بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Last month, a revolutionary medical operation occurred. Margaret Osborne writes in her article “Patient Who Received a Genetically Modified Pig Heart Dies After Two Months” for the Smithsonian,
The procedure marks the first time that a genetically-modified, non-human cardiac organ functioned without immediate rejection by the human body.
…
A 57-year-old man who was the first to receive a pig heart transplant died two months after the procedure, per the University of Maryland School of Medicine. David Bennett Sr. received the organ on January 7 as a last-ditch effort to save his life after suffering from severe heart disease.
David Bennett required a heart transplant. However, due to the lack of available human hearts and his critical state, doctors transplanted the heart of a pig.
Bennett arrived at the hospital last October and was deemed ineligible for a conventional heart transplant, per the university. On New Year’s Eve, the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency authorization for the never-done-before surgery. The procedure was the first time that a genetically-modified animal heart functioned like a human heart without immediate rejection by the body, according to the university.
Typically, the immune system would attack a foreign entity such as an animal heart. In fact, even with human transplants, the human system must often be suppressed to avoid attacking a transplanted organ.
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“Until day 45 or 50, he was doing very well, but off and on, he was having infectious episodes,” Dr. Muhammad M. Mohiuddin, director of the university’s Cardiac Xenotransplantation Program, says in a video statement. “We were having difficulty finding a balance between his immunosuppression and controlling his infection. Unfortunately, multiple organs started to fail, and finally, I think that resulted in his passing away.”
Doctors struggled to balance infections due to Bennett’s weakened immune system with the need to suppress his immune system so as not to attack his heart.
The Heart in Islam
The heart is mentioned in around 169 Ayat and hundreds of ahadith. Al-Nu’man b. Bashir رضي الله عنه narrates,
عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ النُّعْمَانِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا، قَالَ: سَمِعْت رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه و سلم يَقُولُ: “إنَّ الْحَلَالَ بَيِّنٌ، وَإِنَّ الْحَرَامَ بَيِّنٌ، وَبَيْنَهُمَا أُمُورٌ مُشْتَبِهَاتٌ لَا يَعْلَمُهُنَّ كَثِيرٌ مِنْ النَّاسِ، فَمَنْ اتَّقَى الشُّبُهَاتِ فَقْد اسْتَبْرَأَ لِدِينِهِ وَعِرْضِهِ، وَمَنْ وَقَعَ فِي الشُّبُهَاتِ وَقَعَ فِي الْحَرَامِ، كَالرَّاعِي يَرْعَى حَوْلَ الْحِمَى يُوشِكُ أَنْ يَرْتَعَ فِيهِ، أَلَا وَإِنَّ لِكُلِّ مَلِكٍ حِمًى، أَلَا وَإِنَّ حِمَى اللَّهِ مَحَارِمُهُ، أَلَا وَإِنَّ فِي الْجَسَدِ مُضْغَةً إذَا صَلَحَتْ صَلَحَ الْجَسَدُ كُلُّهُ، وَإذَا فَسَدَتْ فَسَدَ الْجَسَدُ كُلُّهُ، أَلَا وَهِيَ الْقَلْبُ”.
I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say, “That which is lawful is clear and that which is unlawful is clear, and between the two of them are doubtful matters about which many people do not know. Thus he who avoids doubtful matters clears himself in regard to his religion and his honor, but he who falls into doubtful matters [eventually] falls into that which is unlawful, like the shepherd who pastures around a sanctuary, all but grazing therein. Truly every king has a sanctuary, and truly Allah’s sanctuary is His prohibitions.
Truly in the body there is a morsel of flesh, which, if it be whole, all the body is whole, and which, if it is diseased, all of [the body] is diseased. Truly, it is the heart.”
[Bukhari & Muslim]
It is due to this hadith that the heart forms the basis of Islamic medicine or Hikmah. While the Islamic mystics [Sufis] took this hadith to refer to an incorporeal spiritual heart, the Hukama took it also to refer to the physical heart. Since the heart pumps the blood which flows to the rest of the body, if any disease enters it, then it afflicts the entire body.
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In fact, it could be argued that the purpose of life is to purify the heart. Allah تعالى says,
وَلِيَبتَلِيَ اللَّهُ ما في صُدورِكُم وَلِيُمَحِّصَ ما في قُلوبِكُم ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَليمٌ بِذاتِ الصُّدورِ
So that Allah might test what is in your breasts and purge what is in your hearts. Allah knows all that your hearts contain.
[Surah Al ‘Imran, The House of ‘Imran (3):154]
This life is a test. Allah brings us into this world with a pure heart, and we are required to return back to him with a pure heart. If a person is destined for the Hellfire then,
وَمَن يُرِدِ اللَّهُ فِتنَتَهُ فَلَن تَملِكَ لَهُ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيئًا ۚ أُولٰئِكَ الَّذينَ لَم يُرِدِ اللَّهُ أَن يُطَهِّرَ قُلوبَهُم ۚ لَهُم فِي الدُّنيا خِزيٌ ۖ وَلَهُم فِي الآخِرَةِ عَذابٌ عَظيمٌ
If Allah desires misguidance for someone, you cannot help him against Allah in any way. Those are the people whose hearts Allah does not want to purify. They will have disgrace in this world and in the Next World they will have a terrible punishment.
[Surah al-Ma’idah, The Tablespread (5):13]
وَنَطْبَعُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُونَ ﴿100 الأعراف﴾
لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لَا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لَا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا ﴿179 الأعراف﴾
رَضُوا بِأَنْ يَكُونُوا مَعَ الْخَوَالِفِ وَطَبَعَ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ﴿93 التوبة﴾
وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ فَزَادَتْهُمْ رِجْسًا إِلَىٰ رِجْسِهِمْ ﴿125 التوبة﴾
Description of the Heart in the Qur’an
Hearing
Seeing
Intellect
وَمِنهُم مَن يَستَمِعُ إِلَيكَ ۖ وَجَعَلنا عَلىٰ قُلوبِهِم أَكِنَّةً أَن يَفقَهوهُ وَفي آذانِهِم وَقرًا ۚ وَإِن يَرَوا كُلَّ آيَةٍ لا يُؤمِنوا بِها ۚ حَتّىٰ إِذا جاءوكَ يُجادِلونَكَ يَقولُ الَّذينَ كَفَروا إِن هٰذا إِلّا أَساطيرُ الأَوَّلينَ
Some of them listen to you but We have placed covers on their hearts, preventing them from understanding it, and heaviness in their ears. Though they see every Sign, they still have no iman, so that when they come to you, disputing with you, those who are kafir say, ‘This is nothing but the myths of previous peoples!’
[Surah al-An’am, The Cattle (6):25]
Understanding
Kinds of Heart
Salim
Yahya related to me from Malik that he heard that:
Luqman al-Hakim made his will and counselled his son, saying, “My son! Sit with the learned men and keep close to them. Allah gives life to the hearts with the light of wisdom as Allah gives life to the dead earth with the abundant rain of the sky.”
Marid – sinful Muslim
Death
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The Heart Houses the Soul
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah’s Messenger ()صلى الله عليه وسلم said, “Satan puts three knots at the back of the head of any of you if he is asleep. On every knot he reads and exhales the following words, ‘The night is long, so stay asleep.’ When one wakes up and remembers Allah, one knot is undone; and when one performs ablution, the second knot is undone, and when one prays the third knot is undone and one gets up energetic with a good heart in the morning; otherwise one gets up lazy and with a mischievous heart.”
Spirit (Ruh) – soul is connected to the heart, the basis of all physiology.
RELATED: Spirituality Beyond Science
The heart stores the soul. If a person does not have enough water, the kidneys will fail, causing the fire to increase and the heart to cause death. If the heart stops, the fire will be extinguished by the kidney’s water, causing death.
Heart (not the Western conception of the heart, which is the organ. It is the entire southern body system, Liver (Eastern system,
cardiovascular and otherwise)
Maintaining the Heart
The provision of the heart is consciousness of Allah [taqwa; تقوى]. The ‘ulama mention the following internal actions of the heart with regards to maintaining its spiritual state,
Jihad al-Nafs
Sincere Intentions
Knowledge
Iman
Ma’rifah (Gnosticism, knowing Allah)
Acceptance of all Islam entails (qubul)
Fear of Allah
Patience in Allah
Patience with Allah
Patience by Allah
Patience from Allah
Thankfulness
Praise
Khushu’ – Reverence
Truthfulness – sidq
Hope – raja’
Longing – raghbah
Submitting – inqiyad
Love – mahabbah
Sincerity – ikhlas
Certainty – yaqin
Disbelief in false deities
Allegience
Disavowal
Repentance – tawbah
Taqwah
Abstemiousness – wara
Adherence to the Sunnah
How Shaytan Enters the Heart
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Diseases of the Heart
خَتَمَ اللَّهُ عَلىٰ قُلوبِهِم وَعَلىٰ سَمعِهِم ۖ وَعَلىٰ أَبصارِهِم غِشاوَةٌ ۖ وَلَهُم عَذابٌ عَظيمٌ
Allah has sealed up their hearts and hearing and over their eyes is a blindfold. They will have a terrible punishment.
[Surah al-Baqarah, The Heifer (2):7]
The heart can be sealed [ختام; khitam].
في قُلوبِهِم مَرَضٌ فَزادَهُمُ اللَّهُ مَرَضًا ۖ وَلَهُم عَذابٌ أَليمٌ بِما كانوا يَكذِبونَ
There is a sickness in their hearts and Allah has increased their sickness. They will have a painful punishment on account of their denial.
[Surah al-Baqarah, The Heifer (2):10]
Referring to the hypocrites, Allah says that their hearts are sick, and as a punishment for their hypocrisy this disease is increased.
ثُمَّ قَسَت قُلوبُكُم مِن بَعدِ ذٰلِكَ فَهِيَ كَالحِجارَةِ أَو أَشَدُّ قَسوَةً ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنَ الحِجارَةِ لَما يَتَفَجَّرُ مِنهُ الأَنهارُ ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنها لَما يَشَّقَّقُ فَيَخرُجُ مِنهُ الماءُ ۚ وَإِنَّ مِنها لَما يَهبِطُ مِن خَشيَةِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَمَا اللَّهُ بِغافِلٍ عَمّا تَعمَلونَ
Then your hearts became hardened after that, so they were like rocks or even harder still. There are some rocks from which rivers gush out, and others which split open and water pours out, and others which crash down from fear of Allah. Allah is not unaware of what you do.
[Surah al-Baqarah, The Heifer (2):74]
Hardening of the heart
هُوَ الَّذي أَنزَلَ عَلَيكَ الكِتابَ مِنهُ آياتٌ مُحكَماتٌ هُنَّ أُمُّ الكِتابِ وَأُخَرُ مُتَشابِهاتٌ ۖ فَأَمَّا الَّذينَ في قُلوبِهِم زَيغٌ فَيَتَّبِعونَ ما تَشابَهَ مِنهُ ابتِغاءَ الفِتنَةِ وَابتِغاءَ تَأويلِهِ ۗ وَما يَعلَمُ تَأويلَهُ إِلَّا اللَّهُ ۗ وَالرّاسِخونَ فِي العِلمِ يَقولونَ آمَنّا بِهِ كُلٌّ مِن عِندِ رَبِّنا ۗ وَما يَذَّكَّرُ إِلّا أُولُو الأَلبابِ
It is He who sent down the Book to you from Him: ayats containing clear judgements – they are the core of the Book – and others which are open to interpretation. Those with deviation in their hearts follow what is open to interpretation in it, desiring conflict, seeking its inner meaning. No one knows its inner meaning but Allah. Those firmly rooted in knowledge say, ‘We have iman in it. All of it is from our Lord.’ But only people of intelligence pay heed.
رَبَّنا لا تُزِغ قُلوبَنا بَعدَ إِذ هَدَيتَنا وَهَب لَنا مِن لَدُنكَ رَحمَةً ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الوَهّابُ
‘Our Lord, do not make our hearts swerve aside after You have guided us. And give us mercy from You. You are the Ever-Giving.
[Surah Al ‘Imran, The House of ‘Imran (3):7-8]
Deviation
فَبِما نَقضِهِم ميثاقَهُم لَعَنّاهُم وَجَعَلنا قُلوبَهُم قاسِيَةً ۖ
But because of their breaking of their covenant, We have cursed them and made their hearts hard.
[Surah al-Ma’idah, The Tablespread (5):13]
Hardness
In traditional medicine, there are pathways to various organs such as the heart. Touching a particular part of the hand could be a channel to the heart, or the lungs. However, in ancient medicine there is no channel to the heart. Allah’s System did not provide a direct pathway to the heart from the outside for pathogen (Shaytanic) entry. The emporer must be protected at all costs.
The heart has four chambers:
Then I will come at them from their front and from their rear, and from their right and their left, and You will not find most of them to be grateful.’
[Surah al-A’raf, The Heights (7):17]
It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah ( )صلى الله عليه وسلم said: “When the believer commits sin, a black spot appears on his heart. If he repents and gives up that sin and seeks forgiveness, his heart will be polished. But if (the sin) increases, (the black spot) increases. That is the Ran that Allah mentions in His Book: “Nay! But on their hearts is the Ran (covering of sins and evil deeds) which they used to earn.” [83:14]
According to ibn Taymiyyah,
Suggestive Inclination
Consideration
Actively Fantasizing about sin
Persistant Inclination
Determination
The Sin itself
Time of illness
Climate of illness
Season of illness
Moon cycle
Time of day
Life stages
Location
Lifestyle
Diet
Western Medical treatments
Family History
Mental illness
Physical trauma
Deafness
Eye-service riyaa
Envy – hasad
Vanity – ‘ujb
Rancour – ghil
Transgression – baghy
Adulteration – ghish
Boastfulness – sum’ah
Love of undue praise
Miserliness – bukhl
Stinginess – shuhh
Arrogance – kibr
Arrogance against the Truth
Arrogance over people
Pride – fakhr
Preoccupation with the faults of overs
Nosiness – khawd
Covetousness – tama’
Ignorance – jahl
Willful doubt – shakk
Inappropriate jubilance – batar
Admiring people due to their worldly status
Reviling people due to their worldly status
Love of the kuffar
Hatred of the Muslims
Conceit – khuyala
Following harmful desires
Fantasizing about haram
Planning haram
Wishing for haram
Intending to leave an obliation
Headlessness – ghafla
Opulence – mubahat
Sycophancy – mudahanah
Fanaticism
Delaying repentance after a sin
Heretical innovation – bidd’ah
Fear of other than Allah
Reverence of other than Allah
Loving anything over Allah
Disapproval of Allah – sukht Allah
Beautification for other than Allah
Anger for other than Allah
Hatred for other than Allah
Forgetfulness of Allah
Turning away from Allah
Minor Associative Theism – shirk al-asghar
Major Associative Theism – shirk al-akbar
Hidden Associative Theism – shirk al-khafi
Minor Disbelief – kufr al-asghar
Major disbelief – kufr al-akbar
Hypocrisy – nifaq
Death
Cures of the Heart
According to imam al-Nawawi
The foundation of all cures are five-fold:
Lightening the stomach by little food and drink
Turning to Allah whenever something occurs, at the instance of occurrence
Fleeing from things you fear engaging in
Seeking constanct forgiveness and making regular salawat upon the nabi with a present heart
The companionship of a guide to Allah
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet ( )صلى الله عليه وسلم said, “There is no disease that Allah has created, except that He also has created its treatment.”
Sahih al-Bukhari 5678
Regulate the nafs
Nourish the body
Blood movement
Rizq movement
Qur’an
Ruqya
Attitude
Sleep
Movement
Connection with nature
Ghusl and wudu
Salah
Fasting
People Allah transformed into Pigs
قُل هَل أُنَبِّئُكُم بِشَرٍّ مِن ذٰلِكَ مَثوبَةً عِندَ اللَّهِ ۚ مَن لَعَنَهُ اللَّهُ وَغَضِبَ عَلَيهِ وَجَعَلَ مِنهُمُ القِرَدَةَ وَالخَنازيرَ وَعَبَدَ الطّاغوتَ ۚ أُولٰئِكَ شَرٌّ مَكانًا وَأَضَلُّ عَن سَواءِ السَّبيلِ
Say: ‘Shall I tell you of a reward with Allah far worse than that: that of those whom Allah has cursed and with whom He is angry – turning some of them into monkeys and into pigs – and who worshipped false gods? Such people are in a worse situation and further from the right way.’
[5:60]
A person said: Allah’s Messenger, what about those apes and swine which suffered metamorphosis?
. قَالَ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ الْقِرَدَةُ وَالْخَنَازِيرُ هِيَ مِمَّا مُسِخَ فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لَمْ يُهْلِكْ قَوْمًا أَوْ يُعَذِّبْ قَوْمًا فَيَجْعَلَ لَهُمْ نَسْلاً وَإِنَّ الْقِرَدَةَ وَالْخَنَازِيرَ كَانُوا قَبْلَ ذَلِكَ ” .
Thereupon Allah’s Apostle (ﷺ) said: Verily, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, did not destroy a people or did not torment a people, and let their race grow. Apes and swine had been even before that (when the deniers of truth were tormented and suffered metamorphosis).
Sahih Muslim 2663d