Turn your whole life into worship
One day, Mu‘adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) was riding behind the Prophet ﷺ on a donkey. Imagine how blessed he was to share that precious time in the proximity of the Prophet ﷺ! The Prophet ﷺ at the reins and Mu‘adh probably holding on to him, behind him, close enough to hear his voice, smell his fragrance and enjoy those blessed moments in his company.
In that short journey, the Prophet ﷺ turned to him and asked him a question that opened the door to one of the most important lessons in our religion.
عَنْ مُعَاذِ بْنِ جَبَلٍ قَالَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَا مُعَاذُ أَتَدْرِي مَا حَقُّ اللَّهِ عَلَى الْعِبَادِ قَالَ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ قَالَ أَنْ يَعْبُدُوهُ وَلَا يُشْرِكُوا بِهِ شَيْئًا أَتَدْرِي مَا حَقُّهُمْ عَلَيْهِ قَالَ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ قَالَ أَنْ لَا يُعَذِّبَهُمْ
Mu‘adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that he was riding behind the Prophet ﷺ when the Prophet ﷺ said to him, “O Mu‘adh, do you know what the right of Allah upon His servants is, and what the right of the servants upon Allah is?”
Mu‘adh replied, “Allah and His Messenger know best.”
The Prophet ﷺ said, “The right of Allah upon His servants is that they worship Him and do not associate anything with Him, and the right of the servants upon Allah is that He does not punish anyone who does not associate anything with Him.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
A precious lesson during a journey
This was not an isolated incident. We see something similar with Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), who was also riding behind the Prophet ﷺ.
“Young man, I shall teach you some words,” and then gave him that famous advice: “Be mindful of Allah and He will protect you.” (Tirmidhi)
The Prophet ﷺ used these small moments to teach. He did not simply pass the time. He did not “kill time”. Whether he was travelling from one place to another, sitting on a mount, walking, or moving between different tasks, he used the opportunity to nurture, teach and plant knowledge in the hearts of his companions.
This is a lesson for us. Sometimes we are in the car, on the train, waiting somewhere, or moving from one place to another, and we think of it as empty time. However, we should invest in time and use these moments for reflection, learning and benefit. Look at the blessing of that short journey: Mu‘adh heard these words, preserved them and conveyed them to the ummah. More than fourteen centuries later, we are still learning from that conversation.
The right of Allah and the rights of people
The Prophet ﷺ taught Mu‘adh that there are two sets of rights: the right of Allah (huquq Allah), and the rights of people (huqaq al ‘ibad). All books of fiqh deal with these rights, from Kitab al-Taharah, the Book of Purification, through to mawarith, the laws of inheritance.
The chapters on huquq Allah focus on how to worship Allah. The right of Allah is that He alone is worshipped and that nothing is associated with Him. This is tawhid (monotheism). This is sincerity and devotion. This is worshipping Allah with the right intention and in the way taught by the Prophet ﷺ.
Two thirds of fiqh then elaborate on how to conduct transactions, trade, contracts, marriage, divorce, inheritance and dealings between people. These are the chapters connected to the rights of people.
Fulfilling Allah’s rights is an obligation and Allah will not punish those who worshipped Him alone. When it comes to people’s rights, this is classified as worship in broader terms. The scholars understood that Islam is not only about what happens on the prayer mat. It is also about how we buy and sell, how we work, how we speak, how we treat our families, how we honour our contracts and how we deal with others. The great Hanafi scholar Ibn Abidin (may Allah have mercy on him) explains this difference at the beginning of Kitab al-Buyu, the Book of Sales, in his famous commentary Radd al-Muhtar ala al-Durr al-Mukhtar, which is one of the main reference works in the Hanafi school.
When we move into the area of people’s rights, does that mean we can do whatever we want? Of course not. The rights of people are serious. A person cannot pray and fast, then cheat people in business. A person cannot worship Allah, then neglect the rights of his family. A person cannot claim piety while harming others. The religion brings both together: fulfilling the right of Allah and fulfilling the rights of His creation.
My prayer, my sacrifice, life and death are for Allah
Allah says:
قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِي وَنُسُكِي وَمَحْيَايَ وَمَمَاتِي لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ
Say, “Indeed my prayer, my sacrifice, life and death are for Allah, Lord of the worlds. He has no partner.” (Surat al-An‘am, 6:162–163)
Allah also says:
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
I did not create jinn and mankind except to worship Me. (Surat adh-Dhariyat, 51:56)
When Allah says, “life and death are for Allah,” this shows anything we do for the sake of Allah, with the correct intention and in accordance with the guidance of the Prophet ﷺ, can become worship. Being truthful at work is worship. Being good to one’s wife and children is worship. Earning halal income and avoiding riba (interest) is worship. Avoiding haram is worship. Being trustworthy in business is worship. Serving people sincerely and benefiting the community are acts of worship when they are done for Allah.
This is why the scholars say:
العادات تنقلب عبادات بالنيات
Ordinary actions become acts of worship through intentions.
Ordinary actions can be transformed – eating, sleeping, working, travelling, earning, spending, helping, speaking and dealing with people can all become worship when they are done sincerely for Allah and within the limits set by Him.
Do not worship Allah robotically
Sometimes we focus so much on prayer and fasting that even these acts become mechanical. We pray, but our hearts are absent. We fast, but our character does not change. We perform the action, but lose the meaning behind it. We need to improve the quality of our formal worship, and at the same time widen our understanding of worship itself.
Our whole life can become worship if our intention is correct. Every faculty Allah has given us can be used in worship. The tongue can worship Allah by speaking truth and remembering Him. The hands can worship Allah by earning halal and helping others. The feet can worship Allah by walking towards good. The eyes can worship Allah by looking at what is beneficial and lowering themselves from what is forbidden.
Every action can be for us or against us. Our words, our work, our wealth, our business, our family life and our dealings with people can all become a means of reward or a cause of accountability. It depends on how we use them. If we work only for dunya, it remains dunya. But if we work to provide for our family, avoid dependence on others, serve people and seek Allah’s pleasure, then that same work becomes worship.
Learn from the example of the Prophet ﷺ
This is why we need to learn more about the Prophet ﷺ: his seerah, his character, his worship, his dealings, his mercy, his honesty and his way with people. He used every opportunity to connect people to Allah. He taught Mu‘adh during a journey. He taught Abdullah ibn Abbas during a journey. He nurtured the companions through ordinary moments and turned those moments into lessons that still guide us today.
May Allah enable us to fulfil His right, fulfil the rights of His creation, and turn every part of our lives into a means of drawing closer to Him. Ameen.
Based on the khutbah of Shaykh Haytham Tamim on 3rd July 2026
https://www.utrujj.org/when-transactions-become-worship