Islam requires of the Muslim, first and foremost, that he be a true and sincere believer in Allah, closely connected to Him, constantly remembering Him and putting his trust in Him, while making the effort to help himself. The Muslim should feel in the depths of his soul that he in constant need of the help and support of Allah, no matter how much he may think he can do for himself.

The true and sincere Muslim is alert and open-minded to the magnificence of Allah’s creation. He knows that it is Almighty Allah Who is in control of the affairs of the universe and of mankind. He recognizes the signs of His unlimited power in every aspect of creation, and so his faith in Allah increases, he remembers Him constantly and puts his trust in Him:

Means : “Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of Night and Day – there are indeed Signs for men of understanding – men who celebrate the praises of Allah, standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and contemplate the [wonder of] creation in the heavens and the earth, [with the thought]: ‘Our Lord! Not for naught have You created [all] this! Glory to You! Give us salvation from the Penalty of the Fire.’”

(Qur’an 3: 190-191)

Obedient to the commands of his Lord

It comes as no surprise, then, that the sincere Muslim is humbly obedient to Allah in all matters. He never transgresses the limits, and he follows Allah’s commands and guidance even when they are contrary to his own desires. The test of the Muslim’s faith lies in the following of the commands of Allah and His Messenger (SAW) in all matters, great and small, with no hesitation or reservation:

Means : “None of you (truly) believes until his inclination is in accordance with what I have brought.”

(An-Nawawi’s Forty Hadith, hadith no. 41, p. 124.)

Means : “But no, by the Lord, they can have no [real] Faith, until they make you judge in all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against your decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction.”

(Qur’an 4: 65)

It is the matter of absolute submission and complete obedience to Allah and His Messenger. Without both of these, there is no faith and no Islam. Therefore the sincere Muslim does not deviate from the guidance of Allah or ignore the commands of His Messenger, whether these concern him as an individual or those over whom he has authority and for whom he is responsible (i.e., the members of his family).

He accepts the will and decree of Allah

The sincere Muslim is always content to accept the will and decree of Allah, remembering the hadith :

Means : “How amazing is the affair of the Muslim! His affairs are all good. If he experiences ease, he is grateful, and that is good for him. If he experiences hardship, he faces it with patience and perseverance, and that is also good for him.”

(Bukhari)

The sincere Muslim is convinced that belief in the will and decree of Allah is one of the pillars of faith. Whatever befalls him in life cannot have been avoided, because Allah has decreed it. His acceptance of the divine will and decree will earn him a great reward from Allah, Who will count him as one of the successful, obedient believers.

This is why the hadith says that Muslim’s affairs are all good. If he goes through a time of ease, he will give much thanks to his generous Lord for His bounty, and if he goes through a time of hardship he will beat it with patience and fortitude, following the commands of his Lord and accepting His will and decree. Whatever the case, it is truly good for him.

The one who turns to Allah in repentance

The Muslim may find himself becoming neglectful and slipping from the Straight Path, so that he may commit a sin which does not befit him as a humble and vigilant believer, but he will soon remember his Lord, turn away from his error and seek forgiveness for his feelings:

Means : “ Those who fear Allah, when a thought  of evil from Satan assaults them, bring Allah to remembrance when lo! They see [aright]!”

(Qur’an 7: 201)

The heart filled with love and fear of Allah will not be overcome by negligence. It is those who ignore Allah’s commands and guidance who will be led astray. The heart of the sincere Muslim is ever eager to repent and seek forgiveness, and rejoices in obedience, guidance and the pleasure of Allah.

His main concern is the pleasure of his Lord

The sincere Muslim seeks to earn the pleasure of Allah in everything that he does. He is not concerned with seeking the approval of others, and indeed he may incur the wrath and hatred of people in the course of his efforts to win divine favor, as the Prophet (SAW) said:

Means : “Whoever seek the pleasure of Allah at the risk of displeasing the people, Allah will take care of him and protect him from them. But whoever seeks the pleasure of he people at the risk of angering Allah, Allah will abandon him to the care of the people.”

(Tirmidhi, Al-Qadaai and Ibn ‘Asaakir. Its isnad is hasan)

Consequently, he measures all his deeds against his desire to attain the pleasure of Allah, and will retain or discard any practice accordingly. Thus the Muslim will have appropriate standards, and the Straight Path will be clearly signposted for him. He will avoid falling into ridiculous contradictions whereby he obeys Allah in one matter and disobeys Him in another, or he regards something as halaal (legal) one year and haraam (illegal) the next. There is no room for contradictions as long as the standards are correct and the principles are sound.

One often notices people who pray devotedly in the mosque, then when one sees them in the marketplace, they are dealing with riba (usury or interest), or if one sees them in home, the street, the school or the neighborhood, it is apparent that they are not applying the laws of Allah to their own selves, their wives, their children or any of those under their care. These people are afflicted by a severe misunderstanding of the reality of Islam, this holistic religion that in all affairs directs the Muslim towards a greater purpose, namely the pleasure of Allah, may He be glorified. This greater purpose leads the Muslim to measure all his deeds against to be “semi-Muslims” : they are Muslims in name only. This split personality is one of the greatest dangers that Muslims are currently facing.

He regularly performs the duties and good deeds required by Islam

The sincere Muslim performs all obligatory deeds and adheres to the pillars of Islam, completely and devotedly. He does not slacken, nor does it halfheartedly or seeks excuses not to do it. So he establishes prayer, performing each of the five daily prayers on time, for prayers is the pillar of the faith – whoever establishes prayer establishes faith, and whoever neglects prayer destroys the faith.   (See Ihyaa’ ‘uloom ad-Deen, 1/147.)

Prayer is the best of deeds, as is made clear in the hadith narrated by Ibn Mas’ood (r.a.) (may Allah be pleased with him) in which he said:

Means : “I asked the Messenger of Allah: ‘What deed is most loved by Allah?’ He said, ‘To offer each prayer as soon as it is due.’ I asked him, ‘Then what?’ He said, ‘Treating one’s parents with honor and respect.’ I asked him, ‘Then what?’ He said, ‘Jihad for the sake of Allah.’”

(Bukhari and Muslim)

Prayer is so important because it is a direct link between the servant and his Lord, in which he distances himself from the concerns of daily life and focuses himself entirely on his Lord, asking Him for help, guidance and perseverance to continue along the Straight Path. So it is hardly surprising that prayer is considered to be the best of deeds, because it is the source from which the believer may replenish his taqwa (piety) and the spring in whose pure water he may cleanse himself of his sins.

Abu Hurayrah (r.a.) said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah (SAW) said:

Means : ‘What would you think if there were a river running by the door of any of you, and he bathed in it five times every day, would any trace of dirt be left on him?’ The people said, ‘There would be no trace of dirt on him.’ He said: ‘This is like the five daily prayers, through which Allah erases sin.’”

(Bukhari and Muslim)

Jaabir (r.a.) said: “The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said:

Means : ‘The five daily prayers are like a deep river flowing by the door of any of you, in which he bathes five times each day.’”

(Muslim)

Ibn Mas’ood (r.a.) said:

“A man kissed a woman, then e came to the Prophet and told him what he had done. Then Allah revealed the saayah (verse):

Means : ‘And establish regular prayers at the two ends of the day and at the approaches of the night: for those things that are good remove those that are evil…’

(Qur’an 11: 114)

The man said, ‘Does it apply to me?’ The Prophet (SAW) said: ‘It applies to all of my ummah.’”

(Bukhari and Muslim)

Abu Hurayrah (r.a.) said that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) said:

Means : “The five daily prayers, from Friday to Friday, are an expiation for the sins committed in the time between prayers, so long as no major sins (kabaa’ir) are committed.”

(Muslim)

‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan (r.a.) said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah (SAW) said:

Means : ‘There is no Muslim man who, when the times for prayer comes, performs wudoo’ (ablution) properly, concentrates on his prayer and bows correctly, but the prayer will be an expiation for the sins committed prior to it, so long as no major sin has been committed. This is the case until the end of time.’”

(Muslim)

The ahaadeeth and reports that extol the virtues of prayer and describe its importance and benefits are many. It is not possible to quote all of them here.

(source : The Ideal Muslim, by Dr. Muhammad ‘Ali al-Hashimi…translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab…publisher: IIPH, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)