident that they stand at the beginning. Every scholar who has taught this book has noted that these two hadith together form the foundation on which the other thirty-eight rest. One tells us what makes a deed count. The other tells us what the deen we are performing actually is. Together they answer the two most basic questions a believer can ask: why am I doing this, and what exactly is “this” that I am doing?

The Foundation: Hadith 1

On the authority of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, 'Actions are but by intentions, and every man shall have only that which he intended. Thus, he whose migration was for Allah and His Messenger, his migration is for Allah and His Messenger, and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly gain or to take some woman in marriage, his migration is for that for which he migrated.' (Bukhari & Muslim)

Imam al-Bukhari opened his entire Sahih with this hadith. Imam Ahmad, al-Shafi’i, and countless other scholars said the same thing in different words: a third of all knowledge rests on this hadith, because it governs every act of worship, every transaction, every word and deed a believer performs.

The wording is precise. “Actions are but by intentions.” Not “actions are helped by intentions,” or “actions are improved by intentions.” The action’s very reality, its worth before Allah, is determined by what stood behind it in the heart.

Part 1: The Same Act, Two Completely Different Outcomes

The Prophet ﷺ gives us the clearest possible illustration: hijrah, migration. Outwardly, two men could leave Makkah for Madinah in the exact same year, on the exact same road, facing the exact same hardship. One migrates for Allah and His Messenger. His reward is what he sought: Allah and His Messenger. The other migrates chasing a woman he wished to marry, known to history as the muhajir of Umm Qays. His hijrah is credited to him only as what he sought: that worldly gain, nothing more.

They were only commanded to worship Allah ˹alone˺ with sincere devotion to Him in all uprightness, establish prayer, and pay alms-tax. That is the upright religion. (Al-Bayyina, 98:5)

Sincere devotion, ikhlas, is named in this verse as the very core of “the upright religion.” Not simply performing the actions, but performing them with the heart turned to Allah alone.

Part 2: The Danger of Contaminated Intentions

This principle is not comfortable to sit with, because it forces us to examine our own hearts honestly. Why do I pray in front of others differently than alone? Why do I give charity when it will be seen, more readily than when it will not? Why do I want to be known as knowledgeable, generous, pious, more than I actually want to be those things before Allah?

The first of people to be judged on the Day of Resurrection will be a man who was martyred. He will be brought and Allah will make known to him His favors, and he will acknowledge them. Allah will say, 'What did you do with them?' He will say, 'I fought for You until I was martyred.' Allah will say, 'You lied. You fought so that it would be said, he is courageous. And it was said.' Then he will be ordered to be dragged on his face until he is cast into the Fire. (Nasa'i)

This is a severe warning, and it applies to the scholar who taught for reputation, the wealthy man who gave charity for reputation, and the fighter who fought for reputation, all named in the fuller narration of this hadith. Even the greatest deeds, martyrdom, knowledge, charity, are worthless before Allah if the intention was for people rather than for Him.

This hadith is one of the pillars of the religion. Whoever weighs his outward and hidden actions against it will attain great benefit. (Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Jami' al-'Ulum wal-Hikam)

Part 3: Purifying Intention Is a Daily Struggle, Not a One-Time Fix

The Sahabah themselves worked at this constantly. It is reported that some of them would weep in fear that their good deeds were mixed with a desire for praise, not because they had committed sin, but because they were unsure their intentions were pure enough. This is the standard we are called to. Renew your intention before every prayer, every act of charity, every kind word. Ask: am I doing this for Allah, or for how it looks?

So whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him do righteous work and not associate anyone in the worship of his Lord. (Al-Kahf, 18:110)

Notice the pairing again: righteous action, and freedom from associating anyone else, whether an idol or people’s approval, in the worship. This is the same principle as hadith 1, stated from a different angle.

Part Two: What This Religion Actually Is

Brothers,

If hadith 1 tells us the condition our deeds must meet, hadith 2 tells us the shape of the religion those deeds belong to. This second hadith is so comprehensive that scholars call it “Umm al-Sunnah,” the mother of the Sunnah, because it contains the entire structure of the deen in a single conversation.

On the authority of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: One day while we were sitting with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ there appeared before us a man in extremely white clothing and extremely black hair, no traces of a journey were visible on him, and none of us recognized him. He sat down close to the Prophet ﷺ, rested his knees against his, and placed his hands on his thighs, and said, 'O Muhammad, tell me about Islam.' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, 'Islam is to testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to establish prayer, to pay zakat, to fast Ramadan, and to perform Hajj to the House if you are able.' He said, 'You have spoken truly.' We were amazed that he asked and confirmed the answer himself. He said, 'Tell me about Iman.' He said, 'It is to believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, His messengers, the Last Day, and to believe in divine decree, the good and the bad of it.' He said, 'You have spoken truly. Tell me about Ihsan.' He said, 'It is to worship Allah as though you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you.' He said, 'Tell me about the Hour.' He said, 'The one asked knows no more than the one asking.' He said, 'Then tell me of its signs.' He said, 'That the slave girl will give birth to her mistress, and that you will see barefoot, naked, destitute shepherds competing in building tall structures.' Then he left, and I remained a while. Then the Prophet ﷺ said, 'O Umar, do you know who the questioner was?' I said, 'Allah and His Messenger know best.' He said, 'That was Jibril. He came to teach you your religion.' (Muslim)

This visitor was the angel Jibril, sent in human form to teach the Ummah its own religion through a public conversation with the Prophet ﷺ, so that his companions would learn directly and pass it on with certainty.

Part 4: Three Tiers, One Structure

Islam, Iman, and Ihsan are not three separate religions. They are three depths of the same religion. Islam is the outward submission, the five pillars performed with the limbs. Iman is the inward conviction, belief held in the heart regarding the unseen. Ihsan is the perfection that unites the two, performing the outward acts as though you are standing directly in Allah’s sight.

The nomadic Arabs say, 'We believe.' Tell them, ˹O Prophet,˺ 'You have not believed yet, so ˹just˺ say, 'We have submitted,' for faith has not yet entered your hearts. But if you obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not discount anything from ˹the reward of˺ your deeds. Surely Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful.' (Al-Hujuraat, 49:14)

This verse draws exactly the line Jibril’s question drew: outward submission is real and accepted, but it is distinct from the deeper conviction of the heart that must follow and complete it. Islam without Iman is incomplete. Iman without Ihsan is incomplete. This is why the hadith moves upward, tier by tier, until it reaches worship performed as though Allah is seen.

Now bring hadith 1 back into view. Ihsan, worshipping Allah as though you see Him, is simply sincerity of intention taken to its highest degree. The man who worships as though watched by Allah has no room left for showing off before people. His intention is purified precisely because his awareness of Allah has become greater than his awareness of anyone else’s opinion.

Part 5: Intention Behind Bars

Brothers, both of these hadith speak directly into your situation here.

Consider hadith 1 first. Much of what you do in a day here looks identical whether your intention is pure or corrupted. You attend the class. You pray in congregation. You memorize a surah. You help a brother carry his tray. On the outside, nobody can tell whether you are doing these things to draw close to Allah, or to look good in front of the chaplain, or to pass the time, or to build a reputation among the other men. Only your intention decides what these actions are worth before Allah. The same five minutes of dhikr can be worship of the highest order, or empty motion, and the difference is invisible to everyone but Allah and yourself.

Now consider hadith 2, and Ihsan specifically. You are watched here more than almost anywhere else. Cameras, guards, counts throughout the day. Use that awareness. If you can behave with such discipline knowing a camera is on you, how much more should you behave with discipline knowing Allah, who sees you even when the camera does not, is always watching? Let the awareness you already carry of being observed become a doorway to the awareness Ihsan calls you to: worship Allah as though you see Him, and know that even in the corner of a cell with no camera at all, He sees you.

Whoever does a good deed, Allah writes for him ten to seven hundred times its reward, or even more. And whoever intends a bad deed and does not do it, Allah writes it as one complete good deed. And if he does it, Allah writes it as one bad deed. (Bukhari)

Part 6: Living Both Hadith Together

Check your intention before you act, not after. Pause before prayer, before charity, before a kind word, and ask what you are seeking. Correct it silently, without needing anyone to notice the correction.

Treat Ihsan as your standard, not merely Islam. Do not settle for the outward form of the pillars alone. Ask whether your heart is present, whether you are worshipping as though you see Him.

Let your hidden acts be as sincere as your visible ones. The believer who is the same in private as he is in front of others has united hadith 1 and hadith 2 in his own character.

Remember that this religion has a complete structure. It is not only rules, nor only feelings, nor only excellence with no foundation. It is Islam, Iman, and Ihsan together, each supporting the others.

These two hadith together comprehend the entire religion: the first purifies the reality of every deed, and the second lays out the deen those deeds belong to, tier upon tier, until worship reaches its perfection. (Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Jami' al-'Ulum wal-Hikam)

O Allah, make our intentions sincere for You alone in every deed, small and great.

O Allah, do not let our worship be for the eyes of people.

O Allah, grant us the station of Ihsan, that we may worship You as though we see You.

O Allah, complete our Islam with true Iman, and complete our Iman with true Ihsan.

O Allah, purify our hearts of every hidden desire for praise.

O Allah, let our hidden deeds be as sincere as our visible ones.

O Allah, make us mindful of You in this place more than we are mindful of any camera or any eye upon us.

O Allah, accept our small deeds as You accepted the deeds of those who came before us in sincerity.