20 April, 2024

11 Shawwal, 1445 H

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"Silence saves you from regret"

- Imam Ali (as) -

Learning
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Core Curriculum
Section 1 - God, Religion and Islam: An Introduction

  • Topic 1.1 - God, Allah and Religion

  • Topic 1.2 - What is “Religion” and What’s the Point of it Anyways?

  • Topic 1.3 - Introduction to Islam

  • Topic 1.4 - A Brief Introduction to the Prophet Muhammad (s), the Prophet of Islam

Section 2 - Foundations of Islam - Theology

  • Topic 2.1 - Satan, Jinns and Angels: Their Influence in the World

  • Topic 2.2 - The Islamic Concept of the Nafs: Battling the Human Ego

  • Topic 2.3 - The Sharīʿa: Purpose and Practice

  • Topic 2.4 - Nubuwwa: The Purpose of Prophethood in Islam

  • Topic 2.5 - Tawhīd: The Unity and Oneness of God in Islam

  • Topic 2.6 - The Usūl al-Dīn: The Fundamental Beliefs of Islam

  • Topic 2.7 - Adala: Divine Justice in Islam

  • Topic 2.8 - Entering Islam: The Shahada

  • Topic 2.9 - Maʿād: The Day of Judgment in Islam

  • Topic 2.10 - Imāmah or divinely guided leadership in Islam after the Prophet Muhammad.

Section 3 - Foundations of Islam - Obligatory Acts

  • Topic 3.1 - Accepting Islam: Putting Faith into Action

  • Topic 3.2 - The Furūʿ al-Dīn: The Fundamental Practices of Islam

  • Topic 3.3 - Salāt: Obligatory Ritual Prayers in Islam

  • Topic 3.4 - Fasting in Islam, its Purpose, Dos and Don’ts

  • Topic 3.5 - The Hajj Pilgrimage

  • Topic 3.6 - The Purpose of Zakat and Khums in Islamic Law

  • Topic 3.7 - Jihād in Islamic Law and Spirituality

  • Topic 3.8 - Commanding the Good and Forbidding Evil in Islam

  • Topic 3.9 - Tawalla and Tabarra, its Basics and Purpose

  • Topic 3.10 - The Five Categories of Islamic Law

  • Topic 3.11 - Niyya: Religious Intention as the Foundation of Islamic Practice

  • Topic 3.12 - Ritual Purity in Islamic Law: Understanding Tahāra and Najāsa

  • Topic 3.13 - Other Obligatory and Forbidden Acts in Islam

Section 4 - Prophethood in Islam

  • Topic 4.1 - A Brief Biography of the Prophet Muhammad (s): The Prophet’s Childhood (PART I of III)

  • Topic 4.2 - Bio: The Prophet Muhammad as a Prophet of God (PART II of III)

  • Topic 4.3 - A Brief Biography of the Prophet Muhammad (s): The Prophet’s Character (PART III of III)

  • Topic 4.4 - The Prophet Muhammad (s) as Messenger and Teacher

  • Topic 4.5 - The Prophet and his Relationships

  • Topic 4.6 - The Prophet’s Sunnah and Hadith

  • Topic 4.7 - Ghadīr and Arafah: The Two Last Sermons of the Prophet

  • Topic 4.8 - Jesus and Mary in Islam

Section 5 - The Qur'an and Hadith

  • Topic 5.1 - Islam and Other Religions

  • Topic 5.2 - What is the Qur’an? A Short Introduction to Islam’s Holy Book

  • Topic 5.3 - The Structure of the Holy Qur’an

  • Topic 5.4 - The Quran and Islamic law

  • Topic 5.5 - The Qur’an, Allah and Humankind

  • Topic 5.6 - Hadith and Sunnah, difference and variations

  • Topic 5.7 - The Reliability of Hadiths

  • Topic 5.8 - A Reflection on Verses of the Holy Qur’an

  • Topic 5.9 - Hadith al-Thaqalayn

  • Topic 5.10 - Imam Ali (as) and Nahj al-Balagha.

  • Topic 5.11 - Taqlid and Tawḍih Al Masail Genre of Literature

Section 6 - Measuring Good and Bad in Islam

  • Topic 6.1 - Guidance According to Islam

  • Topic 6.2 - Life and Death in Islam

  • Topic 6.3 - Heaven and Hell in Islam

  • Topic 6.4 - The Effects of Our Actions in this World

  • Topic 6.5 - The Gray Areas of Islamic Law and Morality

  • Topic 6.6 - Benefits of Islamic Law in this World

  • Topic 6.7 - Good and Bad Deeds: The Spiritual Consequences of our Choices

  • Topic 6.8 - The Effect of Culture and Environment in Shaping our Religious Choices

  • Topic 6.9 - Fate and the Consequences of our Choices in Islam

  • Topic 6.10 - Trivializing the Harām

  • Topic 6.11 - Sinning Against Others and their Delayed Punishment

  • Topic 6.12 - The Three Kinds of Rights in Islam

  • Topic 6.13 - Major Sins in Islam

  • Topic 6.14 - Repentance and Forgiveness of Sins in Islam

  • Topic 6.15 - Kufr in Islam

  • Topic 6.16 - Why Allah Allows People to Sin

Section 7 - The Legacy of the Prophet Muhammad (s) and his Ahl al-Bayt (as)

  • Topic 7.1 - Islam and Knowledge: the Importance of Islamic Education

  • Topic 7.2 - The Ahl al-Kisa

  • Topic 7.3 - Imamah in the Qur’an

  • Topic 7.4 - Fatima al-Zahrah (as)

  • Topic 7.5 - A Brief Look at the Lives of the Imams (Imam al-Hasan until Imam Muhammad al-Baqir)

  • Topic 7.6 - A Brief Look at the Lives of the Imams (Imam Jafar al-Sadiq until Imam Hasan al-Askari)

  • Topic 7.7 - A Brief Look at the Life and Importance of Imam al-Mahdi (aj)

  • Topic 7.8 - Salawat and Atonement in Islam

  • Topic 7.9 - The Companions (Sahaba) of the Prophet According to the Qur’an

  • Topic 7.10 - Clerical Hierarchies in Muslim Communities

  • Topic 7.11 - Mosques in Islam

  • Topic 7.12 - The Philosophy of Karbala and Majalis

  • Topic 7.13 - A Brief Biography of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (as)

  • Topic 7.14 - The Battle of Karbala: A Brief History

Section 8 - Islamic Relationships, Sects and Conflicts

  • Topic 8.1 - Islam and Rights

  • Topic 8.2 - Islam and Religious Conflicts

  • Topic 8.3 - Major Sects of Islam

  • Topic 8.4 - Sunnism and Shi’ism, beginnings and historical developments.

  • Topic 8.5 - Misconceptions about Shi’ism

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Special Topics
Section 9 - Independent Topics

  • Topic 9.1 - Muslim Converts – Welcome to Islam!

  • Topic 9.2 - Basic Dos and Don’ts of Being a Muslim

  • Topic 9.3 - Halal Food and Zabiha

  • Topic 9.4 - Modesty in Islam

  • Topic 9.5 - Family, Parents and Marriage in Islam

  • Topic 9.6 - Marriage in Islam

  • Topic 9.7 - Islam and Sex

  • Topic 9.8 - Women’s Menstruation in Islam

  • Topic 9.9 - Music, Alcohol, Drugs and Pork in Islam

  • Topic 9.10 - Islam and Science

  • Topic 9.11 - A Reading List of Islamic Knowledge

  • Topic 9.12 - Islam and Sufism

  • Topic 9.13 - Ritual Prayers and Supplications in Islam

  • Topic 9.14 - Death & Burial Rituals in Islam

  • Topic 9.15 - The Battle of Armageddon: An Islamic View

  • Topic 9.16 - The Muslim Calendar

  • Topic 9.17 - Muslims and non-Muslims in the Shariah

  • Topic 9.18 - A Timeline of Major Events in Islamic History

  • Topic 9.19 - Introducing the Qur’an: Why it is the way it is

  • Topic 9.20 - The School of Imam Jafar al-Sadiq

  • Topic 9.21 - Major Fields in Islamic Studies

  • Topic 9.22 - The Caliphate in Sunni and Shia Islam

  • Topic 9.23 - The Spread of Islam: After the Prophet until the Ottoman Empire

  • Topic 9.24 - Islam, Racism and Anti-Semitism

Section 10 - Islam, Religion, and Modern Controversies

  • Topic 10.1 - Modern Fallacies about God: where Theists and Atheists Agree

  • Topic 10.2 - Tawhīd: The Muslim God according to the Prophet Muhammad and the Ahl al-Bayt (as)

  • Topic 10.3 - God’s Existence: The Argument From Being (Wujūd)

  • Topic 10.4 - God’s Existence: The Kalam Cosmological Argument

  • Topic 10.5 - God’s Existence: The Argument From Design

  • Topic 10.6 - The Problem of Evil, Suffering and Pain

  • Topic 10.7 - Why did God Create Us? The Purpose of our Creation

  • Topic 10.8 - Why Humans Need Religion according to Islam

  • Topic 10.9 - Jahl and Spiritual Ignorance in Islam

  • Topic 10.10 - Faith in Islam: Belief without Evidence?

  • Topic 10.11 - Do Non-Muslims Go to Hell?

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The Effects of Our Actions in this World

Abstract

Sins affect our happiness in this world. They ruin our souls, but they also ruin our families and society because sinful behavior is a contagion and is transferred to others either directly or indirectly.

INTRODUCTION 

 

Bismillāhir Rahmānir Rahīm, As-salāmu ʿAlaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh. Peace be upon you brothers and sisters. 

 

Welcome back to the Muslim Converts Channel!  

 

In this lesson we will look at how every act according to Islam has an effect our souls and the world. We will also look at how everything we do has a consequence in the realm of the divine as well. 

 

BODY OF TEXT 

 

The Prophet Muhammad (s) once said: 

 

“Beware of sins which are treated as being minor, just like a people who encamp in the center of a valley, so someone brings a stick of firewood and someone else brings a stick until they are, therefore, able to bake their bread. Likewise, sins which are treated as being minor, and for which the person is taken to account, will destroy him.” 

 

The Messenger of Allah (s) also said: 

 

Should I not inform you of that which I fear for you even more than the dangers of the Anti-Christ? It is the hidden idolatry: Showing-off (riyā); a person stands to pray and he beautifies his prayer because he sees the people looking at him". 

 

Every single action in this world has an effect. When we walk, our feet press on the ground and disturbs any small creature it touches. When we sit on our chairs and breath, the act of breathing alters the make up the air in our room as we breath in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide. 

 

Our good or evil acts also work the same way. They not only affect our souls, but they also affect our families, societies and even the environment.  

 

Let’s start with the soul. According to a hadith from the Prophet Muhammad (s), every time a person sins, a black spot appears on his or her soul. A sin isn’t always or necessarily a pure evil act. One of the words for sin in the Qur’an is khattā, which in old Arabic was an arching term meaning to “miss the mark.” 

 

With the context of sin and guidance, sinning is to miss the purpose of life, which is friendship or wilāya with God. When one sins, one chooses a pleasure over friendship with Allah. In this sense, one deviates more and more from God. This distance creates a disturbance in the soul whereby a spiritual black stain appears. Enough of these stains ruins a person’s salvation and substitutes heaven for hell. 

 

The personal effects of sin are many. Distance from God’s light makes us vulnerable to Shaytān for he comes to fill in the void. As Shaytān or the devil comes closer, the more susceptible we become to his suggestions. Perhaps the worst of his suggestions or “whispers” or waswasa are those of despair, worry and anxiety which usually come in the form of panic attacks.  

 

Remember that sins are not just sins of ritual, or the obvious sins of theft and murder, they also include the sins of prejudice, judging people, gossiping and slandering, or being dishonest, pretentious and holding negative opinions and grudges against people (this usually comes in the form of being bashful of people). 

 

When one looks at sin like this, is it really worth it? The worst enemy a person can have is himself or herself. It is the nurturing of the inner tyrant that ruins our lives with torturous thoughts. One can live in a mansion and have everything in the world but still be a prisoner inside the mind. This is what distance from God does to a person.  

 

So to sum this argument up: anxiety is the mark of spiritual insecurity, an insecurity that is created through distance from God. This distance is exacerbated by sin as one chooses base pleasure over friendship with Allah.  

 

Sins also have an affect on our families and society (especially the Muslim community). Remember that behavior is inherited. Our children often do not do the things we say, they do what we do. If you’ve ever heard the saying, “monkey see, monkey do,” that’s how it works with our kids.  

 

Our kids pick up on our behavior and turn it into a lifestyle without even knowing it. If we embark on sinful behavior, like lying, gossiping, being bashful, our kids will most certainly inherit them, either in part or in whole. 

 

Our families are not the only ones who pick up on our behavior. Other people also copy us directly or indirectly.  

 

First, like family members, they pick up on our auras. Sin creates bad auras, and auras are transferred to others. How many children and adults today are directly or indirectly under the influence of movie stars and singers? As famous sinners have effects on people through TV or other forms of media, we affect the people whom we interact with on a regular basis. They pick up on our behavior and mimic it without even noticing it.  

 

Have you ever met a person who was depressed and sad, and you came out of your meeting with that person a bit sadder, a bit more bitter? It is very difficult to avoid. Sinfulness leaves a ripple in the fabric of society, and people pick up on it and repeat it. It is, in short, a chain reaction.  

 

The other way around is also true. When we choose good, when we chose the moral life, the life of obedience and surrender to God, we chose the friendship of God over base pleasures and grow closer to Him. By growing closer to him, Shaytān is further distanced from us, we weaken the inner tyrant and become less susceptible to spiritual vices such as extreme forms of anxiety and panic attacks. The good we do is also inherited by our family, children and society. The more good we do as individuals, the more others are encouraged to do the same. It’s just human nature. 

 

Until Next Time, Thank you for watching. As-salāmu ʿAlaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh 

Khattā

sin 

Waswasa

the devil’s whispers 

Riyā

showing-off 

Q1

What is one way of defining sin?

It is choosing a pleasure over friendship with God 

Q2

How does sin affect one’s children?

Our children imitate and inherit the way we act. Sinful behavior is often inherited from parents.

Q3

How does sin affect society?

People directly or indirectly copy what we do, just like people imitate famous stars. 

Q4

What is primary effect of sin?

It distances a person from God. 

Q5

What is the effect of distance from God?

Our souls become disturbed and more vulnerable to Shaytān. 

Muslim
God
Allah
Hereafter
Religion
Salvation
Soul
moral character
guidance
Prophet Muhammad
heaven
hell
sin
sins
khatta
waswasa
shaytān
devil
society
Muslim community
inherited sins
anxiety
panic attacks
depression
riyā
ummah
children

Greater Sins by Dastghayb Shirazi 

Forty Hadiths by Imam Khomeini