Follow-up: Does a Muslim receive reward for performing acts of worship while in a state of heedlessness, such as dhikr and reciting the Qur'an?

The questioner : May Allah reward you: The dhikr reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)—if a person’s heart is empty of dhikr, he is rewarded for it—and reciting the Qur'an?

The Shaykh : Yes, indeed. There is no doubt that if a person performs an act of worship with the presence of the heart, that is better. But if he performs it while heedless, he is still rewarded for it, because the basis of his action was the intention of drawing near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and this is sufficient for the reward to be established. However, it is certainly deficient. For this reason, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said: This is also indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed: and the Messenger did not say: "His prayer is invalid." This indicates that dhikr and every act of drawing near to his Lord that a person performs while heedless has a reward in it, and it suffices him for the obligatory if it is obligatory, but it is deficient to the extent of the deficiency in the presence of the heart.