Closer to Paradise in The Hereafter Through Complete Faith in Islam.

"Come closer to Paradise in the hereafter through complete faith in Islam." It seems simple enough to understand but following it is something extraordinary.
The term "coming closer to Paradise" means following the guidelines set in the holy book of Islam and living up to them. Once these guidelines are accomplished, one becomes successful in all parts of his life; finance, spiritual, and marital. The guidelines include the five pillars of Islam: Fasting, Committing to Hajj, Believing in the Oneness of God, Praying five times a day, and paying your dues to the poor. Further, believing in all the prophets of Islam: from Adam (pbuh) to the last and only Prophet (pbuh), and refraining from all sins as commanded by these slaves of God, are some of the most important types of closeness with Paradise and away from the fire. When you pray, you are devoting your entire existence to God:

Salat is the foremost form of ibada that Allah Himself has prescribed for us. In His own words He commands: Establish regular Prayer that you may remember Me. [Ta Ha 20:14.]

The whole purpose of Salat is to be ever conscious of Allah, the Creator, Lord and Sustainer of all things.

When we perform Salat we involve our tongue, our heart, our mind and indeed our whole body.

Salat is indeed, one of the most comprehensive forms of dhikr.

Allah states in a hadith qudsi: `Out of all the ways through which My servant gets closer to Me, Salat is the dearest to Me.' (Bukhari.

If after regular observance of Prayer your heart remains unmoved, your morals remain corrupt and your conduct remains unaffected, we may question the usefulness and efficacy of you.

The Prophet Muhammad said: God does not accept the Prayers of an individual until his heart achieves in it what his body has achieved. [Al-Ghazali in Ihya]

Paradise is something incomprehensible and only attainable through complete faith because what only matters in this world is you praying with complete attention towards pleasing God. The term "complete faith in Islam," is inside you from the beginning of your life; your parents and society shape, build and bottle up this faith. It also means not going astray from your faith, and keeping consistent with the teachings of Islam. Faith is your whole belief system:

Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) has related: "Three persons from the tribe of Bani Israel got together and started out on a journey. On the way, clouds gathered above them and it started to pour with rain and so they sought shelter in a nearby cave.

Suddenly, a large boulder slipped and blocked the entrance to the cave, trapping the three inside and transforming the day into a dark night for them. They had no other alternative except to turn to Allahn (SWT) for help.

"Let us use our sincere deeds as a means to obtain deliverance from this predicament," suggested one of them. All the others agreed with the suggestion.

One of them said, "O' Lord! You are aware that I have an extremely attractive cousin and that I was infatuated and obsessed with her. One day, finding her alone, I took hold of her and wanted to satisfy my carnal desires, when she spoke out to me saying: O' My cousin! Fear Allah (SWT) and do not h, arm my chastity. Hearing this, I crushed my lustful tendencies and decided against the evil act. O' Lord! If that deed of mine had been out of absolute sincerity and only for the purpose of acquiring Your pleasure, deliver us from grief and perdition."

Suddenly they witnessed that the huge boulder had moved away a little, faintly brightening up the interior of the cave.

The second person spoke out, "O' Lord! You know that I had a father and a mother, so old that their bodies had bent over due to their excessive age, and that I used to tend to them regularly. One night, having brought them their food, I observed that both of them were asleep. I passed the entire night near them, the food in hand, without waking them up for fear of disturbing them. O' Lord! If this deed of mine had been only for the sake of Your pleasure and happiness, open up a way for us and grant us salvation."

As he completed his speech, the group noticed that the boulder had moved aside a little more.

The third person supplicated, "O' Knower of every hidden and manifest! You know Yourself that I had a worker who used to work for me. When his term had reached its termination, I handed over to him his wages, but he was not pleased and desired more and, in a state of dissatisfaction and displeasure, he went away. I used his wage to purchase a goat, which I looked after separately and very soon I had a flock in my possession. After a period of time, the worker again approached me for his wage and I pointed towards the flock of sheep. Initially, he thought I was ridiculing him, but later, realizing my seriousness, took the entire flock and left. O' Lord! If this act had been prompted by sincerity and had only been for Your pleasure, deliver us from this quandary."

At this point the entire boulder moved aside from the mouth of the cave and all three emerged from it, joyous and ecstatic, and continued their journey.

Source: Surah Ikhlas in Islam: Three persons in a cave (sincere faith and worship)

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