And The Shameful Parts of Man were Disclosed - Mankind and Satan

And The Shameful Parts of Man were Disclosed

The question is why are we offended when our private parts are disclosed? The private parts are the organs of excretion. We are careful to uncover the parts through which we take in food, i.e. the mouth, but at the same time we are very careful to hide the parts through which excrement comes out.

In an attempt to explain this some scholars said: the private parts remind us of disobeying Allah, because when disobedience occurred the private parts appeared. Therefore, we want to cover them because they are a symbol of sin, for sin is a shame that man ever tries to hide and feel shame of, and take pains not to be seen by people. When man has lawful money, he brings it out in front of all people, and fear nothing, but when he has stolen, ill-gotten money he tries to hide it from the whole world. Sin in all its states is a shame that people are careful to hide and conceal.

But how did Satan tempt Adam and Eve? How did he make them fall into sin?

Read the glorious Ayah relating what means:

“He said, ‘Your Lord did not forbid you this tree except that you become angels or become of the immortal.’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 20)

Satan sneaked to them from the side of what the human soul craves and desires: an eternal life, endless and everlasting, and an eternal kingdom that never decays. Therefore, when Satan wanted to tempt Adam and Eve into eating from the tree, he said to Adam as the Noble Qur’an relates to us (what means): 

“Then Satan whispered to him; he said, ‘O Adam, shall I direct you to the tree of eternity and possession that will not deteriorate?’” (Tâ-Hâ, 20: 120)

Satan is a liar in what he said. Had it truly been the Tree of Eternity, Satan himself would have eaten from it and become immortal. But he asked Allah to keep him alive till the Day of Judgment, for he knew for sure that Allah is the Originator of life, He Alone can keep it or take it.

Here we have to warn against Satan’s art in temptation, he strives to lead man to the misbelief that the Law of Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, harms him and profits him not; that true benefit is in sin. Therefore, Satan said to Adam and Eve that Allah has forbidden them to eat from this tree to prevent them from having an eternal kingdom and an eternal life, for man hates poverty and death. He wants to live forever. Hence, Satan came to them saying, “If you want eternity and sovereignty, you have this tree before you.” He swore to them by Allah as relates the Noble Qur’an saying (what means):

“And he swore [by Allah] to them, ‘Indeed, I am to you from among the sincere advisors.’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 21)

Satan swore by Allah that he only wished to give them sincere advice, and they believed the satanic oath. They believed that Satan wished them goodness. Therefore, Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, reproached Adam and Eve for believing the Devil’s oath, though Allah, be ever gloried His Majesty and Might, has clearly shown to them that Satan is their enemy who never wishes for them any goodness as relates the Ayah, saying (what means):

“And their Lord called to them, ‘Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is to you a clear enemy?’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 22)

But Adam and Eve who both felt deep regret, never imagined that one of the creatures of Allah would falsely swear by Allah. Therefore, Qatadah (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “The believer can be deceived by swearing by Allah.” Meaning if you approached a believer in the Name of Allah you could easily deceive him.   

‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar used to manumit the slaves who performed the prayers well, thus whenever the slaves saw him they would start offering the prayers with solemnity and submissiveness. So, people said to ‘Abdullah, “The salves deceive you to manumit them.” ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar replied, “Whoever deceives us in the Name of Allah we would be deceived for him.”

The Truth, all praise and glory is to Him, says (what means):

“So he made them fall, through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten together over themselves from the leaves of paradise.” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 22) 

Here we must stop and deliberate, none should think that Satan led Adam and Eve into error at one time, but it was preceded by a number of stages. Satan first deceived them to make them draw near the tree, then he adorned in their eyes the beauty of its fruits, their sweetness, their pleasant color and fragrance. Then he lured them into eating! Thus, sin occurred in stages and not at a blow. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) says, “Temptations will be presented to hearts as reed mat (is woven) stick by stick.” Consequently, we must be attentive to the fact that drawing near sin definitely causes us to fall into it. 

Then what happened? Did Adam and Eve repeat the sin and they ate time and again from the tree? Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says, “And when they tasted of the tree”, meaning as soon as they tasted it. There was not persistence in repeating the act of disobedience on their part. Right after tasting the tree the private parts appeared, so they hurried to hide them by leaves of the garden. This means that they needed more than one leaf to hide the private parts.

This shows us the Justice of Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, Who first warned them against violation, and informed them about reward and punishment, so that punishment is then justly earned and deserved. That is why there is no retroactive laws in the Divine Legislation. In Divine Justice there is no incrimination without a proviso, and the proviso was forbidding Adam and Eve to draw near this tree and that Satan was an enemy to them. The interrogative Saying of Allah, “Did I not forbid you from that tree,” signifies that there is only one answer, “ Yes O Lord, You did forbid us.”  

The aim from this practical trial was that Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, protects Adam, Eve and their offspring from Satan, and make them learn well that he is a liar in all his promises. That he wishes for them evil even if he pretended to be a well-wisher.  And that the mission of Satan is to use all his wiles to entice Adam and his offspring into sin and cause them to fall into what Allah has forbidden. 

But has the battle ended? It did not…it continued and would continue till the Last Hour.

Source: (Book) Mankind and Satan

The First Heavenly Laws - Mankind and Satan

The First Heavenly Laws

Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, has clarified to Adam the merits and privileges he will have in this place wherein he shall dwell, saying (what means):

“Indeed, it is [promised] for you not to be hungry therein or be unclothed. And indeed, you will not be thirsty therein or be hot from the sun.” (Tâ-Hâ, 20: 118-119)

Meaning in this paradise or garden you shall have enough food and you shall never be naked, and you shall never be thirsty nor feel tired; all is permissible to you except one tree which you should not approach nor taste its fruits. And that is the Law of Allah on the earth: He permits to us too many things and forbids only little. Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, warned Adam and Eve against their enemy Satan, saying (what means):

“So We said, ‘O Adam, indeed this is an enemy to you and to your wife. Then let him not remove you from paradise so you would suffer.’” (Tâ-Hâ, 20: 117)

Truly, that was a sufficient warning to be alert and watchful to Satan’s enmity and close one’s ears to his evil insinuations and never to believe his lies. 

Allah, be ever gloried His Majesty and Might, gave Adam all the elements of life, from food that satisfied the needs of his body without any excrement. Allah, The Most Exalted, nourishes the fetus within its mother’s womb as much as is needed for it to grow without discharge of any excretion. Because food is supplied in proportion to growth, likewise in the paradise the food of Adam was in proportion to need.  

We must repeat here that the paradise Adam lived in was not the Paradise of Eternity because eternal life in Paradise would only follow worldly life. It is the reward for faithful following of the Law of Allah in this world, thus it cannot precede worldly life but is subsequent to it. So, the paradise Adam lived in is a place that embraces all means and requisites of survival. We must notice that Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, warned Adam and Eve saying: “But do not approach this tree” and did

not only say, “Do not to eat from this tree”…why? Because Allah wants to protect Adam and his offspring from temptation. Had He only said “Do not eat” it would have signified that it was permissible for Adam and Eve to go near the tree and sit beside it and contemplate its fruits, and then they would have been surely seduced by the tasty appearance of the fruits and their color and agreeable odor and consequently eat from it.   

But Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, wanted to protect Adam from his own self and from the temptation he might be subjected to and the soul might fail to resist. This protection that Allah wanted to grant to Adam, and to his offspring after him, is the only true protection against sinning. Because the moment you approach a thing forbidden by Allah your soul inclines to it, and perhaps proximity to it might drive you to commit that which is forbidden. We also observe that Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, commands us not to approach the most grievous sins, saying (what means):

 

“That [has been commanded], and whoever honors the sacred ordinances of Allah – it is best for him in the sight of his Lord. And permitted to you are the grazing livestock, except what is recited to you. So avoid the uncleanliness of idols and avoid false statement.” (Al-Hajj, 22: 30)

The Truth [Al-Haqq: one of the Beautiful Names of Allah], Blessed and Exalted is He, did not just say: Do not worship the idols, because this would mean that it is lawful to go to the places where idols are worshipped and sit there. For going and sitting at such places might tempt us – Allah forbid – to worship idols.  Moreover, read the Saying of Allah, which 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)

A strict warning, which means not to ever get near them. The strange thing is that sometimes you find some people who try to argue that Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, did not forbid intoxicants (all kinds of alcoholic drinks)!! And they demand to bring them an Ayah from the Noble Qur’an in which Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says: Intoxicants are forbidden to you!!!!

To such skeptics we say: the command of shunning and avoiding is stronger than forbidding. Had Allah, The Most Exalted and Ever-Majestic, said: Intoxicants are forbidden to you, the forbidden thing would only have been drinking intoxicants, and in such case people would have produced alcoholic drinks, traded in them, prepared the places where they are served and drunk, waited on their drinkers and sat with them. As long as we do not drink intoxicants and as long as the prohibition was limited to drinking we would have committed all this. But the command of avoidance and shunning has essentially forbidden to come near the places of drinking all kinds of alcoholic drinks or to produce them or trade in them or sit with those who drink intoxicants. Therefore, the command of avoidance and shunning is certainly stronger than the prohibition. That is why Allah, all praise and glory is to Him, ordered Adam and Eve not to come near the forbidden tree, otherwise they would certainly wrong themselves. 

Source: (Book) Mankind and Satan