Q. If I do some housework to please my mum so that Allah Ta Aala gets pleased, should I inform my mum, that I did this work today or should I keep silent since you should not tell your good deeds to people, it becomes riya, but how will she become happy if she doesn’t know that I did it?
A. There is no need to inform your mom of what you did. However, there is no harm in telling her, since your relationship is one of a mother/daughter, and this is an informal relationship. In such relationships and other similar ones between blood relatives and also that of the husband/wife, there is no intention of showing off or riya. Instead, the communication between each other is so informal that each person speaks of what he/she did for another in the house, without having any such intentions of ‘Riya’. There is no harm in this, and it is allowed. Also, one should not view this as ‘telling others about your good deeds’.
So, you can tell your mum of what you did and make her happy. This will also be pleasing to Allah.
And Allah knows best.
Mufti Waseem Khan