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What is Book 21 of the Iḥyāʾ?
Book 21 of Imam al-Ghazālī's Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn is The Book of the Wonders of the Heart, in full the Book of Explanation of the Wonders of the Heart. It opens the third quarter, The Destructive Vices, which al-Ghazālī calls the quarter of the destructive matters. Imam al-Ghazālī wrote in the 11th to 12th century. Before he treats any single vice, he asks a prior question: what is the heart, and how does it work? This book is his answer. It maps the inner landscape of the heart: its soldiers, its enemies, and the constant battle between angelic inspiration and satanic whispering.
The chapters move from definitions to the battle. First, al-Ghazālī clarifies the meanings of the soul, the spirit, the heart, and the intellect. Then he explains the armies of the heart, the unique quality of the human heart, and its comprehensive attributes. A chapter on the heart in relation to knowledge follows. The last chapters turn to the enemy: Satan's dominance over the heart through whispers, the detailed inroads of the devil into the heart, and the rapid change of the heart and the division of hearts.
The opening names it the first book from the quarter of the destructive matters. It praises Allah, before whom hearts and thoughts are bewildered in the attempt to grasp His Majesty, who witnesses the hidden secrets and knows the hidden contents of consciences, who turns hearts, pardons sins, conceals faults, and relieves burdens. It also states the principle the book rests on: he whose heart is not humble, his limbs will not be humble. The reader is asked to look inward first.
Is there an English audiobook of The Book of the Wonders of the Heart?
Yes. Joyful Muslims publishes the complete Book 21: The Book of the Wonders of the Heart as an English audiobook (about 3 hours), translated from the Arabic, with a word-synced bilingual transcript. It opens the Quarter on Destructive Vices by mapping the inner landscape of the heart: its soldiers, its enemies, and the constant battle between angelic inspiration and satanic whispering.
Is it free to listen?
The whole library is open to everyone. Every member gets five hours of listening free each month; Joyful+ removes the time limit.
What does it cover?
The meanings of soul, spirit, heart, and intellect; the armies of the heart; its unique quality and attributes; the heart in relation to knowledge; Satan's whispers and the inroads of the devil; and the rapid change and division of hearts.
Last updated 2026-09-11
Inside the book.
Chapters
Word-synced with the narrator.
The first three minutes are transcribed here. In the app, the Living Manuscript scrolls through the entire book in rhythm with the audio — Arabic alongside English.
Living Manuscript
Listen to the full book in the app for the complete Living Manuscript.
The full, word-synced transcript in Arabic and English is in the app.
