Ahadith e Qudsi

Showoff (Riya)

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (R.A) who said:

I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: The first of people against whom judgment will be pronounced on the Day of Resurrection will be a man who died a martyr. He will be brought and Allah will make known to him His favours and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say: And what did you do about them? He will say: I fought for you until I died a martyr. He will say: You have lied - you did but fight that it might be said [of you]: He is courageous. And so it was said. Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire. [Another] will be a man who has studied [religious] knowledge and has taught it and who used to recite the Qur'an. He will be brought and Allah will make known to him His favours and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say: And what did you do about them? He will say: I studied [religious] knowledge and I taught it and I recited the Qur'an for Your sake. He will say: You have lied - you did but study [religious] knowledge that it might be said [of you]: He is learned. And you recited the Qur'an that it might be said [of you]: He is a reciter. And so it was said. Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire. [Another] will be a man whom Allah had made rich and to whom He had given all kinds of wealth. He will be brought and Allah will make known to him His favours and he will recognize them. [The Almighty] will say: And what did you do about them? He will say: I left no path [untrodden] in which You like money to be spent without spending in it for Your sake. He will say: You have lied - you did but do so that it might be said [of you]: He is open-handed. And so it was said. Then he will be ordered to be dragged along on his face until he is cast into Hell-fire.

(Muslim, At-Tirmidhi, an-Nasa'i)

Riya in Islam means to perform worship with any intention other than the pleasure of Allah Almighty. That's with the intention of informing others about it to gain something, to be praised, to be considered pious or treated with respect.

Following are some examples which should be followed as their is a severe punishment for those who follow riya.

Riya during prayer:

=> To offer Salah regularly so that people will consider him/her very steadfast in Salah.

=> For a Haafiz to lead Taraweeh Salah for money or fame.

=>To offer Salah calmly with the humility of the body in the presence of people to impress them.

=> If a person who has offered Nafl Salah such as Salat-ut-Tahajjud and rubs his eyes or stretches during the day in the presence of people so that they will come to know that he has not slept at night but has stayed awake performing good deeds, this is an indication of Riya.

=> If a person is considered a regular observer of good deeds, but in fact, he is not so, there may be a risk of Riya (show-off) for him. For example, when introduced to people as a performer of these virtuous deeds, he lowers his head with a smile on his face giving the impression as if he performs these deeds. It is an obvious example of Riya (show-off).

=> If someone who has woken up to offer Tahajjud coughs loudly or does other things so that his wife or other family members can wake up and be impressed to see him offer Tahajjud, it is a clear indication of Riya.

=> To stay late at Masjid after offering Salah so that people can consider him a pious person. According to hadith e Nabwi (S.A.W):