Part 17

[ALHay (22): 52-54]

In these three verses, Allah, Glorious and Exalted is He, has

mentioned two types of hearts put to trial and one type that is victorious. The two types of heart that are put to trial are the

The Diseased Heart

diseased and the harsh heart. The victorious heart is the heart of the believer that is humble before its Lord; it is at rest and satisfied with Him, submissive and obedient to Him.

It is desired of the heart and other limbs that they be healthy and sound, having no defect so that they can do that which agrees to their nature and fulfil the purpose for which they were created. The hearts’ stepping outside the bounds of steadfastness in obedience (éstigamah) could either be due to its dryness and harshness, or the absence of doing that which is desired of it. In this respect it is like a mute tongue or an eye that cannot see, or only partially see, due to some form of illness or defect.

This is why the hearts have been classified into three types:

1. The healthy and sound heart which contains no impediment preventing it from accepting the truth, loving it, and giving it preference other than its coming to know of it, Therefore its comprehension of the truth is correct and it accepts it with complete submission.

2. The dead, harsh and dry heart that does not accept the truth nor submit to it.

3. The diseased heart, when its disease predominates, it joins the ranks of the dead and harsh heart; but if its soundness predominates, it joins the ranks of the truthful and sound heart.

Anything that is directed to the person by Shaytan such as his making him hear certain words, or suggests to the heart such as suspicion and doubt acts as a trial for the latter two types of hearts and serves to further strengthen the living, truthful and sound heart.

This is because the living heart rejects all of this, dislikes it,

and is angered by it for it knows that the truth opposes it. Therefore it submits to the truth and is content with it. It knows the fallacy of that which Shaytan has tempted it with and therefore increases with respect to its certainty of the truth, its love of it, and its rejection of falsehood.

However the heart put to trial remains in doubt and dispute concerning what was directed to it by Shaytan. The healthy and sound heart, on the other hand, is not harmed by what Shaytan directs to it.

Hudhyafah bin al-Yaman said that the Messenger of Allah (3g) said, “Trials and tribulation will be presented to the heart [one after another] in the same way that the mat is knitted together, reed by reed. Any heart that accepts them will have a black spot form on it. Any heart that rejects them will have a white spot put on it until the hearts end up being one of two types: a black heart, murky and like an overturned vessel, it does not know the good and does not reject the evil, all it knows is its base desires; and a white heart which will not be harmed by trials for as long as the heavens and the earth remain.”

Hence he likened the onset of trials upon the heart to knotting the reeds of a mat, one after the other.

He divided the hearts into two types based on how they react to these trials:

1. A heart that infuses trials when exposed to them in the same way that a sponge soaks in water. Therefore it has a black spot form on it, and it will keep on accepting these trials until it becomes totally black and inverted. This is the mean-

? Muslim.

The Diseased Heart _

ing of his saying, ‘like an overturned vessel’ i.e. inverted. Then when it becomes black and inverted, it is subjugated to the following two dangerous diseases that push it to destruction:

a. Its confusion of good and evil such that it does not know the good or reject the evil. It is also possible that its disease dupe a person into believing good to be evil, evil to be good, Sunnab to be bid'ah, bid‘ah to be Sunnah, truth to be falsehood, and falsehood to be truth.

b. Its giving precedence to its base desires when seeking judgement rather than that which the Messenger (48) came with, its yielding to them, and following them.

2. A white heart that has been set ablaze with the light of faith and its niche has been illuminated. When a trial is presented to it, it rejects it and repels it and hence its light, blaze, and strength increase.

The trials that are presented to the hearts are the causes of its disease, They are the trials of carnal desires and doubts, the trials of aimless wandering and misguidance, the trials of sins and innovations, and the trials of oppression and ignorance. The first type* lead to the corruption of desire and intent and the second type* lead to the corruption of knowledge and belief.

The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) divided the hearts into four categories as is authentically reported from Hudhayfah bin alYaman, “he hearts ate of four types: The heart that has exclusively been illuminated by a blazing torch and that is the heart of the believer; the heart that is encased and that is

‘carnal desires

* doubts

the heart of the disbeliever; the heart that is inverted and that is the heart of the hypocrite - he knew only to reject, and he saw only to become blind; and the heart that has two impulses: an impulse calling it to faith and an impulse calling it to hypocrisy: it belongs to the impulse that is most prominent.’>

The meaning of his saying, ‘a heart that has exclusively...’ means a heart that has detached itself of everything besides Allah and His Messenger. Therefore it has separated and secured itself from everything save the truth.

The meaning of his saying, ‘illuminated by a blazing torch’ refers to the niche of faith. Therefore he indicated by his words, ‘that has exclusively...’ that is secure from false doubts and misguiding carnal desires. He indicated by his words, ‘a blazing torch’ that it was set ablaze and illuminated by the light of knowledge and faith.

The “encased heart’ refers to the heart of the disbeliever because it is wrapped by a veil and covering and hence the light of knowledge and faith cannot reach it. This is as Allah said, relating from the Jews that,

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They say: our hearts are wrapped... [ALBagarah (2): 88]

This veil is the covering that Allah has placed on their hearts by way of punishment for their rejecting the truth and being too arrogant to accept it, Therefore it is a covering upon the hearts, a seal for the ears, and blindness for the eyes. This is the obscuring scteen upon the eyes talked about in His saying,

5 Reported by ibn Abi Shaybah, a/-/man [p. 17] and others with a sahih isnad.

The Diseased Heart

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And when you recite the Qur’an, We out between you and those who believe not in the Hereafter, an obscuring screen. We have put coverings over their hearts lest they should understand it and deafness in their ears.

[ALIsra’ (17): 45-46]

When the people who have these types of hearts are admonished to purify their Zawbid and following (iba), they turn on their heels and run!

The ‘inverted heart’ refers to the heart of the hypocrite as Allah, the Exalted says,

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Then what is the matter with you that you are

divided into two parties regarding the hypo-

crites? Allah has cast them back [to disbelief]

because of what they have earned. [An-Nisa’ (4): 88]

meaning: he caused them to felapse and return to the falsehood that they used to be in due to theit working false

deeds.

This is the most evil of hearts and the vilest of them for it believes falsehood to be the truth and shows love and allegiance

to those who follow it. It also believes the truth to be falsehood and displays enmity to those who follow it. The Aid of Allah is sought!

The ‘heart that has two urges’ refers to the heart that is not entrenched in faith because it has not devoted itself solely to the truth that Allah sent His Messenger with. Instead it contains some faith and some of its opposite: it is closer to disbelief than faith sometimes; and at other times it is closer to faith than disbelief. The heart follows whatever is most influential at that time.

Selected biographical notes'

[The Companions]

‘Aiishah: bint Abi Bakr as-Siddig, the Mother of the Believers and most beloved wife of the Prophet (4). She reported many afadith from the Prophet and many Companions and Successors reported from her. She died in the year 58H.

‘Abdullah bin ‘Abbas. bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib bin Hashim bin ‘Abd Munéf al-Qurashi al-Hashimi, the cousin of the Prophet (4g) and the interpreter of the Qur’an. He was born three years before the Hiyrab and was called the ‘ocean of knowledge’ due to his vast knowledge. He took part in the /ihddin North Africa in the year 27H and died in the year 68H.

‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr. bin al-‘As bin W2’il bin Hashim bin Su‘ayd bin Sa‘d bin Sahm as-Sahmi. He and his father were Companions. He was literate and attained permission from the Prophet ($8) to write everything he said. He died in the year 65H.

‘Abdullah Aba Jabir. bin ‘Amr bin Hazzam bin Tha‘abah al-Ansati al-Khazraji as-Sulami, amongst those who gave the pledge

' Most of the biographical notes are taken from the English translation of - Furqan bayna Awliya ur-Rabman wa awliya ash-Shaytan. The Decisive Criterion between the Friends of Allah and the friends of Shaytan Published by Daar usSunnah Publishers 2006.

of ‘Ugbah. He witnessed Badr and was martyred at Ubud.

‘Abdullah bin Mas‘dd. bin Ghafil bin Habib al-Hadhli Abt ‘AbdurRahman. One of the scholars amongst the Companions and he witnessed Badr and the following battles. He had many virtues and died in the year 32H.

‘Abdullah bin Umar: bin al-Khattab al-‘Adawi, Aba ‘AbdurRahman, the noble Companion and scholar. He reported many ahadith from the Messenger (4) and died in the year 73H.

‘Abdur-Rahman bin ‘Auf: bin ‘Awf bin Abd ‘Awf bin al-Harith alQurashi az-Zuhri, Abii Muhammad, one of the ten promised Paradise. He migrated to Abysinnia on both occasions and witnessed every battle with the Prophet (4). He was very rich and very generous when giving in the Way of Allah. He died in the year 32H.