Page 19 - The Basic Concepts in the Qur’an

The two Aspects of the Soul

The “soul”, (in Arabic, nafs) as commonly used in the Qur’an, means “ego” or “ one’s
personality.” In the Qur’an, Allah explains the two aspects of soul: the one inspiring evil and
wicked deeds, and the other, guarding against every inculcation of evil. As the Qur’an makes it
clear in Surat’ Ash-Shams:
By the Soul, and the proportion and order given to it; And its enlightenment as to its
wrong and its right; Truly he succeeds that purifies it, and he fails that corrupts it!
(Ash-Shams, 7-10)

The information provided in the verses about soul is of great importance: in the creation
process of man, Allah inspired wickedness in the human soul. Wickedness, that is ‘fucur’ in
Arabic, means “tearing apart the limits of righteousness.” As a religious term it means
“committing sin and stirring up rebellion, telling lies, disobedience, transgression, adultery,
moral corruption...”
Apart from the wicked side of the soul, from the Surat Ash-Shams we know that Allah also
inspired in the soul a conscience i.e. a sense of what is wrong and right for it. In the second part
of the ayah we learn that one who sincerely accepts the wickedness of his soul and purifies it
by the guidance of the inspiration of Allah, will attain salvation for all eternity. This is indeed a
certain and true salvation; earning the approval, mercy and heaven of Allah. Those, on the
other hand, who fail to banish the wickedness from their souls will face a fearsome end.
At this point an important conclusion may be drawn: every soul has wickedness in itself;
the only way to purify it is to accept it and to observe the limits of Allah by the guidance of
Allah.
The difference between believers and unbelievers becomes quite clear at this point. Only
Qur’anic teaching provides an inner understanding of the wicked side of the soul and the ways
to remedy it. Identifying the evil of the soul and purifying it are characteristic of the true religion
and the messengers communicating it.
In the 87th verse of Surat’Al-Baqara, the Jews are addressed as follows: “...Is it that
whenever there comes to you a messenger with what you yourselves do not desire, you are
puffed up with pride? Some you called impostors, and others you slay!”
As the verse suggests, unbelievers simply surrender themselves to the evil of their souls and
thus always challenge the true religion and its messengers. Such individuals fail to save their
souls from greed, as explained in the Surat Ash-Shams.

This being so, we may well observe that all unbelievers demonstrate an absolute
submission to the evil of their souls. That is to say that they are devoid of understanding. The
life they lead is one of instinct life; to all thoughts and behaviours are inspired by the wicked
side of the soul. This is also one of the reasons why analogies between unbelievers and animals
are made in the Qur’an.
Believers, on the contrary, are conscious of the existence of Allah. They fear Him and thus
they take care to observe His limits. They are always guided by the inspiration of Allah. They
never surrender to the evil in their soul,they do not cover it, but disclose it and guard against it
as Allah inspires. The words of the Prophet Joseph guides believers towards typical righteous
conduct: “Nor do I absolve my own self (of blame): the (human) soul is certainly prone to evil,