If a person slips and falls into some impurity for instance, no sane person continues without cleaning himself. Rather, he will remain uneasy and anxious until the impurity is removed and his body is cleaned. Just as physical purity is important, so too is inner or spiritual purity – i.e. keeping the heart, mind and limbs clean from spiritual impurities. Just as physical impurities can affect acts of ‘ibaadah, spiritual impurities can corrupt one’s relationship with Allah Ta‘ala, damage relationships with others, and weaken one’s imaan. Therefore, spiritual impurities should make a believer as uneasy as he would be when some physical impurity falls on him.
However, the removal of spiritual impurities is generally not as easy as the removal of physical impurities. Rather, a person is required to strive to remove these impurities. Nevertheless, together with the effort that a person will make, a very effective and fundamental step is to make du‘aa to Allah Ta‘ala, as it is He Who controls one’s heart. In the following du‘aa, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) teaches us to seek Allah Ta‘ala’s help to purify ourselves from spiritual impurities:
اَللّٰهُمَّ طَهِّرْ قَلْبِيْ مِنَ النِّفَاقِ ، وَعَمَلِيْ مِنَ الرِّيَاء ،ِ وَلِسَانِيْ مِنَ الْكَذِبِ ، وَعَيْنِيْ مِنَ الْـخِيَانَةِ ، فَإِنَّكَ تَعْلَمُ خَائِنَةَ الْأَعْيُنِ وَمَا تُـخْفِيْ الصُّدُوْرُ
“O Allah! Purify my heart from hypocrisy, my actions from ostentation, my tongue from lies and my eyes from deception, for indeed You know the deception of the eyes and what the hearts conceal.” (Ad-Da‘awaatul Kabeer – Baihaqi #258)
In this du‘aa, the first thing a person asks Allah Ta‘ala is to purify his heart from hypocrisy i.e. by granting him complete conviction in Deen so that he becomes a true Muslim; both inwardly and outwardly. Hypocrisy is a very destructive trait which will destroy a person in this world and the Hereafter. Allah Ta‘ala mentions in the Quraan Majeed, “Indeed the hypocrites will be in the lowest depths of Jahannam.” (Surah Nisaa v145) Moreover, despite their firm imaan, the Sahaabah (radhiyallahu ‘anhum) would often fear hypocrisy on themselves.
In the second part of the du‘aa, a person asks Allah Ta‘ala to purify his actions from ostentation and showing off i.e. by giving him the ability to do everything solely for Allah Ta‘ala. When a person does an action in order to show off, he will receive no reward for his action. In fact, it will become a burden for him on the Day of Qiyaamah.
In the third part of the du‘aa, a person implores Allah Ta‘ala to purify his tongue from lying. Speaking lies is a trait which is considered evil among nearly every religion and community and thus a liar always suffers disgrace at some point or another in his life. On one occasion, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was asked, “Can a believer be a coward?” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied, “Yes.” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was next asked, “Can a believer be a miser?” Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied, “Yes.” Finally, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) was asked, “Can a believer be a liar?” To this, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) replied, “No.” (Muwatta Imaam Maalik pg. 732) Furthermore, Mulla ‘Ali Qaari (rahimahullah) states that from all the evils of the tongue, protection was specifically sought from lying because lying is the worst sin the tongue can commit in the sight of Allah Ta‘ala and in the sight of people.
The final aspect a person asks Allah Ta‘ala is to purify his eyes from deception. The deception of the eye refers to looking at those things which are not permissible to look at. Among the aspects that fall under this, one severe spiritual malady and “impurity” is casting lustful glances. In the Quraan Majeed Allah Ta‘ala instructs both men and women separately to lower their gazes. Hence, just as men are required to lower their gaze, women are equally required to do so.
In the blessed hadeeth, Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) has warned us of the severe danger of not guarding the gaze, and has also promised tremendous reward for the one who safeguards his sight. Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) said, “The (impermissible lustful) glance is a poisoned arrow from the arrows of Iblees. The one who leaves it out (i.e. looking at haraam), out of the fear of Allah Ta‘ala, Allah Ta‘ala will reward him by blessing him with such imaan that he will perceive its sweetness in his heart.” (Tabraani – Majma‘uz Zawaaid #12974)
Thereafter, at the end of this du‘aa, a person attests to the fact that Allah Ta‘ala knows the deception of the eyes very well and He equally knows what thoughts and feelings are in a person’s mind and heart. When a person attests to this fact and truly believes it, he will think twice before looking towards something impermissible or entertaining impermissible thoughts.
(Adapted from Mirqaatul Mafaateeh vol. 5, pg. 372)