Ramadan Reveries: Part 2 - Temptation

Dear Reader,

What I wish to share with you today, being first and foremost a reminder to myself, is a conversation in Surah Al-Ar'af (meaning The Elevation - in reference to the raised partition between Heaven and Hell) [7:11-17]:

And We certainly created you [Oh mankind] and have given you [human] form. Then We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam"; so they prostrated, except Iblees (Satan). He was not of those who prostrated.

Allah said "What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?"

Satan said "I am better than him. You created me from fire and created him from dirt [earth, clay]." 

Allah said "Descend from Paradise, for it is not for you to be arrogant therein. So get out; indeed you are of the debased." 

Satan said, "Reprieve me until the Day they are resurrected." 

Allah said "Indeed, you are of those reprieved." 

Satan said "Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for mankind on Your straight path. Then I will come to them from in-front of them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful to You."

There are many lessons in this conversation that I could talk about, e.g. the mighty status and honour humans were given when Allah asked the angels to prostrate to Adam, Satan's arrogance being the cause of his down fall, Allah showing mercy to Satan despite his disobedience, or even Satan's determination to get revenge upon Allah by misguiding the ones that Allah loves [i.e. mankind]. But what I really want to discuss today is that last bit, the means by which Satan promises to seek his revenge: "I will surely sit in wait for mankind on Your straight path. Then I will come to them from in-front of them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful to You." 

Living here in "the West" and in this modern age, we are bombarded left, right and centre by lewd images of shamelessness. So much so, that it's now become the norm and we do not think twice when we see a billboard poster of a woman in nothing but her explicit underwear, or even worse... Or a music video with scantly dressed girls draped on the arms of men who treat them like they're nothing more than adornments to their reputation, a price for other men to ogle at and be jealous of, all the while they're scandalously rubbing up against each other. You, dear reader, probably know exactly what I'm talking about. And these things are everywhere: on the TV, in movies, in shops, on the internet, on the streets happening right before our eyes, even in children's cartoons! 

And it's so difficult to avoid all of it, so we don't. Thus, we inevitably become immune to all of it, our hearts slowly hardening ... because it's the "norm". All the while, Satan inconspicuously slides in, whispering temptations. I don't know what it's like for boys/men but I know it's especially difficult trying to be a modest girl in this society: e.g. "This top is so pretty, but a little tighter than what I normally wear. And this skirt, I love its design but its a just a few inches short." "You should buy it, you look so gorgeous wearing them. They suit you, and that colour brings out your eyes." Like my mum always says: once you take that first difficult step towards the devil's path, he makes the rest of your down fall very easy.

So maybe that example doesn't apply to you, dear reader. But the truth is, this capitalist society is solely geared towards material gain. And being inescapably within it, our lives have become geared towards this gain and we are constantly competing with each other in order to increase our wealth. We always complain of the thing we don't have, and set our sights on the fancy cars, the big houses, the jewels and trinkets we want. But how many of us are actually grateful for what we already have? In fact, how many of us are even grateful for just existing? 

So you see, Satan's prediction is coming true: most of us are not grateful to Allah, which is a sad thing indeed. And for those people who are grateful, who are genuinely trying to be Muslims (those who submit completely to God [swt]), Satan has purposefully made following the 'straight and narrow' path difficult for them. Life is a constant struggle, a daily battle against Satan and his temptations. Because we cannot let Satan win or be successful in his revenge against our Lord and Creator. 

Like this cute picture above demonstrates, one of the ways we can shut out Satan is by reading the Qur'an regularly, if not on a daily basis. Talking about Allah (swt) and his messengers with other people also helps. That's because, in an assembly where Allah (swt) is remembered and mentioned, angels descend and envelop the gathered people with their wings, and Allah's mercy is upon those people [Sahih Muslim:1448]. And as for the perverted norms of this Western society, we can start by consciously lowering our gaze, reminding ourselves that the reason why we look away from the shamelessness is Allah, our Creator. The intention behind all our actions is really important, so we have to make sure that our intentions are pure and for the right reason.      

If you, dear reader, want to learn more about Satan and his creation, there is a this lovely short post by a fellow sister.

Nida