Niyyah (Arabic: نِيَّةٌ, variously transliterated niyyah, niyya , "intention") is an
Islamic concept: the intention in one's heart to do an act for the sake of
God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
(
Allah).
According to
Ibn Rajab
Imam Abd Al-Rahman ibn Ahmad ibn Rajab (736-795 AH/1335–1393 CE), best known as ''Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali'' and also ''Ibn Rajab'', which was a nickname he inherited from his grandfather who was born in the month of Rajab, was a Muslim scholar.
B ...
's ''Commentary on Imam Nawawi's Forty Hadith: Hadith #1'', actions are judged according to intentions: "
'Umar b. al-Khattab narrated that the Prophet said: Deeds are
resultonly of the intentions
f the actor and an individual is
ewardedonly according to that which he intends."
Correspondingly, one's niyyah or intention is of the utmost importance among the requirements of an act of ritual prayer. There is some debate as to the necessity of an audible utterance of niyyah. Most scholars agree, however, that as niyyah is spoken from the heart, it does not have to be uttered. Additionally, there is no evidence that the
Islamic prophet Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
or any of
his companions ever uttered a niyyah aloud before prayer.
A
Muslim must have niyyah before commencing ''
salat'' (prayer), and in order to commence the ''
Hajj'' (pilgrimage to
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...
).
See also
*
Kavanah
Kavanah, kavvanah or kavana (also pronounced /kaˈvonə/ by some Ashkenazi Jews) (כַּוָּנָה; in Biblical Hebrew kawwānā), plural kavanot or kavanos (Ashkenazim), literally means "intention" or "sincere feeling, direction of the heart". ...
, a similar concept in Judaism
References
Salah
Arabic words and phrases
Salah terminology
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