From the outset, man’s creation by God became a source of arrogance for Iblis, the devil. The arrogance had two grounds. First, that man was made of clay while he was made of fire. Second, that he did not want to do what others did. Both grounds were however false because (1) man had the spirit of God breathed into him; (2) because contempt of the angels who disobeyed God’s word showed not Iblis’ superiority but his inferiority. Iblis was then cursed by Allah (SWT) and thus remained rejected from God’s heavenly kingdom. Apart from being deprived of God’s grace, he also became in the spiritual world what an outlaw is in a political kingdom.
In order not to be alone in his rebellion against God’s will and the consequence that awaits him, Iblis asked Allah (SWT) for respite, which was granted. Iblis vowed to tempt man into rebellion since Allah (SWT) has thrown him out of the way. Qur’an 15:39 states “(Iblis) said: ‘O my Lord! Because Thou hast put me in the wrong, I will make (wrong) fair-seeming to them on the earth, and I will put them all in the wrong”. Because Iblis, the rebellious, is powerless against Allah (SWT), he turns therefore against man and becomes Satan, the Enemy. It is based upon this that Allah (SWT) in Qur’an 35:6 states “Verily Satan is an enemy to you: so treat him as an enemy. He only invites his adherents that they may become companions of the blazing fire”. In God’s grant of limited free-will to man is implied the faculty of choosing between good and evil, and the faculty is exercised through the temptations and allurements put forward by Satan, “the open enemy” of man. This is for the period of man’s probation on this earth.
Believers who are sincere in faith and worship are never lured by those things that distract man easily from the path of guidance. The most powerful of all the tempting instruments are wealth, power and women. These three, though non-alcoholic, are most often more intoxicating than any of the ten most popular liquor drinks in the world. Allah (SWT) states in Qur’an 3:14 “Fair in the eyes of men is the love of things they covet: women and sons; heaped-up hoards of gold and silver; horses branded (for blood and excellence); and (wealth of) cattle and well-tilled land. Such are the possessions of this world’s life; but in nearness to Allah is the best of goals (to return to)”. The pleasures of this world are mentioned in the above verse to caution us against being lured by the temporary comfort they provide: women for love; sons for strength and pride; and hoarded riches that procure all the luxuries of life. While wealth, power and women constitute the battlefield; the momentary love, authority or luxury, which they provide are the forces with which Iblis confronts and diverts man from the path of righteousness.
It is sad that many of us today, rather than take Satan as an enemy, have made him not just an ordinary friend but a companion in all their affairs. The extent of a man’s relationship with Satan is certainly measured by his perception of life naturally expressed by how much his senses behold and adore the ornamental ingredients of life. Unless we are able, as believers, to curb over passions and instinctive desires, we are likely to remain victims of the continuous war waged by Satan against man’s spiritual well-being. The love of all things which our eyes covet is today an epidemic against which most people of this generation have lost immunity. Contemporary women have become so ungrateful in their matrimonial homes because of incredible materialistic tendencies leading in some cases to unstable or threatened marriage relationships. Many men, too, have equally become so irresponsible in their duties as husbands such that their wives are abandoned as if “they were hanging in the air”, all in the name of searching for wealth, power or other captivating but worldly elements of trials.
In some cases, the demands of our wives and children may conflict with our moral and spiritual convictions and duties. In such circumstances, we must guard against the abandonment of our convictions, duties and ideals for the sake of their requests. Allah (SWT) reminds us in Qur’an 64:14 “O ye who believe! Truly, among your wives and your children are (some that are) enemies to yourselves : so beware of them! But if ye forgive and overlook, and cover up (their faults), verily Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful”.
We must not because we want to express love to our wives or children allow them to freely do what their hearts desire especially if such is in disobedience to Allah’s injunctions. Our love for our wives or children should not also force us in to doing that which would make us sinners in the sight of Allah (SWT). We must insist that the right thing as required by Islam is done. If they persist in opposing our clear convictions and duties, let us endeavour to persuade them to the path of guidance without necessarily exposing them to shame or ridicule.
Children with a crazy love for modernity and whose hearts, as fertile grounds for cultivating unrighteousness, have been deluded by the devil to consider the attempt by their parents to give them the best of moral training as an infringement upon their fundamental human rights. Relationships among siblings sometimes also become sour especially when one or some of them have been let loose by Satan in to the hunting the luxuries of life. Those who have remained firm in their faith in Allah (SWT) would always be seen as enemies of the “good things of life”. Friends could also become foes if they fail to recognize and desert the destructive path of Satan. Similarly, leaders with their brazen desperation for power have been misled by the Satan to consider hypocrisy, betrayal of trust, and indeed corruption as virtues instead of vices. Capitalizing on man’s incredible love for power and authority therefore, Satan has been able to turn many of the present crop of leaders in Nigeria against their followers.
Let us arm ourselves with piety and apathy in order to engage our open enemy, the Satan, in the battle he vowed to fight against man. In order to defeat the Satan, we must possess virtuous qualities including contentment and moderation. If forbidden fruits are made to taste as if they were sweetest, we must be diligent enough in our actions to prove to the devil that no pungent taste would distract us from eating bitter fruits. May Allah (SWT) guide us as men, leaders and as affluent people to resist the unceasing temptations of Satan through women, children, power and wealth, amin.
From the outset, man’s creation by God became a source of arrogance for Iblis, the devil. The arrogance had two grounds. First, that man was made of clay while he was made of fire. Second, that he did not want to do what others did. Both grounds were however false because (1) man had the spirit of God breathed into him; (2) because contempt of the angels who disobeyed God’s word showed not Iblis’ superiority but his inferiority. Iblis was then cursed by Allah (SWT) and thus remained rejected from God’s heavenly kingdom. Apart from being deprived of God’s grace, he also became in the spiritual world what an outlaw is in a political kingdom.
In order not to be alone in his rebellion against God’s will and the consequence that awaits him, Iblis asked Allah (SWT) for respite, which was granted. Iblis vowed to tempt man into rebellion since Allah (SWT) has thrown him out of the way. Qur’an 15:39 states “(Iblis) said: ‘O my Lord! Because Thou hast put me in the wrong, I will make (wrong) fair-seeming to them on the earth, and I will put them all in the wrong”. Because Iblis, the rebellious, is powerless against Allah (SWT), he turns therefore against man and becomes Satan, the Enemy. It is based upon this that Allah (SWT) in Qur’an 35:6 states “Verily Satan is an enemy to you: so treat him as an enemy. He only invites his adherents that they may become companions of the blazing fire”. In God’s grant of limited free-will to man is implied the faculty of choosing between good and evil, and the faculty is exercised through the temptations and allurements put forward by Satan, “the open enemy” of man. This is for the period of man’s probation on this earth.
Believers who are sincere in faith and worship are never lured by those things that distract man easily from the path of guidance. The most powerful of all the tempting instruments are wealth, power and women. These three, though non-alcoholic, are most often more intoxicating than any of the ten most popular liquor drinks in the world. Allah (SWT) states in Qur’an 3:14 “Fair in the eyes of men is the love of things they covet: women and sons; heaped-up hoards of gold and silver; horses branded (for blood and excellence); and (wealth of) cattle and well-tilled land. Such are the possessions of this world’s life; but in nearness to Allah is the best of goals (to return to)”. The pleasures of this world are mentioned in the above verse to caution us against being lured by the temporary comfort they provide: women for love; sons for strength and pride; and hoarded riches that procure all the luxuries of life. While wealth, power and women constitute the battlefield; the momentary love, authority or luxury, which they provide are the forces with which Iblis confronts and diverts man from the path of righteousness.
It is sad that many of us today, rather than take Satan as an enemy, have made him not just an ordinary friend but a companion in all their affairs. The extent of a man’s relationship with Satan is certainly measured by his perception of life naturally expressed by how much his senses behold and adore the ornamental ingredients of life. Unless we are able, as believers, to curb over passions and instinctive desires, we are likely to remain victims of the continuous war waged by Satan against man’s spiritual well-being. The love of all things which our eyes covet is today an epidemic against which most people of this generation have lost immunity. Contemporary women have become so ungrateful in their matrimonial homes because of incredible materialistic tendencies leading in some cases to unstable or threatened marriage relationships. Many men, too, have equally become so irresponsible in their duties as husbands such that their wives are abandoned as if “they were hanging in the air”, all in the name of searching for wealth, power or other captivating but worldly elements of trials.
In some cases, the demands of our wives and children may conflict with our moral and spiritual convictions and duties. In such circumstances, we must guard against the abandonment of our convictions, duties and ideals for the sake of their requests. Allah (SWT) reminds us in Qur’an 64:14 “O ye who believe! Truly, among your wives and your children are (some that are) enemies to yourselves : so beware of them! But if ye forgive and overlook, and cover up (their faults), verily Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful”.
We must not because we want to express love to our wives or children allow them to freely do what their hearts desire especially if such is in disobedience to Allah’s injunctions. Our love for our wives or children should not also force us in to doing that which would make us sinners in the sight of Allah (SWT). We must insist that the right thing as required by Islam is done. If they persist in opposing our clear convictions and duties, let us endeavour to persuade them to the path of guidance without necessarily exposing them to shame or ridicule.
Children with a crazy love for modernity and whose hearts, as fertile grounds for cultivating unrighteousness, have been deluded by the devil to consider the attempt by their parents to give them the best of moral training as an infringement upon their fundamental human rights. Relationships among siblings sometimes also become sour especially when one or some of them have been let loose by Satan in to the hunting the luxuries of life. Those who have remained firm in their faith in Allah (SWT) would always be seen as enemies of the “good things of life”. Friends could also become foes if they fail to recognize and desert the destructive path of Satan. Similarly, leaders with their brazen desperation for power have been misled by the Satan to consider hypocrisy, betrayal of trust, and indeed corruption as virtues instead of vices. Capitalizing on man’s incredible love for power and authority therefore, Satan has been able to turn many of the present crop of leaders in Nigeria against their followers.
Let us arm ourselves with piety and apathy in order to engage our open enemy, the Satan, in the battle he vowed to fight against man. In order to defeat the Satan, we must possess virtuous qualities including contentment and moderation. If forbidden fruits are made to taste as if they were sweetest, we must be diligent enough in our actions to prove to the devil that no pungent taste would distract us from eating bitter fruits. May Allah (SWT) guide us as men, leaders and as affluent people to resist the unceasing temptations of Satan through women, children, power and wealth, amin.
