What is the philosophy of the importance of “Ikhlas” or sincerity in Islam?

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sincerityIn Islam having “Ikhlas” is so important. Ikhlas means to perform our worship only for the sake of Allah and for no other reason and goal. Ikhlas is an obligatory act in worships, for example if we perform prayer, or Wudu or Ghusl without Ikhlas, these worships are not valid and we must do them again from the beginning. Even if we perform them for Allah and beside that, we have other goal for that worship, it is invalid.

If we have Ikhlas in an action that in its innate nature, it is not considered as a worship, but because of having Ikhlas in it, we will be rewarded, for example if we eat and rest for the sake of Allah, for example if we eat and rest in order to be powerful enough to worship Allah and help His creatures, this eating or sleeping will be considered as a kind of worship.

The opposite point of Ikhlas is called Riya or Hypocrisy, for example if we perform prayer in a way that people listen to it and say: what a beautiful recitation he has, it is known as hypocrisy.

It must be known that the one that is hypocrite and always wants to obtain the satisfaction of the others, such person always is uneasy, because no one can obtain the satisfaction of all people, the people that praise him/her, if they get aware of a little thing from the life of that person that they do not like, they start reproaching that person, so we realize that it is not worthwhile to look for a temporary pleasure and leave all of those rewards and bounties and blessings and nearness to Allah and His satisfaction, which have permanent effects.

Imam Ali peace be upon him said:

“There are so much distance between two acts, the act that its pleasure goes and its consequence remains, and the act that its effort goes and its reward remains.”

If we really and deeply believe in the verse 88 from chapter Qasas, the style of our life will change, Allah said in this verse:

كُلُّ شَيْءٍ هَالِكٌ إِلَّا وَجْهَهُ

“All things perish, except His face.”

Every matter of this world is under the will of Allah(of course it must be noted that this sentence does not mean that we believe in predestination, but it means that for example if Allah wants someone to be dignified, no one can prevent it from happening)

Allah said in chapter Fatir verse 10:

مَن كَانَ يُرِيدُ الْعِزَّةَ فَلِلَّهِ الْعِزَّةُ جَمِيعًا

“He who wants might, the might belongs to Allah altogether.”

So if someone thinks that his/her dignity is due to the will of people, he/she is making a great mistake.

If we know that Allah is powerful on all things and He is the most merciful and aware of everything which occurs in minds and hearts, we will have more Ikhlas in our actions.

So is it logical to leave transaction with such a being and instead of that, be busy with those that they are in a very deep need to the Lord of the world?

The infallibles and their real students not only were abstaining from having the material intentions, but also they had no intention of reaching to the paradise or being away from the fire of Hell.

Imam Ali peace be upon him said:

“O’ Allah, I neither worshiped you because of eagerness to the paradise, nor fear from fire (of Hell) but I found you worthy of being worshiped, so I worshiped you.”

And one of the most important ways for obtaining Ikhlas is to purify our hearts from the evil characteristics, like envy, hatred, avidity, and let the heart to be the house of Allah, because there are Narrations in this regard, like the Narration that says:

The heart is the shrine of Allah, so do not let anyone other than Allah to be the inhabitant in the shrine of Allah.

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Source:

Akhlagh.porsemani.ir

1,300 people crushed to death during hajj pilgrimage

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At least 1,300 people have been killed and nearly 805 others injured in a crush during Hajj pilgrimage rituals outside Mecca.

According to Saudi disaster officials, the incident occurred in Mina, near Mecca, at 9 am local time (0600 GMT) after two large masses of pilgrims coming down streets 204 and 223 fused together.

The incident took place as people were heading to participate in the symbolic stoning of Satan.

Over 220 ambulances and 4,000 rescue workers have reportedly been sent to the location.

“Work is underway to separate large groups of people and direct pilgrims to alternative routes,” the Saudi Civil Defense said.

Iranians among the dead

Meanwhile, Sa’eed Ohadi, the head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, has said that at least 125 Iranians have been killed and 150 others wounded in the crush.

Separately, an Iranian deputy foreign minister has announced that a special commission has been set up by the Islamic Republic to follow up on the case of the Iranian pilgrims in Mina.

Saudi authorities responsible 

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs, said the Iranian Embassy in Saudi Arabia, the Consulate and all other relevant organizations are actively working to determine the fate of the Iranian victims of the Thursday incident.

Amir-Abdollahian held the Saudi authorities responsible for the deadly incident, and said they should promptly act to manage the crisis.

“The imprudence on the part of relevant Saudi authorities to provide security for the pilgrims cannot be ignored,” he said.

Some two million people are currently in Mecca for this year’s Hajj pilgrimage.

Some 360 pilgrims lost their lives during the same ritual in Mina back in January 2006

This comes days after a massive construction crane collapsed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque, killing more than 100 people and leaving over 200 others wounded.

Separately, on September 21, a fire at a 15-story hotel in Mecca forced the evacuation of some 1,500 people. A fire also broke out at another hotel in the city days earlier, which left a number of foreigners injured.

Iranian leader declares 3-day national mourning over Mecca deaths

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Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei declared three days of national mourning over the death of 1,300 Hajj pilgrims, including at least 125 Iranians, in a stampede incident in Mina near the city of Mecca.

In his message on Thursday evening the Iranian Leader expressed condolences to the bereaved families of all those killed in the incident, specially the Iranians, and declared three days of national mourning in the country.

Meantime, Ayatollah Khamenei blasted the Saudi government, saying that Riyadh should accept its responsibility for “mismanagement” and adoption of “improper measures”.

“Mismanagement and improper measures that caused this tragedy should not be overlooked,” he said, stressing that “the Saudi government is required to accept its heavy responsibility for this bitter incident and meet its obligations in compliance with the rule of righteousness and fairness”.

The stampede during one of the last rituals of the Hajj season killed more than 1,300 people and left over 2,000 of others wounded.

The stampede occurred during the ritual known as “Stoning the Devil” in Mina, about two miles from Mecca.

Some 125 Iranians have also lost their lives in the incident, while 150 others have been wounded.

Meantime, sources revealed that the convoy of Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud caused panic among millions of pilgrims and started the stampede.

“The large convoy of Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud, the King’s son and deputy crown prince, that was escorted by over 3,50 security forces, including 200 army men and 150 policemen, sped up the road to go through the pilgrims that were moving towards the site of the ‘Stoning the Devil’ ritual, causing panic among millions of pilgrims who were on the move from the opposite direction and caused the stampede,” several Arab papers, including the Arabic language al-Dyar newspaper, disclosed on Thursday evening.

“That’s why the ruler of Mecca has distanced himself from the case, stressing that the issue should be studied and decided by the King,” it added.

No other source has yet confirmed the report, but observers said the revelation explains why two of the roads to the ‘Stoning the Devil’ site has been closed.

Eye witnesses said earlier that the Saudi police and security forces had closed two of the few roads to the stone column that were to be used by millions of pilgrims to do the ‘Stoning the Devil’ ritual today.

Saeed Ohadi, the head of Iran’s Hajj organization, accused Saudi Arabia of safety errors and mismanagement.

He said for “unknown reasons” the paths had been closed off near the scene of the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual where the accident later took place.

“This caused this tragic incident,” he told the Iranian state television.

Eyewitness accounts said that even after incident the Saudi security and military forces closed all paths leading to the scene and the bodies of pilgrims have piled up on each other.

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Culprits of Mina deadly accident to be beheaded by Saudi King order tomorrow!

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Ahlul Bayt News Agency -ABNA- While collecting bodies and providing medical care for the wounded of today’s incident in Mina have not ended yet, an Arabic media reported that 28 people who were involved in the incident to be executed tomorrow!

According to Beirut Daily al-Diyar it is so possible that the king of Saudi Arabia to order the execution of who caused this deadly accident.

“This religious decree will be issued immediately in Mina tomorrow; they will be charged with violating security issues and disobeying orders which claimed the lives of more than 1000 pilgrims and brought disrepute for Saudi authorities,” al-Diyar daily added.

It is important to say that so far Saudi authorities have refused to accept responsibility for the accident and blamed pilgrims for this event. So the authenticity of the news is uncertain.

At least 1,300 people have been killed and nearly 805 others injured in a crush during Hajj pilgrimage rituals outside Mecca. 

According to Saudi disaster officials, the incident occurred in Mina, near Mecca, at 9 am local time (0600 GMT) after two large masses of pilgrims coming down streets 204 and 223 fused together. 

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Number of Iranian pilgrims killed at Mina at 131

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The number of the Iranian pilgrims killed at the recent crush in Saudi Arabia’s Mina has reached 131, an Iranian official says.

Saeed Ohadi, the head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, made the announcement on Thursday night, adding that the number of the fatalities could rise.

He also said that the transfer to Tehran of the bodies as well as those who had sustained injury during the incident will start next week.

The incident occurred in Mina, near Mecca, at 9 am local time (0600 GMT) on Thursday after two large masses of pilgrims fused together.

Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization says the tragic incident claimed the lives of more than 1,300 people, including 131 Iranians. Saudi officials, however, put the death toll at 717.

Saudi Arabia has come under mounting criticism following the catastrophe.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has declared three days of national mourning following the disaster. Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has also asked Riyadh to take responsibility for the disaster and fulfill its legal and Islamic obligations in this regard.

Arabic-language daily al-Diyar has said the presence of the convoy of Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud, the son of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, in the middle of the population prompted a change in the direction of the movement of the pilgrims and the subsequent crush. It said Salman had sought to attend the huge gathering of pilgrims in Mina.

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40 ISIS militants killed, wounded in Iraqi airstrike

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A security source in Anbar announced on Thursday, that 40 ISIS militants had been killed and wounded in an Iraqi aerial bombing on parts of the province, pointing out to the destruction of 11 vehicles belonging to the organization.

The source said that “The Iraqi warplanes were able to bomb seven ISIS vehicles carrying fighters and weapons in al-Malahma area and Tel Mshahydh east of Ramadi, resulting in the killing of 20 militants of the organization and the injury of 20 others, as well as destroying the vehicles” .

The source added: “The Air Falcons, in coordination with Anbar Operations, were able to destroy two ISIS vehicles in Amiriyat al-Fallujah, as well as the destruction of an armored excavator and a fuel tank.”

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President Rouhani offers condolences over tragedy in Mina

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Upon landing in New York, President Rouhani issued a statement on the tragic death of pilgrims near Mecca.

President Rouhani issued a condoling statement upon landing in New York late on Thursday.

‘The passing away of our beloved Hajj pilgrims beside the Muslim Ummah and injury of many others in Mecca is the source of regret,’ the Iranian president said in his message.

Rouhani meanwhile called the Saudi government responsible for the death of thousands of Hajj pilgrims in Mina near Mecca.

President also tasked his First Vice President Eshagh Jahangiri with forming a sepecial committee to follow-up the causes of the tragedy and plan immediate assistance as soon as popssible. He asserted that dispatching relief and rescue teams and in case of need sending airplanes to Saudi Arabia, dealing with the affairs of the Hajj pilgrims, injured of the incident, and dispatch of the deceased pilgrims to the country tops agenda of following up the Mina incident.

Jahangiri is also asked to inform the Iranian nation especially those who have lost dear ones in the incident on the findings of the committee.

Rouhani has also tasked provincial governers to meet with families of the deceaced pilgrims to offer Presidential condolences.

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Iranian FM condoles with families of Mena victims

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Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif extended his condolences to the families of the victims of the stampede incidents of Mena rituals during the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca.

‘This incident brought a wave of grief with itself concurrent with the auspicious occasion of Eid al-Adha in Muslim countries and the Islamic Republic of Iran,’ Zarif said in his message addressed to the families of deceased Iranian Hajj pilgrims on Thursday.

He also sympathized with the victims of other Muslim countries, and said, ‘In addition to formation of a special headquarters at the foreign ministry, I have started intensive political contacts from New York to expedite the identification of the victims and immediate treatment of the injured people.’

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Saudi Arabia must be accountable for deadly hajj disaster in Mina: Iran’s Deputy FM

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“Saudi Arabia should be answerable to the Islamic Republic [of Iran] and other countries that could not perform a calm Hajj [ritual],” Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday.

According to Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization more than 1,300 people, including 125 Iranians, were killed in a crush during Hajj pilgrimage rituals outside Mecca earlier in the day. This as Saudi officials put the death toll at 717 and the number of injured at 863.

He also said that the fatal crush started after Saudi security forces blocked two streets while the pilgrims were walking towards the final ritual of the Hajj. 

“We can by no means remain indifferent towards Saudi Arabia’s irresponsible behavior,” said Amir-Abdollahian, adding, “The tactlessness on the part of relevant Saudi authorities to provide security for the pilgrims cannot be overlooked.”

Earlier in the day, Saudi Arabia’s charge d’affaires to Tehran was summoned to Iran’s Foreign Ministry to hear the Islamic Republic’s protest over the mishandling of the deadly incident by Saudi authorities. 

For his part, the Saudi diplomat expressed regret over the fatal incident and offered condolences to the Iranian government and the families of the killed pilgrims.  

Earlier on Thursday, Amir-A

bdollahian held the Saudi authorities responsible for Thursday’s tragedy, and said they should promptly act to manage the crisis.

Iran’s First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri laid the blame on the Saudi government for the tragic incident, saying “the consequences of any negligence” falls upon the Saudi government.

According to Saudi disaster officials, the incident occurred in Mina, near Mecca, on Thursday after two large masses of pilgrims coming down streets 204 and 223 fused together.

The tragedy came days after a massive construction crane collapsed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque, killing more than 100 people and leaving over 200 others injured.

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Al-Diyar: Convoy of Saudi Prince Caused Hajj Disaster

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The Arabic-language daily al-Diyar said in a report on Thursday that the convoy of Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud played a central role in the deadly crush on the third day of the annual Hajj pilgrimage earlier in the day.

The report said that Salman, who had sought to attend the huge gathering of pilgrims in Mina, a large valley about five kilometers (three miles) from Mecca, arrived at the site early on Thursday accompanied by a huge entourage.

The report said 200 army forces and 150 police officers escorted the prince.

The report said the presence of the prince in the middle of the population prompted a change in the direction of the movement of the pilgrims and a stampede.

The Lebanese daily further said that Salman and his entourage swiftly abandoned the scene, adding that the Saudi authorities seek to hush up the entire story and impose a media blackout on Salman’s presence in the area.

However, officials in Saudi Arabia have denied the report, calling it “incorrect.” The Saudi health minister has blamed the pilgrims for the tragedy. “If the pilgrims had followed instructions, this type of accident could have been avoided,” Khaled al-Falih said.  

According to Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization more than 1,300 people, including 125 Iranians, were killed in the crush. This as Saudi officials put the death toll at 717 and the number of injured at 863.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has declared three days of national mourning following the incident while urging the Saudi government to “shoulder its heavy responsibility” in the stampede and “meet its obligations in compliance with the rule of righteousness and fairness.”

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday that Saudi Arabia should be held accountable over the death of the pilgrims. He said that the fatal crush started after Saudi security forces blocked two streets while the pilgrims were walking towards the final ritual of the Hajj.

“We can by no means remain indifferent towards Saudi Arabia’s irresponsible behavior,” said Amir-Abdollahian, adding, “The tactlessness on the part of relevant Saudi authorities to provide security for the pilgrims cannot be overlooked.”

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