THE PHILOSOPHY OF COMPANIONSHIP

of what he said, a devil arrived, and it is not for me to sit with the devils. (Musnad Ahmad) This is a classic example of what is called the conscious awareness of the believers taught by the Prophet. In fact, every human being has two kinds of innate impulses: evil-commanding impulse and selfcriticizing impulse. The evil-commanding impulse is the symbol of Satanic promptings, and the self-criticizing impulse is the symbol of the angelic inspirations. If a man abuses you and you remain silent, then the conscience of the abuser awakens and continues to reproach him inside. It’s like an angel is answering on your behalf. On the contrary, when you also speak harshly in response to harsh words, then the other person’s ego will be activated. It is man’s coming under the influence of Satan. The Prophet taught the Companions a great truth through this exhortation. He instilled in the Companions the intellectual insight that would guarantee their success in every matter, whether individual or societal. The Prophet implied that there are two different types of personalities hidden in each human being. One is potentially your friend and the other, potentially your enemy. It is up to you which type of personality you awaken in him. The Prophet pointed out the important fact that sometimes in this world, not acting is also a form of action and not speaking is also a form of speaking. If a person is speaking ill of you and you don’t respond, it doesn’t mean that you didn’t respond, but it means that you kept quiet and allowed the more powerful party (the angels) to speak. In this way, it would become possible that what you would do less effectively, the angel of God would do it more effectively. o Wise is he who forgets the wrongs and faults of others and keeps his faults in mind.