Tawazun al-Khawf wal-Raja'
Definition
Tawazun al-khawf wal-raja' — the balance of fear and hope — is the central teaching of this book and the key to a healthy spiritual life. Al-Ghazali uses the image of two wings: the soul flies toward God on both wings simultaneously, and tipping too far in either direction causes a spiral rather than ascent. In ordinary life, the two wings should be roughly equal — fear prevents complacency while hope prevents despair. But at the moment of death, al-Ghazali makes a specific prescription: hope should predominate, because death is the moment when human effort ceases and nothing remains but the boundless mercy of God.
As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Ghazali and the scholars of his school.
How the scholars use Tawazun al-Khawf wal-Raja'.
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"However, if a sinner presumes he is the one excluded from those commanded to enter Hell, this indicates his delusion. In discussing the balance of fear and hope in a believer's heart, it is said that for someone like Umar, may God be pleased with him, his hope should prevail over his fear. This is because, like a farmer who plants seeds in fertile soil and tends to them diligently, a believer who fulfills the conditions of faith should have a heart filled with hope."
— Imam al-Ghazali, Book 33: Fear and Hope
Appears in
1 book in the library
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