Verily, the reward of deeds depends on intentions, and each person will be rewarded according to what he intended

Explanation

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) explains that all deeds are considered according to the intention behind them. This ruling generally applies to all deeds, including acts of worship and dealings. So, he who seeks by his deed some worldly benefit will attain that benefit and will not be rewarded for it. And he who performs a deed with the intention to draw close to Allah Almighty will be rewarded, even if his deed is an ordinary one, like eating and drinking. Then, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) provided an example to illustrate the impact of intention while both deeds apparently look equal. He pointed out that if a person migrates and leaves his homeland with the intention to win the pleasure of his Lord, his migration is a Shar‘i and accepted one, for which he will be rewarded, given his sincere intention; and if a person migrates to attain some worldly benefit, like wealth, high standing, business, or a wife, he will not attain anything from his migration except what benefit he intended, and no reward will be given to him.

Benefits

• The Hadīth urges us to be sincere, for Allah only accepts the deeds that are intended for His sake.
• If a legally accountable person performs the deeds that are to be done to gain Allah's pleasure by way of habit, he will only be rewarded for them if he intends to draw close to Allah Almighty by doing them.
• The intention serves to distinguish between acts of worship themselves and also separates acts of worship from habits.