Page 54 - The importance of conscience in the Qur'an

THE NEGATIVE POWERS
AGAINST CONSCIENCE

The self (An-nafs)
Conscience has been inspired by Allah, as stated in Surat
ash-Shams:

And the self and what proportioned it and
inspired it with depravity or taqwa, he who
purifies it has succeeded, he who covers it up
has failed. (Surat ash-Shams: 7-10)
In these verses, Allah states that He has inspired the self
with depravity (fujoor) and taqwa, that is, with the conscience
of what is right for it. The word 'fujoor' means 'to act in a sin-
ful manner, to disobey, to be a deviator, to tell lies, to rise
against, to turn away from righteousness, to stir up trouble, to
decline in good manners, the opposite of taqwa'. The concept
of fujoor contains all the negative aspects of man's self. There
are two aspects of our self: fujoor, which is the source of evil,
and conscience, which guards against evil.
'An-Nafs' is an Arabic term frequently used in the Qur'an.
It has no direct connotation in English, but can be translated as
'the self'. It has the following implications in the Qur'an: 'the
essence of something, its self, soul, heart, lust, the starting point