Complementarity….Not Repetition - Mankind and Satan

Complementarity…. Not Repetition

Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, created the universe on the basis of complementarity and not repetition. Therefore, talents and capabilities varied and man achieved progress in the universe. Logic would have dictated that the world should live comfortably and peacefully, because progress and development offered man the greatest fruits with the least effort and in the shortest time.

Based on this reality is the world we are living in a rational one? No, we find the richest country in the world and the best as regards economic progress is the one teeming with psychological disorders as anxiety, sadness, depression, dejection, nervous tension, perversion and suicide. That is because the world we are complaining of today does not live according to the Law of Allah but according to desires and satanic allure. Therefore, the world is afflicted with hysterics, conflict, stumbling and falling. Truly, the world and its events looks now as a substantiation of the Saying of The Most Exalted, which means:            

“Will not stand except as one whom the devil has prostrated by (his) touch will stand.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 275)

 

Why then do not the thinkers investigate the secret of this misery? Why do not they ask themselves about the cause behind all this wretchedness when they have from the means of material progress what may guarantee happiness to mankind! Why have not they searched when they had to?

And if the calamity is general it excludes neither an underdeveloped nor a developed country but it reigns in all countries. Therefore, it must have a common cause and investigation must lead us to the conclusion that the world has strayed from the Law of Allah, thus worldly life became to us an end and not only a means. Also, wealth became our purpose and not only a necessary means for the movement of life and making the earth a prosperous place. For truly, wealth all belong to Allah Alone. None possesses it and when we die we shall leave worldly wealth to worldly life, so why then have people distorted its use and made it a goal itself? The answer in words: it is detachment from the Law of Allah.

Worldly life cannot be an end, first because it is a limited period that will surely end; second because its enjoyments are but little and third because staying in it is uncertain because you can not guarantee to live the next hour.

If we want to specify Satan’s mission in a few words, its basis is to make us forget that Allah exists and that He is All-Hearing, All-Seeing. Man never steals, commits adultery or fornication, or kill while bringing to mind that Allah surely sees him and that He will punishes him for his crime. Had he remembered the punishment at the commission of the crime, he would have never dared. But Satan’s mission is to make us forget that Allah exists, for the one who commits a sin behind closed doors imagine that as long as he is concealed from people’s eyes then no one sees him and forgets that Allah hears and sees and nothing whatsoever is hidden from Him.

At the end of this chapter we say: the way of Satan is to discover the weak points of man to pierce through. He portrays sin in a picture pleasing and agreeable to the soul, enveloping it in fake goodness. His chief concern is to entice the servants obedient to Allah, and he never leaves them. He incites man with provoking thoughts. He whispers to man what facilitates sinning. He adorns disobedience in his eyes. And if he overmasters man he touches him and causes him to lose the harmony of his movements thus his behavior turn into a kind of hysterics and floundering. Satan has many wiles of temptations but Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, helps His believing servants resist Satan and disobey him, and He leaves the disbelieving servants to Satan to make them sin more and go further astray. Allah, be ever gloried His Majesty and Might, neither helps nor guides a disbeliever in Him.

Source: (Book) Mankind and Satan

Superiority of Satan’s Element - Mankind and Satan

Superiority of Satan’s Element

Satan possesses many characteristics by which he surpasses man, among such characteristics is his agility, our inability to see him, and his capacity to pervade our souls. Thus, what is demanded from us is to resort to the One, Who is Most Strong and All-Powerful, and no one is stronger against Satan than His Creator. And Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower; He hears us whenever we seek refuge with Him, and knows from what we are seeking refuge. The Noble Qur’an says what means: 

“Indeed, those who fear Allah – when an evil thought comes to them from Satan, they remember [Allah] and at once they have insight.” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 201)

The believers remembers the power that Allah, The Exalted and EverMajestic, possesses over the devil and they remember that the Law of Allah protects them against the devil and that the All-Watchful Eye of Almighty God is never inattentive to the servants. Therefore, The Truth, says in the Divine Hadith:

“O My servants! If you think that I do not see you then the defect is in your faith, and if you do think that I see you then why did you let Me be the One Whom you care the least about of all those who are watching you?”

As we have said Satan is viler and more combative when enticing the believers because the sinner has already helped the devil by obeying his desires and becoming a slave to them. Thus, the devil no longer needs a big effort to lead him astray. Bus as for the obedient believer, the devil surely needs a big effort with him to entrap him into sin.

Thus, the devil can come to you with a provoking thought that infuriate you, drive you mad and you commit what may incur upon you the Anger of Allah, all because of a fit of temper.       

The devil may also suggest to you, in hushed tones, devising a plan for you to realize the sin. As for evil whispering, it the devil’s unceasing endeavor. He creeps to you from your weak side, striving to endear to you sin and that is the permanent work of the devil - his mission. 

But what is (the influence of) the touch? Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says about those who devour Ribâ (usury or usurious interests) what means:  

“Those who devour usury will not stand except as one whom the devil has prostrated by (his) touch will stand.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 275) 

As though the devil has touched the human constitution so the soundness of the faculties is corrupted. The human structure possesses a soundness of faculties in a way that makes every movement harmonious with the other. But when the devil touches a human that touched person loses the harmonious movement of his organs and his faculties come into collision and consequently his moves are irregular and irrational. 

In the Hereafter this is the description characteristic of the takers of usury and in worldly life it is characteristic of the irrational movement of man, in a way hysterical. When we contemplate the world today and what is happening in it we will find that turbulence and hysterics prevail. Like a man who bursts into a nursery school, which he does not know and have no enemies in it and kill all the children there without a reason, or when a man approaches a man he does not know and hurls him under the subway train. 

Source: (Book) Mankind and Satan

Whispering During Prayer - Mankind and Satan

Whispering During Prayer

Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, has warned us against the way that Satan always adopts in inveigling the creatures of Allah into committing sins. Allah, all glory is to Him, says (what means):

“O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful.” (Al-Mâ’idah, 5: 90)

Hence, whomever follows the path of drinking intoxicants, gambling, attempts of drawing closer to idols through offering sacrifices, or using divining arrows or palmistry, playing-cards or any art of charlatanism to know the Unseen is committing an abomination of Satan’s handiwork which he beautifies in the eyes of mankind, so that he can remove them away from worshipping Allah and entraps them into sin. 

Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, has warned us against this in the glorious Ayah saying (what means):

“And obey Allah and obey the Messenger and beware.” (Al-Mâ’idah, 5:92)

Through this warning, Allah informs us that the devil will never let us enter into the obedience of Allah and His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). He will always strive hard to prevent us from doing so. If we barred all ways, he would come at the moment of performing ablution and make us forget whether we washed our hands or not, or whether we performed ablution as ought to be or not. Then, when the time of offering prayers comes he makes us forget how many rakahs or prostrations we offered, and this in fact does not constitute a bad sign, on the contrary, it is a sign in our favor, for Satan never comes near ruins. If our prayer were not accepted, he would have never approached it, but the fact that he tries to spoil it for us, means that it is accepted, and that he craves to ruin it. Therefore, the moment man starts offering the prayer he reminds him of things forgotten and keeps whispering to him trying to spoil his prayer. 

From satanic insinuations also is that he entices us to disobey the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), so he whispers secretly to us: “Such a command was not mentioned in the Qur’an, so do not obey it.” Though Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, clearly says (what means):

“Say: ‘Obey Allah and obey the Messenger.’” (An-Nûr, 24: 54)

Besides, Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, has given the authority of legislating to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) saying (what means):

“And whatever the Messenger has given you – take; and what he has forbidden you – refrain from. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.” (Al-Hashr, 59: 7)

The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:

“Shortly, a man leaning on his couch speaks about one of my Hadiths, thus saying: ‘Between us and you is the Book of Allah, The Exalted and Ever-Majestic, whatever lawful we find in it, we will regard as lawful, and whatever unlawful we find in it, we will regard as unlawful,’ Beware! For verily what the Messenger of Allah has prohibited is like what Allah has prohibited.”

Satan’s evil whisper or insinuations cast in the soul provoking thoughts that enrage it and such rage causes it to act foolishly, in a way that neither agrees with reason or religion.  When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) asked His Lord about how to guard oneself against anger, The Truth, all praise and glory is to Him, said (what means):

“And if an evil suggestion comes to you from Satan, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is Hearing and Knowing.”

We are not here discussing this issue as regards the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), even though some people may wonder if Satan can whisper to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): the answer is that the Ayah says “If” which introduces a condition that may or may not happen; thus the matter itself is a doubtful condition. 

But let us assume that it did happen, so why should Allah deprive His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) from the joy of confronting and defeating Satan. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:

“There is no one among you but a comrade from among the jinn is assigned to him.” They (the Companions present in that occasion) asked: “Even you, O Messenger of Allah?” He said: “Even me, but Allah granted me victory over him and I am safe from him, so he only enjoins me to do that which is good.”

The devil did appear to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) while he was on his way to the Masjid (mosque); for the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) narrated, saying: 

“A demon from the Jinn came to me yesterday suddenly, so as to spoil my prayer, but Allah enabled me to overpower him, and so I caught him and intended to tie him to one of the pillars of the Masjid so that all of you might see him, but I remembered the invocation of my brother Solomon (as stated in the Qur’an): 'And bestow upon me a kingdom such as shall not belong to any other after me.' (Sad, 38:35) so I dismissed him humiliated."

Thus, the confrontation did happen, and the defeat of Satan was fast. Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, asked His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to seek refuge with Him, and seeking refuge is to turn to Him for help. One can only ask help from someone who is stronger than him, and indeed stronger than the one trying to attack him.

Source: (Book) Mankind and Satan