Concealing righteous deeds, and rejoicing in people’s praise for them

Praise
be to Allah

Firstly:

Speaking of the
blessings of Allah, may He be exalted, is one of the things that prompt one
to be grateful for them, and is part of the Muslim’s acknowledging the
blessings that Allah has bestowed upon him. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):

“and
as for the blessing of your Lord, proclaim it”

[ad-Duha
93:11].

As-Sa‘di (may
Allah have mercy on him) said:

This includes
both religious and worldly blessings. “Proclaim it” means praising Allah for
it, and mentioning it in specific terms if there is an interest to be served
by doing so, otherwise one may speak of Allah’s favour in general terms, for
speaking of the favour of Allah prompts one to give thanks for it, and
creates love of Allah in the recipient of the favour, for hearts are
inclined to love the one who shows kindness. End quote.

Tafseer as-Sa‘di
(p. 928).

Ibn Katheer (may
Allah have mercy on him) said:

The words
“but
if you conceal them [your charitable expenditures] and give them to the
poor, it is better for you”
[al-Baqarah 2:271]
indicate that giving charity secretly is better than doing so openly,
because it is further removed from showing off, unless doing it openly will
serve a clear interest, such as causing people to follow one’s example. In
that case, it is better in that regard. The Messenger of Allah (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The one who reads Qur’an out loud is
like one who gives charity openly, and the one who reads Qur’an quietly is
like one gives charity discreetly.”

The basic
principle is that being discreet is preferable, because of this verse… End
quote.

Tafseer Ibn
Katheer
(1/701).

Shaykh Ibn
‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

The one who
tells people about his righteous deeds is one of two things:

1.    

His motive is to praise himself by way of self-admiration and
to show how much he is doing for his Lord. This is a serious matter, which
could lead to the invalidation of his good deeds, and rendering them null
and void. Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, has forbidden His slaves
to praise themselves, as He, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the
meaning): “So
do not claim yourselves to be pure; He is most knowing of who fears Him”
[an-Najm 53:32].

2.    

His motive is to speak of the favours of Allah, may He be
glorified and exalted, and his aim in speaking about himself is to use that
as a means of prompting his peers and other people to follow his example.
This is a praiseworthy aim, because Allah, may He be glorified and exalted,
says (interpretation of the meaning): “and
as for the blessing of your Lord, proclaim it”.
And the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever
sets a good precedent in Islam will have the reward of doing so and the
reward of everyone who acts upon it, until the Day of Resurrection.”

End quote from
Noor ‘ala ad-Darb (12/30).

At-Teebi (may
Allah have mercy on him) said:

There are
reports that speak of the virtue of the one who reads Qur’an out loud, and
other reports that speak of the virtue of doing so quietly. In order to
reconcile between them, we may note that reading it quietly is better for
the one who fears showing off, and reading it out loud is better for the one
who is not afraid of showing off, on condition that he does not disturb
other people, whether they are praying, sleeping and so on. That is because
the benefit of reading out loud may reach others, such as those who listen,
learn or contemplate the meaning, or because it may be like a symbol of
Islam, and because it helps the reciter to focus and reflect upon the
meaning, and it dispels sleepiness and motivates others to worship. If
anyone has such purposes in mind, then reading out loud is better.

End quote from
Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi (8/191)

Based on that:

Speaking about
the favours of Allah may be done by way of attributing the blessings to
Allah, may He be exalted, and acknowledging His favours to His slave,
affirming that He is most generous and most kind; or it may be done so that
others may follow his example in doing good, and so that he may have his
reward and the reward of those who follow his example. All of that is
encouraged and prescribed in Islam.

But if it is
done by way of praising oneself, attributing the blessing to oneself,
showing off and being held in high esteem because of one’s righteous deeds,
and the like, then this is something blameworthy and evil.

See also the
answer to question no. 137984

Secondly:

If a person
speaks of Allah’s favour to him in the manner prescribed, and people praise
him for it and he appreciates their praise, but his intention is never to
show off and make people aware of his righteous deeds, then this is like a
reward that is hastened for the believer.

What is meant by
hastening the reward for the believer is that the believer does righteous
deeds, intending it for the sake of Allah, and people find out about him
doing it without him intending that it be made known or intending to show
off to people, then they praise him and speak well of him, and he
appreciates that.

Muslim (2642)
narrated that Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: It was said to
the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): What do
you think of a man who does a good deed and the people praise him for it? He
said: “That is part of the reward that is hastened for the believer in this
world.”

See also the
answer to question no. 145731

For more
information on types of showing off in worship, please see the answer to
question no. 9359.

See also the
answers to questions no. 6356 and
135634

And Allah knows
best.