Something that we hear often these days goes like this: how does it affect God if I don’t pray [or fast or do cheat or lie or sleep around]? Is God so petty that he will punish me for these inconsequential things? Religion feels so restrictive. Why does it matter so much if I do this or that? What difference could it possibly make to God?

The short answer to this question is, you are right. It makes no difference to God. Allah is not diminished by our actions. He is completely independent and self-sufficient. Our obedience does not increase Him. Our disobedience does not decrease Him.

Our reflection for today explores how this is actually the wrong question to ask. Verse 23 of Chapter 10 describes people caught in a storm at sea. In fear and desperation, they call upon Allah sincerely. They promise gratitude and obedience if only they are saved. But when the storm passes and safety returns, they revert to their old ways, transgressing, rebelling and exceeding limits.

Firstly, this s...

Following our discussion yesterday on Nafs al Lawamma, today we will look at a related idea from the same Sura. 

In verses 14 & 15 of Sura Qiyamma, Allah [swt] says: 

بَلِ الْإِنسَانُ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ بَصِيرَةٌ 

[75:14] Nay! man is evidence against himself,

وَلَوْ أَلْقَى مَعَاذِيرَهُ 

[75:15] Though he puts forth his excuses. 

After Allah [swt] swears by the blaming soul at the beginning of this surah, He takes us one step deeper. The nafs al-lawwāmah is the part of us that feels guilt when we fall short. But here, in these verses, Allah tells us that we are not only capable of feeling blame, we are capable of seeing ourselves clearly. The human being is a witness against himself.

The word baṣīrah comes from sight. It implies inner vision, insight, clarity. It suggests that beneath our stories, our defenses, and our justifications, there is a part of us that knows. We may explain. We may rationalize. We may defend our choices. But underneath all of that, we know when we are wrong...

In these verses from Sura Qiyyamah, Allah swears by the day of judgment and by the “nafsal lawama” or self-reproaching soul:
لَا أُقْسِمُ بِيَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ 

[75:1] Nay! I swear by the day of resurrection.

وَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِالنَّفْسِ اللَّوَّامَةِ 

[75:2] Nay! I swear by the self-accusing soul.

Let us remind ourselves that whenever Allah swears by something, it is not to convince us. It is to wake us up, to tell us: Pay attention. This is important.

Earlier in this series, we spoke about how our inner compass has already been calibrated with the discernment of right and wrong. We are innately programed to seek goodness. That is our true north. 

However, we are also weak and have a nafs that has strong desires and loves comfort and pleasure. So what happens when weakness, desire, or ego pull us slightly off course?

This is where Nafs al Lawwāmah comes in.

Allah has placed within our soul a capacity for self-censorship which has a crucial role in guiding us toward self-improveme...

Yesterday we talked about how Allah [swt] compensates for human weakness by legislating with clarity and compassion. 
Today we will reflect on one example of how he does this: 

وَلاَ تَقْرَبُواْ الزِّنَى إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً وَسَاء سَبِيلاً 

[17:32] And go not nigh to fornication; surely it is an indecency and an evil way.

While this verse talks explicitly about Zina  [Zina encompasses sexual acts outside of a valid marriage contract and covers both adultery and premarital sex], the principle stated in this verse can be broadly applied. 

The verse does not say: “Do not commit zina.” It says: “Do not go near it.”

The Quran is highlighting that poor judgement or sin is not the first step: it is concerned with pathways that lead to the final act. Because most moral collapses do not begin with a dramatic decision. They begin with proximity in an environment that makes it easy to make seemingly small compromises. 

A look.
A message.
A private conversation.
Emotional intimacy.
Secrecy.
Ra...

Our reflection for today is from verse 28 in Sura Nisa where the Quran says: 

يُرِيدُ اللّهُ أَن يُخَفِّفَ عَنكُمْ وَخُلِقَ الإِنسَانُ ضَعِيفًا 

[4:28] Allah desires that He should make light your burdens, and man is created weak.

These verses come right after detailed rules about marriage. We might ask:

Why so many limits and restrictions? Why can we not do what we want? What is the harm in giving into lust and desire?

According to classical scholars, these verses restore and clarify marriage laws that existed with earlier prophets but had been altered or loosened over time. Some communities had become permissive in ways that harmed moral and social stability. Islam reinstates clarity.

And then in verses 26 and 27 the Quran says:

[4:26] Allah desires to explain to you, and to guide you into the ways of those before you, and to turn to you (mercifully), and Allah is Knowing, Wise.

[4:27] And Allah desires that He should turn to you (mercifully), and those who follow (t...

From Yusuf’s story we learn what it looks like to be in command of Nafsul Ammarah. Many of us are not as much in control of ourselves when faced with strong urges and so it is very easy to fail the test of temptation. 

In this verse from Sura Al Jathiya, the Quran talks about such people:  

أَفَرَأَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ إِلَهَهُ هَوَاهُ وَأَضَلَّهُ اللَّهُ عَلَى عِلْمٍ وَخَتَمَ عَلَى سَمْعِهِ وَقَلْبِهِ وَجَعَلَ عَلَى بَصَرِهِ غِشَاوَةً فَمَن يَهْدِيهِ مِن بَعْدِ اللَّهِ أَفَلَا تَذَكَّرُونَ 

[45:23] Have you then considered him who takes his low desire for his god, and Allah has made him err having knowledge and has set a seal upon his ear and his heart and put a covering upon his eye. Who can then guide him after Allah? Will you not then be mindful?

In this verse, the Quran is inviting us to observe. To reflect on a person who lets their desires control them. Whatever their feelings tell them to do, they do. They may not literally worship their feelings, but they surrender to them. ...

We have been discussing how the human being is an honoured creature of God, who is innately programmed towards seeking truth, beauty and goodness. 

The natural question that arises is, if this is the innate nature of human beings, why do we so often act against it? 

Here’s the thing: the Quran does not present the human being as flat or a one-dimensional creature (that is the realm of angels}. It describes layers within us. States of the self. Movements along a spectrum. Being capable of good and evil and having the free will to choose. Our inner life is dynamic, not static.

So let us begin exploring the states of the self [Nafs] as described in the Quran.

The Quranic term Nafs is generally translated in English as "psyche", "self," or "ego. It represents a person's inner being, encompassing consciousness, desires, and inclinations, and is often associated with the lower, impulsive self that requires spiritual purification (tazkiyah) to achieve tranquility. The state of the huma...

Let us continue our reflection on the nature of the human being.

After discussing the idea of fitrah in Surah Rum - that primordial nature upon which Allah created mankind - we now turn to another passage in the Qur’an which relates to a similar idea.

In Surah Ash-Shams, Allah says 

وَنَفْسٍ وَمَا سَوَّاهَا 

[91:7] And the soul and Him Who made it perfect [fashioned it],

فَأَلْهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقْوَاهَا 

[91:8] Then He inspired it to understand what is wrong and (what is) right for it, 

Here Allah [swt] is swearing by the Nafs and this passage comes after many oaths on the sun and the moon among others. Let us remind ourselves that when Allah [swt] takes oaths and swears in the Quran, it is not to prove His veracity. Rather it is an invitation for us to pay close attention to what the oath is taken on as in: pay attention this is so important that I am swearing by it. 

Scholars [in the Study Quran] explain that “the One Who fashioned it (made it perfect)” means that God cr...

Let us continue our discussion on the creation and nature of the human being. In Sūrah Rūm [30:30], Allah (swt) says:

فَأَقِمْ وَجْهَكَ لِلدِّينِ حَنِيفًا فِطْرَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا لَا تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ ذَلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ وَلَكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ 

[30:30] Then direct your face upright for religion in the right state - in the primordial nature from God upon which He originated mankind; there is no altering of Allah's creation; that is the right religion, but most people do not know

The phrase we will reflect on today is: “the primordial nature from God upon which He originated mankind.”

The word fitrah refers to the innate, primordial nature of the human being. It is “from God” meaning that Allah has created every human being with a natural inclination toward goodness and righteousness. Embedded within our original design — our internal program or hard drive — is an appreciation for truth, kindness, justice, and beauty, ev...

Let us continue our discussion on the potential within the human being by reflecting on the following verse:

فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُوا لَهُ سَاجِدِينَ 

[38:72] So when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My spirit, then fall down before him prostrating.

In Sura Saad, Allah describes the creation of the human being in two stages. He says that he perfectly fashioned Adam from clay and then breathed into him His Spirit. The breathing of Allah [swt]’s Ruh into Adam was followed by the command to the angels: Fall down before him prostrating yourselves. 

Islamic scholars explain that the phrase “breathing into him of My Ruh” does not mean that the human being carries a piece of God. Allah [swt] is utterly transcendent and there is nothing and none other like Him. Allah [swt]’s attribution to breathing His spirit into Adam is an honour bestowed on Adam. A declaration of dignity for this creation of the All Mighty. It is like calling the Ka‘bah ...