What is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “He took his desire as his god”?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the meaning of “He took his desire as his god”?
The Shaykh:
It means he follows his desire, even if it contradicts the command of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So if his desire, wish, and love conflict with what Allah loves and commands, then he has taken his god. For it is obligatory to obey the command of Allah and not to obey the command of his own self and desire. Yes.
The questioner:
He says: And is this said of the Muslim who errs and disobeys?
The Shaykh:
Yes, here he has taken his own desire as his god. This may be major shirk (associating partners with Allah), or it may be less than that. Even among Muslims, if a person prefers what his own self is pleased with over what Allah is pleased with, and he prioritizes the pleasure of his self over the pleasure of Allah, then consider: if your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your kin, and your wealth, which you fear will become unsalable, and your homes, which you are pleased with, are more beloved to you than Allah and His Messenger,[At-Tawbah 9:24] This is a warning from Allah the Exalted. Yes, it encompasses Muslims and disbelievers, but each is according to his work and what he commits. Yes.
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the meaning of “He took his desire as his god”?
The Shaykh:
It means he follows his desire, even if it contradicts the command of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So if his desire, wish, and love conflict with what Allah loves and commands, then he has taken his god. For it is obligatory to obey the command of Allah and not to obey the command of his own self and desire. Yes.
The questioner:
He says: And is this said of the Muslim who errs and disobeys?
The Shaykh:
Yes, here he has taken his own desire as his god. This may be major shirk (associating partners with Allah), or it may be less than that. Even among Muslims, if a person prefers what his own self is pleased with over what Allah is pleased with, and he prioritizes the pleasure of his self over the pleasure of Allah, then consider: if your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your kin, and your wealth, which you fear will become unsalable, and your homes, which you are pleased with, are more beloved to you than Allah and His Messenger,
and dwellings with which you are pleased are more beloved to you than Allah and His Messenger and jihad in His cause, then wait
وَمَسَاكِنُ تَرْضَوْنَهَا أَحَبَّ إِلَيْكُم مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَجِهَادٍ فِي سَبِيلِهِ فَتَرَبَّصُوا
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [2976- 4717] ما معنى قوله تعالى:﴿اتخذ إلهه هواه﴾ ؟ - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.