Understanding this Moroccan “niya” relayed by the media during the 2022 World Cup

It’s thanks to Walid Regragui! He used niya to motivate and boost its footballers. As a good coach, he was empathetic and drew from Moroccan culture the name of a common concept, which modern coaching names differently.

Regragui’s messages to his team, calling for belief in niya, were picked up by the media that covered the 2022 World Cup. Niya has become international, linked to success and glory.

Niya has never been so mentioned and valued: a digital museum has just been created in Morocco by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication. An electronic site called Niya Maghribya, consisting of a video library and a photo library retracing the prowess of the Atlas Lions. The site is open to the public, who can enrich it with photos and videos.

Coach friends, French, called me to ask me to explain this concept to them and introduce them to it. It was funny, because they seemed to believe in the magic of niya to achieve success, especially after our team’s victory over Spain, Belgium and Canada.

I admit that it disturbed me: I was born in niyaI live it, I express it, I claim it, but I never thought of defining it.

So let’s try to define it!

In Islam, niya is part of ethics, based on good faith. Niya is the good intention of human beings towards each other. According to the Quran, God is merciful and can forgive sins committed against him, but not those committed against other humans. It is up to the victim to forgive or not. It is then necessary to always be of good intention to avoid sins.

The Prophet said: Innama al a’mal bi niya, wa likoulli mri ine ma nawa (Bokhari). Acts are only as good as intentions and everyone gets what he has planned, according to his good or bad intention.

If a person intended to pilgrimage to Mecca, to give alms or a good deed and died before then, his intention counts as an act, because niya ablaghe mina al âmal (the intention is better than its action).

According to the theologian Al Iskandari (XIII^th century), “the works are empty forms; life enters it through the secret of intention”. The intention must be pure to behave honestly between human beings. Addin mouâmalatethey say (religion is relational).

So if your niya is pure, God grant you barakaa strong will to achieve your healthy goals.

For the society, niya corresponds to a code of good conduct, a virtue, based on sincerity.

For example, a person tells us that she almost came to see us yesterday. He is told: al mouhime hya niya (what matters is your good intention).

Conventional wisdom says that li niytou mazyana âmrou maykhibe (if your intention is good, you fear nothing).

Of a person to whom beautiful things happen, we say that he deserves it because niytha mazyana (her niya is good).

Niya it is also the blind trust that we place in a person. Dayra fike niyti. If you cheat on me niyti tatghlèbe (my niya will triumph).

If someone tries to betray you and you discover it by chance, it is thanks to your niya who opened your eyes.

The traitor can be affected in his health, his job, his money, his family…

Of a sly person, we say niytou ghamda. If it is ill-intentioned, we say niytou khaybayou have to get away from it. Niytou takhrouje fihe (his bad faith will turn against him).

We say that niya or kallate niya mata ytlakawche: good faith and bad faith never agree.

Niya is a bulwark against evil: dir niya oun’asse m’aa lhayya (do niya and sleep next to a viper).

For centuries, before administrative documents, merchants just traded with niya. Even marriages were done just with niya.

The Moroccan proverb says: niyate la’ma fi ‘okkazou (the intention of the blind man is in his cane). Like faith, it is his cane that guides him and he is obliged to maintain it well.

But no excess: a person niya bezzaf (too niya) becomes gullible, naive and can be ripped off because she trusts everyone, does not calculate and is not cunning.

The fqih, when it gives a hjabe (talisman) to heal a person or bring him good luck, says to him “ghiiiir dir niya And everything will go just fine”.

To a person who seeks to achieve a goal and who hesitates, we say: say niya or twakkèle ‘ala Allah (do niya and rely on God). Niyawhen you believe in it, gives you wings, allows you to face risk, to be bold and believe that anything is possible.

The modern version of this niya it’s quite simply what coaches teach today in personal development: create a strong will in what you undertake, by visualizing success and not obstacles and failures.

It’s the law of attraction: our consciousness influences our results. There is a direct link between our thoughts and reality. If we focus enough on our desires and dreams, they come true. If we are positive and strongly believe in our skills, we attract success. If we think negative thoughts, we fail.

It’s exactly that, niya !

But niya is not a magic wand that grants wishes, it boosts ambition, stimulates determination and positive energy and allows you to believe in yourself and in success.

It is with a strong niya that I wrote this article for you. Please don’t, it doesn’t matter, it’s my niya who counts!

Excellent year. May it fill us with niya zwinaserenity and universal peace.