Miftah-ul-Janna (Booklet for way to Paradise)

those adabs and avoiding the makrûhs. Yet they are no good when
they are without the ones to which they are additional. Likewise,
to pay one (Turkish) lira as zakât, (which is farz for Muslims
defined in detail in the first chapter of the fifth fascicle of Endless
Bliss,) is better than dispensing thousands of liras in the name of
alms which is supererogatory. Indeed, to observe one of the adabs
(of zakât) as you pay that lira, i.e. to pay it to one of your close
relatives, [1]
is much better than that supererogatory worship.
[Hence, people who wish to perform midnight namâz (called
tahajjud [or tehejjud]) should perform qadâ namâzes.
Commandments of Allâhu ta’âlâ are called farz (or fard), and His
prohibitions are called harâms. Our Prophet’s commandments are
called sunnats, and his interdictions are called makrûhs. All these
things, in the aggregate, are called Ahkâm-i-islâmiyya. It is farz to
acquire beautiful conduct and to do good to people. A person who
denies or despises one of the tenets of the Ahkâm-i-islâmiyya
becomes an unbeliever (kâfir), a renegade (murtadd). A person
who believes all the Ahkâm-i-islâmiyya, in the aggregate, is called
a Muslim. A Muslim who disobeys the Ahkâm-i-islâmiyya because
of sloth is called a fâsiq Muslim. A fâsiq Muslim who violates one
of the commandments or prohibitions shall go to Hell. None of the
good acts and sunnats that a fâsiq Muslim does will be accepted
and no thawâb will be given for them. If a person does not pay
zakât, be it one (Turkish) lira, none of their acts of donation or
charity shall be accepted. They shall not be given any thawâb for
any of the mosques and/or schools and/or hospitals built at their
expense or for any of their donations to charity organizations. The
namâz of Terâwih performed by a person who has not performed
night prayer shall not be accepted. Acts of worship other than
those which are farz or wâjib are called nâfila (supererogatory).
Sunnats are supererogatory worship. In light of this definition, a
person who performs qadâ namâz will have performed sunnat
namâzes as well. The thawâb (to be earned) for performing a farz
or for avoiding a harâm is more than the thawâb earned by doing
millions of acts of supererogatory worship. A person who omits a
farz or commits a harâm shall be subjected to fire in Hell. Their
supererogatory worship cannot save them from Hell. Changes
made in acts of worship are called bid’ats. To commit a bid’at
when performing an act of worship is harâm and will spoil that act
[1] It goes without saying that that close relative should not be one of
those whom you have to support, such as you wife, children, parents.
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