Definition of Taqwa

‘aouthou billahi mina shaytani rajeem

Bismillahi Ar-Rahmani Ar-Rahim,
My Lord, forgive me and accept my repentance, You are the Ever-Relenting, the All-Forgiving.

Today’s topic is about Taqwa, In essence the reality of taqwa is obeying Allah (swt) with imaan and ihtisab (hope, or counting on Allah (swt)’s reward) in rewards to his commands and prohibitions.

We will find that Taqwa always implies ‘birr’ for instance in this ayah from Allah (swt) book:

..... Help you one another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allah. Verily, Allah is Severe in punishment. Surah Madiah verse 2.[1]

Birr means, righteousness, virtue, goodness, birr is the excellence sought in an objective. Linguistically, it’s related to the word ‘burr’ which mean wheat and it surpasses all other grains in goodness.
The opposite of birr is ithm which compromises all evils and defects for which a person would be blame worthy.

When the Prophet (saw) was asked about birr and ithm by Wasibah (ra) he is reported to have said:
O’ Wasibah, check your heart and check yourself (repeating this 3 times)! Birr is that which pacifies the soul and comforts the heart. And ithm is that which weaves (evil thoughts) in the heart and echoes in the breast, even if the people keep advising you (differently).[2]
So basically birr is the excellence that one should aspire to reach by the means of taqwa.
Taqwa has not direct meaning in English so in order to grasp its ‘approximate’ meaning and significance of taqwa; I shall quote few of the 251 ayahs in which Allah (swt) mentions taqwa in the holy Qur’an:

‌ This is the Book (the Qur'an), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqun [the pious believers of Islamic Monotheism who fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)]. (surah al-Baqarah verse 2)

Who believe in the Ghaib and perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and spend out of what We have provided for them [i.e. give Zakat , spend on themselves, their parents, their children, their wives, etc., and also give charity to the poor and also in Allah's Cause - Jihad]. (surah al-Baraqah verse 3)

And who believe in (the Qur'an and the Sunnah) which has been sent Downs (revealed) to you (O Muhammad) and in that which was sent down before you [the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel), etc.] and they believe with certainty in the Hereafter. (Resurrection, recompense of their good and bad deeds, Paradise and Hell). (surah al-Baqarah verse 4)

They are on (true) guidance from their Lord, and they are the successful. (surah al-Baqarah verse 5)

These verses summarise the essence of taqwah and the reward for it, they also describe the muttaqun (the one with taqwah).
Furthermore we have an extra insight as to what taqwah means in these ayat:

And march forth in the way (which leads to) forgiveness from your Lord, and for Paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth, prepared for Al-Muttaqun. (surah Al Imran verse 133)
Those who spend (in Allah's Cause) in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allah loves Al-Muhsinun (the good-doers). (surah Al Imran verse 134)
And those who, when they have committed Fahishah (illegal sexual intercourse) or wronged themselves with evil, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins; - and none can forgive sins but Allah - and do not persist in what (wrong) they have done, while they know. ( surah Al Imran verse 135)
For such, the reward is Forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens with rivers flowing underneath (Paradise), wherein they shall abide forever. How excellent is this reward for the doers (who do righteous deeds according to Allah's Orders). ( surah AL Imran verse 136).

It is not Al-Birr (piety, righteousness, and each and every act of obedience to Allah, etc.) that you turn your faces towards east and (or) west (in prayers); but Al-Birr is (the quality of) the one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets and gives his wealth, in spite of love for it, to the kinsfolk, to the orphans, and to Al-Masakin (the poor), and to the wayfarer, and to those who ask, and to set slaves free, performs As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat ), and gives the Zakat, and who fulfil their covenant when they make it, and who are patient in extreme poverty and ailment (disease) and at the time of fighting (during the battles). Such are the people of the truth and they are Al-Muttaqun ( surah al-Baqarah verse 177)

Thus from all of the verses above, we have a fairly good description of those who have taqwah and gather an approximate meaning of it:

1. Belief in the Qur’an
2. Love of Allah
3. Belief in the unseen
4. Perform prayers
5. Spend of the provision ( give zakat, share whatever have been bestowed upon them) during prosperity or adversity.
6. Belief in the Qur’an and sunnah
7. Belief in the books that was send before
8. Belief in the hereafter/ Day of Judgement
9. Doing everything to gain Allah (swt) forgiveness.
10. Repression of anger , forgiveness for men.
11. Repenting after having transgressed and not persist in them.
12. Belief in Allah
13. Belief in the messengers and Prophets of Allah (swt)
14. Belief in His angels
15. Give of his wealth to the kinship, orphans, the poor and the traveller, the beggars and set slaves free.
16. Fulfil their covenants
17. Patient especially in poverty and in disease
18. Fight against our nafs, our own ego, foremost, but also in other situations.

So basically taqwa is an attitude, it’s a way of protecting oneself from the wrath of Allah (swt) by obeying His commands, thus we seek refuge in Allah (swt) from Allah (swt).
May Allah (swt) give us the correct understanding of deen and have enough fear of his punishment to worship him properly amen.
Anything that I have said which is good is from Allah (swt) anything else that I said that is not correct is from me,

Subhaanaka Allaahumma wa bihamdika, 'ash-hadu 'an laa 'ilaaha 'illaa 'Anta, 'astaghfiruka wa 'atoobu 'ilayka.


[1] Surah madia verse 2.
[2] Recorded by Ahmad, ad darimi and others, verified to be hasan by sheikh Albany (ra) ( sahih ut-Targhib wa tarhib num 1734)