What is Intention?
Literally: intention is the determination and will to follow a course of
action.
Technically: According to the scholars of Shari'ah, intention may have
one of two senses:
First: The distinction between one act of worship and another, as it
distinguishes the Noon Prayer from the Afternoon Prayer,
specifying whether one is observing the Fasting of Ramadan or
another type of Fasting. It also makes a distinction between acts
done as a form of worship and others undertaken habitually, such
as ritual bathing and other normal bathing to clean oneself. This
sense of intention is the common one in Muslim jurists books.
Second: Clarifying the aim of the work done, showing whether it is
meant for the sake of Allah alone, or for Allah and others. This
sense of intention is the one common in the Muslim mystics
writings on "Sincerity" and its consequences, and was common in
the speeches of early Muslims scholars.
-Ibn Rajab; Jaami al-Uloom Wal Hikam pg.6
English edition
