Question
Getting Rid of Bad Habits If a Muslim youth is indulged in bad activities such as masturbation, but he knows that it is wrong by every aspect. What should he do in order to be a pure muslim, im not referring to the way of islamic bath, please tell me how he should get rid of this habit? How should he control himself and purify his mental state. This is a common problem of the teenagers which they feel shy, asking about.
Jazakallah
Answer
To get rid of a bad habit (what ever it might be) needs lots of strength and determination. However when the intention is to please Allah, all this with His help and support will become quite easy and every effort in getting rid of a bad habit for the sake of Allah, Insha’Allah, deserves reward.
Accordingly a list of possible measures that can be taken to help with this follows:
-
Thinking about one’s Creator, the fact that our ultimate goal is to please Him and that this can only done when one purifies oneself as much as one can. Appreciating that although Allah is forgiving, it will take years to rectify the bad effect of a bad habit with good habits, in our heart.
-
Establishment of the concept of Haya in one’s life.
-
Putting the intention of leaving the bad habit, for Allah only
-
Praying to Allah, informally talking to Him, expressing intention to avoid the bad habit and asking help from Him
-
Understanding the concept of Taqwa and acquiring it. From a practical point of view Taqwa means not only avoiding sin but also avoiding situations that might lead to sin. Accordingly avoiding places, friends, audio-visual material and any other things that might lead to sin.
-
Promising oneself that one is not going to do the bad habit any more
-
Determining a reasonable punishment if one breaks one’s promise. The punishment of course should not be against Islamic values but it has to be something that one sees as difficult. An example might be one week fasting or voluntary help in a mosque, etc.
-
Reading the Qur’an regularly
-
Making sure daily prayers are offered on-time
-
Offering non-obligatory prayers
-
Fasting
-
Physical exercising.
Aside form all the above, a successful marriage (as early as possible as long as the two sides are ready and capable) is one of the best cures for the bad habit you mentioned.
Abdullah Rahim
April 25, 2005