Al Hawaa (The Desire)

Al-Ahwaa’; singular: hawaa’ (Arabic:الھوٰی);  refers to vain or egotistical desire, individual passion and/or impulsiveness. Islam is a religion of discipline and mankind is a creature of desire but by following the Shari’ah laid out by Allah subhana wa ta’ala, mankind too can go through with life with minimal chaos. True freedom, from the Islamic perspective, does not mean aimlessly following all of your human desires for food, drink, wealth and sex. On the contrary, freedom means being able to control one’s base desires and fulfilling them in a proper and legal way.

“Verily, Al Hawaa (the desire) is the Hithaar of the Hell Fire which surrounds it, he who walks across it will fall in Hell, just as the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallum said in hadeeth reported in the Saheehayn

[Al Bukhaaree and Muslim]

*Note: Hithaar means anything forming a barrier, an obstruction, a partition or a fence)

Allaah has created man in a world of trials and tests, and He has made Paradise the abode of His friends and beloved ones, who preferred His pleasure over their own and preferred obedience to Him over their physical comfort. And He has made Hell the abode of those among His slaves who disobey Him and preferred their own whims and desires to the pleasure of their Lord.

But as for he who feared the position of his Lord and prevented the soul from [unlawful] inclination,

Then indeed, Paradise will be [his] refuge.

-79:40-41

Following desires can develop into a very destructive sin and indeed the salaf have warned over and over about following and interacting with the people of desires as they may corrupt our own imaan as well. A person while following his own desires [against the shari’ah], is disobeying Allah.

Ibn Al-Qayyim said,  It is feared that he who follows Al Hawaa (the desire) may become altogether detached from Eemaan (Faith) while being unaware.

Though people seem to think that Islam is very restrictive, the truth is, that it encourages balance in your way of life. Allah azzawajal gives a lawful outlet for your desires but in moderation so that you wouldn’t indulge in this dunya so much so that you would forget your hereafter. You can eat but you eat in moderation, you can obtain wealth, but you utilize it in Allah’s way and give zakah to get rid of your greed for it, you can have women yet you have to lawfully marry them so on and so forth. Islam doesn’t cut you off from the dunya, rather it teaches you to balance it out.

Abu Hurayrah radiAllahu anhu narrated that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wasallum said:

“When Allaah created Al Jannah and An Naar (the Hell Fire), He sent Jibreel to Al Jannah and said: Go and look at it and at what I have prepared therein for its people. He went and looked at it and at what Allaah has prepared therein for its people, then came to Him and said:

By Your Might, no one who hears of it will fail to enter it. 

He gave an order repsecting it and accordingly it was surrounded with undesirable things, and said (to Jibreel): Go and look at it and at (the things) which I have prepared therein for its people. He went and looked at it, and found that it was surrounded with disliked and undesirable things, then came to Him and said:

By Your Might, I am afraid that no one will enter it.

He (Allaah) then said: Go to An Naar (The Fire) and look at it and at (the things) which I have prepared therein for its people. (He went) and found that it was heaped up, one part upon the other, then he came to Him and said:

By Your Might, no one who hears of it will enter it.

He (Allaah) gave a command respecting it, and it was surrounded with desirable things and passions and then said: Go back to it. He went and said:

By Your Might, I am afraid that no one will remain who does not enter it.”
-Sunan at-Tirmidhi

(Shaykh Al Albaanee authenticated it in Saheeh Al Jaami’)

Ali Ibn Abi Talib said,

The thing I fear for you most is following desires and having extensive hopes (about this worldly life). Following one’s desires blocks you from the truth, and having extensive hopes makes you forget the hereafter. Verily, this worldly life is departing and the hereafter is approaching and each of them has its children. So be children of the hereafter, not children of this world, for today there are (opportunities to do) deeds and there is no reckoning, but tomorrow there will be reckoning and no deeds.

-Bukhari

A believer must strive to obey Allah to the best of his abilities and strip himself of his desires so he can truly submit to his Lord. Verily, the protection and the aid of Allah is only for those who obey Him. The reward in the hereafter is only for those who remain patient in this world. Whoever desires the rewards in this world will get it, and whoever desires the next world, will get it. The best form of gratitude to Allah azzawajal is obedience.

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallum said:

“Three(things) lead to safety and three cause destruction. Those that lead to safety are: fearing Allaah in secrecy and in the open, uttering the truth at times of satisfaction and anger, and moderation at times of poverty and wealth. As for three that lead to destruction, then they are, the Hawaa being followed, niggardliness being obeyed and conceitedness.”

-[Al Muhaddith Shaykh Al Albaanee said that the hadeeth is hasan is As Silsilah As Saheehah and Saheeh Al Jaami’]