I am a young man who loves Allah and loves the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and I strive to stay away from sins as much as possible, and I maintain the obligatory acts, but
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The questioner : I am a young man, approximately eighteen years old. I love Allah and I love the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and I strive to stay away from sins as much as possible, and I maintain the obligatory acts that Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) has made obligatory. However, I am afflicted with obsessive thoughts that make me doubt, even though I am certain, that make me doubt my creed. These obsessive thoughts have caused me severe anxiety. I ask for your comment, or what is the way to be rid of these obsessive thoughts?
The Shaykh : The obsessive thoughts that befall a person are from Satan, and they are evidence of the strength of his faith and that his faith is pure, because Satan only comes to the heart that is filled [with faith] to destroy it, and to the heart that is certain to make it doubt. These obsessive thoughts do not benefit anything, meaning they do not harm the person in any way. Their cure is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) guided to: that you seek refuge in Allah, that you stop them, that you turn away from them, and that you distract yourself from them, and do not pay them any attention. Soon they will fade and disappear. What afflicted this young man also afflicted the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), and they complained of it to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so he ordered them to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan and to stop doing this. If the one who is afflicted with these obsessive thoughts implements what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) guided to, then this is the effective cure, and there is no cure more beneficial than what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) mentioned. So we say to this young man: Be glad, for you are in a good state as long as your heart is certain, and that these are occurrences that befall him, for these are from Satan and they do not harm him in any way.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : The obsessive thoughts that befall a person are from Satan, and they are evidence of the strength of his faith and that his faith is pure, because Satan only comes to the heart that is filled [with faith] to destroy it, and to the heart that is certain to make it doubt. These obsessive thoughts do not benefit anything, meaning they do not harm the person in any way. Their cure is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) guided to: that you seek refuge in Allah, that you stop them, that you turn away from them, and that you distract yourself from them, and do not pay them any attention. Soon they will fade and disappear. What afflicted this young man also afflicted the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), and they complained of it to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), so he ordered them to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan and to stop doing this. If the one who is afflicted with these obsessive thoughts implements what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) guided to, then this is the effective cure, and there is no cure more beneficial than what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) mentioned. So we say to this young man: Be glad, for you are in a good state as long as your heart is certain, and that these are occurrences that befall him, for these are from Satan and they do not harm him in any way.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.