Huda
09-08-05, 08:51 PM
The following are notes and points taken from an article called
“20 Ways to Show Off” by Sheikh Salman b. Fahd al-Oadah
To read the whole article go to:http://www.islamtoday.com/book/showoff/20.pdf (javascript:ol('http://www.islamtoday.com/book/showoff/20.pdf');)
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Showing off is an illness that destroys one’s deeds. One should keep in mind that all actions rely on intentions. “A person can receive great rewards from Allah on account of his good intentions alone, even if he is prevented from carrying out the intended deed. On the other hand, the deeds that he performs can become bereft of blessings if they are not accompanied by a good intention. Such deeds can actually be sinful.”
“The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “A man will be brought forward on the Day of
Resurrection and thrown into the Fire. His entrails will come forth from his throat and he will hang from them going around like a donkey goes around a mill. The inhabitants of the Fire will gather around him and ask: ‘What is with you? Didn’t you used to enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong?’ He will reply: ‘Yes, I used to enjoin what is right but not do those things myself, and I used to forbid what is wrong but not refrain from them myself.’”
Some people might get the idea that this man was punished because he enjoined what is right and forbade what is wrong while he had many shortcomings in his own deeds. This is a big mistake, because the task of enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong is inherently worthy of reward as long as the person engaged in it is sincere and has the right intention. This man was being punished because he did the very evil deeds he forbade others from doing and spurned the very duties he called others towards. He was merely beautifying his outward conduct while his inner being remained corrupt. His punishment was for his sins, not because he enjoined what is right and forbade what is wrong.
As for the verse: “Do you enjoin right conduct on others and forget to practice it yourselves and yet you recite the Scripture? Do you not have any sense?” [Sűrah al- Baqarah: 44], it means that Allah rebukes them and punishes them because they turned away from the truth though they knew it full well. This makes them different from those who are ignorant of the truth, who if they come to know it would most likely follow it.
Therefore, we should know that enjoining what is right is something we owe to the people, even if we fail to do what is right ourselves. The same goes for forbidding what is wrong.”
“No one after Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) is divinely protected from committing sins. It is, however, the duty upon every person to accomplish the following four things:
1. To do what is right.
2. To enjoin others to what is right.
3. To abstain from what is wrong.
4. To forbid others from doing wrong.
Failure to perform one of these four duties does not give us the right to neglect any of the others. Therefore, someone who commits a sin still has the duty to call others to avoid it.
Showing off in words and deeds is a sickness that can get a person thrown into the Hellfire. Such a person, on the outside, appears to be righteous. His concern for what others think of him earns him the reward of their high esteem but not the pleasure of Allah. The praise of the people is sufficient for him.
This is the type of hypocrisy that the earliest Muslims were afraid of falling into. Al-Hasan al-Basrî said, speaking about the tendency to show off: “I swear by Him in whose hand is my soul. No one feels safe from it except for a hypocrite and no one fears it except for a believer.” They were afraid that it would creep unnoticed into their deeds as Allah says: “…lest your deeds become vain and you perceive it not.” [Sűrah al-Hujurât: 2]”
Twenty Ways to Show Off
There are twenty ways that this ignoble quality can creep up on a person.
1. Publicizing one’s good deeds:
“Some people go around intentionally talking about the things they have done, boasting about their virtues. They cannot sit with others without saying: “I did this and I did that… I spent so much in charity.” Sometimes they can be a bit more subtle, saying things like:
“Actually, I cannot stay up in prayer at night more than two hours…” or: “Unfortunately,
I cannot cope with fasting every day, so I must suffice with fasting on Mondays and
Thursdays…” In this way, they want to show others just how much they are praying and fasting.”
2. Speaking about matters in a way that alludes to the idea that one is engaged in them:
“A person might say the following: “If a worshipper recites the Qur’ân a lot, it becomes easy on his tongue, and he reads with more fluidity, especially when he prays late at night.” Translation: “I did this act and had this experience.” ”
Or
““Some people think fasting is tiring and difficult.”
Translation: “I am in the habit of fasting.” ”
Or
““You know, so-and-so made the call for the Morning Prayer a half hour before its time.” In this way, he reveals to everyone that he is in the habit of getting up early for prayers.”
How to handle this problem
“Let us look at how the scholars of old handled a similar situation. Sa`îd b. Jubayr asked his fellows: “Which of you saw the shooting star that went across the sky last night?”
Husayn b. `Abd al-Rahmân added: “I did.” Then he quickly added: “I had not been praying; I had been stung by a scorpion.”
The reason he mentioned that he had been stung by a scorpion was to dispel the obvious conclusion that his companions would come to: that he had been praying throughout the night. The early Muslims were very careful to avoid praising themselves and did not like mentioning their own virtues.”
3. Bringing attention to the faults of others:
This is a very dangerous way of showing off because it usually combines with the sin of backbiting others. Sometimes while one might not mean to show off, he ends up praising himself by showing the faults of others.
“… By criticizing someone else’s mistake, a person implies that he is free from the same.
A man might say: “You know – God forbid! – so-and-so never gets up at night to offer prayers!” Translation: “I pray at night.”
“I never saw such-and-such fast a day in his life.” Translation: “I fast a lot.”
“Whats-his-name never gives in charity, though he has much more money than I have.”
Translation: “I am not like him. I give in charity.” ”
“ … (Ways of backbiting to) help elevate (the backbiters) above those they criticize.
Ibn Taymiyah … mentions a number of these:
1 One strategy is to frame one’s slander in the form of concern for the religion and for reform. Statements of the following sort ensue:
“Now, it is not my general practice to say anything but good about other people. I hate backbiting and lying. I only wish to inform you about this person.”
“I swear by Allah, he is a good man, but he does such-and-such.”
“We must pray for him. O Allah! Forgive us and forgive him.”
2 … there are those who belittle others just to make themselves look good.
A person like this might say: “If only I prayed for him yesterday, I would not have heard this horrible thing about him today.” To make himself appear clever, someone might say: “So-and-so, you must understand, has a weak intellect.”
3 Another person makes his slander of others appear in the form of jest, as if his only intention is to make people laugh. However, what he does in order to make his companions laugh is to ridicule another person, belittle him, and mock him.
4 Another uses amazement and astonishment … He might say: “I am startled that so-and-so does not do that!” or: “How it is that he can do such a thing!” In this way, the slanderer maligns the name of another with the excuse that he was overcome with amazement.
5 Someone else feigns concern or pity in order to get in his nasty remarks. He might say: “Poor so-and-so, I am so sorry about what happened to him. It is a pity what he got himself involved with.”
6 Then there is the person who makes a show of anger and righteous indignation in order to backbite another. He may use the most eloquent words possible with the seeming intent of condemning an act of wrongdoing, but his true intentions are vile indeed.”
A good point comes up: Sometimes one would notice that he is criticizing faults of people within himself. For example, someone would say: “look at her how she is dressed”. He should be careful, search in his heart if he’s praising himself, and ask Allaah to help him and save him from that sin.
4. Making a show of religious zeal:
“A pious person begins to talk about sinners. He speaks at length, describing, nit picking, and bewailing. He might even go so far as to curse people and threaten them. He exaggerates matters to the extreme as if he is trying to say: “I am very zealous about the sanctity of the religion. I am righteously indignant when it comes to my Lord, the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the believers” What he does not realize is that the way he is showing off is a far graver sin than many of the sins that he is discussing and condemning so viciously.”
5. Making worship noticeable in a subtle way:
“A person might conceal his worship, or at least seem to be doing so, while making sure people know about it in a roundabout way. For example … (a person) keeps his remembrances quiet, but he moves his lips in a conspicuous manner so that anyone who sees him will know that he is engaged in the remembrance of his Lord…
Actions are but by intentions, and every person will have only what he intended. Therefore, if a person inadvertently draws attention to himself, not meaning to show off, then there will be no harm. However, if he does something ever so subtle with the intention of drawing attention to himself, then he has not only showed off but made a pretense of sincerity while doing so. And Allah says: “Whether you hide your words or make them known, He certainly has full knowledge of what is in the hearts. Should He who created not know, and He is the Subtle, the Aware?” [Sűrah al-Mulk: 13-14]
A person, when food is presented to him, abstains from it and says: “Today is Thursday” as if to imply that he always fasts on Thursdays. The Prophet (peace be upon him) instructed us that when food is presented to us, we should eat it if we are not fasting, and if we are fasting, we should make a small prayer for the one who offered us.23 A good prayer would be something like: “May Allah bless you in your food and drink and in what Allah provides for you.””
6. Making a display of lowering one’s gaze:
“A person can make turning away from something into a conspicuous act. … (When there is something) that a Muslim should divert his eyes from, (a person might) not only diverts his eyes but lowers his head or turns away. Now, this is not necessary. All that is required from him is to divert his gaze. He does not have to make a big show of it. Such behavior is pretentious.”
7. Safeguarding one’s status and reputation:
“When a person becomes known for righteousness and piety, he tends to love building his reputation further in the same manner. He begins to fear losing the esteem of others that he presently enjoys. He guards himself from any apparent laxity in his conduct. He makes sure to keep pace with others or to outdo them in good works, at least publicly. He does not do this out of any religious devotion, but in order to earn respect.
He may speak to the people, preach to them, and exhort them to do what is right, not because he feels that they need it but because he feels that they expect it from him. The meaning of what he says is not his concern. It is only his reputation and status that matter.
This trap is a subtle one and an easy one to fall into. Actions are but by intentions. A person is either doing these things for Allah’s sake – for which he will be rewarded – or merely to save his reputation.”
8. Putting oneself on a pedestal:
"… (A person would be) learning about a certain religious topic … investigating every minor issue and every subtle detail … Then when he sits among a large number of people, he begins to speak … rattling off the names of different scholars and what they had to say … He pours out to them everything he has memorized. What is the reason for all of this? It is so people will point to him and call him a scholar.
He … (uses) turns of phrase reserved for true people of knowledge.
“I see the matter to be such-and such…”
“What is quite evident to me is that …”
“The stance that we take on this issue is…”
He … (speaks) in the manner of an authority in the field, while he is a mere beginner.”
9. Seeking knowledge to acquire fame:
“A person may be incited by Satan to seek religious knowledge and to study it extensively with the sole purpose of becoming a muftî who people will come to with their questions, or a scholar whose name will go down in history, or maybe an Islamic activist who people will rally around.”
10. Refuting the people of knowledge:
“A person may be incited by Satan to speak badly about the people of knowledge or to try to refute and contradict them. His purpose in doing so is to make himself visible by standing upon their shoulders. He wants people to say … that he got into a debate with a certain prominent sheikh and overwhelmed him with his arguments.
He might succeed in bringing scholars down only to make himself more famous. While doing so, he might even offer a prayer for them to make a show of his affection and concern. He could say: “So-and-so – may Allah have mercy on him – said this and that.””
On the other hand, “He may even make a pretense of pity and compassion, saying: “Poor so-and-so, he has been afflicted with holding such an opinion.”
Another approach he may use is to feign a desire not to talk about him. If someone mentions to him the name of a certain scholar, he might say: “I do not wish to get involved with discussing that person” or “Leave him alone. May Allah conceal both his faults and ours.” or “Let us not talk about him. May Allah protect us from speaking badly about someone.” This is a very subtle way of putting that scholar down.”
11. Overemphasizing certain conspicuous works, even to the point of going against the Sunnah:
“Satan entices people to go against Allah’s Law in this way. For instance, he tricks some people by beautifying a given Islamic duty, though other Islamic duties may be more serious, goading him on with it until he abandons those more important duties. He might deceive a person into thinking that some work is an individual duty on every Muslim, when in fact the decision to engage in such duties is one of those difficult matters that requires the discretion of qualified people of knowledge. This person may even be deceived into condemning those who do not participate in the same works.”
12. Conspicuous humility:
This is about showing humility with words and complains.
“A person might make a show of deprecating himself, stating all the time how deficient he is. He says how he does no good works and how his deeds are not enough. What he means by all this is to make a display of his humility.
Whether or not he actually believes himself deficient, he goes on in this way until Satan makes him believe that he is free from showing off, when actually Satan has been accompanying him in his absurd display all along. What is needed for a person to be balanced, neither deprecating himself for public viewing, nor praising himself.”
13. Feigning humility:
This is about showing humility with physical moves and actions.
“To make a pretentious show of modesty and humbleness, (a person) will clasp his hands together, raise his shoulders, and lower his head in an insincere and inordinate display of submissiveness. Often the behaviors exhibited in these displays go against the Sunnah of Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him). ”
“… (Umar bin Al-khattab - radia Allaah anhu - said :) “…Whenever people make their humbleness visible, they are just making a visible display of hypocrisy.” ” (Refer to the article - point # 13 - for the full story)
As another example, “satan might sometimes come to a reciter of the Qur’ân and encourage him to cry during his recitation with the notion of making the listeners feel humbled before his recitation and to inspire them to weep as well.”
“Ibn Jawzî devotes a chapter to this type of showing off in his superb book entitled Talbîs Iblîs (The Devil’s Deception). He writes:
Chapter: The Devil’s deception through false humility, lowering of the head, and establishing law
If fear embeds itself in the heart, the body will show it. Such a person will not even be able to conceal his feelings. What is reprehensible is for a person to make an effort to show humility, induce crying, and visibly hang his head …”
How should you act?
“Abű Salamah b. `Abd al-Rahmân said: “The Companions of Allah’s Messenger
(peace be upon him) were neither deviant nor were they like dead people. They used to recite poetry in their gatherings and talk about the times of ignorance.
However, if you were to attack any one of them in matters of religion, his eyes would become like those of a madman.”
Kahmas b. al-Husayn relates that a man in the company of `Umar breathed sighing breaths as if he was trying to show grief, so `Umar struck him.
`Âsim b. Kulayb al-Jarmî relates: “My father met with `Abd al-Rahmân b. Al-Aswad who had a habit of walking along the side of the wall out of false humility. My father said to him: ‘What is it with you that you walk against the wall like that? I swear by Allah, when `Umar walked, he planted his feet firmly on the ground. He made his voice heard when he spoke.”
Abű Khaythamah relates that al-Shifâ bint `Abd Allah saw some young people walking meekly and speaking slowly. She asked them: “What is this?”
They replied: “We are ascetics.”
To this she said: “I swear by Allah, when `Umar spoke he made himself heard, and when he walked he walked briskly, and when he hit someone, he inflicted pain. And he was an ascetic for real.” ”
14. Conspicuously neglecting one’s outward appearance:
This is about showing humility by the appearance.
“Satan might inspire an individual to go about with disheveled hair and humble attire and make an ostentatious display of asceticism and humility. The Sunnah, on the other hand, encourages a person to care about his appearance. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to take good care of his hair. He would comb it and apply scent to it.”
15. Being deceived by some fleeting act of devotion:
"Satan can trick a person into thinking that some singular act of devotion, like shedding pious tears, is good enough to suffice him …”
For example, “Some people bring themselves to weep during prayer in the nights of Ramadân … satan convinces them that this made up for everything wrong that they have so far committed. In this way, he encourages them to keep up their sinful ways. ”
16. Becoming a show-off after having been sincere:
“A person begins doing something for the sake of Allah alone, like offering prayer, spending in charity, or glorifying Allah in an audible voice. Then he realizes that people can see him. This makes him do even more. He prays a little longer, spends a little more, or glorifies Allah with even greater eloquence. When a person finds himself in this situation, he should fight against the urge to show off. He should say what the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught Abű Bakr to say to ward it off: “O Allah! I seek refuge with you from associating partners with you knowingly and I seek your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly.” ”
“Some people fall victim to the opposite affliction. They become so scared of showing off that they avoid performing good deeds because of it. They have jumped from the frying pan into the fire, so to speak. True sincerity is to be concerned with Allah and to disregard the people altogether, neither performing deeds because of them nor abstaining from deeds on their account. This brings us to the fourth way of showing off:”
17. Abandoning deeds because of the people:
Some people once they start a good deed, they become afraid of showing off. As a result, they stop doing that good deed.
“Al-Fudayl b. `Iyâd had harsh words for those who abandoned performing good works because of the people. He said: “Abandoning deeds because of the people is showing off.
Performing deed for their sake is polytheism. Sincerity is where Allah protects you from both.” ”
“Abandoning one’s good deeds is a grave error. What the worshipper must do is cease to worry about created beings altogether, neither performing anything for their sake nor abstaining from anything for their sake.
One of the reasons for this behavior is that the person who is supposed to perform a given deed has an exaggerated view of his own importance and the importance of what he is about to do … He begins to imagine that what he is doing is some great deed … He may become a bit impressed with himself at this point, and here is where he starts to fear showing off. He sees the only way to play it safe is not to talk and not to act.
This is one of the devil’s tricks. The only way for a person to stay immune to it is to accustom himself to doing good deeds and to see those deeds as small and insignificant when he does them. He must at the same time accustom himself to not attaching any importance to what people say. He must be able to recognize his own faults and realize the shortcomings in his works. Then, when someone offers him unwelcome praise, it will not harm him in any way. Such praise will then be as the Prophet (peace be upon him) described it: “…glad tidings being presented to the believer early.” ”
18. Abandoning one’s worship from fear of falling into hypocrisy:
The difference between this one and the previous one is as follows: the previous point was talking about leaving good deeds because the fear of showing off. Someone stops doing good deeds because he’s afraid that he is showing off. However, this point is talking about leaving good deeds because the fear of falling in hypocrisy. That is, when one makes sins while he’s away from people, he feels as a hypocrite while he’s with them; so he stops doing the good deeds.
In other words, “…satan fools somebody into abandoning his worship of Allah to avoid being a hypocrite or being called one. Take, for example, a reciter of the Qur’ân, a teacher, or an Islamic worker who falls into some unseen sinful acts … satan … suggests to that person that he is a hypocrite, since he presents an image of piety to the people but commits sins in secret … he encourages him to give up the good works … and to forsake the company of righteous people … His argument is that it is not fitting for that individual to do such outwardly good deeds while sinning inwardly. Satan may say to him something like: “If the people know what you do when you are alone, they would spit in your face and avoid you like the plague.” Satan keeps at him like this until he gives up doing any good deeds.”
As a solution the person should strive to overcome his sins and rectify himself
“Allah says: “And establish regular prayers at the two ends of the day and at the approaches of the night. Indeed, good works remove evil deeds. This is a reminder for those who are mindful.” [Sűrah Hűd: 114] ”
19. Withdrawing from the company of others and going into seclusion:
“A person may turn away from the company … because he thinks he is better than they are.”
“It is wrong to renounce the company of people out of a sense of superiority to them. This is nothing but pride and arrogance. It is a way of praising oneself. In a hadîth it is related: “Whoever says: ‘The people are in ruination!’ is the most ruined of the lot." ”
20. Making false claims:
“There is a type of person who likes to boast about things he never did. He may claim that he struggled for Islam with patience and forbearance. He may eve n claim to have suffered persecution and hardships in the path of Allah. If he meets someone who does not know about his past, he goes on to tell him: “I used to do this and I used to say that…”, speaking about a past more embroidered than true. ”
“20 Ways to Show Off” by Sheikh Salman b. Fahd al-Oadah
To read the whole article go to:http://www.islamtoday.com/book/showoff/20.pdf (javascript:ol('http://www.islamtoday.com/book/showoff/20.pdf');)
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Showing off is an illness that destroys one’s deeds. One should keep in mind that all actions rely on intentions. “A person can receive great rewards from Allah on account of his good intentions alone, even if he is prevented from carrying out the intended deed. On the other hand, the deeds that he performs can become bereft of blessings if they are not accompanied by a good intention. Such deeds can actually be sinful.”
“The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “A man will be brought forward on the Day of
Resurrection and thrown into the Fire. His entrails will come forth from his throat and he will hang from them going around like a donkey goes around a mill. The inhabitants of the Fire will gather around him and ask: ‘What is with you? Didn’t you used to enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong?’ He will reply: ‘Yes, I used to enjoin what is right but not do those things myself, and I used to forbid what is wrong but not refrain from them myself.’”
Some people might get the idea that this man was punished because he enjoined what is right and forbade what is wrong while he had many shortcomings in his own deeds. This is a big mistake, because the task of enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong is inherently worthy of reward as long as the person engaged in it is sincere and has the right intention. This man was being punished because he did the very evil deeds he forbade others from doing and spurned the very duties he called others towards. He was merely beautifying his outward conduct while his inner being remained corrupt. His punishment was for his sins, not because he enjoined what is right and forbade what is wrong.
As for the verse: “Do you enjoin right conduct on others and forget to practice it yourselves and yet you recite the Scripture? Do you not have any sense?” [Sűrah al- Baqarah: 44], it means that Allah rebukes them and punishes them because they turned away from the truth though they knew it full well. This makes them different from those who are ignorant of the truth, who if they come to know it would most likely follow it.
Therefore, we should know that enjoining what is right is something we owe to the people, even if we fail to do what is right ourselves. The same goes for forbidding what is wrong.”
“No one after Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) is divinely protected from committing sins. It is, however, the duty upon every person to accomplish the following four things:
1. To do what is right.
2. To enjoin others to what is right.
3. To abstain from what is wrong.
4. To forbid others from doing wrong.
Failure to perform one of these four duties does not give us the right to neglect any of the others. Therefore, someone who commits a sin still has the duty to call others to avoid it.
Showing off in words and deeds is a sickness that can get a person thrown into the Hellfire. Such a person, on the outside, appears to be righteous. His concern for what others think of him earns him the reward of their high esteem but not the pleasure of Allah. The praise of the people is sufficient for him.
This is the type of hypocrisy that the earliest Muslims were afraid of falling into. Al-Hasan al-Basrî said, speaking about the tendency to show off: “I swear by Him in whose hand is my soul. No one feels safe from it except for a hypocrite and no one fears it except for a believer.” They were afraid that it would creep unnoticed into their deeds as Allah says: “…lest your deeds become vain and you perceive it not.” [Sűrah al-Hujurât: 2]”
Twenty Ways to Show Off
There are twenty ways that this ignoble quality can creep up on a person.
1. Publicizing one’s good deeds:
“Some people go around intentionally talking about the things they have done, boasting about their virtues. They cannot sit with others without saying: “I did this and I did that… I spent so much in charity.” Sometimes they can be a bit more subtle, saying things like:
“Actually, I cannot stay up in prayer at night more than two hours…” or: “Unfortunately,
I cannot cope with fasting every day, so I must suffice with fasting on Mondays and
Thursdays…” In this way, they want to show others just how much they are praying and fasting.”
2. Speaking about matters in a way that alludes to the idea that one is engaged in them:
“A person might say the following: “If a worshipper recites the Qur’ân a lot, it becomes easy on his tongue, and he reads with more fluidity, especially when he prays late at night.” Translation: “I did this act and had this experience.” ”
Or
““Some people think fasting is tiring and difficult.”
Translation: “I am in the habit of fasting.” ”
Or
““You know, so-and-so made the call for the Morning Prayer a half hour before its time.” In this way, he reveals to everyone that he is in the habit of getting up early for prayers.”
How to handle this problem
“Let us look at how the scholars of old handled a similar situation. Sa`îd b. Jubayr asked his fellows: “Which of you saw the shooting star that went across the sky last night?”
Husayn b. `Abd al-Rahmân added: “I did.” Then he quickly added: “I had not been praying; I had been stung by a scorpion.”
The reason he mentioned that he had been stung by a scorpion was to dispel the obvious conclusion that his companions would come to: that he had been praying throughout the night. The early Muslims were very careful to avoid praising themselves and did not like mentioning their own virtues.”
3. Bringing attention to the faults of others:
This is a very dangerous way of showing off because it usually combines with the sin of backbiting others. Sometimes while one might not mean to show off, he ends up praising himself by showing the faults of others.
“… By criticizing someone else’s mistake, a person implies that he is free from the same.
A man might say: “You know – God forbid! – so-and-so never gets up at night to offer prayers!” Translation: “I pray at night.”
“I never saw such-and-such fast a day in his life.” Translation: “I fast a lot.”
“Whats-his-name never gives in charity, though he has much more money than I have.”
Translation: “I am not like him. I give in charity.” ”
“ … (Ways of backbiting to) help elevate (the backbiters) above those they criticize.
Ibn Taymiyah … mentions a number of these:
1 One strategy is to frame one’s slander in the form of concern for the religion and for reform. Statements of the following sort ensue:
“Now, it is not my general practice to say anything but good about other people. I hate backbiting and lying. I only wish to inform you about this person.”
“I swear by Allah, he is a good man, but he does such-and-such.”
“We must pray for him. O Allah! Forgive us and forgive him.”
2 … there are those who belittle others just to make themselves look good.
A person like this might say: “If only I prayed for him yesterday, I would not have heard this horrible thing about him today.” To make himself appear clever, someone might say: “So-and-so, you must understand, has a weak intellect.”
3 Another person makes his slander of others appear in the form of jest, as if his only intention is to make people laugh. However, what he does in order to make his companions laugh is to ridicule another person, belittle him, and mock him.
4 Another uses amazement and astonishment … He might say: “I am startled that so-and-so does not do that!” or: “How it is that he can do such a thing!” In this way, the slanderer maligns the name of another with the excuse that he was overcome with amazement.
5 Someone else feigns concern or pity in order to get in his nasty remarks. He might say: “Poor so-and-so, I am so sorry about what happened to him. It is a pity what he got himself involved with.”
6 Then there is the person who makes a show of anger and righteous indignation in order to backbite another. He may use the most eloquent words possible with the seeming intent of condemning an act of wrongdoing, but his true intentions are vile indeed.”
A good point comes up: Sometimes one would notice that he is criticizing faults of people within himself. For example, someone would say: “look at her how she is dressed”. He should be careful, search in his heart if he’s praising himself, and ask Allaah to help him and save him from that sin.
4. Making a show of religious zeal:
“A pious person begins to talk about sinners. He speaks at length, describing, nit picking, and bewailing. He might even go so far as to curse people and threaten them. He exaggerates matters to the extreme as if he is trying to say: “I am very zealous about the sanctity of the religion. I am righteously indignant when it comes to my Lord, the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the believers” What he does not realize is that the way he is showing off is a far graver sin than many of the sins that he is discussing and condemning so viciously.”
5. Making worship noticeable in a subtle way:
“A person might conceal his worship, or at least seem to be doing so, while making sure people know about it in a roundabout way. For example … (a person) keeps his remembrances quiet, but he moves his lips in a conspicuous manner so that anyone who sees him will know that he is engaged in the remembrance of his Lord…
Actions are but by intentions, and every person will have only what he intended. Therefore, if a person inadvertently draws attention to himself, not meaning to show off, then there will be no harm. However, if he does something ever so subtle with the intention of drawing attention to himself, then he has not only showed off but made a pretense of sincerity while doing so. And Allah says: “Whether you hide your words or make them known, He certainly has full knowledge of what is in the hearts. Should He who created not know, and He is the Subtle, the Aware?” [Sűrah al-Mulk: 13-14]
A person, when food is presented to him, abstains from it and says: “Today is Thursday” as if to imply that he always fasts on Thursdays. The Prophet (peace be upon him) instructed us that when food is presented to us, we should eat it if we are not fasting, and if we are fasting, we should make a small prayer for the one who offered us.23 A good prayer would be something like: “May Allah bless you in your food and drink and in what Allah provides for you.””
6. Making a display of lowering one’s gaze:
“A person can make turning away from something into a conspicuous act. … (When there is something) that a Muslim should divert his eyes from, (a person might) not only diverts his eyes but lowers his head or turns away. Now, this is not necessary. All that is required from him is to divert his gaze. He does not have to make a big show of it. Such behavior is pretentious.”
7. Safeguarding one’s status and reputation:
“When a person becomes known for righteousness and piety, he tends to love building his reputation further in the same manner. He begins to fear losing the esteem of others that he presently enjoys. He guards himself from any apparent laxity in his conduct. He makes sure to keep pace with others or to outdo them in good works, at least publicly. He does not do this out of any religious devotion, but in order to earn respect.
He may speak to the people, preach to them, and exhort them to do what is right, not because he feels that they need it but because he feels that they expect it from him. The meaning of what he says is not his concern. It is only his reputation and status that matter.
This trap is a subtle one and an easy one to fall into. Actions are but by intentions. A person is either doing these things for Allah’s sake – for which he will be rewarded – or merely to save his reputation.”
8. Putting oneself on a pedestal:
"… (A person would be) learning about a certain religious topic … investigating every minor issue and every subtle detail … Then when he sits among a large number of people, he begins to speak … rattling off the names of different scholars and what they had to say … He pours out to them everything he has memorized. What is the reason for all of this? It is so people will point to him and call him a scholar.
He … (uses) turns of phrase reserved for true people of knowledge.
“I see the matter to be such-and such…”
“What is quite evident to me is that …”
“The stance that we take on this issue is…”
He … (speaks) in the manner of an authority in the field, while he is a mere beginner.”
9. Seeking knowledge to acquire fame:
“A person may be incited by Satan to seek religious knowledge and to study it extensively with the sole purpose of becoming a muftî who people will come to with their questions, or a scholar whose name will go down in history, or maybe an Islamic activist who people will rally around.”
10. Refuting the people of knowledge:
“A person may be incited by Satan to speak badly about the people of knowledge or to try to refute and contradict them. His purpose in doing so is to make himself visible by standing upon their shoulders. He wants people to say … that he got into a debate with a certain prominent sheikh and overwhelmed him with his arguments.
He might succeed in bringing scholars down only to make himself more famous. While doing so, he might even offer a prayer for them to make a show of his affection and concern. He could say: “So-and-so – may Allah have mercy on him – said this and that.””
On the other hand, “He may even make a pretense of pity and compassion, saying: “Poor so-and-so, he has been afflicted with holding such an opinion.”
Another approach he may use is to feign a desire not to talk about him. If someone mentions to him the name of a certain scholar, he might say: “I do not wish to get involved with discussing that person” or “Leave him alone. May Allah conceal both his faults and ours.” or “Let us not talk about him. May Allah protect us from speaking badly about someone.” This is a very subtle way of putting that scholar down.”
11. Overemphasizing certain conspicuous works, even to the point of going against the Sunnah:
“Satan entices people to go against Allah’s Law in this way. For instance, he tricks some people by beautifying a given Islamic duty, though other Islamic duties may be more serious, goading him on with it until he abandons those more important duties. He might deceive a person into thinking that some work is an individual duty on every Muslim, when in fact the decision to engage in such duties is one of those difficult matters that requires the discretion of qualified people of knowledge. This person may even be deceived into condemning those who do not participate in the same works.”
12. Conspicuous humility:
This is about showing humility with words and complains.
“A person might make a show of deprecating himself, stating all the time how deficient he is. He says how he does no good works and how his deeds are not enough. What he means by all this is to make a display of his humility.
Whether or not he actually believes himself deficient, he goes on in this way until Satan makes him believe that he is free from showing off, when actually Satan has been accompanying him in his absurd display all along. What is needed for a person to be balanced, neither deprecating himself for public viewing, nor praising himself.”
13. Feigning humility:
This is about showing humility with physical moves and actions.
“To make a pretentious show of modesty and humbleness, (a person) will clasp his hands together, raise his shoulders, and lower his head in an insincere and inordinate display of submissiveness. Often the behaviors exhibited in these displays go against the Sunnah of Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him). ”
“… (Umar bin Al-khattab - radia Allaah anhu - said :) “…Whenever people make their humbleness visible, they are just making a visible display of hypocrisy.” ” (Refer to the article - point # 13 - for the full story)
As another example, “satan might sometimes come to a reciter of the Qur’ân and encourage him to cry during his recitation with the notion of making the listeners feel humbled before his recitation and to inspire them to weep as well.”
“Ibn Jawzî devotes a chapter to this type of showing off in his superb book entitled Talbîs Iblîs (The Devil’s Deception). He writes:
Chapter: The Devil’s deception through false humility, lowering of the head, and establishing law
If fear embeds itself in the heart, the body will show it. Such a person will not even be able to conceal his feelings. What is reprehensible is for a person to make an effort to show humility, induce crying, and visibly hang his head …”
How should you act?
“Abű Salamah b. `Abd al-Rahmân said: “The Companions of Allah’s Messenger
(peace be upon him) were neither deviant nor were they like dead people. They used to recite poetry in their gatherings and talk about the times of ignorance.
However, if you were to attack any one of them in matters of religion, his eyes would become like those of a madman.”
Kahmas b. al-Husayn relates that a man in the company of `Umar breathed sighing breaths as if he was trying to show grief, so `Umar struck him.
`Âsim b. Kulayb al-Jarmî relates: “My father met with `Abd al-Rahmân b. Al-Aswad who had a habit of walking along the side of the wall out of false humility. My father said to him: ‘What is it with you that you walk against the wall like that? I swear by Allah, when `Umar walked, he planted his feet firmly on the ground. He made his voice heard when he spoke.”
Abű Khaythamah relates that al-Shifâ bint `Abd Allah saw some young people walking meekly and speaking slowly. She asked them: “What is this?”
They replied: “We are ascetics.”
To this she said: “I swear by Allah, when `Umar spoke he made himself heard, and when he walked he walked briskly, and when he hit someone, he inflicted pain. And he was an ascetic for real.” ”
14. Conspicuously neglecting one’s outward appearance:
This is about showing humility by the appearance.
“Satan might inspire an individual to go about with disheveled hair and humble attire and make an ostentatious display of asceticism and humility. The Sunnah, on the other hand, encourages a person to care about his appearance. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to take good care of his hair. He would comb it and apply scent to it.”
15. Being deceived by some fleeting act of devotion:
"Satan can trick a person into thinking that some singular act of devotion, like shedding pious tears, is good enough to suffice him …”
For example, “Some people bring themselves to weep during prayer in the nights of Ramadân … satan convinces them that this made up for everything wrong that they have so far committed. In this way, he encourages them to keep up their sinful ways. ”
16. Becoming a show-off after having been sincere:
“A person begins doing something for the sake of Allah alone, like offering prayer, spending in charity, or glorifying Allah in an audible voice. Then he realizes that people can see him. This makes him do even more. He prays a little longer, spends a little more, or glorifies Allah with even greater eloquence. When a person finds himself in this situation, he should fight against the urge to show off. He should say what the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught Abű Bakr to say to ward it off: “O Allah! I seek refuge with you from associating partners with you knowingly and I seek your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly.” ”
“Some people fall victim to the opposite affliction. They become so scared of showing off that they avoid performing good deeds because of it. They have jumped from the frying pan into the fire, so to speak. True sincerity is to be concerned with Allah and to disregard the people altogether, neither performing deeds because of them nor abstaining from deeds on their account. This brings us to the fourth way of showing off:”
17. Abandoning deeds because of the people:
Some people once they start a good deed, they become afraid of showing off. As a result, they stop doing that good deed.
“Al-Fudayl b. `Iyâd had harsh words for those who abandoned performing good works because of the people. He said: “Abandoning deeds because of the people is showing off.
Performing deed for their sake is polytheism. Sincerity is where Allah protects you from both.” ”
“Abandoning one’s good deeds is a grave error. What the worshipper must do is cease to worry about created beings altogether, neither performing anything for their sake nor abstaining from anything for their sake.
One of the reasons for this behavior is that the person who is supposed to perform a given deed has an exaggerated view of his own importance and the importance of what he is about to do … He begins to imagine that what he is doing is some great deed … He may become a bit impressed with himself at this point, and here is where he starts to fear showing off. He sees the only way to play it safe is not to talk and not to act.
This is one of the devil’s tricks. The only way for a person to stay immune to it is to accustom himself to doing good deeds and to see those deeds as small and insignificant when he does them. He must at the same time accustom himself to not attaching any importance to what people say. He must be able to recognize his own faults and realize the shortcomings in his works. Then, when someone offers him unwelcome praise, it will not harm him in any way. Such praise will then be as the Prophet (peace be upon him) described it: “…glad tidings being presented to the believer early.” ”
18. Abandoning one’s worship from fear of falling into hypocrisy:
The difference between this one and the previous one is as follows: the previous point was talking about leaving good deeds because the fear of showing off. Someone stops doing good deeds because he’s afraid that he is showing off. However, this point is talking about leaving good deeds because the fear of falling in hypocrisy. That is, when one makes sins while he’s away from people, he feels as a hypocrite while he’s with them; so he stops doing the good deeds.
In other words, “…satan fools somebody into abandoning his worship of Allah to avoid being a hypocrite or being called one. Take, for example, a reciter of the Qur’ân, a teacher, or an Islamic worker who falls into some unseen sinful acts … satan … suggests to that person that he is a hypocrite, since he presents an image of piety to the people but commits sins in secret … he encourages him to give up the good works … and to forsake the company of righteous people … His argument is that it is not fitting for that individual to do such outwardly good deeds while sinning inwardly. Satan may say to him something like: “If the people know what you do when you are alone, they would spit in your face and avoid you like the plague.” Satan keeps at him like this until he gives up doing any good deeds.”
As a solution the person should strive to overcome his sins and rectify himself
“Allah says: “And establish regular prayers at the two ends of the day and at the approaches of the night. Indeed, good works remove evil deeds. This is a reminder for those who are mindful.” [Sűrah Hűd: 114] ”
19. Withdrawing from the company of others and going into seclusion:
“A person may turn away from the company … because he thinks he is better than they are.”
“It is wrong to renounce the company of people out of a sense of superiority to them. This is nothing but pride and arrogance. It is a way of praising oneself. In a hadîth it is related: “Whoever says: ‘The people are in ruination!’ is the most ruined of the lot." ”
20. Making false claims:
“There is a type of person who likes to boast about things he never did. He may claim that he struggled for Islam with patience and forbearance. He may eve n claim to have suffered persecution and hardships in the path of Allah. If he meets someone who does not know about his past, he goes on to tell him: “I used to do this and I used to say that…”, speaking about a past more embroidered than true. ”