Is the Muslim held accountable for what he keeps in his heart?

Machine translationRead the Arabic original

The questioner : Shaykh, may Allah forgive you, it was part of the supplication of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in his prostration:

O Lord, forgive me all my sins, small and great, first and last, open and secret.

اللهم اغفر لي ذنبي كله دقه وجله وأوله وآخره وعلانيته وسره

Sahih Muslim 483

So is a person held accountable for what he keeps in his heart?

The Shaykh : No, he is held accountable for the sins he keeps hidden from people. As for the whispers of the self, it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that they are forgiven. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

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 تتكلم

Bulugh al-Maram 8:133

But what he keeps hidden, meaning what he keeps hidden from people, yes.

Source alathar.net

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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