Tazkiah: Tazkiah (تزكية) is an Arabic-Islamic term referring to the process of transforming the nafs (carnal self or desires) from its deplorable state of ego-centeredness through various psycho spiritual stages towards the level of purity and submission to the will of Allah. Tazkiah (and the related concepts of tarbiyah and talim – training and education) does not limit itself to the conscious learning process: it is rather the task of giving form to the act of righteous living itself: treating every moment of life with remembering one’s position in front of Allah. There are two aspects (point of view) Tazkiah of the Nafs: • Cleansing of the heart, actions, and morals • Enhancement of virtues (integrity) and excelling (do very well) in moral values IMPEDIMENTS IN THE WAY OF TAZKIYAH • Neglect and forgetfulness • Submission to one’s Nafs or passions • Shaytaan’s attacks and evil designs • Evil environment and company • Arrogance • Love of this material world • Despair (be without hope) Aim and Scope: Tazkiah originally meant pruning the plant – to remove what is harmful for its growth. When the term is applied to the human personality, it means to beautify it and to remove from it all evil traces and spiritual diseases that are obstacles in experiencing Allah. In Islam, the ultimate objective of religion and Shariah (Islamic law) and the real purpose of raising prophets from among mankind was performing and teaching Tazkiah. Literally the term encompasses two meanings: one is to cleanse and purify from adulterants, while the other is to improve and develop towards the height of perfection. The word Zakat comes from the same Arabic verbal root, since Zakat purifies an individual’s wealth by recognition of Allah’s right over a portion of it. It finds its origin in the Quranic command to: “Take Sadaqah (charity) from their property in order to purify and sanctify them” (At-Taubah: 103). Background: The Nafs Conceptualizing the process and importance of tazkiah necessitates a basic understanding on the nature and faculties of the soul from an Islamic perspective. The soul (nafs) employs the body to attain its goals. The soul has also other names, including spirit (ruh), intelligence (aql), and heart (qalb) although these terms have other usages. The primary faculties of the soul are: 1. Intelligence - angelic. 2. Anger - ferocious. 3. Desire - animalistic. 4. Imagination- demonic. Anger brings violence; Desire encourages immorality; and Imagination provides material to formulate demoniac plots. If reason controls the other faculties, it moderates excesses and ensures useful performance. Allah says in surat Ash-Shams: “And by Nafs (soul), and Him Who perfected him in proportion; Then He inspired him corruption and its righteousness; Indeed he succeed who chooses to purify his own self; and indeed he fails who corrupts his own self." The soul is in a continuous Zihad (struggle) between these four powers for domination. The victorious trait determines the soul's inclination. In a Hadith from Ali Ibn Abu Talib, he is related as saying: "Surely God has characterized the angels by intellect without sexual desire and anger, and the animals with anger and desire without reason. He exalted man by bestowing upon him all of these qualities. Accordingly, if man's reason dominates his desire and ferocity, he rises to a station above that of the angels; because this station is attained by man in spite of the existence of hurdles which do not vex the angels." Importance of Tazkiah The soul is created devoid of traits. As one progresses through life he develops malakat related to his lifestyle. The soul becomes accustomed to repeated behavior, which then determines actions. Noble faculties manifest moral and wise behavior, while evil faculties manifest immorality. These faculties determine the fate in the akhira. Moral virtues bring eternal happiness and well-bring (Falaḥ), while moral corruption leads to everlasting wretchedness. Man must purge blameworthy traits (Akhlāq madhmūma) before he can integrate ethical and moral virtues. This is based on the Quranic verses: [Qur'an 91:9] 91:7 وَنَفْسٍ وَمَا سَوَّاهَا...Wanafsin wamā sawwāhā Consider the human self, and how it is formed in accordance with what it is meant to be 91:8 فَأَلْهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقْوَاهَا...Faalhamahā fujūrahā wataqwāhā And how it is imbued with moral failings as well as with consciousness of God! 91:9 قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن زَكَّاهَا...Qad aflaḥa man zakkāhā To a happy state shall indeed attain he who causes this [self] to grow in purity 91:10 وَقَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّاهَا...Waqad khāba man dassāhā And truly lost is he who buries it [in darkness]. This illustrates that Allah created the human soul with both evil and good inclinations, and endowed man with the ability to distinguish between the two: eternal Falaḥ is achieved by choosing good in the struggle instead of evil and striving to make it prevail. Similarly, Allah says in Sura As-shu'ara : "On that Day, neither wealth nor children will be of any benefit, only he [will be happy] who comes before Allah with a sound heart free of evil." [Qur'an 26:88] Thus, the only people who will be saved from punishment on the Day of Judgment are those possessing qulub salīma (sound hearts: بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ). The phrase "salīm" (sound) is related to the word "aslama" because "Islam" is moving towards that state of soundness. Anas Karzoon offered the following definition of tazkiah al-nafs, "It is the purification of the soul from inclination towards evils and sins, and the development of its fitrah towards goodness, which leads to its uprightness and its reaching ihsaan." Attempts to obey God's commands are successful only when one is purified; then the soul can receive God's unlimited grace. The hadith of the Prophet Muhammad: ("my religion is based on cleanliness"), does not refer to outward cleanliness alone; it also alludes to the soul's inner purity. Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi narrates in his "Tarikh" on the authority of Jabir that the Prophet returned from one of his campaigns and told his companions: "You have come forth in the best way of coming forth: you have come from the smaller jihad to the greater jihad." They said: "And what is the greater jihad?" He replied: "The striving (mujahadat) of Allah's servants against their idle desires." When some Sufi masters were asked about the meaning of Islam, they answered: "[It is] slaughtering the soul by the swords of opposition [to it]." The famous Sufi master Mawlana Jalal al-Din al-Rumi has argued that the constant struggle against nafs is jihad al-akbar (the greatest war). To attain perfection, it is necessary to struggle against lusts and immoral tendencies, and prepare the soul to receive God's grace. If man travels the path of purification, God will aid and guide him. As the Qur'ān maintains in sura al-Ankabut:[Qur'an 29:69] 29:69 وَالَّذِينَ جَاهَدُوا فِينَا لَنَهْدِيَنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَمَعَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ Waallathēna jahadū fēna lanahdiyannahum subulanā wainna Allaha lama'a almuḥsinēna But as for those who struggle hard in Our cause, We shall certainly guide them onto paths leading unto Us: for, behold, God is indeed with the doers of good. Stages of the Self There are three principal stations of nafs or human consciousness which are specifically mentioned in the Qur'an. They are stages in the process of development, refinement and mastery of the nafs. 1. nafs-al-ammārah: unruly animal self or soul that dictates evil. 2. nafs-al-lawwāmah: struggling moral self or self-reproaching soul. 3. nafs al-mutma’inna: satisfied soul or the composed God realized self.[19] Al-Ghazzali writes, “These three conditions of the soul are not to be thought of as distinct stages, but rather as different aspects or potentials within the soul, which are present simultaneously, some being latent and others active. Their relative strength is contingent upon four factors: man’s inborn disposition, which may be good or evil, angelic or animal; his upbringing; his self-discipline in adulthood, and finally, God’s grace” The animal nafs (nafs-al-ammārah) The Sufi’s journey begins with the challenge of freeing oneself from the influence of shaytan and the nafs-al-ammara. Al-Kashani defines it as follows: the commanding soul is that which leans towards the bodily nature (al-tabī’a al-badaniyya) and commands one to sensual pleasures and lusts and pulls the heart (qalb) in a downward direction. It is the resting place of evil and the source of blameworthy morals and bad actions. In its primitive stage the nafs incites us to commit evil: this is the nafs as the lower self or the base instincts. In the eponymous sura of the Qur’an, the prophet Yusef says "Yet I claim not that my nafs was innocent: Verily the nafs of man incites to evil." [Qur'an 12:53] Here he is explaining the circumstances in which he came to be falsely imprisoned for the supposed seduction of Zuleikā, the wife of Pharaoh’s minister. The reproachful nafs (nafs-al-lawwama) If the soul undertakes this struggle it then becomes nafs-al-lawwama (reproachful soul): This is the stage where "the conscience is awakened and the self accuses one for listening to one’s ego. The original reference to this state is in sura Qiyama: [Qur'an 75:2] 75:2 وَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِالنَّفْسِ اللَّوَّامَةِ Walā oqsimu bialnnafsi al-lawwāmati I call to witness the regretful self (the accusing voice of man's own conscience) The sense of the Arabic word lawwama is that of resisting wrongdoing and asking God’s forgiveness after we become conscious of wrongdoing. At this stage, we begin to understand the negative effects of our habitual self-centered approach to the world, even though we do not yet have the ability to change. Our misdeeds now begin to become repellent to us. We enter a cycle of erring, regretting our mistakes, and then erring again. The nafs at peace (nafs-i-mutma'inna) The Qur'ān explains how one can achieve the state of the satisfied soul in sura Ar-Ra'd: "Those who believe, and whose hearts find their rest in the remembrance of God - for, verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find satisfaction (tatmainnu alquloobu)." [Qur'an 13:28] Once the seeker can successfully transcend the reproachful soul, the process of transformation concludes with nafs-al-mutma’inna (soul at peace). However, for some Sufis orders the final stage is nafs-as-safiya wa kamila (soul restful and perfected in Allah’s presence). The term is conceptually synonymous with Tasawwuf, Islah al-Batini etc. Another concept which is closely related but not identical is tazkiah-al-qalb, or cleansing of the heart, which is also a necessary spiritual discipline for travelers on the Sufi path. The aim is the erasure of everything that stands in the way of purifying Allah’s love (Ishq). The last and highest stage of the soul is al-Nafs al-Mutma’inna, in which the soul has reached a state of peace and tranquility through aligning its will with the Will of its Creator. Al-Ghazzali remarks, “The aim of moral discipline is to purify the heart from the rust of passion and resentment, until, like a clear mirror, it reflects the light of God” The aim of tazkiah and moral development is to attain falah or happiness, thus realizing the nafs al-mutma'inna. This is the ideal stage of ego for Sufis. On this level one is firm in one’s faith and leaves bad manners behind. The soul becomes tranquil, at peace. At this stage Sufis have relieved themselves of all materialism and worldly problems and are satisfied with the will of God. Man's most consummate felicity is reflecting Divine attributes. Tranquillization of the soul means an individual's knowledge is founded on such firm belief that no vicissitudes of distress, comfort, pain or pleasure can alter his trust in Allah and his expecting only good from Him. Instead, he remains pleased with Allah and satisfied with His decrees. Similarly, the foundations of deeds are laid in such firm character that no temptations, in adversity, prosperity, fear or hope, removes him from the shar'iah, so he fulfills the demands made by Allah and thus becomes His desirable servant. According to Qatada ibn al-Nu'man, the nafs al-mutma'inna is, "the soul of the believer, made calm by what Allah has promised. Its owner is at complete rest and content with his knowledge of Allah's Names and Attributes..." In sura Fajr of the Quran, Allah addresses the peaceful soul in the following words: [Qur'an 89:27] 89:27 الْمُطْمَئِنَّةُ يَا أَيَّتُهَا النَّفْسُ Yā ayyatuhā alnnafsu almutmainnatu O thou human being that hast attained to inner peace! 89:28 ارْجِعِي إِلَى رَبِّكِ رَاضِيَةً مَّرْضِيَّةً Irji'aī ilā rabbiki radiyatan mardiyyatan Return thou unto thy Sustainer, well-pleased [and] pleasing [Him]: 89:29 فَادْخُلِي فِي عِبَادِي Fāodkhulī fī 'aibādī Enter, then, together with My [other true] servants 89:30 وَادْخُلِي جَنَّتِي Wāodkhulī jannatī Yea, enter thou My paradise!" Infaq in the way of Allah: o "Be charitable, even by giving (something as small as) a date, for it provides for a hungry person, and wipes away a sin like water puts out a fire“ -Bukhari Du’a • Yaa Muqalibul Quloob, thabit quloobana ‘ala deenik • Oh Turner of the Hearts, make our hearts firm on Your Deen. Ameen