Maulana Wahiduddin Khan I The Sunday Guardian I Aug 06, 2023 | p. 10
The Qur’an tells us that man’s sole mainstay in the Hereafter will be the pureness of his heart (26:89). That is, only the pure in heart can gain entrance to paradise. Different commentators on the Qur’an have worded their explanations of this in a variety of ways, but the gist of what they say is largely the same. Here is what Ibn Kathir has written:
The sound heart is one, which knows no impurity or idolatry. According to Ibn Seerin, the sound heart is one which has fully realized that God is Truth and that Doomsday will certainly come—there is no doubt about it—and that God will certainly raise the dead from the grave. According to Ibn Abbas, a sound heart is one, which has borne witness that there is no god but God. According to Mujahid, Hasan and others, a sound heart is one to which idolatry is unknown. According to Sayeed ibn Musayyeb, a sound heart is an upright heart. It is the heart of the believer; the heart of an unbeliever and hypocrite is a diseased one. According to Abu Usman Nishapuri, it means a heart free from bid‘a (inventions in religion) and content with the sunnah of the Prophet (3/339).
It is not just the aggregate of a man’s good deeds, which provide the criterion for entrance into heaven, but rather his inward state. What will be of real value on Doomsday is the character a man has developed in this life. Those in possession of a divine (rabbani) personality, who are enlightened and aware, who are free of psychological complexities and negative attitudes, who have proved their ability to lead their lives on the level of divine nature, will find their entrance into heaven made easy.