Terjemah Kitab Belenggu Nafsu

Discusses how to control lust and anxiety

The translation of the book Shackles of Lust, among its contents, discusses how to fight lust

My brother, who is blessed by Allah SWT, this life is a struggle against lust (Satan). Sometimes we win and sometimes we lose against our satanic desires. Imam Ghazali said there are three forms of human resistance to lust.

The first is muthmainnah lust (calm lust), namely when faith wins over lust, so that human actions are more good than bad. Second, lawwamah lust (lust that is restless and regrets itself), namely when faith sometimes wins and sometimes loses against lust, so that the human being's good deeds are relatively balanced with his bad deeds.

The third is lust la'ammaratu bissu' (lust that leads to evil), namely when faith is inferior to lust, so that humans do more bad than good. Think about it, which one are you? If I think well of you, then I think you still belong to the first group, namely muthmainnah lust. Indeed, one of the characteristics of a person who is involved in muthmainnah lust is that he is immediately aware and anxious about his bad actions. Even though he committed a small bad deed, he considered it a big one, so he was always careful in his steps. In my opinion, you need to be grateful to Allah SWT because you have a 'high sensitivity' to sinful acts. And this is the characteristic of pious people.

So my advice is that we should immediately abandon actions that Allah hates before we go far. Because if it becomes a habit it will be difficult to get rid of it. Meanwhile, to control your lust, you should take the following steps:

1. Do a lot of worship, especially sunnah worship (dhuha prayers, tahajjud, reading the Qur'an, etc.). Because food with a clean heart is worship.

2. Ask Allah seriously (pray) so that your desire will become stronger to leave bad things behind.

3. Believe in the great rewards that Allah will give to people who are able to control their desires. "Say: "Shall I tell you what is better than that (following one's desires)?" For those who fear (Allah), with their Lord there is a paradise beneath which rivers flow; they remain in it. And (they were blessed with) purified wives and the pleasure of Allah. And Allah is All-Seeing of His servants" (QS. Ali 'Imron yat. 15). Strengthen this belief by doing lots of dhikr (remembering Allah) and worshiping Him. Don't just rely on obligatory worship to control your desires, add sunnah worship, such as fasting Monday-Thursday, tahajjud prayers, recitations of the Qur'an, midday prayers, and so on.

4. Protect our five senses from the influence of lust (lust). Guard our eyes from seeing immoral things, guard our ears from dirty talk, guard our mouths from speaking obscene words, and guard our hands and feet from touching or stepping into immoral things. 5. Guard our minds by always thinking positively and productively which will be obtained from lots of positive reading and also avoid environments that arouse our desires.

Friends who always think and say dirty things also need to be avoided so that our desires can be maintained. Therefore, I advise the questioner to break off relations with your girlfriend. Even though you have promised him, think about the pros and cons. If you stay with him it will be difficult for you (and him) to avoid the temptation of lust. It's even possible that you will fall deeper into further acts of adultery. This is more detrimental to yourself and your partner than breaking off the relationship and walking away from him.