What does Islam say about the heart?
The heart, the scholars said, is not an organ of blood. It is the seat of faith, the place where the servant meets his Lord, and the first thing to be healed or ruined.
10 passages from 8 books in the library
The scholars, above all al-Ghazali in his Ihya, taught that the heart is the true seat of faith and the place where a person is healed or ruined — not merely an organ of blood. He held that any attribute settling in the heart affects the limbs, so the inner and outer life are bound together. Hypocrisy, he wrote, appears as a black dot that spreads until the heart darkens, while sincerity whitens it; the disbeliever's heart is sealed. Knowledge deepening within it transforms its very state, and in prayer the heart should be present, not absent.
Drawn from the classical sources below — in the scholars' own words.
The classical approach.
These passages are drawn from 8 books by Imam al-Ghazali — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"a black, overturned heart, which is the heart of a disbeliever, a sealed heart bound upon its seal,"
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"unburdened heart, and an easy reckoning, while the rich chose a troubled soul, a preoccupied heart,"
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"the heart and the limbs, or between the soul and the body. Any attribute in the heart affects the"
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"heart becomes white. Conversely, hypocrisy appears as a black dot in the heart. As hypocrisy increases,"
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"Once knowledge deepens in the heart, it alters the state of the heart, and when the heart's"
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"Whenever a person reflects on them with a clear mind and a present heart, the fire of envy in his heart is extinguished and he learns."
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"the heart becomes present in prayer. Just as your heart is attentive when standing before dignitaries,"
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"is beyond the presence of heart. The heart may be present with the words, but not with their meaning."
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
-
"This is inner beauty, not recognized by the senses, but apparent through good acts. When the heart is"
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
· Provenance →
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"are understood, each pilgrim will uncover of its secrets what their pure heart, cleansed inner self,"
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