What is the Reason for Worship and Servitude of God? - prayer4u.org

Worship and servitude of God look to the Divine command and Divine pleasure. The reason for worship is the Divine command and its result is Divine pleasure. Its fruits and benefits look to the Hereafter. But so long as they are not the ultimate reason and not intentionally sought, benefits looking to this world and fruits, which come about themselves and are given are not contrary to worship. They are rather as though to encourage the weak and make them choose worship. If those fruits and benefits are the reason for the invocation or recitation, or a part of the reason, it in part invalidates the worship. Indeed, it renders the meritorious invocation fruitless, and produces no results.

And so, those who do not understand this mystery, recite famous readings, which yields a hundred benefits and merits, or some other readings, which yields a thousand, making some of those benefits their prime intention. Then they do not receive the benefits, and shall not receive them, and do not have the right to receive them. For the benefits may not be the reason for the invocation and may not themselves be intended and sought. For they are obtained when unsought for, as a consequence of the sincere invocation, as a favour. If they are intended, it damages the sincerity to an extent. Indeed, it ceases being worship and looses all value. There is just this, that weak people are in need of something to encourage them to recite meritorious invocation such as those. If they think of the benefits and eagerly recite them purely for God's sake and for the Hereafter, it causes no harm and is even acceptable. It is because this instance of wisdom has not been understood that when they do not receive the benefits narrated from the spiritual poles and righteous ones of former generations, many of them come to doubt, or even to deny them.