Treating Self-Admiration and Showing Off
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Q4 : How do we treat self-admiration and showing off?
Vol. 4: It is obligatory for the Muslim to perform deeds sincerely for Allah, following the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), hoping for the reward and recompense with Allah in the Hereafter. It is not permissible to perform deeds for the sake of people and their praise, nor is it lawful for him to leave off deeds out of fear of people, for that is weakness and a defect. He must beware of showing off (riya'), for showing off nullifies the deed that it has mixed with and persisted in, if its owner does not repent from it. The cure for pride in one's deeds and showing off is to strive to be sincere to Allah the Exalted, to distance oneself from showing off, to seek Allah's help in this, and to reflect on the consequences of showing off in this world and the Hereafter. Whoever reflects on this will dislike it.
He will dislike showing off, for his showing off will not bring him the benefit of people, nor will it ward off their harm from him. Rather, it will bring upon him the anger, wrath, and hatred of Allah the Exalted, and it will cause his deeds to be rejected, so he will lose both this world and the Hereafter. In the two Sahihs, it is narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih al-Bukhari 6499 And among the things that help in escaping this disease is asking Allah the Exalted for well-being, seeking refuge in Him from it, and remembering that it is one of the deeds of the hypocrites mentioned in the saying of Allah the Exalted: [An-Nisa 4:142] The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed his Companions saying: It was narrated by Ahmad , and al-Tabarani , from Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him).
Vol. 4: It is obligatory for the Muslim to perform deeds sincerely for Allah, following the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), hoping for the reward and recompense with Allah in the Hereafter. It is not permissible to perform deeds for the sake of people and their praise, nor is it lawful for him to leave off deeds out of fear of people, for that is weakness and a defect. He must beware of showing off (riya'), for showing off nullifies the deed that it has mixed with and persisted in, if its owner does not repent from it. The cure for pride in one's deeds and showing off is to strive to be sincere to Allah the Exalted, to distance oneself from showing off, to seek Allah's help in this, and to reflect on the consequences of showing off in this world and the Hereafter. Whoever reflects on this will dislike it.
He will dislike showing off, for his showing off will not bring him the benefit of people, nor will it ward off their harm from him. Rather, it will bring upon him the anger, wrath, and hatred of Allah the Exalted, and it will cause his deeds to be rejected, so he will lose both this world and the Hereafter. In the two Sahihs, it is narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Narrated Jundub: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "He who lets the people hear of his good deeds intentionally, to win their praise, Allah will let the people know his real intention (on the Day of Resurrection), and he who does good things in public to show off and win the praise of the people, Allah will disclose his real intention (and humiliate him).
من سمع سمع الله به ، ومن يرائي يرائي الله بهIndeed, the hypocrites [think to] deceive Allah, but He is deceiving them. And when they stand for prayer, they stand lazily, showing [themselves to] the people and not remembering Allah except a little,
إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ يُخَادِعُونَ اللَّهَ وَهُوَ خَادِعُهُمْ وَإِذَا قَامُوا إِلَى الصَّلاَةِ قَامُوا كُسَالَى يُرَاءُونَ النَّاسَ وَلاَ يَذْكُرُونَ اللَّهَ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاًO people, fear shirk (associating partners with Allah), for it is more hidden than the crawling of ants. They said: How do we fear it, O Messenger of Allah? He said: Say: O Allah, we seek refuge in You from associating anything with You that we know, and we seek Your forgiveness for what we do not know
أيها الناس ، اتقوا الشرك ، فإنه أخفى من دبيب النمل ، قالوا : وكيف نتقيه يا رسول الله ؟ قال : قولوا : اللهم إنا نعوذ بك أن نشرك بك شيئا نعلمه ، ونستغفرك لما لا نعلمه
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.