Eman Sakina

In either a positive or negative way, our thoughts can influence our sentiments and emotions, and, eventually, actions. Islam encourages us to orient the act of deep thinking, or tafakkur, towards the signs of Allah, his names and qualities, his blessings and wonders, as well as towards optimism and hope for the hereafter. 

By positively controlling our thought processes, we can increase the effectiveness of our prayers and worship as well as relieve ourselves from the anger, depression, and anxieties that worldly thoughts induce.

Friday Musings

Our voluntary thoughts are nothing more than inward statements. Hence, the rule is that we should only engage good thoughts or keep our minds silent.

Sometimes Satan will throw evil suggestions into our minds. These suggestions have no power over us unless we choose to act on them. If we follow an evil or negative train of thought, then it will lead us to a terrible end.

Thus, when we find ourselves caught up in a bad line of thinking, we need to immediately replace these negative thoughts with positive inward statements to cancel their effects.

Let's be clear about the difference between positive and negative thoughts. Positive thoughts are those that produce good feelings, good deeds, peace of mind, gratitude, tranquillity, contentment, and other positive emotional states. These are truthful thoughts about Allah, hope in the Hereafter, the prophets, our blessings, good deeds, and so on. They produce wisdom and enlightenment in the heart.

Negative thoughts are those that produce bad feelings, anger, envy, jealousy, hatred, anxiety, depression, and other negative emotional states. These are thoughts about the world, our wealth, our status, people we do not like or who have wronged us, and so on. The cause of these thoughts is an attachment to the delusions of worldly and materialistic life that cloud the heart and prevent its purification.

Not all thoughts about the world are evil. Thinking about something Allah blessed us with in the world is good. And we have to take care of our worldly affairs, meet our work obligations, pay our bills, fulfill our trusts, and so on. We should think about these things in so far as they are necessary and beneficial.

For example, we may need to think about how we are going to complete a work project. But perhaps at work, someone said a mean word to us or did something to annoy us. If we constantly dwell upon that negative interaction, it will only cause harm to us and produce no benefit. It is an unnecessary worldly thought and should be dismissed.

A step on the road to excellence in Islam is learning to think about only those things that should concern us.

This means busying ourselves with worldly thoughts only to the extent necessary and also learning not to worry about matters beyond our circle of influence or control. If we constantly worry or get upset by things we cannot change, that will take our attention away from what we can change.

After understanding the effects of positive and negative thoughts, we then need to direct our thought processes towards positive trains of thought and learn to dismiss negative thoughts before they take us into a downward spiral. Many of the Prophet’s companions considered the skill to direct thought positively as the enlightenment of true faith.

Positive thinking and optimism are most important as they relate to our prayers, supplications, and acts of worship. A prayer or supplication that is offered with certainty that Allah will answer is far more effective and beneficial than a weak prayer. For this reason, the Prophet told us to pray to Allah in the certain knowledge that he will answer. 

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The believers should be optimistic and not pessimistic or cynical. There are no omens in Islam (or signs that predict the future), but believers are always expecting the best from Allah even if they do not know exactly how it will be.