The Six Doors of the Heart Imam Al Muhasibi wrote in his Risala al Mustarshidin (Treatise for the Seekers of Guidance) that the wise men (i.e. himself) said: The heart is like a house with six doors. If you let anyone enter through these doors without your knowledge then your valuables are at risk. Hence these six doors need to be fully protected. What are the Six Doors of the Heart? The entries to the heart are the tongue, sight, hearing, smell, hands and feet. Imam al Muhasibi offers guidance on keeping these locked to protect the health of the heart and ensuring that your valuables are not stolen. The Tongue Guarding the tongue is no easy task. It is the quickest organ in the body. With its lightening reaction time, keeping the tongue in check requires training to reach the point where we are careful not to allow each passing thought to exit through our mouth and not allowing the truth to slip into deceit. There are plenty of narrations from the Qur’an and Sunnah about the importance of telling the truth. We all know that the Prophet (peace be on him) was known as as-Sadiq al-Amin, the truthful and the trustworthy. He (peace be on him) said: Whoever guarantees what is between his two lips and his two thighs, I guarantee Jannah for him. (Bukhari) There are three instances in particular that we need to watch out for, and slowly train ourselves to be careful what we utter: In all emotional states Protect your tongue by sidq (truthfulness) fi ridah wa ghadab, whether you are happy or angry. Telling the truth in anger can be challenging. Don’t allow your mood to manipulate the truth, or contaminate it. In public and private Refraining from lying and controlling our tongue is important … Continue reading Locking the Six Doors of Your Heart