Why Do People Sin? 3) Pride and Arrogance

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate

Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

The first one who showed arrogance towards Allah and His creation was the accursed Iblees, when Allah commanded him to prostrate to Adam and he refused and was arrogant, and said, “I am better than him (Adam), You created me from fire, and him You created from clay.”

Pride is an attribute that is not befitting for anyone except Allah. Whoever seeks to compete with Allah in that, Allah will destroy him, wreak vengeance on him and make things difficult for him.

It was narrated that Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri and Abu Hurayrah said: The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wassallam said: “Might is His garment and pride is His cloak; whoever seeks to compete with Me concerning them, I will punish him.” [Muslim]

Pride and arrogance can lead us to suppress the goodness and common sense within us simply to provide merit to our egocentric agendas. One sign of such an attitude involves engaging in frequent argumentation, disputes, and quarrels simply to push misguided viewpoints. Such an attitude in general stands counter to everything that the Qur'an and the Prophet sallalahu alayhi wassallam taught us. If faith was simply knowing the facts in one’s heart, then that is similar to shaytan's situation because he was very knowledgeable about his Lord, yet his arrogance and pride led him to become argumentative and disobedient to Allah, and in the process became the worst of creatures.

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wassallam associated such an attitude with misguidance. He said, “A nation never went astray after being guided except by means of disputation. [Tirmidhi and ibn Majah].

Allah provides examples in the Qur'an about such people, for example:

وَلَمَّا ضُرِ‌بَ ٱبْنُ مَرْ‌يَمَ مَثَلًا إِذَا قَوْمُكَ مِنْهُ يَصِدُّونَ ﴿٥٧﴾ وَقَالُوٓا۟ ءَأَـٰلِهَتُنَا خَيْرٌ‌ أَمْ هُوَ ۚ مَا ضَرَ‌بُوهُ لَكَ إِلَّا جَدَلًۢا ۚ بَلْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ خَصِمُونَ ﴿٥٨

And when the son of Mary was presented as an example, immediately your people laughed aloud. (57) And they said, "Are your gods better, or is he?" They did not present the comparison except for [mere] argument. But, [in fact], they are a people prone to dispute. (58) [Qur'an, Az-Zukhruf 43:57-58]

Look within ourselves and see whether the pride in our hearts or the arrogance of our attitudes in anyway influence us to refuse seeing or listening to the truth. For those of us who suffer from such diseases, what is needed instead is an attitude of humility or humbleness that can motivate us to stay calm and open to seeing our mistakes thereby providing an opportunity to fix them.

Pride puts a veil on our eyes and hearts and can lead us to more sins.

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ الْهُدَى وَالتُّقَى وَالْعَفَافَ وَالْغِنَى

Allahumma inni as 'alukal-huda wat-tuqa wal-'afafa wal-ghina

O Allah! I ask You for guidance, piety, dignified restraint, and contentment and sufficiency." [Muslim]

And Allah knows best and He alone grant success.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam.

Wassalaam

Related Archives
Arrogance v Humility