Part 26

5. Gradual Misleading: Satan never approaches a man to advise him directly to commit a sin; rather he gets him closer to it, step by step. It was once said: “One look, then a smile, then a chat, then an appointment, then a meeting”, and. there the forbidden takes place. Therefore Allah 3 has warned us against following the footsteps of Satan: (O you who believe, do not follow in the footsteps of Satan, anyone who follows in Satan’s footsteps should know that he commands indecency and wrongdoing)’.

This is a call of pity and mercy from the Most Merciful to His servants warning them against following in the path of Satan, and reminding them to shut the door to that path from the start, in order not to be driven away along to the world of temptation and misguidance.

Whosoever understands the “objectives of Shari‘ah” would clearly understand that theory of “Sadd Addara’i”’ (blocking the expedients used by Satan to tempt a Muslim) is drawn for this context.

' Surat al-Haqqa, verse 41-42. ? Surat al-Nur, verse 21.

Wahab ibn Munabbih related a story about a devout man from the children of Israel who was tempted gradually by the devil to commit sins and murder to a girl who was put in his charge by her brothers who trusted him. When he was brought to be crucified, Satan came to him again and said: “You know now that I am your friend who put you in trial with this woman until you had a relationship with her, made her pregnant and eventually killed her and her son; so if you obey me now and renounced your faith in Allah (becoming a polytheist), I will release you from your bad situation”. He reneged his faith, and so, as he committed blasphemy, then Satan turned away from him and let him be crucified.

The Qur’anic exegetes said that the following verse was revealed about that worshipper and his type: (They are like Satan when he says to man: disbelieve, and then when he becomes a polytheist, he says: I am free of you, truly I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds. The final fate of both of them is that they will be timelessly, for ever in the Fire. This is the repayment of the wrongdoers)'.

Thus were Satan’s planning and preparations until he achieved his aim; and the man fell into the trap of Satan, because of his ignorance of the devil’s footsteps. Indeed, if he had denied the first time, he would not have been his victim, and the devil would have withdrawn humiliated.

Tbn al-Juziy reported, on the authority of Wahab ibn Munabbih who said: “There was a priest in a church at the time of Jesus %51, who was sought after by the devil for a long time but failed; so he approached him in the image of Jesus %# himself, and called: “O priest, come out, I want to talk to you” he said: “Go to your matters, I do not want to get back the past years of my life”. So the devil said: “Come out, J am Jesus.” He replied: “If you are Jesus, I have no need for you now; have you not ordered us to worship God and promised us resurrection? You can go to your affairs, I have no need of you now.” So Satan the accursed left him with utter disgust.

When you contemplate on the two devout men, you see the first one was misled by Satan because of his ignorance, while the second was safeguarded from him because of his knowledge, and it is for this

‘ Surat al-Hashr, verses 16-18.

reason the Prophet % said: “The superiority of the scholar over the devout is like my superiority over one who is of the lowest rank

6. Standing against the Truth: Satan has vowed to mislead all the children of Adam except the ones who seek protection from Allah, and are faithful in their worship of Him 3.

Allah 4% said: (He said: By Your misguidance of me, I will lie in ambush for them on Your Straight Path. Then I will come at them, from in front of them and behind them, from their right and from their left. You will not find most of them thankful)’.

Al-Qurtubi said, explaining the verse €I will lie in ambush for them on Your Straight Path) that Satan said: “I will prevent people from following it, and I will make falsehood seem good to them, until their destruction like him. The Straight Path is the path leading to Paradise.”?

Al-Nahhal said: “The Verse: (Then I will come at them from in front of them) means that Satan vows to come to mankind from their world; he will make them deny and reject all Allah’s Signs therein and all the news about the previous nations. The Verse (and behind them) means: and make them deny their Hereafter. The Verse (from their right) means: in their good deeds and all issues of their religion. The Verse (and from their left) means: their sins; that Satan will make them follow their own desires which he will make so tempting for them. The Verse (You will not find most of them thankful) means: most of them will not be grateful.”*

Ibn ‘Abbas 4 said: “He (Satan) could not say “and from above them” because he knows that Allah 8 is above them”. Qatadah said: “Satan came at you, son of Adam, from every corner, yet he did not come from above you, because he could not deny you the Mercy of Allah”.

' Recorded by al-Tirmidhi, on the authority of Abu Umamah al-Bahili. ? Surat al-A‘raf, verses 16-17.

3 Tafsir al-Qurtubi (7/175).

* Tafsir al-Qurtubi (7/176).

Shagqiq said: “Every morning, Satan sits in four ambush positions for me: from in front of me, behind me, my right and my left; he would say: “Do not be afraid, Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful”, so I recite: (But I am Ever-Forgiving to anyone who repents, has faith, acts rightly and then is guided}'. When he comes from behind me, he wants me to worry about whom I will leave my property to, so I recite: (There is no creature on the earth which is not dependent upon Allah for its provision)’. When he comes at me from my right, he tries to tempt me about women, so I recite: <The successful outcome is for those who fear Allah)’; as for my left, he tempts me to indulge in worldly desires, so I recite: €A barrier will be set between them and thing that they desire)*.”

8. Using the devils among mankind: There are some people those whose hearts are full of iman; their certainty increases about Islam, as they live within its guidance and its light; their example is none but the Prophet 3% in every aspect of their life. This type of people — who are few — are targeted by Satan from every comer, yet he remains powerless to tempt them; so he resortes to the help of his devil supporters among mankind. Allah 4 said: (The devils inspire their friends to dispute with you)’. So, we see that whenever a youth is rightly guided by Allah, adhering completely to the teachings of Islam, by following the practices of the Prophet 3%, he/she consequently feels

' Surat Ta-Ha, verse 82.

? Surat Hiid, verse 6.

3 Surat al-A ‘raf, verse 128,

* Surat Saba’, verse 53.

5 Surat al-A ‘raf, verse 21.

7 Surat al-An‘am, verse 121.

the strain of trials attacking him/her, and if he/she overcomes them with his/her patience and attachment to the Rope of Allah, the bad people among his/her friends would come to frustrate him/her, and try to hold him/her back from observing his/her religious obligations,

“Why have you denied yourself the pleasures of life; you do not look at the beautiful girls anymore, or watch the movies and plays. You do not listen to the singers and musicians, and you have given up the parties. and celebrations. You do not benefit from bank interest anymore, and you talk only about the halal and the haram! Truly, we seé you wasting your youth, and you have missed many pleasures....”

You advise him/her about life and death, about his/her ignorance, arrogance and unawareness; so if he/she accepts your words, then praise Allah 3%; but if he/she persists to take you on his/her misguided path, you then avoid him/her, because he/she is one of the devil among mankind.

Malik ibn Dinar said: “The Devil among mankind is harder to me than the one among Jinn; because when I seek refuge with Allah, the one among Jinn retreats, but the one of mankind comes to me and urges me plainly to commit sins.”!

We seek refuge with Allah against the devils of jinn and mankind, and ask Him 4 to protect us from their evil.

This is one of the most significant entries of Satan, if not the first through which all his other entrances begin; since the ignorant or foolish are not aware of them to block them, nor are they aware of tuses to nullify them, or at least avoid them. The devil cab attract them to his trap easily, overcoming them with the simplest trick.

' Tafsir al-Qurtubi (7/67).

An ignorant person also does not distinguish between good and evil, or sunnah and bid‘ah (innovation in Islam). Satan might throw him/her into an evil act while he/she thinks he/she is involved in goodness, or lead him/her to a bid‘ah while he/she thinks it is a sunnah; therefore, he/she would be among the losers: (Say: Shall I inform you of the greatest losers in their actions? People whose efforts in the life of this world are misguided while they suppose that they are doing good)’.

Ignorance obliterates the heart and blinds insight, making the ignorant an easy target for the devil to direct his arrows of suspicion and venoms of desire. Once he/she is a captive of his/her own desires, he would make him/her one of his soldiers to spread vice and immorality on earth, and use him/her to block people from attaining the truth, as he/she becomes a member of his party: {No indeed, it is the party of Satan who are the losers)”.