I want to know how to stop oneself doing wrong. I do/think of things which I should not have done which I believe are something which Islam is extremely against. I can’t stop myself. But after I finish doing and I get temporary satisfaction, I feel extremely insulted and embarrased because I know that Allah won’t be happy of what I did and the next whole day, I feel extremely bad, as everytime I do it, I repent and promise Allah that I won’t do it again. I feel ashamed when I offer my namaz since I cannot avoid thinking of the wrong I committed. But I just can’t control myself. Do you know how may I stop myself?
Answer
Life is a battle against Shaitan till the very last day of your life. There is no way it can be over before you are dead. Shaitan cleverly spots your weaknesses to lead you astray. If you are frequently led to do things that are bad, it is a sign of the fact that Shaitan has identified your weakness and is working on it. The fact that you feel bad about it after you have committed the sin is an indication that your faith is, alhamdulillah, intact. However, there is no room for being complacent. Fight it out with Shaitan the way you would intelligently fight a battle.
I would recommend the following few measures:
i) Pray sincerely to the Almighty to enable you to get rid of the sin. Avail the tremendous blessings of this holy month for the purpose (the question was asked during Ramadan). Get up a little early for Sehri and say your tahajjud prayers and seek help from the One Who alone can help you. According to a hadith, the Almighty comes down to the lowest heaven to listen to the prayers of His servants at that time. Use long prostrations for seeking forgiveness and help from Him.
ii) After you find yourself committing the sin, not only repent for it, but also figure out what led you to it. Make extra efforts to avoid the route that leads you to do that sin. For instance, was it a bad company, or viewing a certain television channel, or visiting a web site or something else that caused it? In case you are able to spot the route that led you to the sin, make a conscious effort to avoid that route.
iii) Never fall into the trap that you are a hopeless case now. Shaitan would convince you to believe that you are a gone case. keep repenting sincerely whenever you go through the sin.
iv) Try to get involved in healthy, positive activities. Quite often, it is lack of healthy activities that leads you to sin.
v) Be careful about your thought process. Shaitan enters through that window. As soon as you realize that your thoughts are going astray, start doing istighfar or say a’udhubillahi minashaitanir rajim. Once you catch Shaitan in its initial attempt to enter your thought process, you will be successful. If you allow the initial battle to be lost, then he won’t leave you until after the sin has been committed. Quran says:
“If Shaitan tempts you, seek refuge with Allah; for He is the one Who is All Hearing, Knowing. Those who fear Allah, when they are tempted by Shaitan, they have but to remember Allah and they shall see the light (right course of action)! As for Shaitan’s brothers, they drag them deeper into error and never relax their efforts.” (7:200-2)
vi) Read the Quran with proper understanding regularly. The Book of Allah is the strongest weapon one can use against Shaitan.