Our acts of worship -Ibadah- for Allah must maintain two conditions otherwise it will not be accepted:
- It must be sincerely for Allah without associating any partners with Him.
- It must be performed according to the Sunnah (the way) of Prophet Muhammad.
Al-Fudhail ibn Lyadh – May Allah bestow His mercy upon him – was asked about the verse “He who created death and life to test you [as to] which of you is best in deed.” (Noble Qur’an 67:2). He said: “The most sincere and most correct.” They said O aba Ali (father of Ali): “What is the most sincere and correct?” He said: Indeed if the deed were sincere and incorrect, it won’t be accepted, and if it were correct but insincere, it won’t be accepted, until it is sincere and correct: and sincerity is when the deed is done only for the sake of Allah, and correctness is that it is upon the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad.
