10 Things That Kill Your Heart and How to Revive It

Our Hearts Die By Way of 10 Things:

Ibraaheem bin Aadam (may Allah have mercy upon him) was passing by the market place of al-Basrah and the people gathered around him and said: “Oh father of Ishaaq, why is it that we supplicate but our supplications are not answered?” He said: “That’s because your hearts have died by way of 10 things!” They said: “What are they?!”

He said:

(1) You know Allah but you haven’t fulfilled His right (over you).

(2) You claimed you love the Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), then you abandoned his Sunnah.

(3) You have read/recited the Qur’aan but you didn’t implement it.

(4) You have eaten (from) the favor of Allah (upon you) but didn’t fulfill showing gratitude for it.

(5) You said: Indeed the Shaytaan is your enemy but you agreed with him (by obeying him when he calls you to do evil).

(6) You said: Indeed the Paradise is the truth but you didn’t work for it.

(7) You said: Indeed the Hell-Fire is true, but you didn’t flee from it.

(8) You said: Indeed death is true but you didn’t prepare for it.

(9) You woke up from the (state of) sleeping and busied yourself with the faults of the people leaving off your own faults.

(10) You buried your dead but didn’t take a lesson from them.

[Source: Jaami’ Bayaan al-‘Ilm wa Fadlih, vol. 2, p. 12]

Here is a brief explanation of each of the ten things:

Not fulfilling the rights of Allah: This means neglecting our obligatory duties to Allah, such as prayer, fasting, and charity. It also means failing to do good deeds and avoiding evil deeds out of love for Allah.
Abandoning the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): The Sunnah is the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and it is the best way to live our lives. When we abandon the Sunnah, we are straying from the path of guidance.
Not implementing the Quran: The Quran is the word of Allah, and it is a guide for our lives. When we do not implement the Quran, we are disobeying Allah and missing out on His blessings.
Not showing gratitude for the favors of Allah: Allah has blessed us with many favors, both great and small. When we do not show gratitude for His favors, we are ungrateful and our hearts become hardened.
Agreeing with the Shaytaan: The Shaytaan is our enemy, and he is always trying to lead us astray. When we agree with him by disobeying Allah, we are giving him power over us and our hearts become weak.
Not working for Paradise: Paradise is the ultimate goal of all Muslims. When we do not work for Paradise, we are neglecting our most important purpose in life.
Not fleeing from Hellfire: Hellfire is a place of punishment for those who disobey Allah. When we do not flee from Hellfire, we are putting ourselves at risk of eternal damnation.
Not preparing for death: Death is a reality that we will all face one day. When we do not prepare for death, we are leaving ourselves vulnerable to the trials and tribulations of the afterlife.
Busying ourselves with the faults of others while neglecting our own faults: It is easy to focus on the faults of others, but this is a dangerous habit. When we do this, we are neglecting our own faults and our hearts become filled with pride and arrogance.
Not taking lessons from the dead: When we see the death of a loved one, it should remind us of our own mortality and motivate us to make the most of our lives. When we do not take lessons from the dead, we are missing out on a valuable opportunity for self-improvement.

These are just a few of the things that can lead to the death of our hearts. I

f we want to keep our hearts alive, we must strive to avoid these things and to focus on our worship of Allah. We must also strive to learn from the mistakes of others and to improve ourselves in every way.

May Allah help us to keep our hearts alive and to make our supplications answered.

Islamic Helper