Vanity is the aggrandizing of some blessing while forgetting
that it came from God.
Treat it by realizing that the Exalted is the Fashioner and the
Bestower of blessings,
[realizing] that because of your impotence, you can produce
neither benefit nor harm. Indeed vanity originates from one’s
ignorance of these two matters.
Definition and Treatment
The next disease of the heart is vanity, known in Arabic as 'ujb, which is related to arrogance. Imam al-Ghazali holds that arrogance
requires two people for its outward manifestation: the arrogant one and the one
to whom the arrogance is shown. But the possessor of vanity does not need a
second person. He is impressed with himself, and so admires his talents,
possessions, looks, and status, he considers himself better than others. He
exults, for example, when looking at himself in the mirror or gazing upon his
accomplishments or property. Imam Mawlud says 'ujb is a nefarious kind of
vanity in which a person rejoices in the blessings he has but forgets the
source of the blessings.
The fact that someone has talent and is able to develop it into
a higher skill or craft and achieve remarkable things does nothing to diminish
the obvious—that it still is a gift from God. It is part of the sunna of God in
creation, that divine order woven in the fabric of existence, that one must toil
to refine his or her skills or talent. A calligrapher, for example makes his
craft appear easy to the onlooker, but one doesn’t see the years of tireless preparation,
perseverance, and repetition to master the curves of one letter of the Arabic
alphabet and then whole words. Then consider the various styles of calligraphy
that have developed over the centuries by the great Muslim calligraphers. There
are plenty of talented and refined artisans of the world who deem their work
astonishing and magnificent. They think only of their long training and deceive
themselves into thinking, “I worked so hard, and I did this all by myself.”
Similarly, one often finds businessmen truly talented and bold in building
businesses, but who admire themselves and extol their financial prowess.
Undoubtedly, this invites illness to the heart, for it is God who is the
bestower of success and talent.
Imam al-Bayhaqi relates a
statement of the Prophet pbuh in which he said, “God makes every maker and what
he makes.” In reality, God is the creator of the marvels that people admire and
attribute to the glory of humankind, forgetting that it is God who created the
ones who produced these marvels. Realizing that God is the source of all
blessings prevents vanity from entering the heart.
A person will always find someone with more talent and more
knowledge. And ultimately: Above all those who have knowledge is the
All-knowing, that is, God (QURAN, 12:76). Moses pbuh
was once asked if he was the most knowledgeable of people, and he
answered “Yes.” Moses pbuh was then told that
there was a man who had knowledge that Moses pbuh
did not have. This man was Khidr, who wasn’t a prophet, but Moses pbuh,
without a trace of vanity, became his student. (The story is told in Surat
al-Kahf of the Quran.)
Vanity comes from the Latin word vanus, which means empty¸ implying that the source of our vanity is void of substance and
will vanish. When the Roman Emperor triumphed in a battle, he put on a victory
celebration in which the general of the battle paraded through the street.
Behind him on his chariot a slave would hold a victory laurel and whisper in
the general’s ear, “All is vanity,” thus reminding the general of the perils of
vanity. It is part of ancient wisdom to remind people that all accomplishments
people praise and admire will perish until no one remembers them. Charles
Lindbergh, the first pilot to successfully fly across the Atlantic, was
celebrated as a great hero for his famous flight. Within ten years, however, he
was vilified as a criminal by the American press who falsely claimed that he
was a Nazi sympathizer.
How many times have we seen major cities holding massive
celebrations for the accomplishments of their sports teams, the huge parades
and the hubris tradition of human glorification? How many of these celebrations
end up in riots, vandalism, and even loss of life? What about the urban social
morass that exists before, during, and after the celebrations? To celebrate in
this way is vintage vanity.
There is foolishness in being vain about what one has
accomplished, given its ephemeral nature. But when one is thankful to God and
acknowledges and praises Him as the source of this goodness, then the
accomplishment outlasts our earthly lives and the memories of people, for God
preserves it.
Vanity originates from one’s ignorance of two matters: God alone
is the Fashioner and the Giver of Blessings and we human beings are incapable
of accomplishing anything without God’s will and blessings. If one accomplishes
something, let him or her remember God and be grateful, and not swagger with
haughtiness. For if we do not humble ourselves, God will humble us. When men
and women are blessed with exceptional outward beauty, they introduce ugliness
when they have vanity for it. When the Prophet pbuh
saw a reflection of himself—and he was a beautiful man—he would make the
following supplication: “O God, as You have made my countenance most excellent,
make my character most excellent." So Imam Mawlud says that to rid oneself of
vanity (or prevent it from entering one’s heart), reflect long and hard on the
fact that all blessings are entirely from God and that we cannot produce any
benefit or harm without His permission.
Some assumptions are not permissible, such as holding a bad
opinion about someone who manifests righteous behavior.
This means that your heart is convinced and you have judged
him based on your heart’s suspicions without proof that
warrants such an assumption.
There is nothing wrong with having doubts about someone or
having a bad opinion of him if it is based on sound reasoning
and is not arbitrary.
Thus our bad opinion of some profligate whose actions
indicate his [corruption] is not prohibited.
Discussion
Imam Mawlud speaks next of something that is very easy to have
but is harmful to brotherhood and injurious to one’s own spiritual growth. It is
having a bad opinion about others, baseless assumptions and suspicion (zann).
This is allowing conjecture into one’s heart without having facts, which is
especially harmful when one harbors a bad opinion about people who are
outwardly righteous in appearance, which was something that the early Muslims considered
important.
Scholars have advised that one should even beware of forming
conclusions based on the bad appearances of people, for it could be that God
veils their goodness from others. The Arabs traditionally were keen on having
the ability to see a person’s inner goodness. Once an Arab man came to the
Prophet pbuh to see who he was. When the man
left, some men asked him about his opinion of the Prophet pbuh, and he said, “His
face isn’t the face of the liar.” This firasa is, again, having the intuitive
ability to see in people sings of goodness or evil. The Prophet pbuh had this ability to the utmost degree and
said that believers possess it also, but to lesser extents. Sidi Ahmad
al-Zarruq said that every believer has the power of firasa to variant degrees
based on the strength of his or her faith.
But having a bad opinion
of someone without cause is considered a malady of the heart: O you who
believe, avoid suspicion, for some suspicion is sinful (QURAN, 49:12). Often
associated with this disease is backbiting (ghiba), that is, speaking ill of
another person behind his or her back. It is possible to backbite in an
unspoken form, as when a person has unfounded negative thoughts against another
person. Suspicion in the heart that affects one’s thoughts and opinion of
another person is considered backbiting of the heart (ghibat’l-qalb). This also
is not permissible. The Prophet pbuh said,
“Beware of a bad opinion because it is the most false of speech.” If someone
says to you that a given person is bad, ask for proof. Without proof it is
tantamount to a lie. The Sacred Law of Islam (Sharia) is based on proof and not
conjecture.
Imam Mawlud says next
that having doubts about someone’s character is not forbidden if it is based on
reason and observable evidence. This is different from suspicion that tends to
be judgmental and, oftentimes, specious. God says, O you who believe, if an
ungodly person brings you some news, then seek out its veracity (QURAN, 49:6).
If someone known to openly indulge in major sins comes with some news, one
should not accept it without circumspection. Sidi Ahmad al-Zarruq gave good
advice centuries ago that remains relevant: “Do not trust anyone with matters
related to your religion, your family, or your wealth until you have tested him
at least a thousand times.” According to this advice, one should test someone’s
sincerity and trustworthiness before entrusting him with anything significant.
If there is much corruption in a given generation, it is best to be wary of
people until their goodness becomes manifest. This is the advice of scholars.
There are many people who have no qualms in deceiving and cheating people. They
will adorn their faces with smiles and communicate that they are wonderful people,
but they will cheat a person when the opportunity arises.
Scholars also say that
one should be circumspect with the dispensation of Zakat (Charity). In times in
which goodness prevails over corruption, the default is to accept the word of
people who claim they qualify for Zakat and ask for it. But when corruption and
fraud are prevalent, then those responsible are obliged to be rigorous in their
investigation. Unfortunately, some people will often present themselves as
mired in poverty, though they are well-off. Charity is considered a trust from
God, and its dispensation must be done with care.
Having doubts about people is different from decidedly judging
them negatively. Concluding a bad opinion in the presence of ample evidence is
common sense. But when people repent, they should not have their past held against
them. There is a hadith that says, “There are two things that no believer has
been given anything better: a good opinion of God and a good opinion of the
servants of God.” According to Sacred Law, people are innocent until proven
guilty. This relates to having a good opinion of God. A hadith qudsi says, “I
am in the good opinion of My servant. If he things well of Me, he finds good,
and if he thinks ill of Me, he finds evil.” Also, there is the hadith, “If
[someone] finds good, let him thank God, and whoever finds other than that, let
him blame only his own soul.” The Prophet pbuh
also said that the affair of believers is all good. Even if something
unpleasant occurs, there is good in it.
Its quick-acting poison is extended false hope, which is
assuring yourself that death is a long way off
This generates hard-heartedness and indolence regarding
obligations, which leads to inroads to the prohibited.
Regarding one who is engaged in preparing for tomorrow or
writing works of knowledge, [extended hope] is not blameworthy.
As for foreboding its origin, it is ignorance of the fact that
the
entire affair [of this life] is God's alone.
Discussion
Imam Mawlud speaks next of a "quick-acting poison"
that produces an inordinate attachment to worldly concerns, which is a cause of
so many diseases of the heart. This poison is extended hope (tatwil al-amal),
that is, assuring oneself that death is a long way off—a mental environment
that leads people to live their days as if a long life is guaranteed. The
dangers of this delusion are self-evident.
But before speaking about the perils inherent in this malady, it
must be said that in some ways extended hope is a necessary human condition.
Scholars have said that if people did not have hope, no one would have ever bothered
planting a single tree. If one was sure that he was going to die very soon, he
would not have planted an orchard or had children. There would be no
infrastructure for the next generation. But because human beings do have
aspirations, they sow orchards and the like. A famous Persian story speaks of a
Shah who passed by an old man planting an olive tree, which takes decades to
produce good fruit. The Shah asked, "Do you believe this tree will be of
any benefit to you, old man? You will die before it bears fruit." The old
man replied, "Those before me planted and we benefited. We should plant so
that others after us might benefit. The Shah was impressed with the old man's concern
for the future generations, and then rewarded the old man with money. The old
man then said to the Shah, "You see! The tree has brought me benefit
already." The Shah smiled and rewarded him again. There is a similar Arab
proverb that states, "Before us they planted, and now we eat what they
have planted. We too must plant, so that those after us will likewise
eat."
Extended hope definitely has its place; in fact, it's a mercy
from God that we are capable of it, otherwise no one would embark on a course
of education, for example, or undertake any endeavor that requires years before
completion. Taking it a step further, one of the problems of modern society—and
the apocalyptic nature of the age we live in—is that people are beginning to
lose hope in the future. This is especially true among our youth, who are becoming
nihilistic, taking a morbid perspective on the world. We live in a fast-food
culture, in which we are led to believe that we need to have everything now; it
is a culture that causes people to lose a sense of a future worth waiting for.
Only recently have we seen the first generation in American history that in
many ways will be materially worse off than their parents. Prior to this age,
Americans were noted for their cheery optimism about the future.
The extended hope that Imam Mawlud calls a "poison" is
akin to false hope that generates hard-heartedness and indolence due to
heedlessness of the Hereafter. When one believes that he or she will live for a
long time, what ensues is a diminution of pondering one's mortality and a sense
of independence from God. Fudayl ibn 'iyad— a great early scholar and a man of
asceticism—said that the world is divided into two types of people: felicitous (sa'id)
and wretched (shaqi). No third category exists. Aristotle, an icon of Western
civilization, wrote in his Ethics that the goal in life is leisure and happiness,
a notion reflected in the Declaration of Independence, which states that people
have inalienable rights from God, among them are life and liberty, which are
enshrined in Islam's Sacred Law as well. Thomas Jefferson added "the
pursuit of happiness," which implied leisure. What was originally meant by
leisure was time to study and meditate on life and pursue true happiness.
For most today, however, happiness is pursued through the
acquisition and enjoyment of material goods. The believer, though, finds happiness
in genuine worship, a connection with other-worldliness. The human being is a
creature that cannot pursue two things simultaneously, especially when they are
on opposite poles of the universe. Islam connects the definition and
understanding of happiness with what is permanent and real. According to most religious
traditions, true happiness is happiness derived from one's relationship with
God and happiness in the Hereafter. This includes living a life that prepares
one for this destiny. If one is happy in the next world, this is the greatest
possible achievement, regardless of one's material accomplishments in this
life. Devotion to God includes the enjoyment of God's blessings, such as
family, friends, and recreation.
The Prophet Muhammad pbuh made a spectacular supplication: "[O
God], if You are not angry with me, then I do not care what You do with
me." In other words, "If my life is toilsome and difficult, but I
have not incurred Your wrath, then I am happy with that." He is happy
because he knows that the real life—the everlasting existence—is in the
Hereafter.
A wretched existence is plunging headlong into the worldly and
having nothing good stored for the Hereafter. No matter how "well-off
people appear in this world—regardless of the fine goods that surround them—if they
have nothing good in the Hereafter, then they are essentially wretched. Fudayl
ibn 'iyad said that there are well-known signs of wretchedness. The first is
having a hard heart. A man saw the Prophet pbuh kiss a baby and asked him, "Do
you kiss your children?" The Prophet pbuh said, "Indeed, I do." The
man then said, "I have ten children, and I never kissed any of them,"
which said that if we were able to see the Muslims who fought at Badr, we would
think that they were madmen because of their disregard of the world. "But
if these Companions saw the best of you, they would say, "These people
have no character." And if they saw the worst of you, they would say,
"These people do not believe in the Day of Judgment."
There is a popular saying (often erroneously identified as a
hadith of the Prophet pbuh) "Act for your world as if you will live forever, and
act for your Hereafter as if you are going to die tomorrow." Shaykh Bashir
Uthman Bashir, a contemporary saint, said that people frequently misunderstand
that saying and use it as a justification for working very hard for the world.
Rather, the tradition states that we have forever to take care of our worldly
affairs, but we must tend to the Hereafter as if death awaits tomorrow. This
implies making even our worldly affairs for the sake of god. The point is not
to suggest that a person neglect his work; rather, it speaks to one's
intentions, such that one's work in the world does not detract from the
Hereafter. The Quran says, Do not forget your portion of this world (QURAN,
28:77). There are two ways this can be interpreted. First, do not neglect what
God has given you to expend for the Hereafter. Second, do not forget or neglect
this world, even though the more important concern is the Hereafter. Both
understandings are acceptable. Believers are not anti-worldly in a sense
propagated by some Christian theologies. The world is a place God made for us
to enjoy, but not to the point that we forget our purpose and ultimate destiny.
The Quran speaks of certain people who after a long span of time
became hard-hearted and ungodly (QURAN, 57:16). When a person suffers the
passage of time without consistent and serious reflection about the Hereafter,
the world takes hold of his heart more and more, which has a way of making it
hard. Those who have hard hearts become corrupt. This dynamic applies to
societies as it does for individuals.
Although extended hope can harden hearts, Imam Mawlud says there
are exceptions, like one who is "engaged in preparing for tomorrow or
writing works." One is not blameworthy for dedicating years of work for a single
end product, like a scholarly work from which many people may benefit. It is
one of the highest things a person can do. It is, in fact, a form of perpetual
charity (sadaqa jariya) whose reward accrues in favor of its progenitor even
after he or she has died. In cases like this, one is not censured for desiring
a long life because one seeks to strive in ways that serve God, His religion,
and humanity.
The Prophet pbuh warned against desiring death, for one "should
desire life either to repent and make amends for past iniquities, or if one did
much good, to increase his righteous deeds." There is so much optimism and
hope in this statement of the Prophet pbuh. If
one's past has been marred with evil, then there is a new day and opportunity
to turn things around. God says that good deeds blot out the evil deeds (QURAN,
11:114). People who recognize the urgency of the human condition and their own
impending mortality do not squander their time. They set out doing positive
deeds such as spreading knowledge, and this is entirely beneficial. God the
Exalted says, What benefits people shall continue on earth (QURAN, 13:17). Once
a great scholar who was a source of benefit for many people became very ill. A
person came to him and asked him if he was fearful of dying. He said, "No!
A verse of the Quran says that I will not die yet." The man asked,
"Which verse?" He said, "What benefits people shall continue on
earth." This kind of hope for a long life is a mercy from God, so that
people who bring benefit to others will wish for more opportunity to taste the
sweetness of being a harbinger of goodness.
It is no coincidence that those very people who do good and who
hope to do more of it are in fact those who reflect on death and work for the
Hereafter the most, so that the Day of Judgment will be a moment of joy and light
for them. It is wise to meditate on death—its throes and the various states
after it. For example, one should imagine, while he or she has life and is
safe, the trial of the Traverse (Sirat) that every soul must pass over in the Hereafter,
beneath which is the awesome inferno and the screams and anguish of those
evildoers who already have been cast therein.
If athletes include as part of their training the visualization
of their sport and mentally picture themselves going through all the steps
required for success, how then can believers fail to visualize what is more
important and consequential than sport? People of spiritual elevation prepare
themselves psychologically for the ultimate journey. Although death is a sudden
severance from this life, one remains conscious in a different way. In fact,
the deceased is in a hyper-conscious state that makes this life appear like a
dream. Ali ibn Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him, said, "People are
asleep. When they die, they wake up."
Many of the righteous forebears of Muslim civilization stressed
that one should visualize the states of death and the Afterlife: their bodies
being washed and prepared for burial, being lowered into the grave, having soil
cover them, being questioned by the angels, climbing out of the grave on the
Day of Resurrection, and being called to stand in judgment before God the
Exalted. In fact, some of them actually placed themselves in an open grave to
feel with greater intensity what awaits them. This may seem like a morbid
exercise, but it is effective training that adds spring to one's life and enthusiasm to work
for the Hereafter, its peace and bliss. Spiritual masters have long said that
if a person is struggling with his appetites, this exercise is a good way of
controlling them. Reflecting on death brings sobriety to one's state.
Imam al-Qarafi differentiates between the hope inherent in the
Arabic word raja and the hope implied by tatwil al-amal. The Quran praises one
who hopes for God and meeting Him in the Hereafter: Say [0 Muhammad], "I am
but a man like yourselves, but to whom it is revealed that your God is but one
God. So whoever hopes to meet his Lord, let him do righteous deeds and never
associate anyone with the worship of his Lord" (QURAN, 18:110). A famous
hadith by A'isha relates that the Prophet said, "One who loves to meet
God, God also loves to meet." And A'isha asked, "O Messenger of God,
what about disliking death?" He replied, "It is natural to dislike
death, but ultimately meeting God is something the believer seeks and looks
forward to." This kind of hope is known as raja'. It is hope coupled with
sincere effort to achieve what one hopes for.
It was common among Muslim scholars to discuss the delicate
balance between hope and fear. If one is overwhelmed with fear, he enters a
psychological state of terror that leads to despair (ya's)— that is, despair of
God's mercy. In the past, this religious illness was common, although less so
today because, ironically, people are not as religious as they used to be. But
still, some of this is found among certain strains of evangelical Christianity that
emphasize Hellfire and eternal damnation. One sect holds that only 144,000
people will be saved, based on its interpretation of a passage in the Book of
Revelations.
But an over abundance of hope is a disease that leads to
complacency and dampens the aspiration to do good, since salvation is something
guaranteed (in one's mind, that is). Some Christian sects believe in this unconditional
salvation, holding that one can do whatever one wills (although he or she is
encouraged to do good and avoid evil) and still be saved from Hell and gain
entrance to Paradise. They base this on the belief that once one accepts Jesus
pbuh as a personal savior, there is nothing to fear about the Hereafter. Such
religiosity can sow corruption because human beings simply cannot handle being
assured of Paradise without deeds that warrant salvation. Too many will serve
their passions like slaves and still consider themselves saved. In Islam, faith
must be coupled with good works for one's religion to be complete. This does
not contradict the sound Islamic doctrine that "God's grace alone saves
us." There is yet another kind of hope called umniyya, which is
blameworthy in Islam. Essentially it is having hope but neglecting the means to
achieve what one hopes for, which is often referred to as an "empty
wish." One hopes to become healthier, for example, but remains sedentary
and is altogether careless about diet. To hope for the Hereafter but do nothing
for it in terms of conduct and morality is also false hope.
A perennial teaching of revealed religion since Adam pbuh is that
entry into Paradise is a matter of God's mercy, which is attained by combining
faith with sincere deeds that confirm one's profession of faith. Unfortunately,
on the Day of Judgment many Muslims may find themselves in Hell because of
false hopes. All they have to show for their religiosity is the mere
declaration of faith, a testimony unconfirmed by deeds, especially the rites of
worship and charitable acts toward others.
Fear (khawf) treats or prevents two maladies: moral complacency
and self-righteousness. Having a good measure of fear is necessary to stay on
the path. But when one reaches his or her deathbed, one should have absolute hope
in God, certain that God will offer forgiveness and allow him or her entrance
into Paradise. This is having a good opinion of our Lord. The Prophet pbuh warned
that no one should die except with "a good opinion of God."
Imam al-Haythami relates that having extended hope (tatwil
al-amal) is founded on heedlessness of the reality of death, which, he said, is
not wrong in and of itself. There is no commandment that obliges the
remembrance of death, although it is difficult to imagine a spiritual life
without such reflection. But still, when the Prophet pbuh said, "Remember death" and when he
said, "I used to tell you do not visit graves, now I tell you to visit
graves because it will remind you of the Hereafter," the command does not
rise to the level of obligation. Rather, it is considered something highly
recommended (mandub), the same way that the remembrance of God, beyond what is
prescribed, is recommended, but not obligatory per se.
The Quran states that there are people who desire to continue in
their wrongdoing throughout the entirety of their lives. They ask, "When
will this Day of Resurrection come?" (QURAN, 75:6). One interpretation of
this verse, according to scholars, is that although people may be aware of
ultimate accountability, they put off repentance as if they are guaranteed a
long life. This is an ethic exemplified by the saying, "Sow your wild
oats," which advocates getting all the lewdness and sin out of one's life
when one is young, and then later calming down and adopting religion. Besides
the obvious error of this ethic, another terrible flaw is that people die at
all ages and some never get the chance to repent and make amends. Moreover,
what kind of repentance is this when people intentionally indulge in sin
banking on the possibility that later on in life—after all the energy and drive
diminishes—they will turn in penitence to God? We know that God loves those who
spend their youth obedient to Him and His commandments.
Imam Mawlud mentions next the concept of divination and
foreboding (tatayyur). When the pre-Islamic Arabs needed to decide upon
something, they would run toward a flock of birds. If the flock veered to the
left, they took this to be a bad omen; if to the right, it was a good omen.
Foreboding is blatant superstition. The word mutatayyur in the
Arabic language refers to someone who is a pessimist, who always sees the worst
in any given situation. Imam Mawlud says that superstition is lack of knowledge
that everything belongs to God. All affairs are His. Having a good opinion of
God produces a view of Him that is impregnable to negative thoughts and
behaviors that thrive in the soil of disbelief. To hang on to superstitions is
to have a negative understanding of the reality of God and His authority and
presence.
There are two types of foreboding. One is based on normative
experience: observing things that consistently happen. For example, getting
near a cobra usually results in it striking its victims. So when you see a cobra,
get out of the way. There is no superstition in that. But this differs
completely from some practices like avoiding walking under a ladder, staying
clear of a black cat, and the culture that has evolved around the number 13 and
its association with bad luck. There is also a stigma connected with breaking a
mirror. Even the seemingly harmless "knock on wood" originates from
pagan practices of worshipping trees. These superstitions emanate from having a
bad opinion of God, not recognizing His power and authority in the world, and
attributing power to inanimate objects and delving into other similar
practices. These superstitions are explicitly forbidden in Islam.
What the Sacred Law permits as a means to avoid calamities is
not superstition. Saying certain prayers, reading certain passages of the Quran
that ward off evil, giving extra charity, and the like are acts of worship.
These are based on revelation from God Himself and, therefore, differ
completely from pre-Islamic practices, for example, of avoiding coming between
two sheep, which was considered bad luck.
The Prophet pbuh warned against superstition, no matter how
widespread it may be in societies. Some people routinely read the astrology
page of the newspaper before starting their day. Often people buy and sell
stocks based on the advice of their astrologers. No matter how common this has
become, it remains an offense against revealed religion and God Himself. It is
founded on a completely absurd premise. While these practices have taken on an
aura of innocence and light humor, they are nonetheless connected to their
pagan and idolatrous ancestry.
Imam Mawlud proffers that the way to cure this trap of
superstition is for one to simply persist in what he was doing when confronted
with something viewed as a bad omen. Altering one's course of action because of
some perceived omen is admitting that the superstition has power. It is
important to note that if it is not one's habit to have such forebodings and
one finds oneself with a bad feeling about a situation or person, it is prudent
to "listen to the heart." This is known as firasa in Arabic, and in
traditional theology, it is known simply as "discernment." It is an angelic
agent that attempts to protect us from some imminent harm.
