What is Ihsaan?
Ulama Institute #1
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• Ihsaan means doing something in the best possible way. It also means to do good to others.
• The Messenger of Allah ﷻ said that Ihsaan means to worship Allah ﷻ , as if one can see Him. If one is unable to do this, then one should know that Allah ﷻ is always watching.
• Deen (religion) has three levels: Islam, Iman, and Ihsaan. They are connected to each other and Ihsaan is the highest of the three. Having Ihsaan means that the person already has Islam and Iman.
• If a person can worship Allah ﷻ as if he sees Him, or knows that Allah ﷻ is watching him, then this person has Ihsaan. Such a person will:
– Not do anything wrong.
-Not harm anybody.
– Act with goodness.
-Try to do his/her best in every deed.
-Accurately follow the teachings of Islam in all his/her affairs.
• A person who has Ihsaan is known as a muhsin. A muhsin is aware that Allah ﷻ is always watching; at night, during the day, in private, and in public.
• A muhsin is good to others by using his/her:
– body -wealth -position – knowledge.
• To have Ihsaan a person must make sure that:
– His intention is pure and clean.This means that the person should do things only for the sake of Allah ﷻ. No good deed should be done to show off be famous, or for money.
– Actions should be according to Allah’s ﷻ guidance in the Qur’aan and the Prophet’s ﷺ Sunnah.
“Discussion:”
- What is the second level of deen (religion).
- To do things only for Allah is called ikhlaas. In English ikhlaas means to be
- In Ihsaan, who should Muslims worship as if they can see Him?
- Who is watching all the time?
How important is Ihsaan?
• Ihsaan is a very important part of Islam.
• Ihsaan is the highest of the three levels of deen (religion). It is higher than Iman and Islam To reach Ihsaan, it is necessary to have Islam, and Iman.
• Ihsaan is very important like the two basic requirements: Islam and Iman.
Amuslim has it when he reaches the highest level of Iman.
• Allah ﷻ commands Muslims to act with Ihsaan. The following three aayaat are examples of this.
Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’aan
“And do good; indeed Allah loves the doers of good.” (Soorah al-Baqarah: 195)
• In this aayah, Allah ﷻ tells Muslims to act with Ihsaan and that He loves those who act with Ihsaan.
Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’aan
“Indeed Allah orders justice and good conduct.” (Soorah an-Nahl: 90)
• In this aayah Allah ﷻ command the believers act with Ihsaan.
• In this aayah, Allah ﷻ also commands Muslims to act with Ihsaan.
“Discussion:”
- Mention the three levels of deen (Religion)
