Fear of God Helps Maintain High Principles

FEAR OF GOD HELPS MAINTAIN HIGH PRINCIPLES Fear of God (taqwa) means leading a principled life, that is, controlling one’s desires and curbing all negative impulses. Fearing God (taqwa) means leading a life of restraint in this world. Restraint means controlling one’s desires and curbing all negative impulses. Umar Faruq once asked another Companion of the Prophet what it meant to go in fear of God. The Companion replied, “O Leader of the believers, have you ever walked along a path which is lined on both sides with thorn bushes?” When he received a reply in the affirmative, the Companion asked what he had done on this occasion. Umar replied, “I gathered my clothes about me and walked carefully along the path.” The Companion remarked, “That is how one goes in fear of God.” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 1/164) The present world is a testing ground. Here, to