Page 44 - Perfected Faith

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PERFECTED FAITH

The Conscience of The People of Perfected Faith
From the day a man is born, a voice that always perpetually whis-
pers evil accompanies him. This whisper belongs to one's lower self
(an-nafs). Next to this voice, however, there exists an infallible voice
that forbids evil and guides him to the right path. This voice that
leads man to righteousness is called "conscience". Allah introduces to
us these two aspects of the self as follows:
By the soul and the One Who proportioned it and inspired it
with knowledge of depravity and with its sense of duty, he pu-
rifies it has succeeded, he who covers it up has failed. (Surat
ash-Shams, 7-10)
As stated in the above verse, Allah also inspires man to avoid the
evil of his self. This inspiration is provided through the conscience.
Therefore, conscience is, in a sense, the voice of Allah that summons
believers to what is good and right. For this reason, the conscience is
a key to perfected faith.
Those of perfected faith unceasingly give ear to this voice. They
have a quite different understanding of conscience from that preva-
lent in society. Helping needy and old people or making contribu-
tions to aid organisations is generally regarded as a sign of a good
conscience. But except for such examples, the conscience is excluded
from almost all other fields of life; people generally do not feel the
need to employ their conscience and they lead their lives in compli-
ance with their lower self.
Those who heed their conscience as commanded in the Qur'an are
only those who are of perfected faith: throughout their lives, they lis-
ten to their conscience on every issue. Drawing near to Allah and
earning His approval being their sole goal in life, they unceasingly
bow to their conscience, whatever the conditions or circumstances
may be. Neither exhaustion, sleeplessness nor the rush of daily life
distracts them from following this voice. Their busiest moments or