and monks as lords besides Allah, as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, and invented monasticism. Thus they associated with Allah that for which He had sent down no authority and instituted as religion what Allah had not permitted.

As for the religion of the Muslims, it is as Allah Most High says:

“So whoever hopes to meet his Lord, let him do righteous deeds and associate no one in the worship of his Lord.”

He Most High also says:

“To test you as to which of you is best in deeds.”

Al-Fudayl ibn ‘Iyād said: “The most sincere and the most correct.” They asked: “What is meant by the most sincere and the most correct?”

He said: “If a deed is sincere but not correct, it will not be accepted; and if it is correct but not sincere, it will not be accepted. It must be both sincere and correct. Sincerity means that it is done for Allah, and correctness means that it accords with the Sunnah.”

For this reason, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb used to say in his supplication:

“O Allah, make all my deeds righteous, make them purely for Your sake, and let no one else have any share in them.”

As for “reality grounded in revealed law,” it consists in putting into practice what Allah and His Messenger have prescribed, such as sincerity towards Allah, reliance upon Allah, fear of Allah, gratitude to Allah, patience with Allah’s judgment, love for Allah and His Messenger, hatred for the sake of Allah and His Messenger, and other things that Allah and His Messenger love. These are the realities of the people of faith and the path of those endowed with spiritual knowledge.