Hypocrisy is one of the moral afflictions and a disease of the heart. The word riya comes from the root ruyat, meaning to show off or to display one’s deeds to others. The aim of a hypocrite is to attract people’s attention by pretending to worship or perform good deeds. Such a person is, in truth, a polytheist, because he considers honor, dignity, and greatness to be in the hands of people rather than God. Therefore, he performs his actions with the motive of gaining people’s approval rather than God’s pleasure.[1]
Sincerity: The Opposite of Hypocrisy
Sincerity in intention means purifying one’s motive for the sake of God alone. Intention becomes sincere only when a person has no purpose in his worship or work other than seeking God’s pleasure, and when nothing but closeness to drive him to act.
Since worldly desires surround the human being powerfully from all sides, having a pure intention in one’s worship and deeds, and keeping the divine presence alive in the heart, is a very difficult task.
Sincerity of intention is achieved only through full awareness and attention to God. Wherever there is no remembrance of God, there is heedlessness, and wherever there is heedlessness, polytheism and hypocrisy appear. One who loses sight of the goal becomes negligent, and one who is heedless of the goal ceases to move forward.
The Comprehensive Instruction of Imam Ali (AS) about Hypocrisy
Imam Ali (AS) gives a comprehensive instruction to all believers, advising them to perform their deeds solely for God. Otherwise, they must seek their reward from those for whom they performed the act, not from God. He eloquently states: “Fear God in such a way that you will not need to apologize later. Perform good deeds without being afflicted by hypocrisy or showing off, for whoever does a deed for anyone other than God, God will leave him to that one”.[2]
The Meaning of Sum’ah
In this saying of the Imam, the word sum’ah appears alongside riya. Scholars have identified a slight distinction between these two terms. Ayatollah Makarim Shirazi mentions two interpretations of this distinction:
- First, Sum’ah refers to a situation in which a person performs an action sincerely for God and with a divine intention, but afterward begins to think about making it known to others in order to gain reputation through it. This is what, according to jurists, does not invalidate the act itself, because it occurs after the action has already been completed. However, it reduces its reward or may even nullify its spiritual merit.
- Second, from the very beginning of the act, the person’s intention is that people hear about it and speak well of him. This kind of act is no different from hypocrisy, except that in hypocrisy, one performs the deed for others to see, while in sum’ah, one does it for others to hear. In both cases, there is no divine motive, and thus the act becomes invalid, for sincerity of intention is lost.[3]
In any case, riya and sum’ah are among the greatest dangers to acts of worship and devotion. Because hypocrisy and showing off can creep into human deeds in subtle and complex ways, the Quran and traditions have repeatedly warned against them.
The Corrupting Effects of Hypocrisy
1. Polytheism
The most serious harm of hypocrisy is that it destroys the spirit of monotheism and throws a person into the pit of polytheism, for belief in divine unity teaches that everything is in God’s hands, reward, honor, respect, reputation, and sustenance all depend on His will. But the hypocrite, by contaminating his worship and good deeds with hypocrisy, seeks these things from others. This is clear polytheism.
Imam Ali (AS) said about the connection between hypocrisy and polytheism: “Be aware that hypocrisy and showing off, even in the smallest measure, is a form of polytheism”.[4]
In a narration from Imam Sadiq (AS), it is stated: “Every act of hypocrisy is polytheism. Whoever acts for people, his reward is upon people; and whoever acts for God, his reward is upon God”.[5]
Traditions tell us that on the Day of Resurrection, when all inner secrets are revealed, the hypocrites will be addressed: “O disbeliever, O sinner, O breaker of promises, O loser! Your deeds are void, your reward is lost, and today there is no salvation for you”.[6]
This is the meaning of a well-known divine saying reported from the Prophet (PBUHH): “I am the best of partners. Whoever associates another with Me in his work, I will leave that work to his partner, for I accept only deeds that are purely for Me”.[7]
2. Social disorder
Hypocrisy and sum’ah also cause many social problems. Hypocrites focus only on outward appearances and ignore the inner truth of their actions. Their outer life appears neat, but their inner self is corrupt. Their social systems are mere facades, lacking the reality that brings blessing and progress to a community. Their thoughts and deeds are shallow and without depth. They care only for quantity, not quality, especially in matters unseen by others. Such societies inevitably decline and collapse, facing a bitter destiny.[8]
Imam Ali’s (AS) Description of Hypocrites
In Nahj al-Balagha, Imam Ali (AS) divides people into four groups in terms of their worldliness. One group consists of those who use religion as a means to achieve worldly gain. By doing this, they destroy both the world of others and their own religion. He describes them as follows:
“Another group seeks worldly gain through deeds of the Hereafter. They do not pursue spiritual positions through worldly acts. They show humility and modesty; their steps are short and pretentious; they gather their garments neatly and appear like true believers. They use the garment of faith as a cover for hypocrisy, double-dealing, and worldly desire”.[9]
Such people seem humble, calm, and dignified. They adorn themselves with the slogans of the righteous and misuse God’s concealment of faults to persist in disobedience.
The Superficial Faith of Hypocrites
Although these people may outwardly profess faith in God and the Resurrection, true faith has not penetrated their hearts. Otherwise, how could they trade such a precious treasure for such a trivial price?
Therefore, the traditions say that on the Day of Resurrection, when all veils are lifted, they will be called out as: “O disbeliever! O sinner! O traitor! O loser! Your deeds are nullified, your reward is gone, and no path of salvation remains for you. Go and seek your reward from the one for whom you performed your deeds”.[10]
Human Dislike for Hypocrisy
Just as we humans expect sincerity from others in their behavior toward us, surely God also desires that His servants perform their deeds sincerely for His pleasure alone. Imam Ali (AS) said: “Truly, God Almighty loves that a person’s intention toward people be good, just as He loves that his intention in obeying Him be strong and free from doubt or hypocrisy”.[11]
Hypocrisy in Worship and its Effect
Hypocrisy in worship weakens the relationship between a person and God. It turns worship into a game and, in effect, mocks the Divine. It also affects one’s relations with others, for a hypocrite constantly seeks to deceive. Those who deal with him are never safe from his deceit. Thus, hypocrisy leads one outside the bounds of proper social conduct.
The Cause of Hypocrisy
Like others, a hypocrite performs voluntary acts seeking benefit or avoiding harm. He wants to be admired and respected by people, valuing their approval more than God’s. Such a person commits two major mistakes:
- He forgets that people’s judgment of him depends on God’s will. Whether his actions attract or repel others is in God’s hands. If God wills, the same actions may win people’s praise, or, if He wills otherwise, they may bring about their hatred. Hence, the hypocrite’s belief in divine unity of action is weak and misguided.
- He assumes that people independently have the power to benefit or harm him, unaware that any influence they have is by God’s will alone. This negligence is a denial of the unity of God’s actions and leads the hypocrite into polytheism.
If the hypocrite succeeds for a time in gaining people’s praise, he gradually forgets God and imagines that his good reputation comes from himself. He fails to realize that God, the Concealer of faults, is merely covering his hypocrisy and corruption. This neglect causes him to persist in sin and darken his heart further.
The Cure for Hypocrisy
The most effective cure for hypocrisy is for the hypocrite to reflect deeply on his belief about God. If he remembers that God alone possesses complete knowledge and power, and that no one else has any strength or knowledge except through Him, he will realize that only God knows the purity or impurity of his intentions, and only God can bring him benefit or protect him from harm.
Thus, instead of turning to weak and dependent creatures, he will turn to the powerful and merciful Creator, seeking worldly and eternal happiness only from Him. All others besides God are weak, as the Quran says: “Those whom you call upon besides God can never create even a fly, even if they all gathered for it. And if the fly takes something from them, they cannot recover it from it. Weak indeed are both the seeker and the sought”.[12]
Conclusion
Hypocrisy, as opposed to sincerity, means showing off one’s deeds to others. In essence, hypocrisy is a form of polytheism that nullifies one’s deeds. It not only leads to spiritual ruin but also to social disorder. The faith of a hypocrite is merely superficial, and he abuses God’s concealment of his sins to persist in them. The only true cure for hypocrisy lies in correcting one’s belief in God’s oneness in knowledge, power, action, and recompense.
Notes
[1] . Makarim Shirazi, The Message of Imam (AS), vol.2, p.55.
[2] . Sayyid al-Radi, Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 23.
[3] . Makarim Shirazi, The Message of Imam (AS), vol. 2, p. 56.
[4] . Sayyid al-Radi, Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 86.
[5] . Kulayni, Usul al-Kafi, The Book of Faith and Disbelief, Chapter on Riya, Hadith 3.
[6] . Hurr al-Amili, Wasail al-Shiah, vol.1, p.50.
[7] . Hashimi Khoyi, Minhaj al-Baraah, vol.3, p.324; Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, vol.67, p.243.
[8] . Makarim Shirazi, The Message of Imam (AS), vol.2, p.56.
[9] . Sayyid Al-Radi, Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 32.
[10] . Hurr al-Amili, Wasail al-Shiah, vol.1, p.51.
[11] . Amidi, Ghurar al-Hikam, vol.1, p.271.
[12] . Al-Hajj:73.
References
- The Holy Quran.
- Amadi, Abdul-Wahid. Ghurar al-Hikam wa Durar al-Kalim. Translated by Mohammad Ali Ansari, Tehran, 1337 Sh.
- Hashimi Khuyi, Mirza Habibullah. Minhaj al-Baraa fi Sharh Nahj al-Balagha. Tehran: Maktabat al-Islamiyya, 4th ed., 1400 AH.
- Hurr al-Amili, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan. Tafsil Wasail al-Shia ila Tahsil Masail al-Sharia. Qom: Al-al-Bayt (AS) Foundation, 1409 AH.
- Kulayni, Muhammad ibn Yaqub. Usul al-Kafi. Beirut: Dar al-Adwa, 1413 AH.
- Majlisa, Muhammad Baqir. Bihar al-Anwar al-Jamia li-Durar Akhbar al-Aimmat al-Athar (AS). Beirut: Dar Ihya al-Turath al-Arabi, 1403 AH.
- Makarim Shirazi, Naser, and colleagues. The Message of Imam Amir al-Muminin (AS): A New and Comprehensive Commentary on Nahj al-Balagha. Qom: Madrasat al-Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), 1390 Sh.
- Sayyid al-Radi. Nahj al-Balagha, arranged by Subhi al-Salih. Qom: Dar al-Hijra, 1414 AH.
Source of the article | Adapted from:
Seyahat Esfandiyari, Abedin, Applied Ethics with an Emphasis on Nahj al-Balagha, Qom, Qaseem Publications 1395 SH.
