بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

There was an interesting question by a companion of Rasulullah salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam (ﷺ). He asked: “O Rasulullah, tell me something about Islam which I will not need to ask anyone else about.”

Rasulullah ﷺ replied:
“Say, 'I believe in Allah' and then remain {istiqaamah | steadfast}.”
[Riyad as-Salihin 85 (Sahih Muslim)]

Rasulullah’s ﷺ reply was short, yet rich in meaning. He ﷺ advised the companion, and to all of us by extension, that we should proclaim our belief in Allah, and then remain istiqaamah / committed to those words.

But istiqaamah in what aspect specifically?

The scholars rahimahumullah summarised that in order to be steadfast and committed to the Deen of Allah, our istiqaamah must be in three important aspects:

🔴 Istiqaamah in imaan (belief)

The first, and the most important aspect, is that we must remain committed to the correct belief of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala — the belief that has been revealed by Allah through the Qur’an, and through the Prophetic ways of Rasulullah ﷺ, as well as according to the understanding of the best three generations (i.e. the companions who were the students of Rasulullah ﷺ, the students of the companions, and the students of the students of the companions, may Allah be pleased with them and have mercy upon them all).

And this is really important. Because no matter how many good deeds a person may do in his life, if his imaan is corrupted, so will the rest of his acts of worship. There is a hadith that explains this further, about a deviated sect of Islam known as al-khawaarij. When Rasulullah ﷺ described this group to his companions, he ﷺ said: “There would arise from my ummah a people who would recite the Qur'an; and your (i.e. the companions’) recital, your salaah, your fast would seem insignificant compared to theirs. (But) they would swerve through Islam just as the arrow passed through the prey.” [Sahih Muslim 1066f]

We know we can never match the intensity of the companions’ ‘ibaadah (acts of worship). Yet Rasulullah ﷺ said that al-khawaarij’s ‘ibaadah surpass even that of the companions! They are known to be extremely steadfast with their ‘ibaadah. But because of their corrupted imaan, Rasulullah ﷺ said in another hadith that they will end up in the Fire. [Sunan Ibn Majah 173]

🔴 Istiqaamah in ‘ibaadah

The second important aspect that requires our steadfastness are our acts of worship. A believer must remain committed especially in his obligatory ‘ibaadah to Allah, and the most paramount act of worship are the 5 daily prayers. If one’s salaah is complete and correct, then his other acts of worship will be good as well. But if his salaah is corrupt, then everything else will be corrupt and unacceptable. Wal-iyaadhu billah (and Allah’s refuge is sought). Rasulullah ﷺ said:

“The first deed by which a servant will be called to account on the Day of Resurrection is his salaah. If it is complete, he is successful and saved, but if it is defective, he has failed and lost.” [At-Tirmidhi 413 | Graded Sahih by Darussalam]

🔴 Istiqaamah in good akhlaaq (character)

The third and the most disregarded aspect of istiqaamah is in good akhlaaq.

In the time of Rasulullah ﷺ, there was a lady who was so steadfast in doing numerous acts of worship and many other good deeds. But she had terrible akhlaaq, whereby she verbally abused her neighbours. Perhaps she swore at them, backbited them, slandered them, cursed them, or said other bad things about them. So someone asked Rasulullah ﷺ about her:

“O Rasulullah, a certain woman prays in the night, fasts in the day, does many (good) deeds, and gives charity, but she harms her neighbours with her tongue.” 

Rasulullah ﷺ replied: “There is no good in her. She is one of the people of the Fire.” [Al-Adab Al-Mufrad 119 | Graded Sahih by al-Albani]

The woman was only verbally harmful to her neighbours, yet she ended up in the Fire. So what about those who physically, mentally, and emotionally abuse their family members? — With their parents, their spouse, their children? Imagine what greater punishments await such people in the akhirah. 

Because of bad manners, a believer — even with numerous good deeds — can still end up in the Fire. And often we come across people who say:

“Mulut saya jahat, tapi hati saya baik.”

(I may be rude, but my intention is good.)

But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala teaches us: “And tell My (believing) servants to say only what is {ahsan | best}...” [Surah al-Israa’ 17 : 53]

Allah ta’ala uses the superlative word: {ahsan} — which means the best, the kindest, the most thoughtful, the most considerate, the most beautiful words in our speech. The way we speak in delivering our message is actually critical in the Sight of Allah. What we say important, but *how* we say it is equally important.

So now we understand that when we declare ourselves as a steadfast believer, we can only make this claim when we’re steadfast in all three aspects — in our imaan, in our ‘ibaadah, and in our manners. 

We need to understand that having imaan alone is not enough, doing good deeds alone is not enough, having good akhlaaq towards others but without total obedience to Allah is also not enough. The comprehensive meaning of having istiqaamah is to be steadfast in all three matters. 

We ask Allah to increase us in imaan, facilitate us in doing good deeds, and beautify our akhlaaq. May Allah grant us steadfastness until we meet a good end.

Your sister in Deen,

Aida Msr