Haram, Halal and what is in between/ purification of the heart

On the authority of Abu 'Abdullah al-Nu'man bin Bashir, radiyallahu 'anhu, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, say: "Truly, what is lawful is evident, and what is unlawful is evident, and in between the two are matters which are doubtful which many people do not know. He who guards against doubtful things keeps his religion and honour blameless, and he who indulges in doubtful things indulges in fact in unlawful things, just as a shepherd who pastures his flock round a preserve will soon pasture them in it. Beware, every king has a preserve, and the things Allah has declared unlawful are His preserves. Beware, in the body there is a flesh; if it is sound, the whole body is sound, and if it is corrupt, the whole body is corrupt, and behold, it is the heart."

(Saheeh Al-Bukhari, Muslim)

Lessons:

- It is very important to stay away from doubtful matters, as one could fall into the forbidden, if he loiters in the grey area. We cannot justify by thinking and saying that since we are ignorant of the ruling, whether it is permissible or prohibited, we can practise it.

- Imam Bukhari Rahimahullah mentioned this hadeeth in the "Book of trade". When it comes to trading there are many matters that are doubtful, matters which existed then and even now, e.g. where cheating is done professionally. Therefore we have to be careful if the matter related to trading is clear and evident, permissible or not permissible, or if it is doubtful, in which case we have to avoid it.

- The relationship between the heart and the rest of the hadeeth: if one's heart is strong and firm in Tawheed, and sound with clear understanding and wisdom, then he will be able to stay away from doubtful matters from fear of falling into the prohibited area. But if the heart is not so firm in Tawheed, then he will take matters lightly, and thus, be more prone to slowly and gradually fall into the haram. So, the main issue of this hadeeth is the purification of the heart, which all of us need to keep working on.

Wa Allahu A'lam.