Hypocrisy: The Ugliest Trait
Hypocrisy is Undoubtedly one of the most detestable qualities. It is in man's nature to accept happiness and freedom; and to upgrade itself to the highest degree of dignity. Yet when man becomes polluted with lying, violation of promises and breaching of agreements, hypocrisy finds itself a wide arena and is ready to penetrate such polluted natures. Hypocrisy advances in these circumstances until it eventually becomes an acute disease. Hypocrisy not only prevents individuals form reaching the truth or even attempting to discover it, but it also becomes an indestructible dam placed on the path of acquiring noble characteristics. Of course, all that stands in the path of sensible conduct and psychological integrity; and contradicts the life of happiness which relies on spiritual perfection.Hypocrisy is a dangerous epidemic which threatens man's honor and dignity, leads to irresponsibility and lowly traits, and replaces his self-confidence with Suspicion, pessimism and anxiety.
Those who reach the dangerous point in their behavioral misconduct convince themselves that they want the best for all people. When this troubled person (hypocrite) deals with an unharmonious couple he presents himself as a dear friend and faithful advisor and then turns around and puts the other down, greatly criticizing him, while in fact he feels no spiritual or moral relations to either of them.
False compliments, unconditional acceptance of other ideologies, and refraining from the defending righteousness when it is essential, are all characteristics of hypocrites.
According to a great scholar, hypocrites are more dangerous than archenemies:
"Enemies have the characteristics of being both covert and overt enemies; for animosity hajust one color. I wish that friends were like enemies as far as pretence is concerned. Undoubtedly friends that are hypocrites are worse than the common hypocrite."
Because the hypocrite is unable to win the hearts of those he deals with or gain love and respect, his life is full of humiliation and disgust. His attempts to conceal the facts prevent him from living a secure, stable, and anxiety free life; for he is in constant fear of the inevitable discovery of what he really is.
One of the elements of social sorrow is the way hypocrisy is spreading and the lack of honesty and sincerity among various classes of society. If hypocrisy penetrates the structure of a community and overwhelms the hearts of its members, then in addition to the deceit and lowliness which become apparent among them; such a community will face an inevitable downfall.
The British scholar S. Smiles said:
"The conduct of contemporary politicians is on the path of corruption and disorder. The opinions which they give in their reception rooms varies from those they give in public speeches. For instance, these politicians praise the people for their patriotic feelings and then turn around and laugh at the same in their private meetings.
"Fluctuations of thought exist in our era more than at any time in the past, and principles change and vary as interests do. I believe that hypocrisy will gradually crawl out of its lowly shell and eventually become a praiseworthy quality; for if the upper class of a society becomes used to hypocrisy, all other class will follow adopting the same views, for they derive their habits and conduct from the higher classes.
"The fame which is gained today is earned when the evil traits of the people are exposed, ignoring the noble qualities of ally."
There is a Russian proverb that says:
"He who has a strong spine can not be promoted to higher position."
The spines of men who adore fame eventually become weak and flexible so as to follow the tides of reputation by deceiving people, concealing the facts from the public and speaking exactly as the lower classes long to hear. Worse yet is to exploit the dissention and hypocrisy which might exist between the different classes of society. Such fame cannot be viewed by righteous save with disgust and resentment, and its advocates have no respect or honor. Sincerity and honesty are manifestations of a pure conscience and are the most honorable traits of life. These traits, which are found in those with truly pure souls, harmonize personalities and bring peace, unity and strength into the community. It is natural for man to love his faithful friends more than those he doubts, and as the love of the faithful increases, the hatred for the hypocrites also increases.
Burn Down the Dwellings of Hypocrisy
When Islam started advancing rapidly, the party of hypocrites who felt that they were threatened more than all other opposition parties attempted to destroy the pillars of the Islamic government. They made oaths to the Prophet (S.A.W.), then declined to fulfill their duties when the time came for them to execute them. They also criticized the believers.This destructive and corruptive minority was not able to tolerate the people's faith and devotion to the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.). The leader of these hypocrites was Abu Amir (the priest), who was the chief of the People of the Book in Medina, where he gained a reputation among the people for being a religious man. He prophesied the advent of the Prophet (S.A.W.) prior to his Message and during the first stages of his Prophet hood. Later he was unable to tolerate the loss of his reputation because of the spread of Islam, so he migrated to Mecca and joined the polytheists war against the Prophet (S.A.W.) at Badr and Uhud.
Abu Amir then fled to the Romans where he began plotting to eradicate the tree of Islam. It was with his instigation that his companions built the "Mosque of Dissension in Medina. At the time this Mosque was constructed no one was allowed to build a mosque without the consent of the Holy Messenger (S.A.W.). The Prophet (S.A.W.) granted them permission to build the mosque and when he returned from the battle of Tabuk, the people of the mosque called the Prophet to honor the opening. Beforehand, Allah, the Almighty, had revealed to His Messenger the men's evil intentions and the Prophet refused to go and commanded the army to destroy the mosque.
"Only he shall visit the mosques of Allah who believes in Allah and the latter day, and keeps up prayer and pays the poor rate and fears none but Allah; so (as for) these, it may be that they are of the followers of the right course."
Quran 9:18
In this manner their treacherous plotting was foiled, and the first place of hypocrisy was burnt.
The Holy Quran greatly criticizes this group and condemns them in many verses:
"And there are some people who say: We believe in Allah and the Last Day'; and they are not at all believers.
"They desire to deceive Allah and those who believe, and they do not perceive.
"There is disease in their hearts, so Allah added to their disease and they shall have a painful chastisement because they lied.
"And when it is said to them. Do not make mischief in the land', they say: We are but peace-makers'.
"Now surely they themselves are the mischief-makers, but they do not perceive."
Quran 2. 8-12
Hypocrisy is a spiritual disease; this might have been what Imam Ali (A.S.) was pointing out when he said:
"Be aware of the people of hypocrisy for they are the misled, the misleading, and the leaders to wrong paths. Their hearts are ill; and their appearances pure."
Ghurar al-Hikam p. 146
Dr. H. Shakhter said:
"There are some people who argue for no other reason except to become famous. These people are not sure about their beliefs nor do they really believe in what they argue about, yet they would rather criticize others instead of remaining silent as it is difficult for them to tolerate others indifference to them. Another type of people are those that when they notice people's indifference to them, follow the path of hypocrisy to create dissension and hence prove their existence."
Rushd Shakhsiyyat
Imam Ali (A.S.) said:
"A hypocrite: His words are beautiful, and his inner (conscience) is ill."
Ghurar al-Hikam p. 60
A hypocritical person does not have a group he can rely on, therefore, he constantly lives in confusion. The Messenger (S.A.W.) described hypocrisy by saying:
"A hypocrite is like a sheep confused between two herds."
Nahj al-Fasahah p. 562
The Prophet (S.A.W.) revealed to us three signs of a hypocrite when he said:
"And there are three signs of hypocrites: When they speak they lie. When they make promises they do not keep them. And when they are trusted they cheat."
Bihar al-Anwar v.15, p. 30
Imam Baqir (A.S.) said:
"It is evil for a worshipper to have two faces and two tongues, praise his brother in his presence and slander him in his absence. If he gives to his brother he envies him, and if his brother is tested he fails (to help him)."
Bihar al-Anwar v.15, p.172
Imam Ali (A.S.) pointed out another characteristic of hypocrites when he stated that they are always defensive but critical of others:
"The hypocrite is a flatterer of himself, and a defamer of other people."
Ghurar al-Hikam p.88
Dr. S. Smiles said:
"Flatterers and hypocrites always think about themselves and are never concerned with others. They concentrate on their own actions and affairs until their minor and lowly existence becomes their universe and great idol."
Akhlaq.
Imam Sadiq (S.A.W.) explains Luqman's following admonition to his son:
"A hypocrite has three signs: his tongue contradicts his heart, his heart contradicts his conduct, an his appearance contradicts his inner (beliefs)."
Bihar al-Anwar v.15, p. 30
Man's thoughts reveal his real self. People who attempt to conceal what is in their hearts beneath hypocrisy and flattery will never be successful, for their reality and the truth will eventually be revealed.
A man said to Imam Sadiq (A.S.):
"When a person says to me: I like (or love) you.' How do I know that he is telling the truth?"
The Imam (A.S.) answered the man:
"Examine your heart, if you like him then he likes you. Look in your heart, if it refuses your companion then one of you has done something."
Al-Wafi v.3, p. 106
Dr. Mardin said:
"If you really think that you can introduce yourself with words then you have deceived yourselves. Because others will not judge you by the norms you wish to assign. Rather they will know you by your actions, words, conditions, conscience, and your inner self. The people who you talk to will notice the strengths and weaknesses of your ideas, your hypocrisy and reality from your speech and even your silence. The people around you will discover your hopes and intentions, and then form their opinions about you; even if you object to some of their views about you, they will be unwilling to change them.
"Sometimes we hear people say: I can't even stand to look at a specific person.' These individuals cannot tolerate the hated ones, even though they may have some praiseworthy traits or a pleasant appearance. People who feel this way do so because they have read the thoughts and feelings of others. We also feel that Way about some people. This is the effect of thoughts. All our thoughts and feelings spread around us and others sense them with the rays of their thought''
Pirozi Fikr
Imam (A.S.) said:
"Healthy consciences have more truthful testimonies than eloquent tongues."
Ghurar al-Hikam p. 105
When we say hypocrisy, we mean it in a broader sense than just ideological, behavioral, moral, or verbal hypocrisy, for Islam has called all its adherents to a total and comprehensive unity, so as to lead them to a sincere life free of hypocrisy, dissension and treachery.
Slander
A Society Polluted with Sins There is no doubt that at the present time societies suffer from various types of spiritual deviations and psychological corruption, and have failed to develop their manners at the same pace that they were able to secure material luxuries for themselves. Such societies face a great number of acute diseases which have overwhelmed the ocean of life with pains as days go by. Those who earnestly struggle to avoid pains end up intoxicated with sins and in search of refuge in the lap of lowliness in order to their spiritual pains and anxieties. Yet, the sun of felicity shall never beam its bright rays lives.
These people have deceived themselves believing that they have become free of all restrictions and rules; and are now competing in the fields of Lowliness and failure. When we carefully examine the lives of these people who lack manners, we find that the rapid advancement of material methods the aims for which they were invented. They have made the material phenomena an axis for their hopes and wishes, and the gloominess of sins has overshadowed their societies.
It would have been more productive if they had used their vast wealth, which they spend on deviation and disarray, in the field of implementing good authentic manners, which cannot be changed. Nevertheless, the norms for their accepted behavior is constantly changing.
Needless to say that unless noble traits become the judging point for good personalities in any given society the members of that society will not observe them but rather will become overwhelmingly influenced by the social mind which leads them to imitate others actions, ignoring any possible adverse affects. In the light of this we should realize that contemporary civilizations lack the ability to bring about healthy, noble characteristics, nor can they guarantee salvation or happiness for any society. Dr. Carl, the famous French scholar, said:
"We need a world where every one can find a proper place for himself without discriminating between material or spiritual needs. With this we are able to realize how we can live, for we realize then that advancing on the path of life without a righteous guide is a dangerous affair. Now that we realize this danger, it is amazing how we have neglected the search for methods of reasonable thinking. The fact is that only a handful of people have really discovered this danger. The majority of people are overtaken by their lusts and are so intoxicated with them that, regardless of how much advanced technology offers them, they are unwilling to give up any of their illegal joys for the sake of a decent civilization.
"Life today is like a magnificent river which runs down a steep slope, washing our hopes and dreams into the sea of corruption and deviation, for the sake of satisfying immediate desires and instant needs. Many people have devised new needs and now struggle hard to fulfill these needs. In addition to these needs, there are other things that bring temporary happiness to them, such as slander, backbiting, aimless conversation, etc. which are in fact more harmful than alcohol to their health."
One of the social deviations on which we elaborate is slander; it is unnecessary to explain the technical meaning of slander, for it is known to everyone.
The Disadvantages of Slander
The most dangerous disadvantage of slander is the destruction of the spiritual personality of the slanderer's conscience. Those who violate the natural path of their thought will lose their thinking balance and their excellent behavioral system; in addition to harming people's feelings by revealing their secrets and faults.Slander destroys the throne of human morality and deprives man of his dignity and noble qualities with amazing speed. In fact, it burns the veins of morality in the hearts of the slanderer to ashes. Slander diverts pure thoughts to the point that the gates of reason and understanding come to a dead end. When we reflect on its harm to society,we discover that it has done great damage to its members.
Slander plays a devastating role in bringing about enmity and hatred among the different members of society. If allowed to spread in any nation, slander will deprive it of greatness, a good reputation and create an unamendable dissension in that nation.
It is unfortunate that we must acknowledge the fact that slander has found its way into all social classes. This point confirms the fact just as the events of life are related, so are the spiritual and psychological deviations that may appear in a social class penetrating to all other classes. As a result of the spread of slander, pessimism and suspicion shadow the social mind; people loose trust in each other and replace it with mistrust. With this in mind, we can safely say that unless society enlightens itself with brotherly thinking and noble qualities, it will never gain harmony or unity therein. A society which lacks the blessings of noble traits is surely distanced from life's real characteristics.
What Causes Slander to Spread
Regardless of the fact that slander is a manifestation of practical sins, it is directly related to human spirituality. Slander is a sign of a dangerous underlying psychological disorder for which we must search the spiritual and psychological realms.Behavioral scholars mention a number of reasons for the spread of slander. The most important being:
Envy, anger, conceit, self-righteousness and suspicion. Undoubtedly, every action by any individual stems from a certain condition lying in his conscience, and as a result of a manifestation of such conditions, which are like burning coal under cold ashes, the tongue, the translator of man's feelings, speaks out slander.
When a certain characteristic becomes deeply rooted in man's conscience, it blinds his eyes and rules his thought. One of the reasons that slander is so widespread is that slanderers are heedless of its dangerous after-effects. We see people who refrain from most other sins but don't think twice about committing this miserable crime. The repetition of slander without concern as to its after-effects deprives man of control of his ability to refrain from following his lusts regardless of his knowledge of their dangerous reality. These people endeavor to achieve integrity and perfection. Individualslike this remove themselves from reality by refusing to bear the least bit of pain in the path of obtaining happiness. In this way, they fall prey to the rule of their lowly lusts.
Those who do not observe their own or other's dignity are not abiding by the law of ethics; and a person who makes life an arena for his lusts. encroaching upon other's rights deserves misery.
Poor quality of manners originates from weak faith, and manners are a result, of belief (faith). If a person has no faith, he has no motive to behave well or observe moral excellence.
Everyone has an opinion as to the best method of rescuing people from deviation and moral corruption. In my opinion the most effective way is to encourage the qualities of good will in people by awakening the calls of goodness and human instincts in them and leading them to exploit the treasures of their minds on the path of obtaining happiness. By bringing people's attention to the effects of ill manners and strengthening their will, we may become victorious over all evil characteristics, and replace the rails of darkness with noble traits.
Dr. Jago writes:
"When we intend to fight an undesirable habit we must first recognize its evil results. Then we should acknowledge the habit and finally reflect on the incidents which made us victims of such a habit. If we acquaint ourselves with the stages of this habit, we will become triumphant over the inspiration of that habit by feeling the joy of eradicating it."
With the existence of the seeds of integrity in the human soul and by providing it with the methods of defense, we are able to recognize the reasons behind misguidance and confusion and eradicate them from our souls and consciences, erecting a strong barrier in the face of our endless wants and lusts.
Actions present the actuality of people to us and therefore are reflections of their honor and reality. For this reason, if a man desires happiness he must select his righteous actions in order to transform them into valuable seeds of happiness. Men must also keep in mind that Allah is aware of all his actions no matter how minor they might seem.
According to one philosopher:
"Do not say that the universe has no reason nor sense, for by saying so you accuse yourselves of lacking reason and/or senses. Thus, if the universe had no reason or sense, you, too, would be senseless and unreasonable."
In the same manner that a society needs material essentials to be able to continue living, it needs a certain amount of harmony required to maintain spiritual ties between its various members. A society which strictly observes the heavy burden of its social duties can greatly benefit from them in obtaining integrity.
In order for us to bring our souls out of the darkness into light, we must strengthen all noble thoughts in our minds to counter any destructive ideas or inspirations. By guarding our tongues against slander, we take the first step towards happiness. In order for us to counter the wide spread of corruption, it is incumbent on us to create a psychological revolution among the people. We can do this by observing the rights of others which in turn will cause the roots of humanity and spirituality to grow, thus taking another step towards the advocacy of noble traits on which the survival of every society depends.
Religion Verses ill Manners
The Holy Quran manifests the reality of slander in one short but eloquent verse:"Does one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? But you abhor it,"
Therefore, in the same way that it is natural for a human to reject eating the flesh of a dead person, his reason should resent slander. The religious, leaders gave as much attention to correcting the feelings and psychological characteristics of people as they gave to their struggle to eradicate polytheism and atheism.
The Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.) said:
"I have not been sent save to perfect noble manners.
People have been guided to morality by the great Islamic school, backed by strong and logical understanding. Islam considers any encroachment on the borders of morality a great and reprehensible sin.
In fact, Islam did not stop at categorizing slander as a grave sin, but has made it the duty of all Muslims to defend the honor of one who is being slandered.
"If a man is slandered while you are present, be a helper to the man, reprehend the slanderer, and depart the group."
Nahj al- Fasahah p. 48
The Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.) said:
"He who defends his brother's honor in his absence, then it is his right upon Allah to safeguard him from the Fire."
Nahj al- Fasahah p. 613
The Messenger (S.A.W.) also said:
"He who slanders a Muslim during the month of Ramadan, will not be awarded for his fasting."
Bihar al- Anwar v.16, p. 179
The Messenger (S.A.W.) also described the Muslim as follows:
"A Muslim is one who from whose hands and tongues other Muslims are safe."
It is clear that if an individual allows his tongue to slander his Muslim brother, then he has certainly violated the rules of morality, and becomes a criminal in the eyes of humanity and Islam. All Islamic schools have unanimously agreed that slander is a major sin; for the slanderer violates the Divine commands and crouches upon the rights of others, heedless of the Creator's commands.
Just as an absent person cannot defend his honor and dignity, a dead person is unable to defend himself; therefore, it is the duty of every one to respect the rules concerning the dignity of the dead.
Slander and backbiting are one sort of spiritual pressure. Imam Ali (A.S.) said:
"Slander is the strain of the weak".
Ghurar al-Hikam p.36
Dr. H. Shakhter said:
"Disappointment in obtaining one's needs results in spiritual torture. This spiritual torture instigates us to depict a form of defense. People differ in the kind of action they take in such situations. If a man feels that others do not give him the kind of attention he expects, for fear of being rejected, he chooses isolation and loneliness over socialization. He may sit in the corner of a gathering silent and secluded, not speaking to anyone, criticizing them; or laughing by himself for nor reason. Or he may argue with others, slander the absent, and criticize the rest until he proves his presence in this manner."
Rushde Shaksiyyat
Dr. Mann, in his book entitled, The Fundamentals of Psychology writes:
"In order to preserve our honor, we may try to substitute our defeats or shortcomings by blaming others for them. For instance, if we fail an exam we blame the teacher for the questions given; or if we cannot get promoted to a position, we put the position down or slander those who occupy it. Or we may hold others responsible for our inability while in fact they are not."
In conclusion, in order to develop good traits, we must observe ourselves and maintain pure intentions. We should start with ourselves, so that we can obtain appropriate grounds for our happiness and the happiness of our society in all fields.
Fault-Finding
Ignorance of ones own Faults One of the greatest behavioral weaknesses of man is the ignorance of his own faults. In many instances the soul ignores an unwanted quality which results in the subconscious adopting of such a trait as a basis of misery. When a person becomes the slave of his ignorance, he kills the spirit of morality in himself. Thus becoming the victim of his inclinations and various lusts, which isolate him from happiness and comfort. Under such conditions, neither guidance nor constructive advice can be productive.
The first requirement for the salvation of oneself is to realize your shortcomings. The only way man can eradicate ill manners and rescue himself from the dangers of his personality that may lead him to misery, is if he recognizes these manners.
A careful study of the characteristics of the human psyche, so as to educate mankind, is a vital step toward leading to both spiritual and behavioral integrity. Reflecting on oneself allows the individual to realize his shortcomings and positive points, eradicate the unwanted tr, and purify the mirror of his soul from the filth of sins by conducting a basic purification of his manners.
We commit an unforgivable mistake when we carelessly ignore the real reflection of ourselves in the mirror of our actions. It is our responsibility to discover our own characteristics in order to pinpoint the unwanted traits which unwillingly have grown in us. Undoubtedly we will be able to eradicate the roots of such traits, even prevent them from appearing in our lives by constantly struggling against them. At any rate, achieving noble traits requires forbearance with long lasting hardships. It is not an easy matter to execute.
In order for us to eradicate the roots of dangerous and harmful habits, we not only have to recognize them but also must possess a strong will to do so. The more organization we can apply to our actions, the straighter and more productive our thoughts become. The advantages of every step in this process become manifest to us as we move on to the next stage.
Dr. Carl has written:
The most effective method to transform our daily program into an acceptable one is to examine it with scrutiny every morning and review the results every evening Thus, in the same manner that we anticipate to finish a certain job at a specific time, we should include in our schedule certain steps so others may benefit from our activities. We should be fair and just in Our conduct.
"Behavioral lowliness is just as repulsive as bodily dirt. Thus, it is just as important to cleanse our bodies form dirt as it is to purify our manners of filth. Some people exercise before and/or after sleeping; reflecting on our manners and thoughts is just as important as these exercises. By studying the way we should act and struggling to observe the borders of our designated limits, we can see our realities without any barrier. Our success in decision making is directly related to our inner-selves. It is incumbent upon every one whether young or old, rich or poor, learned or ignorant. to realize what he has done in daily expenditures and earnings, as scientists write down the results of their experiments. By applying such methods with scrutiny and patience, our souls and bodies change for the better."