Скачать или смотреть Muslims, the Soul, and Self-Accountability

Muslims struggle with self-accountability and self-discipline: Watch this brief, 3-minute video to learn more.

Here’s a description of the Arabic terms I use in the video:

✅ Tazkiyat al-nafs: Purification of the soul (which is where the term “zakat” comes from; we give zakat to purify ourselves and our wealth)
✅ Riyadat al-nafs: Disciplining the soul (the larger umbrella term that refers to one’s journey with their soul)
✅ Jihad al-nafs: The greater struggle with our soul (this is the greatest jihad/struggle, the one we wage against our own soul)

These concepts are from within the Islamic tradition; for example, Imam al-Ghazali has written extensively about them in his “Revival of the Religious Sciences” series.

To clarify, while we cannot always control the circumstances we are handed or are dealing with, what we CAN work on is our response to them. Which takes “being with what is and being with Allah,” and doing what we can to process and integrate our experiences into the journey of our soul. Inner soul work is certainly difficult - yet many of us don’t realize that our time in this world was not created to be easy.

I hope we can all reflect on whether we are holding ourselves accountable, and the areas in which we can improve. Because, as the Quran states, “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (13:11).

Sameera Qureshi, MS OTR is an Occupational Therapist, with 14 years of experience working at the intersections of Islam and sexual health. Her goal is to revive Islamic traditions of the soul towards sexual health therapy and education for Muslims. Learn more about her work below.

WEBSITE: www.sexualhealthformuslims.com
Instagram and TikTok: @sexualhealthformuslims