The wiles of Satan

Do you realize how many enemies have encircled you!  Enemies are masquerading as friends.  You are being deceived.  They are taking out their enmity on you.  For the sake of Allah, steady yourself.  Treat an enemy as an enemy and recognize who is a friend and who is an enemy.  Just see!  The Friend is describing to you the wiles of the enemy and methods to shield yourself.  The Friend is Allah Most High and the enemy is Satan.  The whispers that he casts into your hearts, they are his wiles.

 

        In its actual nature, the heart is like a sword or a horse.  Regardless of whether the sword is wielded by its master or by someone against its master, it will still cut.  No matter who mounts the horse, the master or the master’s enemy, the horse will still take you.  In the same way, the heart is ready:  Whether Satan affects it or an angel, it will accept that effect.

 

The human heart is in this dilemma.  It should use its intellect and differentiate between a satanic whisper from an angelic inspiration and then act upon it.  If Satan casts its effect on the heart, it leans towards him.  If the angel casts its effect, it leans towards it.  As long as the heart is not run over by any one of these forces, it is sometimes virtuous and sometimes evil.  The way Satan casts his whisper in the heart is that it sits between the 2 shoulders and extends its snout to the heart and casts a whisper.  For this reason, there was the Seal of Prophethood between both the blessed shoulders of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) because of which no satanic whisper could enter.  For this reason, His devil couldn’t cast a whisper at Him.

 

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:  With every human being, a devil and an angel is born.  Someone asked:  Did the same happen with you too, O Prophet of Allah (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)?  He said:  Yes.  But the devil that was born with me has embraced Islam.

 

By casting whispers, Satan makes Muslims commit apostasy, ascribe partners to Allah Most High and show enmity against Allah and His Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).  If he succeeds in it, then he turns to their deeds.  If he fails in the first one, he makes someone commit innovations.  Satan loves innovations more than sins.  If a sinner repents his sins, then all the sins are forgiven, but someone commits innovations with the intention of reward and as such, there is no hope of repentance.  Not considering a sin as a sin is the greatest sin.  If Satan doesn’t succeed in any of this, then he makes one commit grave sins.  If even that is not possible, then at least minor sins, as to set fire to a house, even a small spark is enough.  Otherwise, he gets one to commit permissible (Mubah, i.e. neither good nor bad) acts, in which there is neither reward nor punishment.  Is wasting one’s life being deprived of reward a small punishment?  Whatever chance one the enemy gets, he will definitely take it.

 

If a hungry dog comes to somebody and that person doesn’t have any chapatti or meat, then that dog will run away if shooed away once.  However, if a person has any chapatti or meat, then even if shooed away 1000 times, the dog will not go away.  This is the case with Satan.  Once the worldly impermissible thoughts are removed and the heart is settled with piety with the remembrance of Allah Most High, the snout of Satan can’t reach there at all.  Thus, he abandons casting his whispers.  For this reason, when the hearts of the pious have satanic whispers, they are startled and immediately repair to the remembrance of Allah Most High.

[Excerpted from Mawaaiz-e-Hasana of Hadhrat Muhaddith-e-Deccan]