Are actions connected to emaan? or does emaan stay regardless of actions that one doe

[Salahudeen]

I am just wondering this because some people say once a person utters the shahaddah and believes it in his heart, he can do any action and remain a Muslim as long as he believes in the shaahaddah in his heart.

Even if he never prays or does any of the 5 pillars he is still a Muslim as long as he belives in the shahaddah but this implies that actions have no relation to emaan right? and emaan does not diminish or rise with actions. Is this the correct view?

[Muhammad]

:sl:


I hope the following will be helpful Insha'Allaah:

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم و به نستعين ولا حول ولا قوة إلا بالله العظيم .

:أما بعد

Imaan with Ahlus-sunnah

Imaan with ahlus-sunah is in 3 parts


1) Belief in the heart

2) Actions of the limbs

3) Actions of the tongue


Ibn 'Abdil-Bar said


" The Scholars of fiqh and hadith are agreed that imaan is both words and deeds........"

(At-Tamheed)

Ahlus-Sunah belive that Imaan increases and decreases. It increases with good deeds and decreases with bad deeds.

Evidence from the Qur'an

إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ إِذَا ذُكِرَ اللّهُ وَجِلَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَإِذَا تُلِيَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُهُ زَادَتْهُمْ إِيمَانًا وَعَلَى رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ

The believers are only those who, when Allâh is mentioned, feel a fear in their hearts and when His Verses (this Qur'ân) are recited to them, it increase them in Faith; and they put their trust in their Lord (Alone); (Al-Anfal 8:2)

وَإِذَا مَا أُنزِلَتْ سُورَةٌ فَمِنْهُم مَّن يَقُولُ أَيُّكُمْ زَادَتْهُ هَـذِهِ إِيمَانًا فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ فَزَادَتْهُمْ إِيمَانًا وَهُمْ يَسْتَبْشِرُونَ


And whenever there comes down a Surah , some of them (hypocrites) say: "Which of you has had his Faith increased by it?" As for those who believe, it has increased their Faith, and they rejoice. (At-Tawbah 9:124)

وَمَا جَعَلْنَاأَصْحَابَ النَّارِ إِلَّا مَلَائِكَةً وَمَا جَعَلْنَا عِدَّتَهُمْ إِلَّافِتْنَةً لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لِيَسْتَيْقِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَوَيَزْدَادَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِيمَانًا

and We have set none but angels as guardians of the Fire, and We have fixed their number only as a trial for the disbelievers, in order that the people of the Scripture may arrive at a certainty and the believers may increase in Faith......



From the sunnah

Handhala Usayyidi, who was amongst the scribes of Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam). reported: I met Abu Bakr. He said: Who are you? He (Handhala) said: Hanzala has turned to be a hypocrite. He (Abu Bakr) said: Hallowed be Allaah, what are you saying? Thereupon he said: I say that when we are in the company of Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) we ponder over Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our very eyes and when we are away from Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) we attend to our wives, our children, our business; most of these things (pertaining to After-life) slip out of our minds. Abu Bakr said: By Allaah, I also experience the same. So I and Abu Bakr went to Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) and said to him: Allaah's Messenger, Handhala has turned to be a hypocrite. Thereupon Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: What has happened to you? I said: Allaah's Messenger, when we are in your company, we are reminded of Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our own eyes, but whenever we go away from you and attend to our wives, children and business, much of these things go out of our minds. Thereupon Allaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if your state of mind remains the same as it is in my presence and you are always busy in remembrance (of Allaah), the Angels will shake hands with you in your beds and in your paths but, Handhala, time should be devoted (to the worldly affairs) and time (should be devoted to prayer and meditation). He (the Prophet) said this thrice.

(Sahih muslim No. 6623)

Evidence from the Salaf

Abdullah ibn Mas'ood said

" Oh Allah increase us in Imaan , cetain belif and understanding"


Abdullah ibn Abbaas , Abu Huraryrah and Abdu Ad-Drda used to say

" Imaan increases and decreases"



Ash-Shafi'ee said

" Imaan is words and deeds it increases and decreases , it increases by means of obedience and worship, and it decreases by means of disobedience and sin "


Ahmad bin Hanble said

" Imaan increases and decreases it increases by means of righteous deeds and decreases by means of failing to do righteous deeds."


(Sharh Usool 'itiqaad ahlus-sunnah wal-jama' )

Disbelif and Imaan

Ahlus-sunah believe that Imaan can increase to the point of Ihsaan(high level of faith) and like wise Imaan can drop to the level of kaafir.

Ahlus-sunah believe that Disbelief(kufr) can happen by


1) actions of the Heart e.g Hating the religion

2) Actions of the limbs e.g slaughtering to other than Allah

3) Actions of the tounges e.g Cursing Allah 'Azza wa jaal


Ahlus-Sunah do not believe that kufr can only happen by juhud(denial) or istihlaal(making things halal like alcohol) like the murji'a believe.


It is the belief of ahlus-sunah to hold tight to the madhab of the salaf in their statement

" Actions are conditions of the correctness of Imaan"

Meaning that whoever abandons all actions and just suffices himself with the shahada then he will not be a muslim.


It was narrated about Al-Awzaa'i , Ath-Thawri , Al-Humaydi that they and others said :


" There is no Imaan without Actions , and no word and no action without intention and no word,action or intention unless it is in accordance with the sunnah"

( Sharh Usool 'itiqaad ahlus-sunnah wal-jama')



And it is the position of ahlus-sunah to reject the innovated madhab of the murji'a who say

" Actions are only conditions of completeness of imaan"


which means to them that someone can be a muslim with correct imaan even if he abandons all obligatory acts or good deeds never made one sajda to Allah, never sat in one juma' prayer, never even said one salam to someone! etc etc .

From: http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/showthread.php?t=1012

You can also read:
http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/9356/eemaan%20action
http://en.islamtoday.net/node/1291
http://en.islamtoday.net/quesshow-100-819.htm

[Salahudeen]

jazakallah khair very helpful.

[Muwaahid]

As-Salaamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullaahi wa Barakaatuhu

I came across a
brief discussion in the book of our beloved Sheikh Saalih Ibn Fawzaan ibn
Abdillaah Al-Fawzaan [Hafidhahullah] entitled Muhaadhiraat Fil Aqeedah
wad-Dawah Volume 3 pages 383-384 that was mufeed jiddan [very beneficial].
Insha Allaah you will find it also of benefit.

The Position of the
Khawaarij Concerning the Perpetrator of the Major Sins

As for the
position of the Khawaarij and the Mutazilah then it is in opposition to that of
Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah. So the Khawaarij rule that the perpetrator of the
kabeerah [major sins] is a kaafir outside the millah [deen of Islaam] and if he
dies and does not repent [from that kabeerah] then verily he shall forever abide
in the fire according to their madhhab.

As for the Mutazilah,
then verily they say that he [the perpetrator of the the kabeerah]exits Islaam
but does not enter into Kufr, so he becomes according to them "Fee Manzilah Bayna Manzilatain" [In a place
between two places]So it is not said: huwa kaafir [he is a kaafir] nor is it
said: huwa mu'min [ he is a believer] and if he dies and does not repent then he
shall abide in the hellfire eternally just as the Khawaarij say.

The
Ruling of the Perpetrator of the Major Sins Acccording to Ahlus Sunnah
wal-Jamaa'ah

As for the position of Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah then
they say: The believer that is the perpetrator of a major sin from amongst the
major sins then it is not said of him that he has Kaamilul-Imaan [Complete
Imaan] but rather he has a Naaqisul Imaan [Defficiency in Imaan] and those that
say: He has complete Imaan are the Murji'ah those that say that: Imaan is not
harmed by sins just as Disbelief is not benefitted by Obedience. And they are
with respect to that in opposition to the Khawaarij. And the Mutazilah, those
that say: He has exited Imaan so they are upon an extremely contradictory
position.

And the position of Ahlus Sunnah, then it is wast [moderately
in between these 2 extremes]. So they do not say: Innahu Kaamilul Imaan [Indeed
he has complete Imaan] as the Murji'ah say and they do not say: Innahu Kaafir
[indeed he is a disbeliever]as the Khawaarij say and not in "Manzilah Bayna Manzilatain" [A place between two places]
as the Mutazilah say but rather they say: "Innahu
Mu'min Naaqisul Imaan, Mu'min Bi-Imaanihi wa Faasiqun Bi-Kabeerihi"
Verily he is a believer, defficient in his Imaan, a believer in his Imaan and
disobedient in his major sin. He is loved from one angle and hated from another
angle. And if he dies and does not repent then his affair is left to Allaah
Subhanahu wa Ta'Alaa and he is under the Mashiyyah [the will of Allaah]. If He
wills Allaah shall forgive him and if Allaah wills He shall punish him then he
shall be taken out of the fire after that just as Subhanahu Ta'Alaa says:




"Indeed Allaah shall not forgive that you set up partners with Him but
He forgives what is lesser than that from whoever He wills"
4:48

Just as it comes in the hadeeth: freed and shall be taken
out of the fire the one who has in his heart the smallest seed of Imaan."
[Collected by Imaam Al-Bukhaaree from the hadeeth of Anas Ibn Maalik]


So the Madhhab of Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah is firmly established upon
Adilah [proofs] from the Kitaab and the Sunnah and it is a Madhhab of justice
and well centered and that is because it is centered between the firaq daalah
[devient sects] just as the Islaamic ummah is centered between the nations of
kufr. Allah Ta'Alaa says: And Likewise we have made you A just nation so that
you may become a witnesss upon mankind and that the messenger maybe a witness
over you." [2:143]