Is a person held accountable for the whispers of Satan that occur within himself?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, is a person held accountable for the whispers of Satan that he finds within himself?
The Shaykh : A person is never held accountable for the whispers of Satan that he finds within himself, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Bulugh al-Maram 8:133 The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) complained of this to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and he ordered them to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan and to stop these whispers. If a person succumbs to the whispers, he is in danger. However, he must ask himself: Do I believe in these whispers? The answer is: He never believes in them; rather, he fights them with utmost effort. Therefore, he should be excused for them as long as they are not settled in his heart. He should know that if anyone among the people were to say them, he would fight him for it. So, he should turn away from them, and they will not harm him, and he should proceed in his state. If he doubts regarding divorce, doubts regarding his ablution, doubts regarding his prayer, or doubts regarding something greater than that, let him stop this and turn away, and nothing will harm him. This is a blessing from Allah (Mighty and Majestic), that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) has made for us a spaciousness, a relief, and an exit from these whispers.
Then I say to you that these whispers only occur to one who has certainty and firm faith, so that he may be shaken from his certainty into doubt. Satan does not come to a person whose heart is in ruins, because he is at the end of his rope. Therefore, it was said to Ibn 'Abbas or Ibn Mas'ud: "It was said to him, 'The Jews say, "We do not have whispers in our prayer, but the Muslims do." He said, "They are telling the truth; they do not have whispers in their prayer, and what can Satan do with a heart in ruins?" Ruins, ruins. They focus on their prayer, but it is not accepted by Allah. He cannot think of anything other than the prayer he is in, and he does not have whispers, but his heart is in ruins. As for the believer whose faith is firm, it is he whom Satan dominates. So, control yourself now when Satan comes to you in prayer, then remember and focus on your prayer. Will he open another door for you or not? If you control yourself and pay attention, he will open a third door, and so on. He is with you constantly in prayer. If you restrain yourself from these whispers, he will open a second one until you are done with the prayer. But make sure that the beginning and the end of the prayer are controlled, so perhaps Allah will forgive what is in between, as came in the hadith regarding one who seeks Allah's forgiveness at the beginning of the day and at its end, that Allah forgives him what is in between. So we ask Allah to help us and you. The right hand.
The questioner : Okay, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : A person is never held accountable for the whispers of Satan that he finds within himself, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
Allah, the Most High, has forgiven my followers what they contemplate on within themselves (i.e. evil thoughts) as long as they do not act upon or speak about them.
إن الله تجاوز عن أمتي ما حدثت به أنفسها ما لم تعمل أو تتكلمThen I say to you that these whispers only occur to one who has certainty and firm faith, so that he may be shaken from his certainty into doubt. Satan does not come to a person whose heart is in ruins, because he is at the end of his rope. Therefore, it was said to Ibn 'Abbas or Ibn Mas'ud: "It was said to him, 'The Jews say, "We do not have whispers in our prayer, but the Muslims do." He said, "They are telling the truth; they do not have whispers in their prayer, and what can Satan do with a heart in ruins?" Ruins, ruins. They focus on their prayer, but it is not accepted by Allah. He cannot think of anything other than the prayer he is in, and he does not have whispers, but his heart is in ruins. As for the believer whose faith is firm, it is he whom Satan dominates. So, control yourself now when Satan comes to you in prayer, then remember and focus on your prayer. Will he open another door for you or not? If you control yourself and pay attention, he will open a third door, and so on. He is with you constantly in prayer. If you restrain yourself from these whispers, he will open a second one until you are done with the prayer. But make sure that the beginning and the end of the prayer are controlled, so perhaps Allah will forgive what is in between, as came in the hadith regarding one who seeks Allah's forgiveness at the beginning of the day and at its end, that Allah forgives him what is in between. So we ask Allah to help us and you. The right hand.
The questioner : Okay, O Shaykh.