غَفْلَة
Heedlessness
Ghafla
Definition
Ghafla is a state of spiritual neglect and forgetfulness of Allah, the Hereafter, and one's purpose in life. The heedless person goes through the motions of life without reflection, allowing days and years to pass without spiritual growth. It is perhaps the most widespread disease in the modern age.
Signs & Symptoms
- 1Performing prayers mechanically without presence of heart
- 2Going days without meaningful remembrance of Allah
- 3Being too busy with life to contemplate death and the Hereafter
- 4Feeling spiritually numb or disconnected
- 5Spending hours in entertainment but finding no time for Quran
- 6Ignoring the signs of Allah in creation and in life events
Dangers & Consequences
- It leads to a hard heart that cannot benefit from reminders
- It is the state of those who earn Hellfire
- It allows all other spiritual diseases to grow unchecked
- It wastes the most precious commodity - time
- It results in regret when death arrives
Quranic Warnings
وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ فِي نَفْسِكَ تَضَرُّعًا وَخِيفَةً وَدُونَ الْجَهْرِ مِنَ الْقَوْلِ بِالْغُدُوِّ وَالْآصَالِ وَلَا تَكُن مِّنَ الْغَافِلِينَ
“And remember your Lord within yourself in humility and in fear without being apparent in speech - in the mornings and the evenings. And do not be among the heedless.”
وَلَقَدْ ذَرَأْنَا لِجَهَنَّمَ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ الْجِنِّ وَالْإِنسِ ۖ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لَّا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لَّا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ آذَانٌ لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْغَافِلُونَ
“And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind. They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless.”
اقْتَرَبَ لِلنَّاسِ حِسَابُهُمْ وَهُمْ فِي غَفْلَةٍ مُّعْرِضُونَ
“The time of their account has approached for the people, while they are in heedlessness turning away.”
Prophetic Guidance
Narrated by Ibn Abbas
نِعْمَتَانِ مَغْبُونٌ فِيهِمَا كَثِيرٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ الصِّحَّةُ وَالْفَرَاغُ
“There are two blessings which many people waste: health and free time.”
Narrated by Ibn Abbas
“Take advantage of five before five: your youth before your old age, your health before your sickness, your wealth before your poverty, your free time before your busyness, and your life before your death.”
Narrated by Abu Hurairah
أَكْثِرُوا ذِكْرَ هَاذِمِ اللَّذَّاتِ يَعْنِي الْمَوْتَ
“Frequently remember the destroyer of pleasures - death.”
Stories of the Righteous
Learn from those who came before
Steps to Cure Heedlessness
Dua for Cure
اللَّهُمَّ أَيْقِظْ قَلْبِي مِنْ سِنَةِ الْغَفْلَةِ
Recite this dua regularly and with sincerity
Sources & References
6 sources cited on this page