1

TAZKIYAH INDEX

POISONS OF THE HEART

SINCERITY
TYPES OF THE HEARTS
REPENTANCE
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The Four Poisons Of The Heart

Chapter 5 of "The Purification of the Soul" 1993 Al-Firdous Ltd

You should know that all acts of disobedience are poison to the heart and cause its
sickness and ruin. They result in its will running off course, against that of Allh, and
so its sickness festers and increases. Ibn al-Mubrak said:

I have seen wrong actions killing hearts, And their degradation may lead to
their becoming addicted to them. Turning away from wrong actions gives life to the
hearts, And opposing your self is best for it.

Whoever is concerned with the health and life of his heart, must rid it of the effects
of such poisons, and then protect it by avoiding new ones. If he takes any by
mistake, then he should hasten to wipe out their effect by turning in repentance and
seeking forgiveness from Allh, as well as by doing good deeds that will wipe out his
wrong actions.

By the four poisons we mean unnecessary talking, unrestrained glances, too much
food and keeping bad company. Of all the poisons, these are the most widespread
and have the greatest effect on a hearts well-being.

Unnecessary Talking

It is reported in al-Musnad, on the authority of Anas, that the Prophet ( ) said:

The faith of a servant is not put right until his heart is put right, and his heart is not

put right until his tongue is put right.[1] This shows that the Prophet ( ) has made
the purification of faith conditional on the purification of the heart, and the
purification of the heart conditional on the purification of the tongue.

At-Tirmidh relates in a hadth on the authority of Ibn Umar: Do not talk excessively
without remembering Allh, because such excessive talk without the mention of Allh
causes the heart to harden, and the person furthest from Allh is a person with a
hard heart.[2]
 3

Umar Ibn al-Khattab, may Allh be pleased with him, said: A person who talks too
much is a person who often makes mistakes, and someone who often makes
mistakes, often has wrong actions. The Fire has a priority over such a frequent
sinner.[3]

In a hadth related on the authority of Mudh, the Prophet ( ) said, Shall I not tell
you how to control all that? I said, Yes do, O Messenger of Allh. So he held his
tongue between his fingers, and then he said: Restrain this. I said, O Prophet of

Allah, are we accountable for what we say? He ( ) said, May your mother be
bereft by your loss! Is there anything more than the harvest of the tongues that
throws people on their faces (or he said on their noses) into the Fire?[4]

What is meant here by the harvest of the tongues is the punishment for saying
forbidden things. A man, through his actions and words, sows the seeds of either
good or evil. On the Day of Resurrection he harvests their fruits. Those who sow the
seeds of good words and deeds harvest honour and blessings; those who sow the
seeds of evil words and deeds reap only regret and remorse.

A hadth related by Ab Huraira says, What mostly causes people to be sent to the
Fire are the two openings: the mouth and the private parts.[5]

Ab Huraira also related that the Messenger of Allh ( ) said, The servant speaks
words, the consequences of which he does not realise, and for which he is sent down
into the depths of the Fire further than the distance between the east and the
west.[6]

The same hadth was transmitted by at-Tirmidh with slight variations: The servant
says something that he thinks is harmless, and for which he will be plunged into the
depths of the Fire as far as seventy autumns.[7]

Uqba ibn Amr said:I said: O Messenger of Allh, what is our best way of surviving?
He, may Allh bless him and grant him peace, replied: Guard your tongue, make
your house suffice for sheltering your privacy, and weep for your wrong actions.[8]
 4

It has been related on the authority of Sahl ibn Sad that the Prophet ( ) said,
Whoever can guarantee what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I
guarantee him the Garden.[9]

It has also been related by Abu Huraira, may Allh be pleased with him, that the
Prophet, may Allh bless him and grant him peace, said, Let whoever believes in
Allh and the Last Day either speak good or remain silent.[10]

Thus talking can either be good, in which case it is commendable, or bad, in which
case it is harm.

The Prophet ( ) said: Everything the children of Adam say goes against them,
except for their enjoining good and forbidding evil, and remembering Allh, Glorious
and Might is He. This was reported by at-Tirmidh and Ibn Mjah on the authority of
Umm Habba, may Allah be pleased with her.[11]

Umar ibn al-Khattb visited Ab Bakr, may Allh be pleased with them, and found
him pulling his tongue with his fingers. Umar said Stop! may Allah forgive you! Ab
Bakr replied; This tongue has brought me to dangerous places.[12]

Abdullh ibn Masd said: By Allh, besides Whom no god exists, nothing deserves a
long prison sentence more than my tongue. He also used to say: O tongue, say
good and you will profit; desist from saying evil things and you will be safe;
otherwise you will find only regret.

Abu Huraira reported that Ibn al-Abbs said: A person will not feel greater fury or
anger for any part of his body on the Day of Judgement more than what he will feel
for his tongue, unless he only used it for saying or enjoining good.

Al-Hassan said: Whoever does not hold his tongue cannot understand his deen.

The least harmful of a tongues faults is talking about whatever does not concern it.

The following hadth of the Prophet ( ) is enough to indicate the harm of this fault:
One of the merits of a persons Islm is his abandoning what does not concern
him.[13]
 5

Abu Ubaida related that al-Hassan said: One of the signs of Allhs abandoning a
servant is His making him preoccupied with what does not concern him.

Sahl said, Whoever talks about what does not concern him is deprived of
truthfulness.

As we have already mentioned above, this is the least harmful of the tongues faults.
There are far worse things, like backbiting, gossiping, obscene and misleading talk,
two-faced and hypocritical talk, showing off, quarrelling, bickering, singing, lying,
mockery, derision and falsehood; and there are many more faults which can affect a
servants tongue, ruining his heart and causing him to lose both his happiness and
pleasure in this life, and his success and profit in the next life. Allah is the One to
Whom we turn for assistance.

Unrestrained Glances

The unrestrained glance results in the one who looks becoming attracted to what he
sees, and in the imprinting of an image of what he sees in his heart. This can result
in several kinds of corruption in the heart of the servant. The following are a number
of them:

It has been related that the Prophet ( ) once said words to the effect: The glance
is a poisoned arrow of shaytn. Whoever lowers his gaze for Allh, He will bestow
upon him a refreshing sweetness which he will find in his heart on the day that he
meets Him.[14]

Shaytn enters with the glance, for he travels with it, faster than the wind blowing
through an empty place. He makes what is seen appear more beautiful than it really
is, and transforms it into an idol for the heart to worship. Then he promises it false
rewards, lights the fire of desires within it, and fuels it with the wood of forbidden
actions, which the servant would not have committed had it not been for this
distorted image.

This distracts the heart and makes it forget its more important concerns. It stands
between it and them; and so the heart loses its straight path and falls into the pit of
desire and ignorance.
 6

Allh, Mighty and Glorious is He, says:

And do not obey anyone whose heart We have made forgetful in

remembering Us - who follows his own desires, and whose affair has
exceeded all bounds. (18:28)

The unrestrained gaze causes all three afflictions.

It has been said that between the eye and the heart is an immediate connection; if
the eyes are corrupted, then the heart follows. It becomes like a rubbish heap where
all the dirt and filth and rottenness collect, and so there is no room for love for Allh,
relating all matters to Him, awareness of being in His presence, and feeling joy at His
proximity - only the opposite of these things can inhabit such a heart.

Staring and gazing without restraint is disobedience to Allh: Tell the believing
men to lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that is more purifying for
them. Surely Allh is aware of what they do. (24:30)

Only the one who obeys Allhs commands is content in this world, and only the
servant who obeys Allh will survive in the next world.

Furthermore, letting the gaze roam free cloaks the heart with darkness, just as
lowering the gaze for Allh clothes it in light. After the above ayah, Allh, the
Glorious and Mighty, says in the same srah of the Qurn: Allh is the light of
the heavens and the earth: the likeness of His light is as if there were a
niche, and in the niche is a lamp, and in the lamp is a glass, and the glass as
it were a brilliant star, lit from a blessed tree, an olive, neither of the east
nor of the west, whose oil is well nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched
it. Light upon light. Allh guides whomever He wants to His Light. Allh
strikes metaphors for man; and Allh knows all things.(24:35)

When the heart is a light, countless good comes to it from all directions. If it is dark,
then clouds of evil and afflictions come from all directions to cover it up.

Letting the gaze run loose also makes the heart blind to distinguishing between truth
and falsehood, between the sunnah and innovation; while lowering it for Allh, the
Might and Exalted, gives it a penetrating, true and distinguishing insight.
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A righteous man once said: Whoever enriches his outward behaviour by following
the sunnah, and makes his inward soul wealthy through contemplation, and averts
his gaze away from looking at what is forbidden, and avoids anything of a doubtful
nature, and feeds solely on what is hall - his inner sight will never falter.

Rewards for actions come in kind. Whoever lowers his gaze from what Allh has
forbidden, Allh will give his inner sight abundant light.

Too Much Food

The consumption of small amounts of food guarantees tenderness of the heart,

strength of the intellect, humility of the self, weakness of desires, and gentleness of
temperament. Immoderate eating brings about the opposite of these praiseworthy
qualities.

Al-Miqdm ibn Mad Yakrib said: I heard the Messenger of Allh say: The son of
Adam fills no vessel more displeasing to Allh than his stomach. A few morsels
should be enough for him to preserve his strength. If he must fill it, then he should
allow a third for his food, a third for his drink and leave a third empty for easy
breathing.[15]

Excessive eating induces many kinds of harm. It makes the body incline towards
disobedience to Allh and makes worship and obedience seem laborious - such evils
are bad enough in themselves. A full stomach and excessive eating have caused
many a wrong action and inhibited much worship. Whoever safeguards against the
evils of overfilling his stomach has prevented great evil. It is easier for shaytn to
control a person who has filled his stomach with food and drink, which is why it has
often been said: Restrict the pathways of shaytn by fasting.[16]

It has been reported that when a group of young men from the Tribe of Israel were
worshipping, and it was time for them to break their fast, a man stood up and said:
Do not eat too much, otherwise you will drink too much, and then you will end up
sleeping too much, and then you will lose too much.

The Prophet ( ) and his companions, may Allh be pleased with them, used to go
hungry quite frequently. Although this was often due to a shortage of food, Allh
decreed the best and most favourable conditions for His Messenger, may Allh bless
 8

him and grant him peace. This is why Ibn Umar and his father before him - in spite
of the abundance of food available to them -modelled their eating habits on those of

the Prophet ( ). It has been reported that Aisha, may Allh be pleased with her,

said: From the time of their arrival in Madna up until his death ( ), the family of

Muhammad ( ) never ate their fill of bread made from wheat three nights in a
row.[17]

Ibrhm ibn Adham said: Any one who controls his stomach is in control of his deen,
and anyone who controls his hunger is in control of good behaviour. Disobedience
towards Allah is nearest to a person who is satiated with a full stomach, and furthest
away from a person who is hungry.

Keeping Bad Company

Unnecessary companionship is a chronic disease that causes much harm. How often
have the wrong kind of companionship and intermixing deprived people of Allhs
generosity, planting discord in their hearts which even the passage of time-even if it
were long enough for mountains to be worn away-has been unable to dispel. In
keeping such company one can find the roots of loss, both in this life and in the next
life.

A servant should benefit from companionship. In order to do so he should divide

people into four categories, and be careful not to get them mixed up, for once one of
them is mixed with another, then evil can find its way through to him:

The first category are those people whose company is like food: it is indispensable,
night or day. Once a servant has taken his need from it, he leaves it be until he
requires it again, and so on. These are the people with knowledge of Allh - of His
commands, of the scheming of His enemies, and of the diseases of the heart and

their remedies - who wish well for Allh, His Prophet ( ) and His servants.
Associating with this type of person is an achievement in itself.

The second category are those people whose company is like a medicine. They are
only required when a disease sets in. When you are healthy, you have no need of
them.
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However, mixing with them is sometimes necessary for your livelihood, businesses,
consultation and the like. Once what you need from them has been fulfilled, mixing
with them should be avoided.

The third category are those people whose company is harmful. Mixing with this
type of person is like a disease, in all its variety and degrees and strengths and
weaknesses. Associating with one or some of them is like an incurable chronic
disease. You will never profit either in this life or in the next life if you have them for
company, and you will surely lose either one or both of your deen and your livelihood
because of them. If their companionship has taken hold of you and is established,
then it becomes a fatal, terrifying sickness.

Amongst such people are those who neither speak any good that might benefit you,
nor listen closely to you so that they might benefit from you. They do not know their
souls and consequently put their selves in their rightful place. If they speak, their
words fall on their listeners hearts like the lashes of a cane, while all the while they
are full of admiration for and delight in their own words.

They cause distress to those in their company, while believing that they are the
sweet scent of the gathering. If they are silent, they are heavier than a massive
[18]
millstone-too heavy to carry or even drag across the floor

All in all, mixing with anyone who is bad for the soul will not last, even if it is
unavoidable. It can be one of the most distressing aspects of a servants life that he
is plagued by such person, with whom it may be necessary to associate. In such a
relationship, a servant should cling to good behaviour, only presenting him with his
outward appearance, while disguising his inner soul, until Allh offers him a way out
of his affliction and the means of escape from this situation.

The fourth category are those people whose company is doom itself. It is like taking
poison: its victim either finds an antidote or perishes. Many people belong to this
category. They are the people of religious innovation and misguidance, those who

abandon the sunnah of the Messenger of Allh ( ) and advocate other beliefs. They
call what is the sunnah a bida and vice-versa. A man with any intellect should not sit
in their assemblies nor mix with them. The result of doing so will either be the death
of his heart or, at the very best, its falling seriously ill.
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What Gives the Heart Life and Sustenance

You should know that acts of obedience are essential to the well being of the
servant's heart, just in the same way that food and drink are to that of the body. All
wrong actions are the same as poisonous foods, and they inevitably harm the heart.

The servant feels the need to worship his Lord, Mighty and Glorious is He, for he is
naturally in constant need of His help and assistance.

In order to maintain the well being of his body, the servant carefully follows a strict
diet. He habitually and constantly eats good food at regular intervals, and is quick to
free his stomach of harmful elements if he happens to eat bad food by mistake.

The well being of the servants heart, however, is far more important than that of his
body, for while the well being of his body enables him to lead a life that is free from
illnesses in this world, that of the heart ensures him both a fortunate life in this
world and eternal bliss in the next.

In the same way, while the death of the body cuts the servant off from this world,
the death of the heart results in everlasting anguish. A righteous man once said,
How odd, that some people mourn for the one whose body has died, but never
mourn for the one whose heart has died and yet the death of the heart is far more
serious!

Thus acts of obedience are indispensable to the well being of the heart. It is
worthwhile mentioning the following acts of obedience here, since they are very
necessary and essential for the servants heart: Dhikr of Allh taAla, recitation of the
Noble Qurn, seeking Allhs forgiveness, making dus, invoking Allhs blessings
and peace on the Prophet, may Allh bless him and grant him peace, and praying at
night.
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Notes:

[1] Daf hadth, Al-Mundhari, 3/234; and al-Iraqi in al-Ihya, 8/1539.

[2] Daf hadth, at-Tirmidh, Kitb az-Zuhud, 7/92, gharb; no one else has
transmitted it other than Ibrhm ibn Abdullh ibn Hatib, whom adh-Dhahabi
mentions, 1/43, stating that this is one of the gharb hadth attributed to him.

[3] Daf hadth, Ibn Hibbn and al-Baihaq, and al-Iraq in his edition of
al-Ihy, 8/1541.

[4] Sahh hadth, at-Tirmidh, al-Hkim, ath-Thahabi.

[5] Sahh hadth, at-Tirmidh and Ahmad; also al-Hkim and ath-Thahabi.

[6] Al-Bukhr in Kitb ar-Riqq, and Muslim in Kitb az-Zuhud.

[7] At-Tirmidh,Kitb az-Zuhud; he said the hadth is hasan gharb.

[8] At-Tirmidh in Kitb az-Zuhud with a slightly different wording; he said the
hadth is hasan. This wording is reported by Ab Nam in al-Hilya.

[9] Al-Bukhr,Kitb ar-Riqq, 11/308 and Kitb al-Hudd, 12/113.

[10] Al-Bukhr, Kitb ar-Riqq, 11/308; Muslim, Kitb al-Imn, 2/18.

The complete hadth is: Let whoever believes in Allh and the Last Day either speak
good or remain silent; and let whoever believes in Allh and the Last Day be
generous to his neighbour; and let whoever believes in Allh and the Last Day be
generous to his guest.

[11] The hadth is hasan and is reported by at-Tirmidh in Kitb

az-Zuhud and by Ibn Mjah in Kitb al-Fitn. At-Tirmidh classifies
it as hasan gharb. We have no report of it other than from Muhammad ibn
Yazd ibn Khanis.

[12] Hasan according to Ab Yala, Baihaq and as-Suyt.

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[13] Sahh, at-Tirmidh, Kitb az-Zuhud, 6/607; Ahmad, al-Musnad,

1/201; as-Saati, al-Fath ar-Rabbn, 19/257; hadth number 12 in an-Nawaws
Forty Hadths.

[14] Daf, at-Tabarn, 8/63; al-Hkim, al-Mustadrak, 4/314; Ahmad,

al-Musnad, 5/264.

[15] Sahh, Ahmad, al-Musnad, 4/132; as-Saati, al-Fath ar-Rabbn,

17/88; at-Tirmidh, Kitb az-Zuhud, 7/51.

[16] Daf; it does not appear in most of the sources of the sunnah, but
is mentioned in al-Ghazzlis al-Ihy, 8/1488.

[17] Al-Bukhr,Kitb al-Atima, 9/549; and Muslim, Kitb az-Zuhud, 8/105.

[18] Ash-Shf, may Allah be pleased with him, is reported to have said,
Whenever a tedious person sits next to me, the side on which he is sitting feels
lower down than the other side of me.

Taken From: /www.angelfire.com/al/islamicpsychology/tazkiyah

 13

Sincerity

Chapter 1 of "The Purification of the Soul" 1993 Al-Firdous Ltd

Sincerity is the freeing of ones intentions from all impurities in order to come nearer
to Allh. It is to ensure that the intentions behind all acts of worship and obedience
to Allh are exclusively for His pleasure. It is the perpetual contemplation of the
Creator, to the extent that one forgets the creation.

Sincerity is a condition for Allhs acceptance of good deeds performed in accordance

with the sunnah of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Allh has
commanded this in the Qurn: And they have been commanded to worship
only Allh, being sincere towards Him in their deen and true. (98:5)

Abu Umma has related that a man once came to the Prophet, may Allh bless him
and grant him peace, and said, What of a man who joined us in the fighting, his
intention being for fame and booty?" The Prophet said, He receives nothing.
The man repeated the question three times and each time the Prophet said,
He receives nothing. Then he said, Allh only accepts actions that are intended
purely for His pleasure.[1]

Abu Sad al-Khudr related that the Prophet ( ) said in his khutba during the
farewell pilgrimage, Allh will bless whoever hears these words and whoever
understands them, for it may be that those who pass on this knowledge are not
those who will understand it the best. There are three things concerning which the
heart of a believer should feel no enmity or malice: devoting ones actions to Allh,
giving counsel to the Imms of the Muslims, and being loyal to the majority.[2]

What is meant here is that these three things strengthen the heart, and whoever
distinguishes himself in them will have a heart purified from all manner of deceit,
corruption and evil.

A servant can only free himself from shaytn through sincere devotion, for Allh tells
us in the Qurn that Ibls said to Him: Except those of Your servants who are
sincere. (38:83)
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It has been related that a righteous man used to say, O self, be devout and you will
be pure. When any worldly fortune, in which the self finds comfort and towards
which the heart inclines, intrudes upon our worship, then it impairs the purity of our
efforts and ruins our sincerity. Man is preoccupied with his good fortune and
immersed in his desires and appetites; rarely are his actions or acts of worship free
of temporary objectives and desires of this kind. For this reason it has been said that
whoever secures a single moment of pure devotion to Allh in his life will survive, for
devotion is rare and precious, and cleansing the heart of its impurities is an exacting
undertaking.

In fact, devotion is the purifying of the heart from all impurities, whether few or
many, so that the intention of drawing nearer to Allh is freed from all other
motives, except that of seeking His pleasure. This can only come from a lover of
Allh, who is so absorbed in contemplation of the next world that there remains in
his heart no place for the love of this world. Such a person must be devout and pure
in all his actions, even in eating, drinking and answering the calls of nature. With
rare exceptions, anyone who is not like this will find the door of devotion
closed in his face.

The everyday actions of a person who is overwhelmed by his or her love for Allh
and the khira are characterised by this love and they are, in fact, pure devotion. In
the same way, anyone whose soul is overwhelmed by love for and preoccupation
with this world, or status and authority, will be so overwhelmed by these things that
no act of worship, be it prayer or fasting, will be acceptable, except in very rare
cases.

The remedy for love of this world is to break the worldly desires of the self, ending
its greed for this world and purifying it in preparation for the next world. This will
then become the state of the heart and sincere devotion will become easier to attain.
There are a great many actions where a man acts, thinking they are purely intended
for Allhs pleasure, but he is deluded, for he fails to see the defects in them.

It has been related that a man was used to praying in the first row in the mosque.
One day he was late for the prayer, so he prayed in the second row.
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Feeling embarrassment when people saw him in the second row, he realised that the
pleasure and satisfaction of the heart that he used to gain from praying in the first
row were due to his seeing people seeing him there and admiring him for it.

This is a subtle and intangible condition and actions are rarely safe from it. Apart
from those whom Allh has assisted, few are aware of such delicate matters. Those
who do not realise it only come to see their good deeds appearing as bad ones on
the Day of Resurrection; they are the ones referred to in Allhs words: And
something will come to them from Allh which they had never anticipated,
for the evil of their deeds will become apparent to them. (39:47-48)

And also: Say: Shall We tell you who will lose most in respect of their
deeds? Those whose efforts were astray in the life of this world, while they
thought that they were doing good works. (18:103-104)

Yaqb said:A devout person is someone who conceals things that are good, in the
same way that he conceals things that are bad.

As-Sousi said: True devotion is to lose the faculty of being conscious of your
devotion; for someone who identifies devotion in his devotion is a person whose
devotion is in need of devotion.

To contemplate devotion is to admire it, and admiration is an affliction; and that

which is pure is whatever is free of all afflictions. This means that ones deeds should
be purified from any self-admiration concerning the actions they entail.

Ayyb said:It is much harder for the people of action to purify their intentions than
it is to execute any of their actions.

Some people have said: To be devout for a short while is to survive for ever, but
devotion is rare.

Suhail was asked: What is the most difficult thing for the self? He said: "Devotion,
when the self does not have the good fortune of being endowed with it.
 16

Al-Fudayl said: Forsaking action for the sake of other people is to seek their
admiration. To act for the sake of their admiration is to associate others with Allh.
Devotion is when Allh frees you from both of these states.

Notes:

[1] Sahh, an-Nis, Kitb al-Jihd, 6/25; al Hafidh ibn Hajar, Fath al-Qadr, 6/28.

[2] Sahh, Ibn Mjah; also Ibn Hibbn, Marwarid adh-Dhaman, p.47, on the
authority of Zaid ibn Thbit.

Taken From: /www.angelfire.com/al/islamicpsychology/tazkiyah/

 17

Sincerity 101 for Islamic Activists

Author: http://www.mascolumbus.org

Seeking the pleasure of Allah is what all Islamic activists tell you when asked
about their intentions. Although the intentions are deeds of the hearts that
only Allah knows, there are many signs that give some insight as to what lie
inside our hearts. What follows are eight checkpoints to gauge the level of
sincerity in your heart.

1- Do you seek fame and reputation?

A sincere person abhors and fears fame and reputation, especially if he or she
possesses different talents, and firmly believes that Allah will hold people to account
according to their inner conscience and not the outer appearance, and that fame will
be of no avail before Allah if man meets Him with a corrupted intention. This is the
very reason behind the abhorrence of the early Muslims of fame and reputation.
Imam Al-Ghazali mentioned many sayings and situations of those sincere men
relating to this issue.

Ibrahim ibn Adham (may Allah have mercy on him) said, "Whoever hopes for fame,
does not have firm belief in Allah."

Sulaym ibn Hanzalah said, "Once we were walking behind Ubayy ibn Ka'b when
'Umar beheld us. He struck Ubayy with his stick, ibn Ka'b exclaimed, 'O Commander
of the Believers'. What is wrong?' 'Umar replied, 'This act is a form of humiliation for
the follower and a trial for the followed'." What a wonderful insight of 'Umar (may
Allah be pleased with him), for he realized that those simple practices would have
adverse effects on the personalities of people and their leaders.

Al-Hasan reported that once Ibn Mas'ud went out of his when some people pursued
him. He turned to them saying "Why do you insist in pursuing me? By Allah, if you
knew my actions when I am at home, you would certainly cease to follow me".

Al-Hasan also said, "The hearts of many people change (i.e. feel pride) with the
abundance of admirers."
 18

One day he went out and some people followed him. He asked them, "If you do not
want anything, stop following me, otherwise you may change my heart."

One day Ayyub As-Sakhtiyani intended to travel, so many of people gathered to see
him off. Thereupon he commented, "Were it not that I have no doubt of Allah's
Knowledge of my abhorrence of this, I would have feared the punishment of Allah."

Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "Be like the spring of
knowledge, the lamps of guidance, the lamination at night, refresh your hearts with
faith, do not worry about your worn-out clothes, and hope to be known to the
inhabitants of heaven and not the inhabitants of earth."

Al-Fudayl ibn 'Iyad instructed, "If you are able to be unknown among people then be
so, and this will not harm you in any way. The praises of people will not avail you,
and there is no harm when men speak ill of you as long as Allah the Almighty praises
you."

However, we should bear in mind that, these instructions do not recommend

isolation or loneliness, for the above mentioned scholars were great reformers who
exerted their selves to reform their societies.

These instructions, of course, are an alarm to the danger of the concealed

desires, and a caution against the means which Satan makes use of to creep into the
heart of man. Undoubtedly, there is no wrong in fame itself, for the
Prophets and the Rightly Guided Caliphs are the most famous men. Wrong is to
make it one's aim in life. Al-Ghazali stated, "Fame is a trial to the weak, not the
powerful man."

2- Do you admire your actions and regard yourself having fulfilled your duty
towards Allah?

The sincere person constantly regard himself as not fulfill what is his duty
towards Allah, and never lets pride or self-admiration creep into his heart. He
worries that his sins will not be overlooked and that his righteous deeds may be
rejected.
 19

A righteous person became ill. When his friends came to visit him, they saw him
burst into tears. They asked, "Why are you so worried when you have perfected all
forms of sincerity: Fasting, Prayer, jihad, Zakah, Pilgrimage, and 'Umrah? He replied,
"What makes me sure that it is accepted by Allah Who has stated (in the Qur'an)
that He accepts only of the pious?"

At-Tirmidhi reported that 'A'ishah, the wife of the Prophet (pbuh), questioned
the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) whether the Qur'anic verse {And the ones who bring
whatever they bring with hearts tremulous...} (Al-Mu'minun: 60) refers to the ones
who drink intoxicants and steal. He (pbuh) replied, 'No, O daughter of As-Siddiq (Abu
Bakr)! It means the ones who perform Prayer, observe Fasting, and pay Zakah,- and
still fear that they may not be accepted by Allah. These are the ones who come
swiftly with charitable deeds."

3- Do you perform the good deeds better in public?

The Sincere person prefers the hidden action to the public one. He prefers to be like
the root of the tree, which is not visible, yet it is the main cause of maintaining the
tree with elements of life.

Once, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) went to the mosque of
the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) where he saw Mu'adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased
with him) sitting beside the Prophet's tomb with his eyes filled with tears. He asked
him, "Why are you crying?" Mu'adh replied I am crying because I have remembered
something I heard from the Messenger of Allah. I heard him saying, 'Surely, the little
amount of riya' (showing off in good works) is (a form of) polytheism, and whoever
shows enmity to someone devoted to Allah is declaring war against Him. Verily Allah
loves the righteous and pious persons whom people do not know their place and who
when they are absent (from gatherings) no one misses them, and when they are
present no one recognizes them or invites them (to important sittings and
meetings); their hearts are enlightened with guidance therefore they go through any
(spiritual) darkness."

4- Does your motivation vary whether you are a leader or just another
member of an Islamic organization or a committee working for an Islamic
event?
 20

A sincere person is not concerned about his status in Da'wah, i.e., whether a
leader or a follower. His only objective is to serve Da'wah. Therefore his or
her heart is not possessed with love for leadership. He prefers the position of
solider to the position of leader in case he does not fulfill the duties of
leadership. He does not ask to be a leader, but when he is charged with it he
asks Allah's help to fulfill its duties. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) described
this category of men in eloquent words saying, "May Paradise be for the one who
holds the reins of his horse to strive in Allah's Cause, with his hair unkempt and feet
covered with dust; if he is appointed in the vanguard he is perfectly satisfied with his
post, and if he is appointed in the rear guard, he accepts his post with satisfaction...
May Allah be pleased with Khalid ibn al-Walid who set the fair example in this
regard when he was removed (by 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab) from his post as leader,
although he had just achieved a marvelous victory, to serve under the leadership of
Abu 'Ubaydah. Khalid ibn al-Walid showed nothing but satisfaction and obedience.

5- Do you feel happy when people are pleased with you?

The sincere person does not pay even the slightest attention to the pleasure of
people (about him) when it contradicts the pleasure of Allah, Most High. People are
different in inclinations, aims, and thoughts, and so one cannot please all of them.
Thus, the devoted man, who is possessed with the pleasure of Allah alone, is not
interested in seeking the pleasure of men.

6- Do you abandon working for Allah if you are hurt by the actions or words
of others?

A sincere person's love and hate, spending and saving, delight and wrath are all in
sincerity for the sake of Allah and His Religion. His self has no share in
these feelings and actions. He avoids the character of hypocrites whom Allah
rebukes saying, {And among them are men who slander thee in the matter of (the
distribution of) the alms. If they are given part thereof, they are pleased, but if not,
behold! They are indignant! } Unfortunately, some individuals leave the field of
Da'wah if they are hurt by some of their brothers even with one word. They abandon
the field of jihad due to such trivial reasons. However, sincerity for the sake of
Da'wah means to persevere whatever the obstacles that the da'iyah may face, since
his sacrifice is for the sake of Allah and not for his self or family. Da'wah for Allah's
 21

sake is a common duty, i.e., it is not restricted to particular persons. Therefore, no

one is permitted to abandon it due to the conduct or behavior of some individuals.

7- Do you feel frustrated in front of the long road or the obstacles along the
way?

The sincere person does not experience laziness or lassitude due to the great
length of the journey and the obstacles in it. He does not aim at achieving
victory or success only, but he hopes for the pleasure of Allah before anything else.
In fact, Allah will not ask men on the Day of Judgment about the reason why they
did not achieve victory but He will ask them about their endeavors and actions in His
cause.

8- How do you feel when a younger person takes your position in leading
the Islamic work in your community?

A sincere person feels delight when a more skillful person emerges among the du'ah
and gives him priority over his self to the post of leadership without feeling any
hatred or enmity.

Brothers and sisters! Working for the establishment of Islam is an act of

worship, which brings man nearer to Allah. Therefore sincerity in this act is a
condition for its acceptance by Allah and an essential prerequisite to success.
A wrong intention corrupts the action and soul, and tears the unity of Muslims.

These diseases of the heart, which corrupt the intention, are more dangerous
than any physical illness, since they destroy our efforts and take us away from our
goals.

Undoubtedly, uprightness, welfare, justice, virtue and morals will never spread in the
earth at the hands of hypocrites or those who seek worldly benefit. They will only
dominate at the hands of sincere men who believe firmly in the principles of faith,
and sacrifice in its cause without paying much attention for worldly gain.
 22

Types of Heart

Symptoms Of the Hearts Sickness & Signs

of Its Health

Chapter 3 & 4 of "The Purification of the Soul" 1993 Al-Firdous Ltd

Just as the heart may be described in terms of being alive or dead, it may also be
regarded as belonging to one of the three types; these are the healthy heart, the
dead heart, and the sick heart.

The Healthy Heart

On the Day of Resurrection, only those who come to Allh with a healthy heart will
be saved. Allh says: The day on which neither wealth nor sons will be of any
use, except for whoever brings to Allh a sound heart. (26:88-89)

In defining the healthy heart, the following has been said: It is a heart cleansed
from any passion that challenges what Allh commands, or disputes what He forbids.
It is free from any impulses which contradict His good. As a result, it is safeguarded
against the worship of anything other than Him, and seeks the judgement of no

other except that of His Messenger ( ). Its services are exclusively reserved for
Allh, willingly and lovingly, with total reliance, relating all matters to Him, in fear,
hope and sincere dedication. When it loves, its love is in the way of Allh. If it
detests, it detests in the light of what He detests. When it gives, it gives for Allh. If
it withholds, it withholds for Allh. Nevertheless, all this will not suffice for its
salvation until it is free from following, or taking as its guide, anyone other than His

Messenger ( ).

A servant with a healthy heart must dedicate it to its journeys end and not base his

actions and speech on those of any other person except Allhs Messenger ( ). He
must not give precedence to any other faith or words or deeds over those of
Allh and His Messenger, may Allh bless him and grant him peace.
 23

Allh says: Oh you who believe, do not put yourselves above Allh and His
Messenger, but fear Allh, for Allh is Hearing, Knowing. (49:1)

The Dead Heart

This is opposite of the healthy heart. It does not know its Lord and does not worship
Him as He commands, in the way which He likes, and with which He is pleased. It
clings instead to its lusts and desires, even if these are likely to incur Allhs
displeasure and wrath. It worships things other than Allh, and its loves and its
hatreds, and its giving and its withholding, arise from its whims, which are of
paramount importance to it and preferred above the pleasure of Allh.

Its whims are its imm. Its lust its guide. Its ignorance its leader. Its crude impulses
its impetus. It is immersed in its concern with worldly objectives. It is drunk with its
own fancies and its love for hasty, fleeting pleasures. It is called to Allh and the
khira from a distance but it does not respond to advice, and instead it follows any
scheming, cunningshaytn. Life angers him and pleases him, and passion makes it
deaf and blind[1] to anything except what is evil.

To associate and keep company with the owner of such a heart is to tempt illness:
living with him is like taking poison, and befriending him means utter destruction.

The Sick Heart

This is a heart with life in it, as well as illness. The former sustains it at one moment,
the latter at another, and it follows whichever one of the two manages to dominate
it. It has love for Allh, faith in Him, sincerity towards Him, and reliance upon Him,
and these are what give it life. It also has a craving for lust and pleasure, and prefers
them, and strives to experience them. It is full of self-admiration, which can lead to
its own destruction. It listens to two callers: one calling it to Allh and His Prophet

( ) and the khira; and the other calling it to the fleeting pleasures of this world. It
responds to whichever one of the two happens to have most influence over it at the
time.

The first heart is alive, submitted to Allh, humble, sensitive and aware; the second
is brittle and dead; the third wavers between either its safety or its ruin.
 24

Notes:

[1] It has been related on the authority of Abd-Darda that the Messenger of Allh,
may Allh bless him and grant him peace, said, Your love for something makes you
blind and deaf. Ab Dwd, al-Adab, 14/38; Ahmad, al-Musnad, 5/194. The adthis
classified as hasan.
 25

The Signs of a Sick Heart

A servants heart may be ill, and seriously deteriorating, while he remains oblivious
of its condition. It may even die without him realising it. The symptoms of its
sickness, or the signs of its death, are that its owner is not aware of the harm that
results from the damage caused by wrong actions, and is unperturbed by his
ignorance of the truth or by his false beliefs.

Since the living heart experiences pain as a result of any ugliness that it encounters
and through its recognising its ignorance of the truth (to a degree that corresponds
to its level of awareness), it is capable of recognising the onset of decay - and the
increase in the severity of the remedy that will be needed to stop it - but then
sometimes it prefers to put up with the pain rather than undergo the arduous trial of
the cure!

Some of the many signs of the hearts sickness is its turning away from good foods
to harmful ones, from good remedies to shameful sickness. The healthy heart prefers
what is beneficial and healing to what is harmful and damaging; the sick heart
prefers the opposite. The most beneficial sustenance for the heart is faith and the
best medicine is the Qurn.

The Signs of a Healthy Heart

For the heart to be healthy it should depart from this life and arrive in the next, and
then settle there as if it were one of its people; it only came to this life as a passer-
by, taking whatever provisions it needed and then returning home. As the Prophet,
may Allh bless him and grant him peace, said to Abdullh ibn Umar,Be in this
world as if you were a stranger or a passer-by.[1] The More diseased the heart is,
the more it desires this world; it dwells in it until it becomes like one of its own
people.

This healthy heart continues to trouble its owner until he returns to Allh, and is at
peace with Him, and joins Him, like a lover driven by compulsion who finally reaches
his beloved. Besides his love for Him he needs no other, and after invoking Him no
other invocations are needed. Serving Him precludes the need to serve any other.
 26

If this heart misses its share of reciting the Qurn and invoking Allh, or completing
one of the prescribed acts of worship, then its owner suffers more distress than a
cautious man who suffers because of the loss of money or a missed opportunity to
make it. It longs to serve, just as a famished person longs for food and drink.

Yahya ibn Mudh said: Whoever is pleased with serving Allh, everything will be
pleased to serve him; and whoever finds pleasure in contemplating Allh, all the
people will find pleasure in contemplating him.

This heart has only one concern: that all its actions, and its inner thoughts and
utterances, are obedient to Allh. It is more careful with its time than the meanest
people are with their money, so that it will not be spent wastefully. When it enters
into the prayer, all its worldly worries and anxieties vanish and it finds its comfort
and bliss in adoring its Lord. It does not cease to mention Allh, nor tire of serving
Him, and it finds intimate company with no-one save a person who guides it to Allh
and reminds it to Him.

Its attention to the correctness of its action is greater than its attention to the action
itself. It is scrupulous in making sure that the intentions behind its actions are
sincere and pure and that they result in good deeds.

As well as and in spite of all this, it not only testifies to the generosity of Allh in
giving it the opportunity to carry out such actions, but also testifies to its own
imperfection and shortcomings in executing them.

The Causes of Sickness of the Heart

The temptations to which the heart is exposed are what cause its sickness. These are
the temptations of desires and fancies. The formers cause intentions and the will to
be corrupted, and the latter cause knowledge and belief to falter.

Hudhayfa ibn al-Yaman, may Allh be pleased with him, said: The Messenger of

Allh ( ) said, Temptations are presented to the heart, one by one. Any heart that
accepts them will be left with a black stain, but any heart that rejects them will be
left with a mark of purity, so that hearts are of two types: a dark heart that has
turned away and become like an overturned vessel, and a pure heart that will never
be harmed by temptation for as long as the earth and the heavens exist. The dark
 27

heart only recognises good and denounces evil when this suits its desires and hims.
[2]

He, may Allh bless him and grant him peace, placed hearts, when exposed to
temptation, into two categories:

First, a heart which, when it is exposed to temptation, absorbs it like a sponge that
soaks up water, leaving a black stain in it. It continues to absorb each temptation
that is offered to it until it is darkened and corrupted, which is what he meant by
like an overturned vessel.

When this happens, two dangerous sicknesses take hold of it and plunge it into ruin:

The first is that of its confusing good with evil, to such an extent that it does not
recognise the former and does not denounce the latter. This sickness may even gain
hold of it to such an extent that it believes good to be evil and vice-versa, the
sunnah to be bida and vice-versa, the truth to be false and falsity to be the truth.

The second is that of its setting up its desires as its judge, over and above what the

Prophet ( ) taught, so that it is enslaved and led by its whims and fancies.

Second, a pure heart which the light of faith is bright and from which its radiance
shines. When temptation is presented to pure hearts such this, they oppose it and
reject it, and so their light and illumination only increase.

Notes:

[1] Al-Bukhr, Kitb ar-Riqq, 11/233.

[2] Muslim, Kitb al-Imn, 2/170 (with different wording).

Taken From: /www.angelfire.com/al/islamicpsychology/tazkiyah/

 28

Repentance

Turning away from wrong actions by turning to the Concealer of faults and the
Knower of all secrets is the basis of those who travel to Him, the initial investment of
those who finally profit, the first step in the quest for His Face, the key to putting
right whatever is not correct, and the primary stage in the selection of those who will
be brought close to Him.

The station of turning in repentance is at the beginning, in the middle, and at the
end. The servant who seeks Him never abandons it. He remains in it until his death.
If he moves on to another station, he takes it with him and ar rives with it. Turning
in repentance is the beginning of the servant and his end. Allah, the Most Exalted,
says:

And turn to Allah altogether, O you who believe, so that you may succeed. (Al-
Nour 24:31)

This ayah is in a Madinan surah in which Allah addresses the people of iman and
those who have been honored from amongst His creation. He called upon them to
turn in repentance to Him after they had already believed, made hijra, and fought
jihad. Then He made success conditional on repentance, using the word may in
order to make the believers aware that they could only hope for success if they
turned to Him in repentance, may Allah make us follow in their footsteps. Allah says:

And those who do not turn in repentance are indeed wrongdoers. (Al-Hojoraat
49:11)

He distinguishes between servants who are repentant and those who are
wrongdoers, and makes no other distinction. He calls those who do not turn in
repentance, wrongdoers and transgressors, and says that no one is more of a
wrongdoer than such a person, because of his ignorance of his Lord and of the rights
 29

that are due to Him, as well as because of his own faults and the harmfulness of his
actions.

The Prophet (PBUH) said, O people turn in repentance to Allah! I swear by Allah that
I turn in repentance to Him more than seventy times each day. 1

Repentance is the servants turning to Allah and his turning away from the company
of those who stray away from the straight path and those who invite Allahs
anger.There are three conditions for repentance to be valid if the wrong action is to
do with what is due to Allah, Exalted and Glorious is He: feeling regret, abandoning
the wrong action, and resolving never to repeat it again.Repentance is invalid
without regret because if there is no regret for having done something wrong, then
this implies that it is considered acceptable, as well as being al right to do again. The
Prophet said, Feeling regret is a part of repentance. 2

Abandoning the wrong action is crucial, because repentance is meaningless if the bad
deed continues to be committed.

The third condition, resolving never to repeat the wrong action again, depends in
essence on the sincerity of this resolve and its honesty. Some ulama have said that
repeating the wrong action nullifies the repentance, arguing that if someone who has
repented returns to the wrong action, whenever that may occur, then this shows that
his repentance was false and therefore invalid. The majority, however, conclude that
this is not necessarily a condition.

If the wrong action was committed against a fellow human being, then the one who
repents must either put right whatever damage he has caused or make amends to
the person whose rights he has infringed. The Prophet said, Any one of you who is
indebted to his brother in Islam must settle his debt today, before the time comes
when there will be no money, and only good deeds and bad deeds will count.This
kind of wrong action is a transgression against two parties, each of whom has their
own particular rights. The wrongdoer shows his repentance by paying his fellow
human being his due, and by paying what is due to Allah by inwardly regretting his
wrong action.

This regret is a private matter, between him and his Creator.

 30

There are a number of particular types of repentance, of which we mention the

following:

First, the repentance for back-biting or slander (insult, smear), where the question
arises as to whether the person who has been maligned (smeared, criticized) in his
absence should be informed of the repentance of the wrongdoer, and so
consequently come to know about a wrong of which he would otherwise have
remained oblivious (unaware).Both the madhahib of Imam Abu Hanifa and Imam
Malik make informing the person who has been maligned a precondition for the
validity of the repentance. They rest their argument on the above mentioned
hadith.The other opinion, which is that of Ibn Taimiyya, does not consider this
necessary. Instead, he judges that it is enough for the wrongdoer to repent in
private to Allah, and to speak of the person whom he has slandered in the same
company as the one in which he had previously maligned him, but this time in terms
which are the opposite of those which originally caused the trouble; and he must also
ask Allah to forgive him.His argument is that if the person who has been maligned is
told about it, then this brings the wrong to his attention, and only causes more
trouble without achieving any good. Allah does not make precipitating such a state of
affairs permissible, let alone make it compulsory or command us to act like this.

Second, the repentance for stealing money must include the return of that money to
its rightful owners. If the one who repents does not know to whom the money be
longs, or if it is not possible for the money to be returned for any other reason, then
he must give away the equivalent in charity on their behalf.On the Day of Judgment
they will have the choice of either approving of his action in which case the reward
for the charity goes to them or of disapproving of it and having whatever they are
entitled to in it from his reward - in which case the reward for the charity goes to the
one who repented, for Allah never annuls the reward for charity.It has been related
that Ibn Masud, may Allah be pleased with him, once bought a woman slave from a
man. When he went to pay him, he found that the man had disappeared. Ibn Masud
waited in vain for the man to return, and eventually gave the money away in charity,
saying, O Allah, this sadaqa is on that mans behalf. If he approves of this sadaqa
then its reward is his, and if he does not, then the reward is mine and he receives a
reward equal to my reward.
 31

Third, what is the position of someone who receives payment for doing something
haram, such as selling alcohol, singing, or making a false testimony, and who then
repents while the payment is still in his possession? One group of the ulama say that
he should return the payment to whomever gave it to him, since it still belongs to
the one who made the payment because the transaction was not halal and it did not
result in any halal reward from Allah. Another group of the ulama say and this
judgement is more correct that his repentance can only be valid if he gives away
the payment in charity, for how can he return money which was spent in being
disobedient to Allah? The same principal applies to someone whose halal and haram
money become so mixed up that he is no longer able to distinguish between the two;
he should give away in charity whatever amount he thinks is haram, and purify what
is left. Allah knows best. Another question is this: When a servant turns in
repentance for a wrong action, does he return to the station in which he was before
he committed that wrong action? One group of the ulama say that he does return to
the same station he was in before committing the wrong action, because repentance
wipes away the wrong action completely, and it becomes as if it had never taken
place. Another group say that he does not return to the same station, arguing that
since he had been moving forward before committing the wrong action, and since
committing it made him go backwards, then when he repents he loses the equivalent
of the distance that he could have covered in the meantime, had he not committed
the wrong action! Ibn Taimiyya said, The correct judgement is that some of those
who repent do not return to their former station, while others move on to an even
higher station and be come better than they were before they committed the wrong
action. For example, the Prophet Dawud, peace be on him, was in a better station
after he had turned in repentance than he was in before he committed his wrong
action. Here is a metaphor (symbolic) to shed more light on the matter: A traveller
was making his way, feeling confident and safe, walking a while and then running a
while, and then resting or sleeping. He came across a shady place, with abundant
cool water and a blossoming garden, and decided to rest for a while. While he was
relaxing, he was at tacked by an enemy who seized him and tied him up. He saw
destruction looming and thought that his end had come, that he would become a
feast for lions and never reach his destination. While he was in this state, troubled by
thoughts of despair, his merciful and caring father suddenly appeared before him. He
untied him and told him to be on his way and to be wary of the enemy which lurked
in ambush along the road. He assured him that as long as he remained alert and
 32

vigilant he would not be overcome, but that if he was negligent he would once again
be captured. His father said that he would go ahead and lead him to his destination.
If the traveller stayed alert and kept his presence of mind and remained prepared for
his enemy, then his journey would be better than it had been before, and he would
arrive more quickly. If, on the other hand, he forgot about his enemy and returned
to his former state of inattention and forgetfulness, indifferent to danger and only
mindful of the pleasant garden, then he would once again become an easy target.
Sincere Repentance Allah, Glorious and Mighty is He, says:

(O you who believe, turn to Allah with sincere repentance so that your Lord may free
you from your bad deeds and bring you into Gardens underneath which rivers flow,
on the Day when Allah will not disgrace the Prophet and those who believe with him.
(Al-Threem 66:8)

For repentance to be true and sincere it must be free from deceit (dishonesty),
defects and corruption. Al-Hasan al-Basri said, It is when the servant regrets what
has happened and resolves never to repeat it again. Al-Kalbi said, It is when the
servant asks for forgiveness with his tongue, feels regret in his heart, and restrains
his limbs. Said ibn al-Musayyib said, Sincere repentance is what you purify your
souls with. Ibn al-Qayyim said, Being sincere in turning in repentance consists of
three things: it must include all the wrong actions of the one who is repenting,
leaving none of them aside; it must be accompanied by complete truthfulness and
resolve, so that the one who repents does not hesitate or delay, but summons up all
his will and determination and embarks upon it wholeheartedly; and it must be free
of any impurities and faults that might taint its sincerity, so that it is inspired by fear
of Allah, hope for what He has, and dread for whatever punishment He might inflict -
and not by any desire to safeguard his possessions, or his family, or his social status,
or his influence, or to attract peoples praise or escape their blame, or to avoid being
bothered by nuisances, or to satisfy his appetite for life, or because of his bankruptcy
or inability to cope, or any other such ills that would affect the validity of his
repentance and his sincerity towards Allah, Mighty and Exalted is He.The first
element of sincere repentance concerns the action for which the repentance is made.
 33

The second concerns the person who repents himself. The third concerns the One to
Whom he repents. The sincerity of the repentance means that it is true and includes
all wrong actions. There is no doubt that such turning in repentance requires, and
includes, seeking forgiveness, and that it leads to all of the sins that have been
committed being wiped out. It is a most excellent and perfect repentance. 4A
servants sincere turning in repentance to Allah is guaranteed both with forgiveness
from Allah even before it takes place, and with forgiveness from Him after it is
completed. In other words, the servant turns in repentance between two acts of
forgiveness from Allah which secure his salvation. Allahs first act of forgiveness is a
permission, an inspiration and a means of assistance which lead to the servants
turning in repentance which then in turn results in more forgiveness from Allah.
The second act of forgiveness is one of acceptance and recompense. Allah, Mighty
and Glorious is He, says:

( (He also turned in mercy) to the three who were left behind, when the earth, for all
its spaciousness, seemed narrow to them, and their own selves were constricted for
them, until they realised that there is no escape from Allah except to Him. Then He
turned to them in forgiveness, so that they could turn to Him in repentance; surely
Allah is Relenting, Compassionate. (Al-Tawbah 9:118))Here, Allah, Exalted is He,
informs us that His turning to them in forgiveness preceded their turning to Him in
repentance, and that it was this that made it possible for them to turn in repentance
in the first place. He was the cause of their turning in repentance which is part of
the secret of why He is called al wa lAkir the First and the Last. It is He Who
makes things possible and helps to make them happen; the cause is from Him and
the consequence is from Him. The servant is off-repentant and Allah is oft-Forgiving.
The repentance of the servant is his turning back to His Lord after his having turned
away. The forgiveness of Allah is of two kinds, one being permission and assistance,
and the other being acceptance and reward. Repentance has a beginning and an
end:Its beginning is turning to Allah by taking the straight path which He has
commanded His servants to follow:

()
 34

And surely this is My straight path so follow it; and do not follow any (other) paths,
lest you are separated from His path. (Al-Anaam 6:153))

Its end is to return to Him on the Day that has already been decreed by taking the
path which He has commanded, and which leads to His Garden. Whoever turns in
repentance to Allah in this life, Allah will turn to him and re ward him at the
appointed Time:

(Whoever turns in repentance and does good has truly turned to Allah in true
repentance. (Al-Furqaan 25:71)

The Subtle and Hidden Aspects of Repentance If a sensible servant happens to

commit a wrong action, there are a number of things he should take into account:
First, he should consider Allahs commands and prohibitions and conclude that it was
a wrong action and admit that he has done it. Second, he should consider Allahs
promises and warnings which will arouse fear in him and make him turn in
repentance. Third, he should consider the fact that Allah has given him the possibility
and the ability to turn in repentance, when He could have prevented him from doing
wrong in the first place. This gives him some insight into the nature of Allah His
Names, His Attributes, His wisdom, His mercy, His tolerance and His generosity. This
gives him a quality of worship of Allah which he could never have possessed had he
remained ignorant of these matters. The servant recognises the relationship between
Allahs Creation and His promises and His warnings and His Names and His
Attributes, and sees that this relationship requires these Names and Attributes, and
their manifestation in the Creation. This insight opens the servant up to such
gardens of knowledge, and faith, and the secrets of the decree, and wisdom, that the
domain of words is too limited to encompass and express them. Some of what can
be said is that the servant learns about Allahs Might, which is manifested in His
decree that is, that He, Exalted and Mighty is He, decrees whatever He wishes. He
also learns that through the perfection of His Might, He has decreed that the
servants heart must turn, and will be directed towards whatever He wishes, and that
He comes between the servant and his own heart.
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By recognising some of the manifestations of Allahs Might that are made apparent
through His decree, he sees that he is part of an ordered, patterned creation, the
control of which is in hands that are not his own. He is only safe when Allah
safeguards him, and he is only successful when Allah gives him success. He is
unimportant and in significant, in the hands of the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. By
gaining insight into the Might manifested through His decree, the servant witnesses
the fact that all perfection, praise and might is Allahs, and that it is he himself who
is the one with all the shortcomings and blameworthy qualities, full of faults,
imperfections and needs. The more he perceives his own insignificance and his
defects and weaknesses, the more he witnesses Allahs might and wealth and the
more aware he is that Allah alone is perfect. The servant learns that Allah, Exalted is
He, conceals the wrong action when it is committed even though He is all-Seeing and
perfectly able, if He so wishes, to expose it. In recognising that Allah gives time to
the wrong doer even though He could have been swift in punishment had He so
wished Allahs forbearance is revealed to the one who turns in repentance, and he
gains an insight into the meanings of His Name, al-Haleem the Forbearing. The
servant becomes acquainted (familiar) with Allahs gift of forgiveness. It is a blessing
from Him. When He judges with severity, He is Just and Praise-Worthy, but His
forgiveness arises out of His mercy, and the servant is not en titled to it as of right.
This means that the servant should be grateful to Him, and love Him and turn to Him
in repentance, recognising and relying on His Name, al-Ghaffar the Often-
Forgiving. Allah leads His servant through the stations of humility, submission,
surrender and expressing his need for assistance which are in four stages: the
humility that arises out of need and poverty, which is a general attribute of all
creatures; the humility of obedience and of submission, which only belongs to those
who obey Him; the humility of love, for the lover is especially humble, and the
degree of his humility is in direct proportion to his love; and the humility that arises
as a result of disobedience and wrong action which are themselves a consequence of
the poverty and need in which they result.

When all four stages are complete, humility before Allah and submission to Him is
complete and perfect. The servant realises that Allahs Name, ar-Razzaq the
Sustainer necessitates what is sustained, and that His Names, as-Samee, al-
Baseer the all-Hearing, the all-Seeing, necessitate what is seen and heard.In the
same way, His Names, al-Ghafur, al-Afu, at Tawwab the Forgiving, the Effacer
of wrong actions, the One Who Relents and Turns in Forgiveness, necessitate
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someone whom Allah forgives, and whose wrong actions are effaced, and who is
forgiven again and again. It is impossible for the servant to ignore the implications
and requirements of these Names and Attributes. This was pointed out by the most
knowledgeable of all in the creation of Allah, His Messenger, when he said, If you
did not have wrong actions, Allah would remove you and replace you with a people
who did have wrong actions, so that they could seek Allahs forgiveness and He could
grant them His forgiveness. Anas ibn Malik al-Ansari reported that the Messenger of
Allah said, Allah is more pleased with the repentance of His servant than a person
riding a camel in a waterless desert who loses his camel and all his provisions of food
and drink which it is carrying. Having abandoned all hope of ever finding the camel,
he lies down in the shade of a tree that he happens to come across. While he is
resting, he suddenly sees the camel standing right in front of him. He grasps hold of
its reins and then, in sheer joy, blurts out, 0 Lord, You are my Servant and I am
Your lord! He makes this mistake out of extreme joy. 6

Let us assume that a person whom you love dearly has been captured by an enemy
and prevented from joining you, and you know that this enemy will inflict all manner
of tortures on your beloved and destroy him, and that you are far better for him than
this enemy for he is someone whom you have nurtured. Then imagine that he
escapes from this enemy and comes to you without letting you know in advance, so
that you are amazed to find him at your front door, praising you, and hoping for your
pleasure, with his cheeks smudged with the dust from your door step. How happy
would you be at his return, seeing that you had already made him yours before,
approved of his closeness to you, and favoured him above everyone else? That is the
feeling that you experience even though it was not you who brought him into
existence and granted him your blessings. Allah, Mighty and Glorious is He, is the
One who brought His servant into existence, created him, and granted him His
blessings and He likes to complete His blessings on him! Our final wish is that you
do not forget to ask Allah for us to have truthfulness, sincerity, certainty,
forgiveness, and health in this world and in the next world. We ask Allah that we will
be among those whose final dua is: All praise is for Allah, the Lord of the worlds.
Yours is the Glory, our Lord, and to You all praise belongs. I bear witness that there
is no god but You, and I seek Your forgiveness and I turn in repentance to You.
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Notes

1. Sahih, al-Bukhari, Kitab ad-Daawaat, 11/101.

2. Sahih, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, al-Musnad, 1/376, on the authority of Ibn Masud.
Shaykh Shakir says that its isnad is sahih. Also reported by al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak,
4/243.

3. Al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Madhalim, 5/101 and Kitab ar-Riqaq, 11/395, on the authority
of Abu Huraira.

4. Ibn al-Qayyim, Madarij as-Salikin, 1/310.

5. Muslim, Kitab adh-Dhikr wa d-Du a, 17/65.

6. Al-Bukhari, Kitab ad-Da awat, 11 / 102; Muslim, Kitab adh-Dhjkr wa d-Du a,

17/63, on the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him.