TAZKIYAH AL-NAFS (SELF-PURIFICATION)
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Introduction
The purification of soul is the most important theme in Islamic theology since t effective method to attain pleasure of God. Tazkiya originally meant pruning the plant- remove what is harmful for its growth. When the term is applied to the human personal means to beautify it and to remove from it all evil traces and spiritual diseases that a obstacles in experiencing Allah. In Islam, the ultimate objective of religion and shanana the real purpose of raising prophets from among mankind was performing and teaching tazkiah. Tazkiya is an Arabic-Islamic term alluding to “tazkiyah al-nals” meaning “purifier of the self. This refers to the process of transforming the nafs (carnal self or desires) from deplorable state of ego-centrality through various spiritual stages towards the level of purify and submission to the will of Allah. Its basis is in learning the shariah and deeds from te sunnah and applying it in your own deeds through life resulting in spiritual awareness of Allah
Tazkiah is the task of giving form to the act of righteous living itself, treating eve moment of life with remembering one’s position in front of Allah.
There are three types nafs: Nafs-al-Ammarah, Nafs-al-Lawwamah and Nafs-al-Mutmainnah.
Purification of the soul is a prerequisite for closeness to God. Indeed, the whole port of morality and spirituality is to purify one’s soul. It is only then that the soul starts shining receiving and reflecting utmost radiation and light from God. Tazkiyat al-nafs is also part the spiritual health. It results in purification of the self from all evil inclinations and beautification with good values and virtues. This was actually the mission of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Allah chose him and appointed him as our Teacher and Master for purpose. Tazkiyat al-nafs is most relevant with individual development and stability of met health in this modern age.
Meaning and Concepts
Literally, the word Tazkiyah means the removal of undesirable growths and impurities. As a spiritual-moral term, it denotes the self-imposed effort of moral agent to eradicating those tendencies within the human self, which form obstacles in the path of moral development.
Meaning of Nafs:
The word nafs is used in Quran in two senses First, self or soul. For example, Allah says in the Quran
“And remember your Lord within yourself
وَاذْكُرْ رَبَّكَ فِي نَفْسِكَ – (al-Aaraaf 7:1-205)
The second way the nafs has been used in the Quran frequently is that the nafs is to a specific part of our self and it is that part of our self that has desires, appetite, ego, anger, passion, lust, desire, etc It is also called the carnal self or the carnal soul This nafs is not part of the Ruh, its part of the physical human being. This nafs is part of our physical self, even though it is not part of our physical body
Meaning of Tazkiyah al-Nafs
- Literal Meaning:
The terms Tazkiyah” and “Nafs are derived from Arabic, “Tazkiyah” literally means, “Purification, and cleansing” and “Nafs” means the “Soul” When the two terms are phrased together, they mean, “purification of the soul. Term of tazkiyah in Arabic means purification of something (from adulterants), its growth and development and to bring it to the height of its perfection. Thereafter in Sufism, the term tazkiyat al-nafs means purification of soul from bad characteristics (al-akhlaq al-mazmumah). The concept of tazkiyat al-nafs was explained by a number of Sufis, especially al-Ghazali In his conception, tazkiyat al-nafs has been explained by the Qur’an
قد أَفْلَحَ مَنْ زَكَاهَا وَقَدْ خَابَ مَنْ دَسَّاهَا
“He who purifies it will indeed be successful, and he who corrupts it is sure to fail.
(as-Shams 91:1-10)
Therefore 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
- Technical/Conventional Meaning:
Technically Tazkiyah al-nafs conveys the sense of checking oneself from erroneous tendencies and beliefs and turning them to the path of virtue and piety (fear of God’s displeasure) and developing it to attain the stage 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
خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِمْ بِهَا وَصَلَّ عَلَيْهِمْ –
“Take charity from their possessions to cleanse them and purify them thereby, and bless them“. (al-Tawbah 9:103)
- ii. Ibn Kathir (1301-1373) said in giving his opinion on the technical meaning tazkiyat al-nafs, as part of his comment on the meaning of the verses above, the tazkiya al nafs as cleansing the soul from its evil characteristics and moral dirt and wastes, curbing its bad habits, and developing good habits and characters.
- Dr. Anas Karzoon offered the following definition of Tazkiya 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
- According to Al-Ghazali (1058-1111),” Tazkiyat al-nafs is educating (the heart or the soul), thus, any nation without education possesses no good”. Technically, according to Imam Al-Ghazali, “Tazkiyat al-nafs” means, “completing the perfection of one’s soul (nafs) by cutting down its evil desires, and allowing its noble characteristics to evolve.”
- Concept of self-purification in light of Qur’an and Sunnah
vi According to Islam, obtainment of falah in this life and the next is directly connected to tazkiah. This is based on the Quranic verses:
قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَنْ زَكَّاهَا وَقَدْ خَابَ مَنْ دَسَّاهَا
He will indeed be successful who purifies it and he will indeed fail whoever pollutes and corrupts it. (as-Shams 91:1-10)
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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 falah 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:
يَوْمَ لَا يَنْفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّهَ بِقَلْبِ سَلِيمٍ –
“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.”
(As-Shuaraa 26:88-89)
Thus, the only people who will be saved from punishment on the Day of Judgment are those possessing qulub salima (sound hearts). The phrase “salim” (sound) is related to the word “aslama” because “Islam” is moving towards that state of soundness.
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 bin Abdullah that the Prophet (PB) in his from one of his campaigns and told his companions: ” you have come from the smaller Jihad to the greater jihad.” They said: “And what is the greater jihad?” He replied: “The striving (mujahadaf) 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 (1207-1273) 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’an maintains:
وَالَّذِينَ جَاهَدُوا فِينَا لَنَهْدِيَنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا ۚ وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَمَعَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ
“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”.
(al-Ankabut 29:69)
Stages of the Self
There are three principal stages of nafs or human consciousness that are specifically mentioned in the Qur’an. They are stages in the process of development, refinement and mastery of the nafs.
a Nafs-al-Ammarah: unruly animal self / soul that dictates evil.
- Nafs-al-Lawwamah: struggling moral self / self-reproaching soul.
- Nafs al-Mutmainna: satisfied soul / the composed God realized self.
- Nafs-al-Ammārah (Unruly / Animal Self/Soul)
“Indeed the nafs that overwhelmingly commands a person to do sin.” (Yusuf 12:53)
The saintly journey begins with the challenge of freeing oneself from the influence of satan and the nafs-al-ammara. Al-Kashani (1931-2010) defines it as follows: “the commanding soul is that which leans towards the bodily nature (al-tabīra 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 Yusuf (PBUH) says “Yet I claim not that my nafs was innocent: Verily the nafs of man incites to evil.” (Yusuf 12:53). Here he is explaining the circumstances in which he came to be falsely imprisoned for the supposed seduction of Zuleikha, the wife of Pharaoh’s minister.
- Nafs-al-Lawwama (Reproachful Nafs)
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:
“I call to witness the regretful self (the accusing voice of man’s own conscience).” (al-Qiyamah 75:1-2)
The sense of the Arabic word lawwama is that of resisting wrongdoing and The sense word lave conscious of wrongdo-centered approve be God’s forgiveness after we beerects of our habitual scene cho toonderstand the negative of yet have the ability to che regretting misdeeds now begin to become repellent to us. We enter a cycle of erring, regretting our mistakes and then erring again.
Nafs al-Mutma inna
“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” (ar-Raad 13:28)
Once the seeker can successfully transcend the reproachful soul, the process of transformation concludes with nafs-al-mutma’inna (soul at peace). The aim is the erasure of everything that stands in the way of purifying Allah’s love. The aim of tazkiyah 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.
In sura Fajr of the Quran, Allah addresses the peaceful soul in the following words
“To the righteous it will be said “oh reassured soul, return to your Lord well pleased, and pleasing to Him. Enter, then, together with My [other true] servants. Yea, enter thou My paradise!”
(al-Fajr 89:27-30
Al-Ghazali’s Views on Tazkiyah al-Nafs
Al-Ghazali’s tazkiyat al-nafs is related to individual growth and development He expounds a distinct concept of individual growth and development. A human being is, body and soul, matter and spirit. It is the unique balance between the two contrasts that makes bumans what they are, the highest creation. The original condition of the human being is th of fitrah wherein man was innocent and pure. According to al-Ghazali, a human being is bon in a natural state of purity (fitrah al Islam). The potential to do good or bad exists. It is t early environment of upbringing that determines how those potentials are enhanced. If t environment is good, the good potentials are promoted. If it is bad the bad ones are
The nafs can be purified through acts of ibadat, avoiding the forbidden, gener being conscious of the Creator (with dhikr), constant meditating the out the creator and creation