The Disease of Kibr (Pride)
"...The second characteristic that everyone has to be cautious of, but
especially those people who are studying the `ilm, who have been given by
Allaah (subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa), who have been blessed by Allaah (subhaanahu
wa ta`aalaa) to have knowledge and to be making da`wah, these people have to
be very careful about a disease that comes to people of this nature many
times, unfortunately, and this is the disease of kibr, of arrogance and pride.
And sometimes the way this is reflected is where the person refuses and does
not want anyone to correct him, or at least he will not accept correction from
certain people. Ya`nee he may accept correction or be told that he is wrong by
someone who is from his group, someone who is a close friend of his, but
anybody else, he will look down upon anyone else, and he will not accept any
kind of criticism from anybody else, and this is kibr. This is pride and
arrogance, as described in the hadeeth of the Prophet
(sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam). The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam)
said that no one who has even a mustard grain seed weight of kibr in his
heart, no one who has this in his heart will enter Jannah.
Someone asked the Prohpet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam), he said that a man
loves to have nice clothing on, put nice shoes., and he understood this is may
kibr; the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, "Allaah is beautiful
and loves beauty," ya`nee this is not kibr, but kibr is "to reject the truth
and to look down upon the people", to reject the truth for example when it
comes to you from the source you do not like, when it comes to you from
someone perhaps who is not as much upon the right path as you think you are,
and to look down upon other people and to disgrace them, this is kibr.
You have to realize that, I don't care if you are the biggest `aalim in the
world, you could make a mistake sometimes, that some child could come up to
you and say, you know, that was a mistake. Al-Bukhaaree was just 11 or 12
years old the first time he corrected his shaykh.
This is something that we have to be very careful about especially as I said
when we are involved in da`wah and in giving knowledge. Because it is really
when one gets knowledge that he feels, who are you to talk to me,... don't
talk to me, you have a problem with me,... go talk to the ulamaa', and have
the ulamaa' come and talk to me. This is a problem, and it is very dangerous
unfortunately."
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