THE SYMPTOMS OF WEAK FAITH (EEMAAN) – PART 3

EXCESSIVE ARGUING AND DISPUTING:

When the intent to correct someone goes too far and is overtaken by the desire to be right, one walks into the realm of argumentation and dispute. That in turn is a weakness of faith. The Prophet (SallAllahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) said:

“No people will go astray after having being guided except that they become argumentative.”

[Reported by Ahmad in al-Musnad, 5/252; Saheeh al-Jaami’, 5633].

Arguing with no proof and for no good reason leads one far away from the straight path, and most people enter into futile arguments without knowledge or guidance or reference to the Quran. Futile arguments should be avoided as the Prophet (SallAllahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) said:

“I guarantee a house in the outskirts of Paradise to the one who forsakes argument even when he is in the right.”

[Reported by Abu Dawood, 5/150; Saheeh al-Jaami’, 1464]

TAKING SINS LIGHTLY:

Weakness of faith makes a person take sins lightly, and he does not think that he has done anything wrong. Describing the difference in the attitude of the believer and the hypocrite, Ibn Mas’ood (RadiyAllahu Anhu) said:

“The believer sees his sins as if he were sitting beneath a mountain which he fears will fall on him, whilst the sinner sees his sins as if it were a fly passing his nose and he says such-and-such to it” – i.e., he shoos it away with his hand.

[Reported by al-Bukhaari, al-Fath, 11/102; Taghleeq al-Ta’leeq, 5/136, Al-Maktab al-Islami]

Committing sins without regard to their seriousness can desensitize one to their effects and eventually emboldens one to even publicize them. Regarding such a person the Prophet (SallAllahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) has said:

“All of my ummah will be fine except for those who commit sin openly, an example of which is a man who does something at night, and when morning comes and Allah has concealed his sin, he says, ‘O So-and-so, I did such and such yesterday.’ His Lord had covered his sin all night, but he has uncovered what Allah had concealed.”
[Reported by al-Bukhaari, Fath 10/486]

FEELING THAT ONE’S HEART IS HARD AND ROUGH:

Hardness of heart is another symptom of weak faith. One can easily detect such hardness when one’s heart remains unmoved even by reminders of death or on seeing the dead and attending funerals. A person may carry the dead to his grave and throw earth into the grave, yet not recognize the gravity of what all of us will face one day. Allah describes this condition when He (SWT) says:

“Then, after that, your hearts were hardened and became as stones or even worse in hardness.”
(Qur’an: Surah Al-Baqarah:74)