We must cast out all that is evil within us, all that opposes God.  This is the war that we must fight.

My brethren, let me tell you a story so that you may better understand the meaning of jihad, or holy war.  When God formed Adam out of earth, He placed the great trust of the light of Nur Muhammad on Adam’s forehead and decreed that man would know things that the angels and other beings could never know.  The leader of the jinns was watching and listening.  He became filled with jealousy, pride, and vengeance, and these qualities changed him into satan.  At once he began to speak against God, boasting to Adam, “I am more exalted than you.  Allah said that He created you to be most exalted, but you are only made of earth.  I am made of fire.  If you bow down to me I will help you, but if you attempt to rise above me, then I will do many evil things to you and make you suffer greatly.”

Then that light on Adam’s forehead looked closely at satan, and when satan saw the radiance, there arose within him an even greater fear, jealousy, and vengeance.  Once again he sneered at Adam, “You are created out of mere earth, and yet you dare to look at me like this!  Because you were given a higher place than I was, I will create sorrow and suffering for you until the very end.”  Then satan spat on him, and the moment that spit landed on Adam, satan’s poisonous qualities entered him and spread throughout his entire body.  Those qualities became the darkness of the mind and the veils within the innermost heart.

Upon seeing what had happened, Allah commanded the Angel Gabriel to pinch out that spot of hell where satan’s spit had landed.  The hollow that remained became the navel.  Even though the spit itself was cleared away, some of the poison of those evil, envious qualities had already entered Adam and in that way were passed on to his descendents, causing all of mankind endless trouble.  Because of satan’s actions, Allah commanded that he and his followers be cast out of heaven.  Then he elevated Adam to the high position decreed for him.

This is a very great matter.  I have related only a small part of it to show you that the most important jihad, the holy war that each one of us must fight, is the war against these qualities.  Just as satan was thrown out of heaven because he opposed the Almighty, Unique One, we too must cast out all that is evil within us, everything that opposes God.  Those evil qualities of jealousy and vengeance are the qualities that ruin us and take us on the path to hell…

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