Page 60 - Satan: The Sworn Enemy of Mankind

SATAN: THE SWORN ENEMY OF MANKIND
from the teachings of the Qur'an, they are then vulnerable to a terri-
ble menace, Satan.
Though, because they will remain unaware of this impending
threat, they will continue to believe themselves to be on the true
path, and thereby fall completely under Satan's control. This condi-
tion is described in the Qur'an as Satan becoming the bosom friend
of his victim:
If someone shuts his eyes to the remembrance of the All-
Merciful, We assign him a Satan who becomes his bosom
friend. They [satans] debar them from the path, yet they
still think they are guided. (Surat az-Zukhruf, 36-37)
Such carelessness can only affect one who has abandoned hope
in the Hereafter, turns to worldly aspirations, and follows his own
base desires. Such a person, by following in Satan's footsteps, in
seeking after his own pleasure instead of that of Allah, has degraded
himself to the level of an animal. Because, animals also subsist
merely on the pursuit of basic physical needs (such as eating and
drinking). What should make man superior, though, is his con-
science in serving to his Creator, Allah. It is for that reason that the
Qur'an offers the following analogy, to describe those who pursue
their desires, while distancing themselves from its verses, which
they had once believed in:
Recite to them the tale of him to whom We gave Our Signs
[i.e., verses], but who then cast them to one side and Satan
caught up with him. He was one of those lured into error. If
We had wanted to, We would have raised him up by them.
But he gravitated towards the Earth and pursued his whims
and base desires. His metaphor is that of a dog: if you chase
it away, it lolls out its tongue and pants, and if you leave it

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