Ihyaaud Deen An Effort to Revive Deen in Totality
عَنْ اَبِيْ بَكْرٍ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ عَنْ رَسُوْلِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْكُمْ بِلَا اِلٰهَ اِلَّا اللّٰهُ وَالْاِسْتِغْفَارِ فَاَكْثِرُوْا مِنْهُمَا فَاِنَّ اِبْلِيْسَ قَالَ اَهْلَكْتُ النَّاسَ بِالذُّنُوْبِ وَاَهْلَكُوْنِيْ بِلَا اِلٰهَ اِلَّا اللّٰهُ وَالْاِسْتِغْفَارِ فَلَمَّا رَاَيْتُ ذٰلِكَ اَهْلَكْتُهُمْ بِالْاَهْوَاءِ وَهُمْ يَحْسَبُوْنَ اَنَّهُمْ مُهْتَدُوْنَ (اخرجه السيوطي في الجامع الصغير # 8232)
Hazrat Abu Bakr (radhiyallahu ‘anhu) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) said, “Recite laailaaha illallaah and istighfaar as frequently as you can, because shaitaan says, ‘I ruin people by tempting them to commit sins, but they have destroyed me through their recitation of laailaaha illallaah and istighfaar. When I had seen that (they are overpowering me with their recitation of laailaaha illallaah and istighfaar), I destroyed them by causing them to get involved in following the desires of their nafs (i.e. by them getting involved in bid’aat – innovated practices) while they think that they are still on the right path.’”
The main object of shaitaan is to inject poison into one’s mind. He is successful in doing so only when the heart is not engaged in zikr, otherwise he has to go away in disgrace. In fact, zikr of Allah Ta‘ala purifies the heart. It is narrated in Mishkaat Shareef that Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) had said, “For everything there is a cleanser and purifier, and the cleanser and purifier of the heart is the zikr of Allah Ta‘ala.”
The effect of istighfaar is similar, as mentioned in many Ahaadith, that it removes the dirt and rust from the heart. Abu Ali Daqqaaq (rahimahullah) writes that when a person recites laailaaha with sincerity, his heart is cleansed of all dirt (just as a mirror is cleansed with a wet cloth), and when he says illallaah, his heart shines with its light. It is quite clear all the effort of Shaitaan is wasted in such a case and all his works are destroyed.
Shaitaan ruining people by causing them to follow the desires of their nafs means that one will begin to consider wrong to be right, and thereby clothe his wrong desires in the garb of deen. This has been condemned in many places of the Qur’aan Majeed. In one place, Allah Ta‘ala says:
اَفَرَءَیۡتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ اِلٰـہَہٗ ہَوٰىہُ وَ اَضَلَّہُ اللّٰہُ عَلٰی عِلۡمٍ وَّ خَتَمَ عَلٰی سَمۡعِہٖ وَ قَلۡبِہٖ وَ جَعَلَ عَلٰی بَصَرِہٖ غِشٰوَۃً ؕ فَمَنۡ یَّہۡدِیۡہِ مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِ اللّٰہِ ؕ اَفَلَا تَذَکَّرُوۡنَ ﴿۲۳﴾
“Have you seen the one who made his desire his god (i.e. he follows his desires against deen), and Allah allowed him to go astray despite him having knowledge, and (Allah Ta‘ala) sealed his hearing and his heart, and set a cover over his sight? Then who can guide him, after Allah (has allowed him to go astray)? Will you not then take heed?” (Surah Jaasiyah v. 23)
In another place, Allah Ta‘ala says:
وَ مَنۡ اَضَلُّ مِمَّنِ اتَّبَعَ ہَوٰىہُ بِغَیۡرِ ہُدًی مِّنَ اللّٰہِ ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ لَا یَہۡدِی الۡقَوۡمَ الظّٰلِمِیۡنَ ﴿٪۵۰﴾
“Who is more astray than the one who follows his desires without any guidance from Allah? Verily, Allah does not guide the transgressive nation.” (Surah Qasas v. 50)
This subject matter is explained in various other places of the Qur’aan Majeed as well.
It is the extremely severe attack of shaitaan that he presents an irreligious deed as a religious deed, so that one practices on it believing it to be an act of deen and hopes to get reward through it. When the person believes it to be an act of ibaadah and deen, then why should he make taubah for doing it (as he does not regard it to be a sin)?
If a person gets involved in committing zina, theft or other similar sins, then there is hope that at some time or another, he may make taubah and give them up (as he regards them to be sins). However, if a person does a wrong deed regarding it to be an act of ibaadat and worship, then why should he make taubah and why should he give it up? Instead, day-by-day, he will progress more and more in it.
This is the meaning of shaitaan’s statement when he said, “I ruin people by tempting them to commit sins, but they have destroyed me through their recitation of laailaaha illallaah and istighfaar. I then destroyed them by entrapping them in such a way that they cannot come out from it.”
It is therefore necessary that one makes the ways of Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) and the Sahaabah (radhiyallahu ‘anhum) his guide. Adopting any other way which is against the sunnah destroys good deeds and causes one to be sinful.
Imaam Ghazaali (rahimahullah) has reported from Hasan Basri (rahimahullah) that shaitaan says, “I presented sinful deeds in an attractive form to the Muslims, but they destroyed my efforts through istighfaar. Then, I presented such sins before them which they did not understand to be sin and will not make istighfaar from it.” It is desires i.e. innovated practices which they understand it to be deen and get involved in it.
Wahb bin Munabbih (rahimahullah) says, “Fear Allah Ta‘ala (who has knowledge of everything that you do)! You curse shaitaan in gatherings while you obey him in secret and make him your friend.”
It is narrated from some Sufis that they have said, “How strange it is that in spite of us knowing that Allah Ta‘ala is our real benefactor who showers great favours upon us all the time, yet we still disobey Him, and despite us knowing that Shaitaan is our greatest enemy who is out to deceive and mislead us, yet we still obey him.”
(Fazaa’il-e-A’maal [Urdu] pg. 487-489)
