| Part of a series on |
| Islam andIman |
|---|
| Individuals |
| Groups |
|
| Terms |
|
Ihsan (Arabic:إحسانʾiḥsān, also romanizedehsan) is an Arabic term meaning "to do beautiful things", "beautification", "perfection", or "excellence" (Arabic:husn,lit. 'beauty'). Ihsan is a matter of taking one's innerfaith (iman) and showing it in both deed and action, a sense of social responsibility borne from religious convictions.[1]
InIslam, Ihsan is the Muslim responsibility to obtain perfection, or excellence, in worship, such thatMuslims try to worshipGod as if they see Him, and although they cannot see Him, they undoubtedly believe that He is constantly watching over them. That definition comes from theHadith of Gabriel in whichMuhammad states, "[Ihsan is] to worship God as though you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you". (Al-Bukhari andAl-Muslim).[2] According to Muhammad'shadith "God has writtenihsan on everything".[3][4]
Ihsan is one of the three dimensions of the Islamic religion (ad-din):
In contrast to the emphases ofislam (what one should do) andiman (why one should do), the concept ofihsan is primarily associated with intention. One who "does what is beautiful" is called amuhsin. It is generally held that a person can only achieve true Ihsan with the help and guidance ofGod, who governs all things. While traditionallyIslamic jurists have concentrated onislam andtheologians oniman, theSufis have focused their attention onihsan.[5] Those who aremuhsin are asubset of those who aremu'min, and those who aremu'min are a subset ofmuslims:
From the preceding discussion it should be clear that not every Muslim is a man or woman of faith (mu'min), but every person of faith is aMuslim. Furthermore, a Muslim who believes in all the principles of Islam may not necessarily be a righteous person, a doer of good (muhsin), but a truly good and righteous person is both aMuslim and a true person of faith.
— Ayoub (2004), p. 54
SomeIslamic scholars explainihsan as being theinner dimension of Islam whereasshariah is often described as theouter dimension.Ihsan "constitutes the highest form of worship" (ibadah).[6] It is excellence in work and in social interactions. For example,ihsan includes sincerity during Muslim prayers and being grateful to parents, family, and God.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
