Man
is unique. It is not the same as Angels, not like demons, none like the
animals. Man is different from other beings as God has bestowed him with
special feature or characteristic which distinctively distinguish him from
Angels, demons, and animals. Man as unique creation of Allah is obviously seen
dated back to the creation of Adam a.s and Eve. Adam was created form clay, we
all were, indeed. The creation of man from clay; a type of soil which could
easily moulded into shapes by contacting it with water resembles the nature of
man given by God. Man is like clay, they could change their attitudes or remain
the same depending on the situation and events in their life. It is important
for man to being able to change, as man is continuously living in a society and
changing for the better is really crucial in ensuring the survival and harmony
of the society.
Man is dual in nature. It is a
physical being, an also spiritual being. In Islamic perspective, many Muslim
scholars have contributed ideas and concept in discussing the nature of man.
Among them Ibn Sina and al-Ghazali who talk about soul and its divisions, Mulla
Sadra who proposed that soul is a single entity with different levels and
interpretations, and also Sufi practitioners who put a great emphasis on soul
and spirit on man’s development and perfection. Syed Naquib al-Attas came later
and further discuss the complexity of the nature of man in a more
comprehensive, fathomable manner. It is to be noted, however that al-Ghazali
did not make absolute distinction between the four metaphysical nature of man;
ruh, aqal, qalb and nafs, as for him, those four are actually referring to the
same entity that is soul, but differ in terms based on the state or condition
(ahwal) of it. Al-Attas further explained, “Thus when it is involved in intellection and
apprehension it is called ‘intellect’; when it governs the body it is called
‘soul’; when it is engaged in receiving intuitive illumination it is called
‘heart’; and when it reverts to its own world of abstract entities it is called
‘spirit’. Indeed, it is in reality always engaged in manifesting itself in all
its states.”
Allah breathed into Adam ruh, or
spirit, which makes him a man. Ruh is something that could not be understood by
senses, and little that we know about it, “And they ask you, [O Muhammad],
about the soul. Say, “The soul is of the affair of my Lord. And mankind have
not been given of knowledge except a little.” (17:85). However, ruh could be known by looking into the actions that
originate from it. Ruh is pure, as it comes from God. It is the centre of human
being, the very essence of a man, and it is indivisible.
Adam a.s was then being taught by
Allah the names of things, and Allah questioned the Angels to name the things.
Angels knew the things not as they know only what have been taught to them by
Allah. In this event, Allah is showing to the Angels that He has bestowed man
with the highest gift of all; the mind or intellect, ‘aql as stated by Ibn
Sina. This mind or intellect is the one that distinguishing man from animals
and other beings. Mind enables man to think and make choices and decision.
However, though Adam and Eve have
the intellectual ability to choose and make wise decision, they had been
misguided by the Iblis in another event. Allah has given them all the joy and
pleasure of living in the Paradise except for a tree. They are prohibited from
being close and eat the fruit of it. Iblis has successfully played his tactics
on Eve, who then, asked Adam to eat the fruit together. Their nafs, or soul has
been influenced by desire, or shahwat which lead them to do bad things. According
to the Islamic scholars like Ibn Sina, al-Ghazali and Syed Naquib al-Attas,
there are three main level of nafs or soul that shape and influence human
actions. The first is nafs al-ammarah bi al-su’, the nafs or soul that is prone
to lust and evil. This type of soul is in the lowest rank, and it paralyzes the
use of ‘aql or intellect in making choice and decision. The nature of this type
of soul is it directs the man to every wrong direction and action, as Allah
says in the Quran, “And I do not acquit myself. Indeed,
the soul is a persistent enjoiner of evil, except those upon which my Lord
has mercy. Indeed, my Lord is Forgiving and Merciful” (12:53).
The second level of soul is nafs al-lawwamah, which
direct man to internalize his own actions and the effect of it. Nafs
al-lawwamah is the blameworthy self, which is constantly aware and criticise
the shortcomings done by the man. It could be referred back to the creation of
man from clay, as the nature of this self is it often change and alter. After
nafs al-ammarah bi al-su’ has done mistake, nafs al-lawwamah directs man to
feel guilty and remorse. This will lead man to repent to God of the sin he has
done. Nafs al-lawwamah has been stated in the Quran (75:2), “And I swear by the
reproaching/accusing soul.” In the case of Adam a.s and Eve, after they
have been sent down to Earth for following the desire of their nafs ammarah bi
al-su’, they have come to their consciousness and awareness of their mistake,
and they repent to God.
The third level of soul is nafs al-mutmainnah, or the
self at peace. It is the highest level of soul, as it is in peace, tranquillity
and satisfaction. Nafs al mutmainnah is very hard to achieve, and only the one
who immerse himself in love to God can attain it. It is the state of hate doing
sin and love of good, righteous acts. It is the aim of every man to attain nafs
al-mutmainnah, and he reward is enormous. “[To the righteous it will be said] O
reassured soul, return to your Lord, well-pleased and pleasing [to Him],
and enter among My [righteous] servants, and enter My paradise.” (89:27-30).
Besides the levels of nafs, according to Ibn Sina nafs
has three powers or quwwah. First, the vegetative soul which relates to the
growth and development of the living beings. Second, the animal soul which is
divided into motive and perceptive. The motive faculty move man to act
according to the desire and anger. The perceptive faculty is very important in
forming perception and the worldview of a man. It influences the way man think,
behave. Perceptive faculty involves the
internal and external senses. The external senses are; hearing, seeing,
smelling, tasting and touching, while the internal senses are common sense,
imagination, memory and representation. The last is the rational soul, the one
which distinguish between man and animals as it refers to the intellect as the
highest throne of the soul.
Qalb, or heart is the other components which made up
human psyche from the Islamic perspective. It is not the physical heart that we
are discussing, but the heart that involves feeling, emotion, intuition and
reasoning. “Surely there is in the body a small piece of flesh; if it is good,
the whole body is good, and if it is corrupted, the whole body is corrupted,
and that is surely the heart”. Qalb implies a very important function in a
man’s action as it is where the real judgment and decision on acts were done.
Heart that is clean and pure is able to receive hidayah, guidance, while the
heart that is full with sin and disease like arrogance, stingy and others, is
hard to receive hidayah.
