The enlightened heart
In Surat Shu’ara Allah Almighty says that the one who carried the revelation is Jibril, and he revealed it onto the heart of the Prophet (peace be on him).
وَإِنَّهُۥ لَتَنزِيلُ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
نَزَلَ بِهِ ٱلرُّوحُ ٱلْأَمِينُ
عَلَىٰ قَلْبِكَ لِتَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْمُنذِرِينَ
بِلِسَانٍ عَرَبِىٍّ مُّبِينٍ
This is certainly a revelation from the Lord of all worlds,
which the trustworthy spirit ˹Gabriel˺ brought down
into your heart ˹O Prophet˺—so that you may be one of the warners—
in a clear Arabic tongue. (26:190-195)
In these ayahs we see Allah Almighty is saying that the revelation, which people doubted and rejected, is the truth. Though they knew that the Prophet (peace be on him) was illiterate, they kept accusing him of being a poet, who was composing the revelation. The very title of this surah is ‘The Poets’.
They accused him of being a poet so they could refute and reject his message, but Allah Almighty defends His own revelation and states that it is He Himself, who sent the message, through Jibril, the Trusted Spirit (ruh ul almeen).
Why did Allah mention the heart of the Prophet (peace be on him)? The heart is the core of ones’ being.
Abu ‘Abdullah al-Nu’man bin Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him) said he heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) say:
أَلَا وَإِنَّ فِي الْجَسَدِ مُضْغَةً إذَا صَلَحَتْ صَلَحَ الْجَسَدُ كُلُّهُ، وَإذَا فَسَدَتْ فَسَدَ الْجَسَدُ كُلُّهُ، أَلَا وَهِيَ الْقَلْبُ”.
“There lies within the body a piece of flesh. If it is sound, the whole body is sound; and if it is corrupted, the whole body is corrupted. Verily this piece is the heart.” (Bukhari & Muslim)
Is the heart merely flesh or more than this?
The heart is the seat of understanding, the receiver of light from Allah Almighty, forgiveness, mercy and openings (futuh), and for messengers, the place revelation enters.
If your heart is full of spiritual diseases such animosity, grudges, envy and arrogance, then you will not receive the light of Allah. This is why it is important to purify your heart, as this opens the curtains to allow diving light to enter.
Now, in spring and Ramadan, it is the best time to polish your heart and work on it. It is an opportunity to allow blessings and forgiveness to enter it.
As the heart is the core of our being, we need to look after it, physically and spiritually, then Allah will give us spiritual acceleration and elevation. Ameen
Shaykh Haytham Tamim Tarawih 14
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