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    • On Refraining from Disobedience

    • The religion is divided into two parts:

      1. Refraining from disobedience (more serious and important).
      2. Performing acts of obedience.

    • True sincerity lies in abandoning one’s desires and evil appetites.

      • The true emigrant: One who abandons sins.
      • The true warrior: One who fights his passions.

    THE SINS COMMITTED WITH THE LIMBS

    1. GENERAL ADVICE ON THE LIMBS

    • Each part of your body is entrusted to you by Allah Most High.

    • Using these limbs to disobey Allah is the ultimate betrayal and ingratitude.

      • “Each of you is a shepherd, and each of you is answerable for his flock” (Bukhārī).

    • On the Day of Judgment, the limbs will testify against you:

      • “Their mouths will be sealed, and their hands will speak to Us, and their feet will testify as to what they have earned” (Qur’an 36:65).

    • Seven gates of Hell correspond to sins committed by seven parts of the body:

      1. The eye
      2. The ear
      3. The tongue
      4. The stomach
      5. The private part
      6. The hand
      7. The foot

    2. THE EYE

    • The eye is created to seek guidance in darkness, see the wonders of creation, and reflect on Allah’s signs.
    • Protect your eye from:
      1. Looking at someone marriageable (with lust).
      2. Looking at beautiful forms with a lustful gaze.
      3. Looking at a Muslim with disdain or arrogance.
      4. Seeking out the faults of others.

    3. THE EAR

    • The ear was created to hear the speech of Allah, His Messenger, and the wisdom of the righteous.

    • Protect it from:

      1. Listening to falsehood, backbiting, and lewd talk.
      2. Hearing the faults of others.

    • Hadith:

      • “The listener shares [in sin] with the speaker” (Ṭabarānī).

    • If you use the ear for disobedience, what was meant as a blessing will turn into a reason for destruction.

    4. THE TONGUE

    • The tongue is the most dangerous limb and causes the most destruction.

    • The Prophet ﷺ said:

      • “People are not thrown into Hell on their faces for anything more than the harvest of their tongues” (Tirmidhī).

    • Protect your tongue from eight calamities:

    1. Lying

      • Lying erodes trust and reputation.
      • “How despicable it is to lie!” Reflect on how you feel when others lie.

    2. Breaking a Promise

      • Breaking promises is hypocrisy.
      • If forced to promise, do so with caution and only if necessary.

    3. Backbiting (Ghibah)

      • Definition: Mentioning something about a person in their absence that they would dislike.
      • Backbiting makes you a wrongdoer, even if what you say is true.
      • Indirect backbiting is also sinful, such as saying:
        • “May Allah rectify him; I’m saddened by his actions.”
      • Qur’an:
        • “Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would truly despise that” (Qur’an 49:12).

    4. Argumentation and Debate

      • Avoid disputing unnecessarily; it creates arrogance and enmity.
      • Hadith: “Whoever leaves a quarrel while in the wrong, Allah will build him a house on the outskirts of Paradise; and if he leaves it while in the right, Allah will build him a house in the highest part of Paradise” (Tirmidhī).
      • Satan deceives by presenting argumentation as truth.

    5. Ascribing Goodness to Oneself

      • Avoid self-praise, for it reduces your esteem.
      • Allah says: “Do not ascribe goodness to yourselves; He is more knowing of the God-fearing” (Qur’an 53:32).

    6. Cursing

      • Do not curse people, animals, or food.
      • On the Day of Judgment, you will be held accountable for every curse uttered.

    7. Supplicating Against Creation

      • Do not pray against others, even if they wrong you. Leave the matter to Allah.
      • “The oppressed one prays against his oppressor until he takes his right”.

    8. Jesting, Ridiculing, and Mocking People

      • Mockery creates hatred and distances people.
      • “When they pass by idle talk, they pass by with dignity” (Qur’an 25:72).
    • Practical Advice:
      • Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq placed a stone in his mouth to prevent excessive speech.

    5. THE STOMACH

    • Avoid consuming the unlawful (ḥarām) or doubtful wealth.
    • Overeating leads to laziness, forgetfulness, and weak worship.
    • Seeking unlawful wealth is building on a garbage heap.
    • Examples of unlawful wealth:
      1. Usury (ribā).
      2. Fraudulent trade.
      3. Religious endowments misused for personal gain.

    6. THE PRIVATE PARTS

    • Guard your chastity, as Allah commands:
      • “And those who guard their private parts” (Qur’an 23:5).
    • Success in this depends on controlling the eyes, heart, and stomach.

    7. THE HANDS

    • Do not use hands to:
      1. Strike a Muslim.
      2. Take unlawful wealth.
      3. Harm creation.
      4. Write anything sinful.
    • “The pen is one of the two tongues”.

    8. THE FEET

    • Do not use the feet to approach sin, oppression, or unlawful gatherings.
    • Hadith:
      • “Two-thirds of a person’s faith leaves him if he humbles himself before a wealthy tyrant” (Shuʿab al-Īmān).

    Conclusion

    • The limbs are bounties from Allah.
    • Use them for His obedience, not disobedience, to avoid destruction in both this world and the Hereafter.

    1. Allah’s Mercy vs. Foolish Complacency:

      • Do not misuse statements like “Allah Most High is All-Generous, Ever-Merciful” to justify sin or laziness.
      • Such statements, while truthful, can brand a person as foolish if used to avoid effort or repentance.
      • The intelligent person is one who “takes account of himself and works for what comes after death.”

    2. Wealth and Effort:

      • Some desire wealth without working for it, saying: “Allah is All-Generous and to Him belong the treasures.”
      • Such people resemble those who seek paradise without any struggle or effort.
      • Allah Most High says: “Man will have nothing but what he strives for” (Qur’an 53:39).
        • Actions of effort are key; “You are rewarded only for that which you used to do” (52:16).

    3. Relying on Allah’s Generosity:

      • True reliance on Allah does not mean abandoning effort.
      • Rely on Allah’s generosity while striving, for “whoever struggles in this world, will have the next as a reward.”
    • The actions of the outward limbs are merely reflections of the heart’s qualities.
    • If you wish to purify and rectify your limbs, you must purify your heart, as it is the source of all goodness or corruption.
      • “If the heart is sound, the rest of the body is sound; and if corrupt, the rest of the body is corrupt.”
    • Therefore, prioritize the heart’s rectification to ensure the purity of all your faculties and actions.

    On The Blameworthy Qualities of the Heart

    • The heart’s purification is difficult but essential to remove vices like envy, ostentation, and conceit.
    • Envy: A severe form of miserliness that causes pain at others’ blessings.
      • The Prophet ﷺ said: “Envy devours good deeds just as fire devours wood” (Abū Dāwūd).
      • Envious people suffer endlessly; their punishment is severe both in this world and the next.
      • True faith requires loving for one’s brother what one loves for oneself.

    Ostentation

    • Ostentation (riyā’) is a hidden form of associating partners with Allah (shirk).
    • It is the pursuit of fame and admiration from others.
    • On the Day of Judgment, one’s acts of worship performed for show will be rejected:
      • Allah will say, “You wanted it for fame, and that is your reward” (Muslim).
    • Scholars, warriors, and Qur’an reciters will all be questioned if they sought admiration from others instead of Allah.

    Conceit, Arrogance, and Pride

    • Conceit (ujb) is when a person glorifies themselves while looking down on others.
    • Arrogance manifests as disdain for others, refusing advice, and believing oneself superior.
    • The Prophet ﷺ said, “No one with an atom’s weight of pride in his heart will enter Paradise”.
    • Remedies for pride include:
      • Seeing others as better than yourself.
      • Considering the blessings Allah gave others.
      • Reflecting on one’s ignorance and shortcomings.
    • Allah’s mercy and forgiveness are for those who repent and humble themselves.

    The Narration of Mu’ādh Ibn Jabal

    • Mu’ādh ibn Jabal narrates a lengthy hadith where the Prophet ﷺ highlights the severity of:
      1. Backbiting,
      2. Arrogance,
      3. Insincerity in worship.
    • Recording Angels:
      • Angels refuse to let the deeds of show-offs pass to the heavens.
      • Allah curses such acts, and the angels echo, “Upon him is Your curse and ours!”.
    • Practical Advice:
      • Avoid speaking ill of others.
      • Focus on one’s sins instead of finding faults in others.
      • Ensure sincerity in deeds, avoiding worldly gains through religion.

    The Greatest Evils of the Heart

    1. Love of this World:
      • The Prophet ﷺ said, “Love of this world is the root of every sin” (Shu‘ab al-Īmān).
      • This life is meant to cultivate for the Hereafter; excessive indulgence leads to ruin.
    2. Seeking Knowledge for Status:
      • Sacred knowledge should be sought to purify the heart, not to compete or gain praise.

    The Summary of Guidance

    • The outward actions reflect the inward state of the heart.
    • Protecting one’s limbs from sin requires rectifying the heart.
    • The Heart’s Role:
      • If the heart is sound, the body and deeds will follow.
      • Purify the heart of pride, envy, and worldly love to attain closeness to Allah.
    • The Beginning of Guidance lies in purifying the heart, performing obligatory deeds, and striving for sincerity.

    Conclusion

    • Engage in:
      • Sincere worship,
      • Rectifying one’s inner faults,
      • Avoiding idle speech, gossip, and argumentation.
    • The Ultimate Goal: Achieve gnosis (ma‘rifah) of Allah and build an afterlife of eternal success.

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