LINGERING DOUBTS

The truth is that, from a psychological perspective, what matters is not what elements a person includes in their list, but what they truly value. Many reasons might exist for including something in a list, but a person’s genuine focus rarely errs; it immediately reveals the individual’s core personality and the worldview they have truly adopted. You will find many Muslims who see themselves as completely religious. You would never be able to convince them that their Islam is lacking. Still, when we look at how they live, we notice that worldly affairs are always on their mind; even small disruptions in these matters cause them great distress. But when it comes to Islam and the Hereafter, they are content with just fulfilling the obligatory duties, and their faith doesn’t push them to seek more. This shows that their Islam is truly incomplete—their real devotion is to material things, not to the Hereafter. The same issue is clear in this interpretation. On the surface, it appears to cover everything, from changing the world to changing the self. But when we see that all the energy is focused on outer transformation while inner transformation is mostly seen as just obligatory duties, the truth of this ‘comprehensive list’ becomes obvious. Here are a few examples to illustrate this point.