Continuation of the explanation of the author's statement: "And intention is a condition."

The Shaykh : In prayer, that it is prayer; in the obligatory prayer, that it is obligatory; in Hajj, that it is Hajj; and in fasting, that it is fasting. Who speaks about this? The scholars of jurisprudence. The second aspect of what is discussed regarding intention is the purpose for which the act is performed, not the purpose of specifying the act of worship and distinguishing it, but the purpose of the one for whom it is performed, which is sincerity, and its opposite is shirk (associating partners with Allah). Who speaks about this? The people of spiritual practice. This includes the chapter on tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and what is related to it. This latter aspect is more important than the first, because it is the core of Islam and the essence of the religion: sincerity to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). For example, a person specifies that this prayer is obligatory, that it is Zuhr or 'Asr, and so on. This does not equal intending the Face of Allah with it, or intending showing off (riya') with it. This is more important, and this is what a person should pay attention to, which is the sincerity of intention for Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Just as it is obligatory to make the intention sincere for Allah, it is obligatory to follow the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). So let us remember two things when performing acts of worship: First, we remember the command of Allah regarding this act of worship so that we perform it as if we are obeying the command of Allah. When we perform wudu' (ablution), we do not just say, "We are now performing wudu' because we are going to pray, and wudu' is a condition for the validity of prayer." Rather, it is recommended that we perform wudu' because Allah said: Thus, we are obeying the command of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He). Similarly, we keep in mind that our Imam, Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), is before us, so we thereby realize following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Intention is a condition for the validity of the act, and for its acceptance and sufficiency, and for all of these. This is based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): And because Allah (the Exalted) conditioned many acts in the Qur'an by His saying "seeking the Face of Allah," such as His saying: and similar verses that indicate that intention is necessary. So intention is a condition for all acts of worship. Does a person verbalize it or not? If we say that verbalizing it is done, does he verbalize it secretly or openly? The correct view is that he does not verbalize it, and that worshipping Allah by verbalizing it is a bid'ah (religious innovation) that is prohibited. This is indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Companions did not verbalize the intention at all; this was not recorded from them. If verbalizing the intention had been prescribed, Allah (the Exalted) would have explained it through the tongue of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), whether in a current or past form, but Allah did not explain it, which indicates that it is not part of His Shari'ah. So if you want to perform wudu', do not say, "I intend to perform wudu'." If you want to pray, do not say, "I intend to pray." And if you want to fast, you do not say, "I intend to fast." Our people used to teach us when we were young to say, "O Allah, I intend to fast until night." I do not know if this is still practiced or not!

The questioner : What we hear.

The Shaykh : What you have heard about it, in any case, this is what is prescribed. What remains is Hajj: Is it recommended to verbalize the intention in it? No, it is not recommended. It is not reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said, "O Allah, I intend to perform Hajj" or "I intend to perform such and such a ritual." Rather, he only utters the talbiyah for Hajj, thereby manifesting the intention, and the contract is by the intention, which precedes the talbiyah. But if a person needs to make a condition in his ritual, does he need to verbalize the intention and say, "O Allah, I intend such and such, and if I am prevented..."? No, it is not a condition that he say "I intend." Rather, he may say, "O Allah, if I am prevented by a preventer, my place of completion is where I am prevented," without verbalizing the intention. So intention is a condition. The evidence is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): The discussion of it is from two aspects: from the aspect of specifying the act so that it is distinguished from others, and this aspect is discussed by the jurists. And from the aspect of specifying the one for whom it is performed, which is sincerity, and this is discussed by the people of spiritual practice and the path to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). This is mentioned in the books of tawhid (the oneness of Allah). Its place is the heart, and it is not recommended to verbalize it, neither secretly nor openly. The well-known view in the school of thought among the followers is that it is recommended to verbalize it secretly, but this is weak because it is not reported. As for the saying that it is recommended to verbalize it openly, this is weaker and weaker, and it also causes confusion for people, especially in congregational prayer. It is not apparent. It is mentioned that some of the common people heard a person praying in the Sacred Mosque as a ma'mum (one praying behind the imam). When he wanted to say the takbir, he said, "O Allah, I intend to pray Zuhr, four rak'ahs, behind the Imam of the Sacred Mosque." When he wanted to say the takbir, they said to him, "Wait, what do you have?" He said, "Mention the day, the date of the day, and the place." He still had not mentioned the time; he did not say the date of the day, for example, on Wednesday, corresponding to such and such of the month. So the man realized that there is no need for you to explain to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) what you intend, because Allah knows what is in your heart. Also, intention is not a difficult matter, even though it is difficult for some people who have waswas (whispers of doubt), but in reality it is not difficult. Because every sane, free-willed person who performs an act must have that preceded by intention. A man who brought water and said "Bismillah" and washed his hands, rinsed his mouth, and inhaled, and so on, is it conceivable that he did that without intention, while he is sane and free-willed? It is impossible. For this reason, some scholars said: If Allah had obligated us an act without intention, it would have been an obligation of what is not bearable. If Allah said to us, "Perform wudu' and do not intend, pray and do not intend," can we do this? It is not possible, absolutely not possible. So intention is not a difficult matter. What comes to the hearts of some people regarding its difficulty is from waswas. When you are present, what is the need for effort? Even Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) said regarding the intention of fasting: If a person eats dinner on one of the nights of Ramadan, his dinner indicates his intention. If he did not intend to fast the next day, the reason is that the one who eats dinner in Ramadan notices that he will eat suhur at the end of the night, so he does not eat much dinner as he does when he is not fasting.