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Depression is a Form of Allāh’s Punishment for the Hypocrites and Disbelievers 

Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah

A discussion on how acts of disobedience cause mental pain amongst the disbelievers.

Allāh says:

وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الْمُنَافِقِينَ وَالْمُنَافِقَاتِ وَالْكُفَّارَ نَارَ جَهَنَّمَ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا ۚ هِيَ حَسْبُهُمْ ۚ وَلَعَنَهُمُ اللَّهُ ۖ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مُّقِيمٌ ‎

‘Allah has promised the hypocrite men and hypocrite women and the disbelievers the fire of Hell, wherein they will abide eternally. It is sufficient for them. And Allah has cursed them, and for them is an enduring punishment.’
[Al-Tawbah, 9:68]

Indeed, His saying ‘And for them is an enduring punishment’ denotes [a punishment] which is continuous, perpetually accompanying them in this worldly life and the hereafter. [This punishment takes the form of] emotional and mental pain: sadness, despair and depression, a profound lack of compassion—producing hearts full of darkness and ignorance. For truly, disbelief and engagement in acts of disobedience are accompanied by suffering of different kinds in this worldly life. Allāh alone knows [the true reality of this agony]. It is for this reason that you will find most of these people unable to live without that which clouds the mind and distracts the heart. Thus, they either drink intoxicants, or watch nonsensical distractions, or listen to musicians, or the likeness of these activities.

Endnotes:

Iqtiḍāʾ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm: 97

Translated by: Riyāḍ al-Kanadī

Published: December 19, 2022
Edited: June 7, 2023

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