praise be to Allah Who reduced his plotting to whispering

Arabic text

عن ابن عباس رضي الله عنهما قال: جاءَ رجُلُ إلى النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال: يا رسولَ اللهِ، إن أحدنا يجدُ في نفسِهِ -يُعرِّضُ بالشَّيءِ- لأَن يكونَ حُمَمَةً أحَبُّ إليه من أن يتكلَّم بِهِ، فقال: «اللهُ أكبرُ، اللهُ أكبرُ، الحمدُ لله الذي ردَّ كيدَه إلى الوسوسَةِ».

Translation

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man came to the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah, one of us may have such thoughts - referring to it indirectly - that he would prefer to turn into charcoal rather than speak about them." Thereupon, he said: "Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest; praise be to Allah Who reduced his plotting to whispering."

Explanation

A man came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, one of us may experience such thoughts that confuse him, but talking about them is grave, to the extent that he would prefer to turn into charcoal rather than speak about them. Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) proclaimed Allah's greatness twice and praised Allah for reducing Satan's plotting to mere whispering.

Benefits

• The Hadīth demonstrates that Satan lies in wait for the believers, whispering to them in an attempt to turn them from belief to disbelief.
• It highlights the weakness of Satan towards the believers, as he is unable to do anything but whisper.
• A believer should turn away from the whisperings of Satan and repel them.
• It is legitimate to proclaim Allah's greatness upon experiencing something pleasant, amazing, or the like.
• It is legitimate for a Muslim to ask a scholar about all that he finds confusing.

Topics

• The Creed
• Belief in Allah the Mighty and Majestic
• Belief in the Angels
• The Jinn