The Four Poisons Of The Heart

Heart is the main organ in human body that makes rest of the parts function properly by pumping blood throughout the body. Even brain which is considered to be the greatest blessing also remains dependant on proper working of the heart. In Islam, it has been emphasized numerous times in the Holy Quran for the believers to keep their hearts filled with Iman and Faith. Its contamination leads to eventual failure as one gets to forget about distinguishing between the right and wrong. The Creator of the universe says in His Sacred Book:

It shows how much stress has been laid on the steadfastness and determination of a Muslim`s spirit about religious convictions as its maliciousness affects one`s actions. There are three kinds of hearts in general: healthy, dead and sick. The first one is sound, resolute, and sincere and God fearing in terms of obeying His commandments, therefore, is full of enlightenment. The second one is utterly deaf and rejects clear signs of the Almighty Lord, thus remains in darkness. The third one lies in middle of the previous two and inclines towards both righteousness and wickedness.

The alteration of healthy heart from sick one happens because of many possible distractions of the worldly life. The more one takes existence on earth for granted, it furthers in weakening of one`s devotion towards sacred duties. But there are some certain actions and dealings in one`s daily life which gives rise to deterioration of its belief. There are four toxic activities which are the key factors in sickening of a believer`s heart, which are:

i)                    Needless Talking.

ii)                  Uncontrolled Glances.

iii)                Eating Excessively.

iv)                Maintaining Bad Company.

Now let us discuss these four poisons of the heart one by one:

1. Talking about things Needlessly

The Messenger ﷺ of Allah SWT always used His speech in a positive way. He also used to advice His followers to the same and avoid from using the tongue for ill talking. Hazrat Anas (R.A) reported Him to have said:

“The faith of a servant is not put right until his heart is put right, and his heart is not put right until his tongue is put right.” (Musnad Ahmad)

It means that no one can achieve the perfection of faith until or unless its heart becomes dedicated towards its religious responsibilities which in turn is only possible through purification of its tongue.

As every action comes up with some concrete end result, similarly, discussions and conversations could also result in serious repercussions. Narrated by Abu Hurraira (R.A):

“The servant speaks words, the consequences of which he does not realize, and for which he is sent down into the depths of the Fire further than the distance between the east and the west.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

The above mentioned Hadith indicates towards most of our routine talking nowadays, i.e. chatting on unnecessary matters which also involves Gheebah (Backbiting). This kind of pointless conversation will be the source of entering Hell in the hereafter and its deepness can only be imagined.

Also narrated by Abu Hurraira (R.A):

“Let whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day either speak good or remain silent; and let whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his neighbor; and let whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his guest.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

It shows that one always needs to use it tongue positively and does not always need to talk in every matter. If there is nothing better to say for a person, one must remain silent as it will be better in its favor instead of entering into a baseless talking that can have serious consequences near Allah SWT. Thus completion of one`s faith is dependent on purification of its heart which can be achieved through using one`s tongue according to the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ.

2. Having Uncontrolled Glances

Just like tongue, a Muslim has to take care about other parts of body as well which includes its eyes. Allah SWT says in the Holy Quran:

This Ayah Kareema clearly explains that one has to take care of its body in the most desirable manner and not to go beyond the prescribed way of dealings. It includes all body organs especially eyes which can mislead believers from the memory of One God and lead it astray in the worldly pleasures.

3. Eating beyond One`s Need

One of the signs of a true Muslims described by our beloved Prophet ﷺ includes avoiding from eating to one`s fill. Sciences has also proved that one does not necessarily needs to have too much food in its diet rather eating less can lead to better fitness. That is why fasting has been made compulsory for Muslims in Ramadan so that they can devise a proper diet plan for themselves and to develop a productive routine. According to one of the Prophetic (PBUH) narrations:

“The son of Adam fills no vessel more displeasing to Allah than his stomach. A few morsels should be enough for him to preserve his strength. If he must fill it, then he should allow a third for his food, a third for his drink and leave a third empty for easy breathing.” (Musnad Ahmad and Tirmidhi)

Excessive eating has been prohibited in Islam as it leads displeasing the Almighty Lord and is also injurious to one`s health. The Messenger ﷺ of God used to consume very less food. Hazrat A`ishah (R.A) described Him (PBUH) in the following words:

 “From the time of their arrival in Madina up until His (PBUH) death, the family of Muhammad (PBUH) never ate their fill of bread made from wheat three nights in a row.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

Looking at the way of life of Rasulullah ﷺ, one can observe that He (PBUH) never wanted to have pleasures of this world which also includes maximum provisions and foodstuff. One should have at least necessary food to eat for living and abstain from filling belly to fullest as it is disliked by Allah SWT and weakens heart.

4. Keeping Bad Companionship

The fourth and final poison that destroys faith in one`s heart is that of building and maintaining harmful relationships. It is common observation that a person normally becomes like the ones who it spends its time with. Therefore, in the Religion of Peace, it has been advised to follow the way of those who are righteous. Allah SWT says:

“And the Day the wrongdoer will bite on his hands [in regret] he will say, “Oh, I wish I had taken with the Messenger a way. Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as a friend. He led me away from the remembrance after it had come to me. And ever is Satan, to man, a deserter.” [Quran, 25: 27-29]

The above mentioned Quranic lines describe the state of a person on the Day of Judgment when it will be grieve on its companionship in the worldly life. Thus, one should try to be among those who are true believers so that one can benefit from them and not vice versa because in later case, one invites Satan to take over its conscious and spirit leading to forgetfulness about morality and uprightness.

In short, condition of heart is the chief deciding factor of one`s belief in Islam. A believer needs to maintain a pure state of heart throughout its life and avoid contaminating it with the above described poisons.