Faraz Rabbani – The Rawha #161Listening to Inclinations to Desires Whims and Its Treatment
AI: Summary ©
The "will" of the self is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is based on one's whim and desire, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions. The "will" is revealed through actions, and the "will" is revealed through actions.
AI: Summary ©
We are looking at Imam Soleimis work on
the blameworthy traits of the self
and their treatment.
And this is an important work
because it reminds us of the need to
work on ourselves.
1 of
Imam al Sulami himself
elsewhere
says Rahimahullah
ta'ala that Allah is not worshipped
with anything
like opposing
one's lower self.
Right?
Allah is not worshiped
with anything
like
opposing
oneself.
Why? Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us
as much in the Quran. Right?
And the self
and how Allah
fashioned it,
inspiring it to its virtue and its vice.
Successful is the one who
purifies it,
right, who refines it.
And zakkah,
right. Zakkah,
You know, purifying
or refining.
Right. And
to make something
Zakkah
is
a Hazaba
wanama.
Right. Is to
is to refine.
Its almost like when you have
a tree
or some plant
and you prune it. There are some things
that are out of line and you prune
those.
And
Zakat
has the
meaning of Ikhraj,
right, of getting rid of,
meaning those things that don't belong.
But Zakat also has the meaning of nama'
of increasing.
So the purification of the self
has these two connotations
of
refining,
removing
those things that are unbecoming
and cultivating those meanings
that are
sought.
But
the failure is the one who
the
Sahaddas is
the one who corrupts it.
So you
bring into
yourself those things that don't belong. What doesn't
belong there?
It's the fruits of your choices.
Okay? The fruits of your choices. That
you have some inclinations,
but the inclinations themselves
don't belong within you.
But when you make the choices
to act on those inclinations,
then
You are burdened
with what you have
taken on.
So so this is
the understanding of
opposing
the self right? That these choices
of that are built upon one's whim
or one's desires
or one's worldly inclinations
or the whims that are built upon the
whisperings of the shaytan.
Right? These are the 4 enemies.
Right? These 4
Allah and His Messenger
have commanded us to have an adversarial
relationship with
these 4 matters.
Right? The human self, the your lower self,
which is your
desires
and your inclinations
that are whimsical.
Right? An nafs
and
the shaitaan, the whispering of the shaitaan that
give you doubt, that turn you away from
guidance.
Khalif nafsa was shaitaan.
And what else? A dunya.
Worldly inclinations. Those inclinations where you choose make
a worldly choice that is
at the detriment of
your hereafter.
And what else?
And your hawa,
your whim,
just because.
Right?
So
one has an adversarial relationship
to these because there are two ones
disadvantage.
And he'll what is the consequence of these?
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the Quran says
that the choices
that are
to your disadvantage
right? The inclinations,
are you accountable for them?
No,
you're not accountable for those inclinations.
So if you have a lot of bad
thoughts, are you at all morally
burdened by having bad thoughts?
No.
But when you act on those bad thoughts,
what happens?
There's death taking place.
You are
corrupting
that vessel
that is the human spirit, the human self,
the human soul, that subtlety within you
that belongs to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
and that is the gift of Allah
to to humanity, the human self,
whose potential
is to be
the blessed self.
Right?
The self that hears the divine call.
Oh, oh self
that is
in contented rest.
Return to your Lord.
Well pleased and well pleasing.
So enter amongst my servants
and enter my paradise.
That is the that is the call that
we await.
So
then
of the worst things you can do
to yourself,
to your
to your noble honored self is to listen
to the inclinations of
your desires,
and which is the lower self,
the and of your whims,
of your wayward whims, the
How so he tells us and, Sayedham, can
you read the?
He says, might love mercy on him.
So from the blameworthy traits,
right? From its blameworthy traits is
it giving death
to its own self.
How?
By following its desires.
Because if the human self, and he is
talking about here, the subtlety that makes you
human, that
vessel of humanity that you have,
that latifa,
that subtlety
that makes you human, the human self.
Right? Which can incline towards the
the lowly matters
and that takes it you down from your
Adamic potential.
Right? Because the nafs, if it's allowed to
incline towards
its
desires and lusts, then what happens?
It kills
that human
put
potential that kills the human potential,
Right? It kills
the human potential.
Because you were created as a servant of
God. And you're created as a servant of
God. You're created with a divine honoring. That's
your reality.
And he says what is the treatment for
this? Is
is to prevent it from its wishes. To
prevent what?
To prevent your lower self from its wishes.
How?
One needs to look at
where your inclination is coming from. If the
inclination
is a lowly inclination,
then
you have to prevent it. So this requires
awareness of your inclinations. Right?
Where where is this
inclination coming from?
Right?
And this is why Roayim bin Ahmed said
famous words that
sorry. He says,
Whoever is watchful
of consequences
remains safe.
So how can you tell
where is this
inclination coming from?
You have to consider what is its likely
consequence.
Right, what is its likely consequence?
Our beloved prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam
Alayhi
salatu wa salam
Alayhi salatu min Allah
circumspection is from Allah. Thinking things through is
from Allah.
Right? And what do you think things through?
You consider
the thought.
Right? By?
What what is its likely consequence?
And if it is
a desire
or a whim, if it is to your
disadvantage,
then you
keep away from it. Now how do you
tell if it's a whimsical desire? Ibn Atayla
second there he says,
If you are confused about
a choice between two matters,
Then look which of the 2 is heavier
on your lower self?
Right?
Heavier on your lower self?
What how?
It goes against its desires and its whims,
right? It's not just a mere desire, it's
not a mere whim,
right? Which is closer
to reason?
Which is which one is closer to religion?
Right? Reason will tell you what is to
your advantage whether worldly or religious.
Religion will tell you what is more likely
to be pleasing to Allah.
So look at which of the choices is
heavier on yourself
and follow it.
Why?
Because nothing is heavy for your lower self
except that it is truth.
So you have to consider when you have
a choice,
consider which is harder on your lower self,
and which is
further from following mere desire
and following
mere whim. Rather what is closer
to reason,
right,
benefit, harm,
Good, bad.
Advantage, disadvantage.
And what is closer to religion?
What is the good pleasure of Allah?
Right? And follow that.
And follow that.
And forcing your lower self
to do what it dislikes.
The makari, the things that it dislikes.
Why? Because that is what
extinguishes the self, right? Extinguishes
the self
and
Because that is what will kill those desires
right? The desires
are like a fire burning within you.
The more fuel you give
the more
it will go out of control.
Now you can't fully quench those desires and
that's part of the human test right? You
have a fire burning within
but you need that fire. Why? Because you
need those desires.
The desire for food, for drink, the desire
for wealth, the desire
for
sexual fulfillment. All these desires
they need their little fires that need
to be burning.
Like in it's we're entering winter here at
least in Canada, right? You need the fire
to be burning for for for the house
to be warm enough.
But if you so you have to give
it enough fuel
to keep you going.
But if you put too much fuel in
the fire, what are you gonna do? You're
gonna burn your house down.
So you need to keep
those fires burning. How?
By the standard of the sunnah. How much
food do you give it?
According to the standard of the sunnah.
And in general, in each of these desires,
each of the human
animal inclinations,
we recognize the inclination.
There's a good way of fulfilling that inclination,
which is why there's sunnah related to it.
We see food as a blessing. We see
our sexual desires as a blessing. The Prophet
said in one sexual fulfillment with one spouse,
there it is charity.
One is rewarded for it.
But how?
If it's in accordance with the messenger with
what the messenger of Allah came
with, it is either acceptable or even good.
It creates wellness
in the home. It's like you got a
fire burning in each room that's keeping the
house warm.
Right? But if it's burning too high,
there's harm. It becomes diffic becomes suffocating,
becomes spiritually suffocating.
It's no longer a spiritual home.
And if it burns if the flame
goes
more intense than that, you're gonna burn your
house down. And that's when you're so we
ask Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala to protect us
from that. Right?
And finally he says,
So Abu Hafs was asked, one of the
great early Muslims,
that
what is the means
to acquiring
the rectitude of the self, the uprightness
of the self, the wellness,
the spiritual wellness of the self. And he
said
By opposing it by opposing your lower self
because it is
the
the place of all where all harm has
arise from. Right? Where do all harms arise
from?
From your desires and your whims. From your
nafs and your hua.
Right.
Right.
So
and what is its opposition?
Right.
Right. What is its opposition?
The Prophet SAW
tells us.
The the Mujahid, the ones who the true
the person of true
jihad, of true
religious
striving,
is one who opposes
their lower self,
lillahi
azojal
for the sake of Allah Most High. That
you know that's the choice,
the nafs
you know your desire and whim is pointing
you in one direction,
but you've identified what is pleasing to Allah
and you pursue what is pleasing to Allah
for the sake of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
And there the Prophet gave us a key
to opposing the self.
Think about what is pleasing to Allah,
and think about what it means to pursue
the pleasure of Allah. And that's where you
have to,
right,
give yourself
a reminder.
Right?
You have to give yourself
a reminder that what is it that will
be pleasing to Allah?
What does the pleasure of Allah mean? What
is the consequence of this in the hereafter?
That's why reminding oneself of the virtues.
Reminding yourself of the meanings of
the good pleasure of Allah, the closeness of
Allah,
the love of Allah.
Right?
It's so powerful. That's why being connected daily
to the Quran
and taking heed
makes that choice between
the fleeting and the eternal
clear in one's consciousness.
Right? And one makes that choice. Good company
facilitates that choice because you are going with
others who are making good choices.
Keeping away
from places
of temptation
and things that tempt
safeguards
your choices.
Nurturing
the spirit through remembrance,
through
easy adherence to the sunnah. Right? Because there's
many sunnahs that are easy to adhere to.
By doing that, you create a positive momentum
that facilitates
and their cure,
our dear teacher,
Sheikh Musa Ferber, distinguished American
scholar who's based
now in Malaysia,
and who has many excellent
books that he has translated
and authored
in Islamic law and spirituality
and Quran and other subjects. He's translated this
work as the infamies
of this of the
of the soul.
Right?
The infamis of the soul,
which is a translation of this work. It's
available through,
you know, online through various platforms.
Thank you for listening to the daily guidance
for seekers with Sheikh Farazrabani.
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