The Norms of Knowledge and Action || Imam Reza (A.S.) Network

The best learning and action are with the aim of earning Allah’s Pleasure. As much as there is a sincere effort to acquire and act on the right knowledge, there will also be the satanic diversions to distract the person from the right path. Therefore one must pray to Allah for keeping him steadfast on the righteous path.
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) says, “A person who acquires knowledge of the Traditions (Ilm al-Hadith) for worldly benefits, on the Day of Judgement he would not get any reward for his efforts. But a person who is striving in the field for the Benefit in the Hereafter, he will get ample rewards in both the worlds!”
Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (as) says, “A person who acquires knowledge for self aggrandizement, makes a place for himself in the Hell. A scholar is one whose heart is free of envy, jealousy, pride and conceit of any kind. He prays to Allah with humility to expand his vision. When the heart is free of the love for worldly gains, the heart will become the fulcrum of Allah’s favours.
Their knowledge and erudition are compared with a seed that is sown in the soil that sprouts, grows and becomes productive. If a seed is put on a stone or on a barren piece of land, it fails to sprout or grow. Similarly knowledge and erudition and learning are ineffective on a heart that is as hard and insensitive as a stone.
Knowledge is the heart of life. As long as there are harmful elements in the body of a man, nutritious food doesn’t do much good to him. In fact, whatever food he takes, adds to his problems of digestion and other body sustaining systems. Therefore it is essential to first try to eliminate the harmful matter from the body and then provide nutrition to the man. Similarly the spiritual treatment of a person requires elimination of the spiritual ailments from the person’s psyche and then initiate to knowledge and learning.

Example of Religious Learning
It is a maxim from Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) that “The hearts of the pious are wrapped in the Faith (Iman). When Allah wishes to brighten them, He opens the wrapping and sows the seed of learning in them.” Knowledge and erudition are said to be with the heart, the same way as the energy giving food is for the body. Similarly the spirit gets sustenance from the words of wisdom. Therefore, in the Holy Qur’an, there is mention at several places that Allah considers the infidels and morons as dead persons. For example, the Book says,

“They (the infidels) are dead, not living, but they have no knowledge of this.” (16:21)
Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) says, “Nourish your spirits by talking of word of wisdom, lest they become tired, inactive and dull. The same way the body gets fatigued.”
There are many traditions that suggest that learning is life and strength for the heart. But, till the time that the spirit is not made free of the bad traits like jealousy and envy, learning will not be of any use. These bad traits must be eliminated. It is common medical practice that the physician does not prescribe tonics for the patients before getting rid of the ailment from the body. Similarly those who are suffering from spiritual ailments like envy, jealousy and greed might go astray if they acquire learning without eliminating these traits from their psyche.
Knowledge and learning is also compared with a lamp that gives light. As a blind person cannot derive any benefit from the light of a lamp, similarly a person whose heart is blind will not be benefited from the light of learning, howsoever much he acquires it! Allah says at another place in the Qur’an about the infidels, “The eyes on their foreheads have light in them but the eyes of their hearts inside their chests are blind”
At this stage it would be in place to dwell on the meaning and the purpose of the heart in the body.

About the Heart and the Faith
There are two meanings for the heart:
• The conical shaped organ of flesh inside the chest on the left side.
• A human being’s psyche with the faculty of thinking.
The human life is directly related to the spirit. The spirit is the palpitation that is caused by the circulation of the blood. The heart is the reservoir of the blood. The blood, during its circulation reaches the brain and then to the veins of the brain, and then to the entire network of the veins in the body. The human body is the instrument for the development and progress of the psyche of a person. This psyche, in common parlance, is called the heart.
Therefore, in the Holy Qur’an, at several places the word heart has been used in place of the psyche. The psyche will have marked effect, good or bad, on the nature of the person. A river with plenty of water will have many tributaries. Similarly, if from the heart emanate the tributaries of instinct of faith, then the entire body will manifest the effects of virtue and piety. These tributaries from the heart are set afloat by Allah’s Orders, but it is the prerogative of the man to curb the tributaries of evil and promote those of noble instinct.
The Prophet of Islam (S) says, “There is a piece of flesh inside the body of the man. If that is clean, the entire body will be clean. If that is defective and unclean, then the entire body will be defective. This piece of flesh is called the heart.”
It is narrated that the Prophet (S) also said: “If the heart is pure, the entire body will also be pure. If the heart has wickedness, the nature of the person too will be depraved.”
Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) says: “The biggest calamity for the body is the ailing heart in the body.” He has also said that a big bounty is opulence for a human being, but one bigger than this is a healthy body and above everything else is the piety of the heart.
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) says that the heart of a person is like a ‘Imam’ or ‘leader’ for him. It controls all the other parts of the body. They understand its wishes and implicitly act on its command. Similarly the Imam (as) is like the heart of the community or the country and the people are the parts of the body that have to act on the commands of the heart.
Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (as) says that the heart is of three types. There is a heart that has no place for any good deeds. Then there is the heart that has good and bad instincts in some proportion. Sometimes good instincts dominate and at other bad instincts are dominant. The third type of heart is called ‘the large heart’. In this heart the lamp of light is kindled and will remain lighted till the end. This is the heart of a pious Mu’min.
Imam Zain-ul-’Abidin (as) says: “A human being has four eyes! The two eyes in the head that are used for seeing the things in the surroundings. There are another two eyes that are in the heart of a person. With the eyes of the heart the person sees his preparation for the Hereafter. He learns about his personal failings through these eyes of the heart and curbs them. This person is a pious Mu’min. There is a marked difference between a Muslim and a Mu’min.”

The Heart Explained
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) says, “The heart has two ears. Through one of the ears the thoughts of piety, virtue and uprightness are heard. Through the other ear the person hears the satanic talks of evil instincts. Whichever of the two dominates, manifests in the behavior of a person.”
Also the Imam (as) said that his father has said, “There is nothing that can spoil the heart than the instinct of sin. Until this instinct dominates the heart, the person will not commit sins.”
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) says, “Allah sent a Revelation to Prophet Musa (as): ‘O Musa (as)! Never forget to talk about Me. If you do forget, then your heart will become hard.”
Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) says, “The tears of the eyes will not dry till the heart hardens, and the hardness of the heart is the fore-runner of sin!”
It has come in several traditions that every part of the body of a person who does good deeds has the instinct of faith. The actions of these parts of the body are always in accordance to the dictates of Allah.
It has been mentioned in the traditions that when a pious person commits a major sin, the Faith departs from him!
Imam Ar-Ridha’ (as) says, “Faith (Iman) means professing through the tongue, understanding it through the heart and manifesting it through the acts of all the parts of the person’s body!”
It has been proved through research on the meaning of Iman that the people who have applied the same meaning to Islam and Iman consider that bearing witness through the mouth is sufficient manifestation of Iman. Although they cannot be grouped with the infidels according to the norms of Shariah for having such belief, on the Day of Reckoning they will be in the formation of the infidels!

About Iman
A person who has professed Islam with his tongue, believes in it from the depths of his heart and the parts of his body perform the mandatory religious practices; but has committed some major sin in his past life. Such a person, because of his Iman, will be shifted from the Hell to the Heaven after undergoing punishment there for sometime.
The traditions that claim that a Mu’min who commits major sins is excommunicated from the Group of Mu’mins, refers to the other type of Muslims who profess Islam outwardly and protect themselves from the temptation of committing major sins. In spite of this, if they commit a major sin, they stand to face the prescribed punishment.
The third type of Iman is the faith of the Prophets (as), their Vicegerents and their Descendents. They profess their Faith publicly, their hearts are totally committed and their actions are commensurate with their Faith. The most important articles of their Faith are Belief in the Unity of Allah, implicitly observing all Mandatory Practices and abstinence from any acts of sin.
It has repeatedly come in the traditions that as long as a person is regular at offering the Mandatory prayers, the Satan will be away from him. The moment a person neglects his prayers, Satan will gain ascendancy over him and involve him in sinful acts.
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) narrates from the Prophet of Islam (S), “One day the prophet (S) was offering his prayer at the mosque. He noticed a person with emaciated body, yellow mien and sunken eyes. The man was under a stupor of sleep. The name of the person was Haritha bin Malik. The Prophet (S) asked him, ‘O Haritha! How are you?’ He said, ‘O Prophet of Allah (S)! My heart is tired now that I am awake praying all night and I fast during the days. I have developed hate for the world and imagine that I am standing at the grounds of the Day of Resurrection (Mahshar) and the entire populace is standing there scared and afraid of the inevitable. See the people of the Heaven enjoying the fruits there and the people of the Hell suffering the Hellfire’ Hearing this, the Prophet (S) said, ‘Allah has Illumined the heart of this man with the Light of Faith!’ The Prophet (S) asked the person to be steadfast in his Faith!” Harith said, “O Prophet (S)! Pray that I get martyred in the Cause of Allah!’ The Prophet (S) prayed for him and Harith was martyred in a Jehad the very same year.”
Imam Ar-Ridha’ (as) says a Muslim is not necessarily a Mu’min nor a Kafir. The only benefit he derives from professing Islam is that his execution is not permissible. Nor is he considered Najis (unclean). People can eat and drink in his company, can have matrimonial relations with him. Such a Muslim does not believe in the Day of Reckoning that he has to prepare for that day!
Contrary to the above, a Mu’min, according to the definition given by the Prophet and the Imams (as), professes his Faith publicly, practices it implicitly and holds the Faith strongly in his heart. The Mu’min deserves Allah’s Rewards, qualifies for the Prophet (S)’s Intercession on the Day of Judgement and will not be consigned to the Hell forever if he had committed some sins in his worldly life. His righteous deeds and prayers during his life will not go in vain.
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) says, “Knowledge will abandon Action if it doesn’t keep pace with it!”