Our true religion has paid immense attention to commanding right and forbidding wrong. It establishes this duty as the very core of our virtue as a community. As Allah Almighty says:
"You are the best community ever raised for humanity—you enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong..." (Al-Imran: 110)
Our chosen Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, guided us to the fact that one of the levels of resisting evil is rejecting it within one's heart. He noted that relying solely on heart-based rejection is the weakest form of faith. If that is the case for someone who still rejects it internally, what can be said about a heart that does not object to evil at all?
When hearts die, the capacity to condemn wrongdoing vanishes. They become exactly as the noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, described:
"An overturned, murky vessel; recognizing no good and rejecting no evil."
The spiritual death of hearts does not occur solely through committing sins and vices. It is also caused by frequent interaction with wrongdoers and repeated exposure to their behavior. For this reason, our religion urges us to avoid sinners and transgressors, while commanding us to keep the company of the righteous.
I was attending an international Quranic conference in Malaysia. It was a massive gathering of specialists in Quranic exegesis (Tafsir) and its sciences from various countries, held from November 14–15 of this year. After the conference, while sitting with some fellow participants, our colleague Abu Ziyad from Hafar al-Batin—may Allah protect him—spoke with deep astonishment regarding the sheer number of scantily clad women in our hotel. The signs of moral disapproval were clearly visible on his face.
Among us was a brother from an Arab country who was living in Malaysia to pursue his doctorate at a local university. We deemed him to be a person committed to the Sunnah, and we ask Allah to grant him steadfastness. This brother responded with profound sorrow, saying: "As for us, my brothers, our internal sense of condemnation has died because of constant exposure."
Hearing this reminded me of the verse where Allah Almighty says:
"...do not sit with them..." (An-Nisa: 140)
Imam Al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) stated: "This verse demonstrates the obligation to avoid people of sin when they openly display their wrongdoing." (pp. 1-2)
Muhammad Rashid Rida also noted: "This verse was revealed concerning the hypocrites who would sit with the polytheists (p. 2). Some Muslims used to sit with them as well, unable to object due to their own weakness (p. 2). Thus, they were commanded to turn away from them and avoid sitting with them."
Furthermore, Al-Sa'di stated: "This warning includes attending gatherings of sin and immorality where Allah's commands and prohibitions are treated lightly, and His boundaries are violated."
This aligns perfectly with the guidance of our righteous predecessors (Salaf), who strictly avoided and refused to sit with people of misguided whims to protect the purity of their hearts.
It is recorded in Sunan al-Darimi that Asma bin Ubaid narrated:
"Two men from the people of misguided whims walked in on Ibn Sirin. They said: 'O Abu Bakr, may we relate a Hadith to you?' He replied: 'No.' They asked: 'May we recite a verse to you from the Book of Allah?' He replied: 'No. Either you leave me, or I will stand up and leave.'
After they left, some of the people present asked: 'O Abu Bakr, what harm would it have done if they had read a verse from the Book of Allah Almighty to you?'He replied: 'I feared they would read a verse and alter its meaning, and that false interpretation might take root in my heart.'"
Always remember the wise adage: "Overexposure desensitizes the senses."
Footnotes & References
(1) Found within the Hadith narrated by Imam Muslim in his Sahih (1/69), Hadith No. 49.
(2) Narrated by Imam Muslim as well (1/128), Hadith No. 144.
(3) See: Al-Jami' li-Ahkam al-Quran by Al-Qurtubi (5/418).
(4) See: Tafsir al-Manar by Muhammad Rashid Rida (5/377).
(5)Taysir al-Karim al-Rahman fi Tafsir Kalam al-Mannan by Al-Sa'di (p. 210).
(6)Sunan al-Darimi (1/389), No. 411. The reviewer verified it as an authentic (Sahih) chain of narration.
