Page 62 - Commonly Disregarded Qur'anic Rulings

60 COMMONLY DISREGARDED QURANIC RULINGS

AVOIDING PURPOSELESS DEEDS

Apart from refraining from worthless talk, believers
should not engage in purposeless and futile deeds that bring
no rewards in the Hereafter. In the Qur’an, Allah speaks of;
Those who turn away from worthless talk; (Surat al-
Muminun, 3)
Engaging in purposeless deeds is a characteristic of hyp-
ocrites and unbelievers, as described in this verse:

Leave them to eat and enjoy themselves. Let false
hope divert them. They will soon know. (Surat al-
Hijr; 3)
All kinds of action that is not intended to earn the good
pleasure of Allah would fit in this category. Even the good
behavior commanded in the Qur’an could be futile if a person
exhibits it for any purpose other than earning the good pleasure
of Allah -for example, because it has become a habit, because it
is a way to avoid another more difficult deed or because it is
something everyone around him does. (Allah knows the truth.)
Besides the obligatory acts of worship that a Muslim per-
forms at particular times in the course of the day, he should
also spend the rest of his time in acts that will benefit Islam
and for attaining the good pleasure of Allah, and he should
strive to improve himself in order to obtain the best results.
The priority and urgency of the work is also very impor-
tant for believers. Scheduled routine work may be a waste of
time and energy when there are more urgent duties waiting
to be done at that moment. A believer must not consider it
sufficient not to indulge himself in the useless pastimes that