By Nawwâl Bin Abdullâh

Adapted with slight modifications from a translation by Abû Iyâd Amjad Rafîq

All Praise is due to Allâh the Rabb of all the Worlds and prayers and peace upon the best creation of Allâh.

To proceed:

We hear many complaints from the people. Most of their complaints are related to their souls, which command them what is evil. They also complain about the evil of their actions. One of them says:

So we find some of them saying ‘I have tried many times, repeatedly, to turn my soul away from committing these specific acts of disobedience but my efforts have failed.’

Another one says: ‘I tried to get my soul to perform acts of obedience (to Allâh), good and righteous deeds but I am not able to remain firm upon them, I leave them so quickly.’

And we hear a third one say: ‘I have repented from many evil actions and promised myself that I would not commit them again. However after the passing of time and being occupied much it did not take long before I returned to them. In fact I fell into others and increased in them.’

If we were to look at the condition of these people we would realise that among the reasons for their not being able to dominate and control their souls and not being able to remain firm upon what they have promised themselves is their lack of striving against their souls. In fact they have left the fetters and reins for the soul so that it leads them and plays with them however it wills. The soul is such that if it is not fought against and controlled it commands its possessor to commit evil and obscene deeds. These people, because they have not fought against their souls and controlled them in that which Allâh loves and is pleased with, are not able to remain constant in their (good) actions. For this reason it is necessary for them to control their souls for Allâh's pleasure and His obedience. Not that it should control them and as a result destroy them

It is vital that a person launches a war against his soul. One which is not haphazard or aimless but rather a firm and determined one in which he uses the weapons of faith (îmân), sincerity to Allâh (ikhlâs), patience (sabr) and supplication (du‘â). He uses them until he is able to overcome this mischievous enemy which is concealed between the two sides of his body [the soul, which commands the evil]. As a result he tames and pacifies it and makes it obedient, humble and submissive to the command of Allâh.

For this reason we find that Ibn al-Qayyim (rh) says: ‘Since the jihâd against the enemies of Allâh outwardly (i.e. physically) is a branch of the jihâd of the servant against his own soul for the sake of Allâh...’

The jihâd that is greater and mightier than the jihâd against the disbelievers and pagans is the jihâd of a person against his own soul for the sake of Allâh, just as the Messenger of Allâh said: “The Mujâhid is the one who struggles against his own soul in Allâh’s obedience.” [Tirmidhî who said it was Hasan Sahîh and Al-Albânî said: ‘Its isnâd is good’]

And when a person is not able to struggle against his own soul and overcome it in that which Allâh loves, he will not be able to fight against the external enemy, nor overcome it. How can he, when he is defeated and weak, both mentally and spiritually, and cannot even gain control of his own feeble soul?

Before entering into the discussion of how to fight against the soul it is necessary to mention a little section about the soul and its nature. Then we shall mention the cure for the soul and the way to purify it from its desires and lusts, if Allâh wills.

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- by Abu Muntasir M. Manwar Ali -

"Surely, before that, they indulged in ease and plenty." [Sūrah al-Wāqi’ah (56): 45]

Engrossed in the pursuit of our desires we keep ourselves back from reflecting upon the state of our souls. Scholars have always taught and lived by the truth that love of this world is the source of all error.

`Umar (raḍī Allahu ‘anhu) thought about the following words in the noble Qur’ān:

Fair in the eyes of men are the love of things they covet.
Women and sons; heaped up hoards of gold and silver;
Horses branded (for blood and excellence)
and (wealth of) cattle, And well-tilled land.
Such are the possessions of the life of this world;
But the best (thing) to return to is in the presence of Allāh.
[Sūrah Āl-I-Imrān (3): 14]

`Umar (raḍī Allahu ‘anhu) then responded, “O Allāh! We cannot but be happy with those things which You (yourself) have made fair in our eyes. (So) O Allāh! I request You to give me power to spend all those things in the right way.”

We have the great gift of intellect and plainly some of us never lack in our will power to rake in all sorts of gains we wish to gather in this world. However, let us try to imagine for a moment all the gaps we have in our lives. We have gaps in empathy, understanding of realities, compassion, courage, knowledge, and self-reliance to gaps in gratitude, charity, justice, inventiveness, appreciation and being resourceful. Put all these gaps together and they form a great void indeed. With our faith and the knowledge we have of it, especially with regards to the life story and practices of the last Messenger of Allāh, Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu `alayhi wa-sallam), we have little trouble in recognising this void as nothing else but a great emptiness of the soul. Being able to impose my intellect and will; my mind; on that great emptiness, so that it can take shape and leave a beautiful trace in time, forever to my credit, is what true devotion, learning and service to humanity is all about.

This is the Sunnah that can neither be expressed in a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ nor set down as a dry list of rules. It is the comprehensive Sunnah of worshipping Allāh in sincerity and love. It is as much to do with removing the sins in our lives as to fill that emptiness within. It is a way to behave with our hearts, minds and bodies; so that God is witnessed in truth in our being who we are. At its core is Tawḥīd and purification of the heart. The pure heart fills the emptiness of the soul and makes it peaceful and sound. That is the goal of faith and the result is not union with Allāh but nearness to Him in this life and then a vision of Him in the Hereafter in Paradise.

This is the reason why it is so very hard, perhaps impossible, to understand with acceptance, the constraints and motives of those who confuse, or hinder, or put to trial others about Islam when we all need to come closer to Allāh. This is the reason why it is so difficult, perhaps impossible, to understand with acceptance, the constraints and motives of those who do not inspire sacrifice or striving or sincerity for Allāh when all of us do need to come closer to Allāh.

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