Many people wonder:
We regularly worship Allah and offer supplications to Him, yet why do we not experience the spiritual benefits and blessings of these acts in our worldly lives?
One major reason is that although we regularly perform Ṣalāh, pay Zakāh, observe fasts, and perform Ḥajj, the faith of many among us is not sound. It is either tainted with hypocrisy or afflicted with serious deficiencies.
Moreover, many people do not even know what genuine faith entails, what it demands of them, what can invalidate it, or how its light and strength can become diminished.
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr (raḍiyallāhu ʿanhumā) said:
لَيَأتِيَنَّ عَلَى النَّاسِ زَمَانٌ يَجْتَمِعُونَ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ ، وَلَيْسَ فِيْهِمْ مُؤْمِنٌ.
“There will certainly come a time when people will gather in mosques, yet there will be no true believer among them.” (Al-Ḥākim and al-Ṭaḥāwī)
Even during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the hypocrites regularly gathered at the Prophet’s Mosque and performed Ṣalāh alongside him. Yet they were not genuine believers.
Consequently, their prayers were not accepted, nor did they attain the spiritual benefits of those acts of worship.
In various ḥadīths, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stipulated faith as a condition for acts of worship such as Ṣalāh, fasting, and Iʿtikāf to be accepted and rewarded.
These ḥadīths indicate that, without genuine faith, no act of worship is worthy of acceptance and reward in the sight of Allah Almighty, nor can its spiritual benefits be properly attained in this world.
It is worth noting that, in these ḥadīths, *īmān* may refer to accepting and adhering willingly to the overall teachings and injunctions of Islam. It may also refer to a person’s firm and unwavering conviction regarding the importance, excellence, and efficacy of the particular act of worship concerned.
Someone might raise another question:
Is it not precisely because a person has faith that they perform Ṣalāh, observe fasts, and undertake Ḥajj? If so, why do these ḥadīths explicitly make faith a condition?
The answer is that a hypocrite or an irreligious person might join the Muslim congregation and regularly perform Ṣalāh, observe fasts, and undertake Ḥajj with the ulterior motive of serving personal interests. Yet such a person may possess neither genuine faith in the teachings of Islam nor firm conviction regarding the importance and efficacy of the acts of worship they perform.
In such circumstances, the person may indeed engage in various acts of worship, but those acts do not genuinely express their faith. Rather, they are merely performative and driven by ulterior motives.
This is why such acts of worship often lack the spirit of sincerity and humility.
It is also possible that a Muslim performs Ṣalāh, observes fasts, and undertakes Ḥajj but does not possess the genuine and firm faith in the other teachings and injunctions of Islam that ought to accompany these acts.
Although such a person may outwardly bear the mantle of faith, much of their conduct and behaviour may appear inconsistent with its demands. They may continually oppose or disregard numerous Islamic injunctions.
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To learn more about the definition, nature, fundamental components, and implications of faith, read:
**Uṣūl al-Īmān (Fundamentals of Faith), Volumes 1–4.**