Purification of the Heart

Definition

Imam Mawlu̅d speaks next about fakhr, which is the loathsome practice of boasting. Exceptionally odious is the practice of bragging about what one has not done or exerted any effort toward, like bragging about one's ancestry and borrowing from some past nobility. Boasting is a problematic behavior that universally evokes objection and is considered a spiritual disease. Non one lies a boaster, one who walks with a swank and swagger, and one who cannot be in the company of other people without speaking about himself or drawing attention to what he has done. God Himself reveals His dislike of bragging: "God does not love the arrogant and boasting ones" (QUR'AN, 31:18, 57:23).

Signs and symptoms

Imam Mawlu̅d mentions the force behind the culture of boasting, namely, arrogance (kibr). "Deem that mountain insignificant," he says, "if you desire to sink it to the ground." The word for "arrogance" in Arabic stems from a root-word signifying "growth," either in mass or age. With arrogance, what is alluded to is glorification and aggrandizement of the self.

The most villainous beings in history were filled with arrogance and false pride: Satan, Pharaoh, the opponents of the Prophet ﷺ, and many nefarious tyrants since. The Prophet ﷺ warned against arrogance: "No one who has an atom's weight of arrogance in his heart will enter Paradise." God said, "I will divert My signs from those who show arrogance without right" (QUR'AN, 7:146). That is, God recompenses the arrogant ones by turning them away from understanding His Book, His prophets, and His signs placed all around them as well as within their own selves. God also says that He, "sets a seal upon the heart of every arrogant tyrant" (QUR'AN, 4:35), and "He does not love those who wax arrogant" (QUR'AN, 16:23). One of the attributes of God, the Exalted, is that He is the Proud (al-Mutakabbir), an attribute that is reserved for Himself. It is not becoming for anyone to have any of it in his or her heart.

Justice follows every vice. When it comes to arrogance, its possessors will culminate in being the most abject people in the Hereafter; they will envy those whom they once thought to be beneath them in honor and status, those who were patient, grateful, and humble in this life.

Types of arrogance

The first type is when a person deems himself superior to others. Imam al-Ghaza̅lı̅ said, "People of knowledge are in greater danger of arrogance than anyone else"; this is because the knowledge they have attained may lead them to feelings of superiority.

The second type of arrogance is in displaying contempt and scorn towards others. Once a man saw an old woman calling to the Prophet ﷺ in a boisterous manner, yet the Prophet ﷺ stopped to speak with her, showing no sign of annoyance. When the man saw the Prophet's calm reaction, he said, "Muḥammad ﷺ is a man unlike the kings of other lands." It is a marvel how some people act arrogantly because of their perceived piety, while the Prophet ﷺ, "the best of creation," remained humble.

The third type of arrogance relates to lineage. In some cultures, if one is aware of his "high birth," he is obliged to behave nobly. The Arabs manifested this. If a man was born into a clan known for generosity, it was mandatory for him to be generous. One of the blights of many societies is racism: people feel and act superior simply because of their race. The Qur'an nullifies false claims of superiority and states that the only rank that matters relates to one's relationship with God: "Indeed, the most honorable of you in the sight of God are the most God-fearing of you. Surely, God is all-knowing, all-aware" (QUR'AN, 49:13).

The fourth type of arrogance is that which is owing to beauty. Social conditioning impacts our sense of beauty more than many would admit.

The fifth type of arrogance is that which stems from having wealth. The affluent are notorious for showing contempt for those of lesser means. This is not to say that all wealthy people exhibit this disease. There are generous men and women who recognize the source and responsibility of wealth. However, they tend to be the exception.

The sixth type is based on physical strength.

The seventh is due to possessing an abundance of something. An example of this is a teacher having many students and thus regarding himself as being better than the other teachers who have fewer students. The same is true with those who boast of having many friends, especially those in so-called high places.

The eighth type of arrogance is linked to having knowledge. This type of arrogance is particularly insidious, since knowledge is a greatly honorable matter. However, a knowledgeable person may become deluded into believing himself to be superior over others due to the veneration shown to him.

Moderation (wasaṭiyyah)

Imam Mawlu̅d's touches upon the Islamic ethic of moderation (wasaṭiyyah). While humility is a praise-worthy virtue, if it is carried out excessively, it results in abasement. According to some classical Christian theological paradigms, abasement is praised, but that is not the case in Islam. Abject humiliation is disapproved of, even in the face of tribulation. Those who face tests with dignity and patience are praised. Hence, humility is different from humiliation.

Posture of humility

Many find the Muslim prayer objectionable because of its postures of humility and awe before God. What they struggle with is not merely the postures but their aversion to submit to God, being His servant. People have difficulty with that, claiming that they are "free." Astonishingly, these same "free" people are in bondage to their whims and passions.

Treatment

There are several cures for arrogance. First, we should remember our humble organic origins. As the Qur'an reminds us, every one of us is created from a drop of semen (QUR'AN, 75:37). God says, "Perished is man! How ungrateful he is! From what stuff did He create him? From a sperm drop He created him and proportioned him" (QUR'AN, 80:16–19). God also says, "Let man reflect from what he was created. He was created from an ejected fluid that issues from between the loins and the ribs" (QUR'AN, 86:5–7). Furthermore, God says, "Has there come over man a time when he was nothing remembered? We created man from sperm drop mixed in order to try him" (QUR'AN, 76:1–2). These reminders should suppress any insurgence of arrogance and conceit.

Muslims should venerate religious heroes. In studying the personalities of the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ, one learns of incredibly great people who were extraordinarily humble.

It is better to simulate humility than to be an outright arrogant man.

The cure for arrogance that is owing to beauty is to realize that beauty can be the most illusory of things. One should ponder over why beauty could even be a cause of arrogance? That is, how can one have an obnoxious sense of superiority for something one had nothing to do with? First of all, God is the Fashioner; it is He who gives all things their shapes and forms. Secondly, beauty does not last; it wanes, as the pressures of age and stress wear down flesh, so what remains is what one should have focused on the first place: the content of one's character, personal beliefs, and one's deeds.

God created humanity and has bestowed human beings with more blessings than He has given the rest of His creation. However, blessings are coupled with responsibility. The intellectual and volitional capacities of humankind are great responsibilities. Ironically, it is these very capacities which have the potential of causing people to forget that every blessings we have is a gift from God and is something that we are responsible for. "Have We not given [man] two eyes, a tongue, and two lips, and shown him the two highways [of good and evil]? Yes he does not attempt the steep road [of good] (QUR'AN, 90:8–11). The steep road here is spending on orphans, relieving the distressed, and all other good actions that are difficult for the arrogant ones, as they feel that their wealth, strength, and prestige are borne of their own devices. People rejected the Prophet's message not because they were not convinced. They knew that what the Prophet ﷺ brought was the truth from God Himself, but they rejected him out of arrogance.

Imam Mawlu̅d says that the key to avoiding or removing this disease is to know yourself, your origins, and your ultimate return. Prophet's honor was entirely based on his servitude to God, the Exalted—not on wealth, lineage, power, or authority. Whoever is humbled for the sake of God, God elevates in rank. Haughtiness and gratitude cannot coexist in one vessel. God increases in goodness those who are grateful. The station of arrogance invites only humiliation.

Imam Mawlu̅d says humility, by nature, leads to gratitude, for when one is humble before God, the Exalted, only then does one see the vast mercy God bestows upon His creation, even upon liars and disbelievers.