Ostentation

There is an abundance ofproof in the Quran and Sunnah regarding the
impermissibility of ostentation; and those who show off are often
dispraised, as when Allaah The Almighty Said)what means(:}So woe to
those who pray*]But[ who are heedless of theirprayer -*those who
makeshow ]of their deeds[{]Quran 107:4-6[; and,}So whoever would hope
for the meeting with his Lord - let him do righteous work and not
associate in the worship of his Lord anyone.{]Quran 18:110[. Allaah
The Almighty also says, in a Divine Hadeeth: "I have absolutely no
need of partners; and he who performs a deed whereinhe associates
others with Me, I will forsake him andhis partner."
The Prophetsaid:"What I fear most for youis minor Shirk)associating
partners withAllaah The Almighty(."The Companionsaskedwhat that was,
so he replied:"Ostentation."
Further, on the Day of Judgment, when Allaah The Almighty will judge
people for their deeds, He will tell them to: "]g[o to those whom you
used to impress, in order to gain their praise; see if you will find
your recompense there."
That is why, when Abu Umaamahsaw a man weeping in prostration in the
mosque, he asked him: "Would you do the same if you were at home?"
Causes of ostentation
In Arabic, ostentation is Riyaa', which is derived from the noun
Ru'yah, which means vision. Perhaps that is so, because the essence of
pretension is seeking praise and high status in the eyes of people, by
showing them one's good characteristics. This is manifest in many, but
chiefly five, external aspects, which include every action by which a
person tries to be admired by others: in one's body, clothing, words,
deeds and friends.
If we consider religious ostentation, then a person shows off by his
or her body, by having a bony figure, so as to seem to people as
persevering in worship, being seriously concerned with matters of
religion and deeply fearing the Hereafter. As for appearance and
clothing, a person may sometimes keep his or her hair unkempt, lower
the head while walking, have a slow gait that suggests humbleness
andmake sure to retain the mark on the forehead that is caused by
prostration. In speech, people's pretension is apparent when they may
constantly admonish people regarding mattersof their religion; they
may also utter words of wisdom to show their concern with the affairs
of the righteous and move their lips in Thikr)remembrance of Allaah
The Almighty( in the presence of people. An example of ostentation
indeeds occurs when a person lengthens the standing, bowing or
prostration in prayers, or lowers the head in apparent submission
andabsolute concentration, such that he or she does not look around
while praying. Many may also show off their acquaintances, by, for
instance, hosting a scholar, so that people talk about the visit.
Objectives of the ostentatious
A flamboyant person always has an ulterior motive for his or her
behavior, whether it is toobtain a certain status or some other
purpose. It may be of varying degrees:
He or she may be showing off in order to gain power that enables him
or her to commit sins. For example, a person may appear to be pious
and conscious of Allaah The Almighty, in order to be known for
trustworthiness, and consequently assume a position of authority over
the treasury, so that he or she could steal as much of it as feasible.
This is the most detested kind of ostentation in thesight of Allaah
The Almighty, because it takes obedience as a pretext to disobedience.
Obedience may be exhibited to obtain a lawful pleasure of this life,
such as wealth or marriage. A person with such a behavior pretendsto
have knowledge and piety, to encourage people to marry him or her or
trust him or her with their wealth. This is also forbidden, though on
a lesser scale than the previous one, because the person seeks the
permitted pleasures of the worldly life by means of showing obedience
to Allaah The Almighty.
A person may not aim at obtaining the pleasures of life such as money
or marriage, but worships Allaah The Almighty in front of people, to
prevent them from looking down on, or thinking of, him or her asbeing
inferior and not as distinguished in worship as ascetics, but as only
one of the common people.
Hidden ostentation
Pretension can be either apparent or hidden. The evident kind is what
motivates and urges manto do good deeds, even ifhe desires by them the
reward of Allaah The Almighty as well. The hidden type is the
ostentation that does notactually motivate one to perform an act of
worship which was originally intended for the Sake of Allaah The
Almighty, but makes it easier. For instance, a person may be
accustomed to performing voluntary prayers every night, while feeling
that it is heavy and difficult; however, when a guest visits, the same
worship seems lighter and a person feels more active.
Another manifestation of unseen ostentation is when people conceal
their worship but love that others meet them with smiles and
reverence, praise them, hasten in fulfilling their needs, show
partiality to them in trade by offeringspecial prices and make place
for them; and if that is not done for them,they become greatly
offended.
Sincere worshippers, however, fear this type of pretension and attempt
to conceal their worship more than sinners try to hide their
immorality and wrongdoings. Their every effort is based in the hope
that they are sincerely performing their good deeds for the Sake of
Allaah The Almighty, hoping for His reward for that, being fully aware
that such deeds are the only type accepted by Him on the Day of
Resurrection, when they will be in dire need of Him.
Cure of ostentation
Since ostentation invalidates good deeds and causes the pretentious
person to be detested by Allaah The Almighty, it is one of the
destructive sins a person should try his or her best to cure within
oneself. Indeed, anything with such serious consequences must be
treated, so a Muslim mustdo one of two things:
Uproot the foundation ofostentation, namely, love of praise,
abhorrence of criticism and the desire to obtain what others possess.
These three factors that prompt people to become affected, can only be
treated when a person realizes the harm of pretension, which is that
it causes a decline in the righteousness of the heart and deprivation
from success in the worldly life and of an honorable status with
Allaah The Almighty in the Hereafter; this, along with the
inevitability of punishment, His abhorrence as well as people's and
evident disgrace. Thus, when we compare the pleasure wewill obtain
from the attitudes of people toward us, with what we will have to
forego in theHereafter and the invalidation of our good deeds,
abandoning ostentation will become as easy for us, as it is for a
person who knows how delicious honey is, but leaves it if it contains
poison.
Try to thwart any rising urge or incentive to be showy during worship,
because though we may strive to cut off the roots of ostentation and
pay no attention to any praise, or lack thereof, byothers, Satan will
not leave us and will cast pretentious thoughts in our hearts while we
are busy in worship. Therefore, if the notion of people knowing of our
obedience crosses our mind, we must dismiss it by reminding ourselves
that it holds no importance as long as Allaah The Almighty knows our
intention and that we have no need foranyone to know. On the other
hand, if we happento long to bask in other's approval, we must
remember what it is that entices us toward ostentation and that its
only outcome would be that we will be susceptible to the Wrath of
Allaah The Almighty and loss in the Hereafter.
Quitting obedience for fear of ostentation
Some people stop performing a good deed out of fear that it may be a
pretentious act on theirpart; however, that is a mistake. Not only
does it fulfill Satan's wish, it is a pretext for laziness and
abandoning what is good. As long as the motivation for a deed is
sincere, sound and in accordance with Sharee'ah, a person must not
stop doing it becauseof fear of ostentation. Rather, he or she should
counter such thoughts and humble him/herself in front of Allaah The
Almighty, replacing like of people's praise with His love.
Al-Fudhayl ibn 'Iyaadhsaid: "Doing good deeds for the sake of people
is Shirk and quitting]them[ for their sake is ostentation; and
sincerityis when Allaah The Almighty protects you from both." Someone
else once said: "If a person abandons good deeds out of fear of
pretension, he ]or she[ has renounced both good acts and sincerity."