A Sound Heart

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,

Indeed there is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt and that is the heart.

[Bukhari and Muslim]

Thus the good heart is the foundation for every good and righteousness and the corrupted heart is the foundation of every evil.

The heart is mentioned repeatedly in the Qur’an. One of the mentioned du'a (supplication) of Prophet Ibrahim 'alayhissalaam, beseeches to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala (the Exalted and Glorified):

وَلَا تُخْزِنِي يَوْمَ يُبْعَثُونَ ﴿٨٧﴾ يَوْمَ لَا يَنفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ ﴿٨٨﴾ إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّـهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ ﴿٨٩٨﴾ إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّـهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ ﴿٨٩

And do not disgrace me on the Day they are [all] resurrected - (87) The Day when there will not benefit [anyone] wealth or children (88) But only one who comes to Allah with a sound heart. (89)

[Qur'an Al-Shu’ara 26:88-89]

The fact remains that one day we will die and a new phase in our lives will begin. The only one who is going to be successful, is the one who has a sound heart. So it is very important for us to understand what this means.

In defining the healthy heart, the following has been said: "It is a heart cleansed from any passion that challenges what Allah commands, or disputes what He forbids. It is free from any impulses which contradict His good. As a result, it is safeguarded against the worship of anything other than Him, and seeks the judgment of no other except that of His Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace. Its services are exclusively reserved for Allah, willingly and lovingly, with total reliance, relating all matters to Him, in fear, hope, and sincere dedication. When it loves, its love is in the way of Allah. If it detests, it detests in the light of what He detests. When it gives, it gives for Allah. If it withholds, it withholds for Allah. Nevertheless, all this will not suffice for its salvation until it is free from following, or taking as its guide, anyone other that His Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace). A servant with a healthy heart must dedicate it to its journeys end and not base his actions and speech on those of any other person except Allah's Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace). He must not give any precedence to any other faith, words or deeds over those of Allah and His Messenger, Allah bless him and grant him peace. Allah Almighty says,

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُقَدِّمُوا بَيْنَ يَدَيِ اللَّـهِ وَرَسُولِهِ ۖ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿١

O you who have believed, do not put [yourselves] before Allah and His Messenger but fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing. (1)

[Qur'an Al-Hujurat 49:1]

The heart that is sound is a heart that loves Allah and His Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace) and strives in His cause more than everything else, even the halal things that we legitimately love, like our children, parents and spouses.

Our immediate focus is to rectify our hearts to rid our selves of blameworthy traits and acquire praiseworthy traits seeking Allah's Countenance.

We ask Allah to purify our hearts and fill our hearts with His love. Ameen.

Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam