Have You Thanked Allah?

by Ibn Al-Qayyim

Taken from "Uddat as-Sâbireen wa Dhâkirat ash-Shâkireen"

Salmân al-Fârsî radhiyAllahu anhu said:

"There was a man who was given many of the luxuries of this world, and then they were taken away from him. But he continued to praise and thank Allâh until everything had been taken from him, even his bed. And then he still praised and thanked Allâh. Another man, who had also been given many of the luxuries of this world asked him, 'What are you praising and thanking Allâh for?' The man said, 'I am praising and thanking Him for blessings which, if others asked me to give them to them in return for all that they have, I would never give them up.' 'What can they be?' asked the second man. 'Can't you see?' asked the first man. 'I have my eyesight, my tongue, my hands, my feet...'"

Layth ibn Abî Burdah said:

'When Allâh gathers people on the Day of Judgement, He will remind them of His blessings. One of His slaves will say: "Remind me of something," and Allâh will say: "Remember when you faced such-and-such adversity, and you prayed to Me, so I relieved you of it. Remember when you were travelling in such and-such a place, and you asked Me to give you a travelling companion, and I did so... Remember when you asked for the hand of so-and-so the daughter of so-and-so, and others also asked for her hand, so I gave her to you to marry; and kept the others away." His slave will be standing before his Lord, Who will remind him of His many blessings.'" Then the narrator of this story (Layth) wept and said, "I hope that no one will stand before his Lord in this way, because the one who does so will be punished." (i.e. if Allâh has to point out that which should be obvious, this is a sign of a person's ingratitude, and he will be punished.)

A man of knowledge said:

"The blessing of Allâh to us in keeping the luxuries of this world away from us is greater than the blessing of that which he has given us, because Allah did not like His Prophet to have the luxuries of this world. So I prefer to live in the manner which Allâh preferred for His Prophet than to live a life which He disliked for him."

Ibn Abi'd-Dunyâ said:

"It was narrated to me that some scholars said: 'The scholar should praise Allâh for having deprived him of the luxuries of this life, in the same way that he should praise Him for what He has bestowed upon him. How can you compare the blessings and luxuries for which he will be accountable to the deprivation of luxuries which is a relief from being tested, and which keeps his mind free to worship and remember Allâh? So he should give thanks to Allâh for all of that.'"

A man said to Abû Hâzim:

"What is the gratitude of the eyes?" He said, "If you see good things, you speak about them, and if you see bad things, you keep quiet about it." He asked, "What is the gratitude of the ears?" He said, "If you hear something good, you accept it, and if you hear something bad, you reject it." Then he asked, "What is the gratitude of the hands?" He said, "Do not take what which does not belong to you, and do not hold back from paying the dues of Allâh (zakât)." Then he asked, "What is the gratitude of the head?" He said: "To have knowledge in it." Then he asked, "What is the gratitude of one's private parts?"

He quoted:

"'Who guard their private parts, except from those joined to them in the marriage bond, or (the captives) whom their right hands possess – for (in their case) they are free from blame, but those whose desires exceed those limits are transgressors'" (al-Mu'minûn 23:5-7).

Ibn Abi'd-Dunyâ mentioned that Dâwûd (peace be upon Him) asked Allâh: "What is the least of Your blessings?" Allâh revealed to him: "O Dâwûd, take a breath." Dâwûd did so, and Allâh told him: "This is the least of My blessings on you."

It Becomes........

"The heart becomes sick, as the body becomes sick, and its remedy is al-Tawbah and protection [from transgression].

It becomes rusty as a mirror becomes rusty, and its clarity is obtained by remembrance.

It becomes naked as the body becomes naked, and its beautification is at-Taqwa.

It becomes hungry and thirsty as the body becomes hungry and thirst, and its food and drink are knowledge, love, dependence, repentance and servitude."

~ibn Al- Qayim

From the sayings of the Salaf about Truthfulness and Sincerity

1- The slave of Allaah cannot actualize 'You are the One that we worship' except with two principles: one of them is following the Messenger and the second is having sincerity (Ikhlaas) for the one worshipped.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'Tahdeeb al-Madrij' 68

2- Sincerity for Allaah is that a person's intent is for Allaah and intends everything for Him, causing fountains of wisdom to spring up from his heart on to his tongue.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'an-Naboowaat' 147

3- Whenever the sincerity of the slave of Allaah strengthens, his worship becomes more complete.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 10/198

4- In relation to the amount of Tawheed a slave has for his Lord, and his sincerity for the religion for Allaah is the amount he is deserving of the generosity of Allaah upon him, from intercession and other things.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'As-Sarim al-Monkey' 390

5- A person does not show his actions to the creation, except due to his ignorance of the Greatness of the Creator.

Ibn Rajab – 'Kalimat ul-Ikhlaas' 31

6- Ikhlaas cannot be achieved except after having Zuhud, and there is no Zuhud except after having Taqwa, and Taqwa is following the commands (of Allaah and His Messenger) and keeping away from prohibitions.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 1/94

7- Strive today in implementing Tawheed, since there is nothing that will deliver you to Allaah except Tawheed. Also, be eager in fulfilling its rights, since there is nothing that can save you from the fire except Tawheed.

Ibn Rajab – 'Kalimat ul-Ikhlaas' 54

8- Whoever is sincere in regards to the actions of the Deen , which he does for Allaah, then he is from the pious Awliyah of Allaah.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 1/8

9- If you correct your hidden deeds subsequently Allaah will correct your outward deeds.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 3/277

10- Having the correct understanding of the Deen is light which Allaah throws into the heart of the slave of Allaah, which is increased by having the Taqwa of Allaah and having good intent.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'Ilaam al-Muaq'een' 1/69

11- Ikhlaas is the way to salvation, Islaam is the ship to safety and Emaan is the seal of security.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'Dar miftah as-Sa'ada' 1/74

12- Certainly the strength of Yusuf's sincerity - alayhi sallam - was stronger than the beauty of Azeez's wife, stronger than her allure, and his want for her.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 10/602

13 – The heart of the truthful person is filled with the light of truth and he has the light of Emaan.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'Madarij as-Salikeen' 2/282

14- The sincere person is fortified by Allaah due to his worship of Him Alone, intending his Face Alone. He has humility for Him Alone, and hope in Him Alone, requesting from Him Alone, submissiveness for Him Alone and has a dire need of Him Alone.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'Madarij as-Salikeen' 2/202

15- There is nothing that drives away the afflictions of this world except Tawheed. That is why the supplication of the distressed person is with Tawheed. Such as, the supplication of Yunus. The distressed person does not supplicate by what Yunus supplicated with except that Allaah releases him from his hardship with Tawheed.

There is nothing more gruesome for the distressed person except shirk, and there is nothing that can rescue you from it except Tawheed, it is the refuge for the creation, its shelter, its fortress and its aid.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 96

16-The reward is doubled in accordance with one perfecting his Islaam and with his perfecting the strength of Ikhlaas, in that action.

Ibn Rajab – 'Jama' al-Aloom' 2/316

17- If a benefit could be achieved from an action performed without Ikhlaas, then Allaah would not have criticised the hypocrites.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 65

18- Without doubt al-Ikhlaas negates the reason for entering into the Fire, therefore, who ever enters the fire, from those who said: ' 'la illah ila Allaah' (there is none worthy of worship except Allaah) ' then this is proof that he never implemented the sincerity of ''la illah ila Allaah' ' which would have prohibited him from the fire.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 10/261

19 – If the slave of Allaah perfects his Tawheed and his sincerity for Allaah and he establishes / fulfills all its conditions with his heart, and his tongue and his limbs then forgiveness for his past sins becomes obligatory.

Ibn Rajab – 'Jama' al-Aloom' 2/417

20 – Fitnah continues upon the heart, except if the Deen of the slave is completely for Allaah.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 10/545

21- Without doubt, the sincere person has tasted the sweetness of his worship for Allaah, this is what stops him from performing worship for other than Allaah, since there is nothing more sweet or more blessed for the heart than the sweetness of Emaan in Allaah the Lord of the worlds.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 10/215

22- The different grades of doing actions for Allaah are in relation to what is in the heart from Emaan, sincerity, love and that what follows them.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Waabil as-Sayib' 22

23- Sincerity is not combined in the heart along with the love of being praised by the people, and being commended by them, and also having greed for what the people have, except like water being combined with fire.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 267

24- Ikhlaas and Tawheed are a tree in the heart. Its branches are good actions. Its fruits are a good life in this world, and eternal comfort in the Hereafter, and just like in Paradise the fruits whose supply is not cut off, nor are they out of reach, likewise are the fruits of Tawheed and Ikhlaas in this world.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 292

25- An action done without Ikhlaas and without following the Messenger is like a traveler whose sock becomes filled with sand, which weighs him down, and has no benefit.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 89

26- Allaah loves from His slave that he beautifies his tongue with the truth, and his heart with Ikhlaas and love, turning repentantly and reliance upon Allaah.

Ibn al-Qayyim – 'al-Fawaid' 327

27- Having sincerity for the Deen of Allaah is the foundation of justice, likewise committing Shirk with Allaah is a great injustice.

Ibn Taymeeyah – 'al-Fatawa' 1/87

Gaining (Even More) Reward

11 – On the authority of Abu Huraira –RadhiAllaahu anhu-, the Prophet - sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- had placed Abu Huraira to look after the charity, some one came to him to take from the charity – and this person came night after night, so on the third night Abu Huraira said to him: I will take you to the Messenger of Allaah. So he said Why don't you leave me and I will teach you some words that Allaah will benefit you by - and Abu Huraira was of those who were very attentive regarding good deeds – so the person said to him: When you go to bed, read Ayaat ul-Kursi:

(الله لا إلهَ إلا هُوَ الحيُ القَيُومَ )

Allaah, none has the right to be worshipped except Him The Ever living, The One Who sustains and protects all that exists

[verse 255 from Soorah Baqarah]

Until the end of the Ayaah, then this will continue to be a protection for you from Allaah, and Shaytan will not be able to come near you until the morning arrives. The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam - said: He spoke the truth even though he is a liar, [that was Shaytan].

12 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Who ever recites the last two Ayaat from Soorah al-Baqarah at night, then those two verses will be sufficient for him.

13 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Shall I not show you what will be better for you than a servant? When you lie down on your bed, say SubhanAllaah 33 times, say al-hamdulillaah 33 times and say Allaahu akbar 34 times.

14 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Who ever wakes up at night, and says: -

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَه،ُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْد،ُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ،الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ،وَ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ ، وَلَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ ، وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ ،وَ لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ العليِ الْعَظِيمِ.

'There is none worthy of worship in truth except Allaah Alone, He has no partners, He has the Dominion and for Him is all praise, and He is capable of all things, praise is for Him, and Far is Allaah from imperfection, and There is none worthy of worship in truth except Allaah, and Allaah is the Greatest, there is no capability nor is there any power except with Allaah the Most High the 'Atheem.' (Supreme)

La ilaha 'illa Allaahu wahdahu la shareeka lahu, lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa ala kulli shayin qadeer Subhana allaahi, wal hamdu lillaahi, wa la illaah ila Allaah, wa Allaahu akbar

La hawla wa la quwwata illa billaa

Then he says : اللهمَ اغْفِرْلي O Allaah forgive me (Allaahumma aghfirlee), or he supplicates and his supplication is answered, and if he makes Wudu and prays then his prayer is accepted.

15- The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam - said:

Who ever goes to bed with purification….there is not an hour of the night that he asks Allaah for something of good from this world and the hereafter, except that Allaah grants him that which he asked for.

16 – Abu Salma said that he heard Abu Qatada say that he heard the Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- say:

A good dream is from Allaah –Tabaraka wa Ta'ala- and a bad dream is from Shaytaan, so if anyone sees something in his dream which he dislikes, then he should spit on his left side 3 times when he awakens, and he should seek refuge with Allaah from its evil, then it will not harm him if Allaah so wills.

17 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam - said:

A good dream is from Allaah, so if any one of you sees something in his dream that he likes, then he should not relate it to anyone except the one whom he loves, and if he sees that which he dislikes, then he should not relate it to anyone, rather he should spit on his left side 3 times, and he should seek refuge with Allaah from the evil of the accursed shaytaan, and the evil of what he saw, then it will not harm him.

18- The Messenger of Allaah - sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Our Lord –Tabarak wa Ta'ala- descends every night to the lowest heavens, when there remains the last third part of the night, and He says who is there that supplicates to me so that I may answer his supplication, who is there that asks of me so that I may grant him what he asks for, who is there that seeks my forgiveness so that I may forgive him.

19 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam - said:

Indeed, there is an hour from the night, which if a Muslim asks Allaah in that time from the good of the affairs of this world and the hereafter, then Allaah gives him of it, and that is in every night.

20 – On the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Whoever says, as he leaves from his house:

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ ، تَوَكَّلْتُ عَلَى اللَّهِ ،ولَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ تعالى

In the name of Allaah, I have placed my trust in Allaah, and there is no capability nor is there any power except with Allaah Ta'ala

Bismillaahi tawwakaltu alalaahi wa la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi taa'la

then it is said to him: indeed you have been saved, and you have been protected, and you have been guided, and shaytaan has been kept away from him, so another shaytaan says: how can you affect a man who has indeed been guided and saved and been protected.

Gaining Rewards

Gaining Rewards

The Hadeeth of the Prophet which were chosen for their great rewards for easy actions

Hadeeth taken from 'Saheeh al-Kalima at-Tayyib'

By Shaykhul Islaam Ibn Taymeeyah

And Checked by

Muhammad Nasir-rudeen al-Albani

Compiled by

Hajaj bin Abdullaah al-Areeni

Translated by

Abbas Abu Yahya

1- The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said :

Whoever says: -

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَه،ُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْد،ُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

'There is none worthy of worship in truth except Allaah Alone, He has no partners, to Him belongs the Dominion and for Him is all praise, and He is capable of all things.' –

La ilaha 'illa Allaahu wahdahu la shareeka lahu, lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa ala kulli shayin qadeer

One hundred times in one day, then it is equivalent to him freeing ten slaves, a hundred good deeds are written for him, a hundred bad deeds are erased, it is a protection for him against shaytaan during that day until the evening, and no one comes with a better deed than him except for the man who does more actions than him.

2 – The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Whoever says: -

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِحَمْدِهِ

'Far is Allaah from imperfection and all praise is for Him'

Subhana allaahi wa bihamdihi

One hundred times in one day, then his mistakes / sins are cancelled out, even if they are like the foam on the ocean.

3 – The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

There are two words which are gentle on the tongue, heavy on the scales, and beloved to ar-Rahmaan: -

: سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِحَمْدِهِ ، سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ الْعَظِيمِ.

'Far is Allaah from imperfection and praise is for Him, Far is Allaah The Sublime from imperfection

Subhana allaahi wa bihamdihi, Subhana allaahil atheem

4 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Indeed that I say:

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ، وَلَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ ، وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ

'Far is Allaah from imperfection, and all praise be to Allaah, and there is none worthy of worship in truth except Allaah, and Allaah is the Greatest,'

Subhana allaahi, wal hamdu lillaahi, wa la illaah ila Allaah, wa Allaahu akbar

- is more beloved to me than what the sun rose upon.

5 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Is one of you so weak that he cannot acquire a thousand good deeds everyday? So a questioner from amongst those sitting there asked him: How can anyone of us gain a thousand rewards?

He said: say:

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ

- Far is Allaah from imperfection –

Subhana allaahi

A hundred times, so a thousand good deeds are written for him or a thousand sins are cancelled for him.

6 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said :

Shall I not inform you of a statement, which is a treasure from the treasures of Paradise? I said: Yes O Messenger of Allaah, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you! He said: say:

لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ

There is no capability nor is there any power except with Allaah.

La hawla wa la quwwata illa billaa

7 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

Whoso ever, reaches the morning & reaches the evening and he says:

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِحَمْدِهِ

-'Allaah is far from imperfection and all praise is for Him' –

Subhana allaahi wa bihamdihi

One hundred times, then no one brings anything better than him on the day of judgment, than what he has brought. Except the one who says what he has said, or has said more than him.

8 – On the authority of Mua'ad bin Abdillaah ibn Khubayb on the authority of his father who said we went out on a very dark and rainy night searching for the Messenger of Allaah so that he could pray for us, then I found him and he -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam - said : Recite. So I did not say anything, then he said: Recite. So I did not say anything, and he said: Recite, so I said: what should I recite? He said: recite:

"قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ"

'Say that Allaah is the One.' And the last two Soorahs (al-muawaathatayan ) in the evening and the morning, three times for it will suffice you for everything.

9 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said :

Indeed the major supplication for forgiveness is to say

اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّي لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ خَلَقْتَنِي وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ وَأَنَا عَلَى عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ أَبُوءُ لَكَ بِذَنْبِي وَأَبُوءُ لَكَ بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَيَّ فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لَا يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ

O Allaah You are my Lord, there is none worthy of worship in truth except You, You created me and I am Your slave and I abide to Your covenant and promise as best as I can, I seek refuge in You from the evil that I have committed, I profess to you my sins and I acknowledge Your favour upon me, so forgive me verily no one forgives sins except you.

Allaahumma anta rabbee, la ilaha illa anta, Khalaqtanee, wa ana abduka, wa ana ala ahdika wa wa'dika mastata'tu, a'outhu bika min sharri ma sanatu, aboo'u laka bini'matika alayya, wa aboo'u bee thambee, faghfirlee fa'innahu la yaghfiru ath-thunooba 'illa 'anta

So if the worshipper says this when the morning arrives, truly believing in it and he dies, enters Paradise, and if he says this when the evening arrives truly believing in it enters Paradise.

10 - The Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said:

There is not one from amongst the worshippers, that if he says, in the morning of everyday and the evening of every night: -

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي لَا يَضُرُّ مَعَ اسْمِهِ شَيْءٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي السَّمَاءِ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ

In the name of Allaah with whose name nothing is harmed what so ever, on this earth nor in the heavens whatsoever, and He is the All Hearing and All Knowing

Bismil-lahil-lathee la yadhurru ma'a 'issmihi shay'un fil 'ardhi wa la fissama'i wa huwa 'as-samee'ul –'aleem

Three times nothing harms him what so ever.

More to come inshaAllah...