Satan's Ultimate Agenda for Humanity

Shame in Arabic is the word hayah which interestingly also means life. The most natural state of humans is to have shame or to be alive is to have shame. So really, if one does not have shame, they are not even fully alive. The subject of shame or bashfulness is mentioned a few times in the Qur'an. It’s opposite shamelessness or fahshaa on the other hand is a bigger subject in the Qur'an and mentioned in numerous places. 

You'll learn in schools especially in anthropology that naturally or originally human beings were animals. Animals obviously don't have clothing and animals therefore don't have shame. So according to this logic, originally when we were 'evolving' we did not have shame. Some may say we were taught shame culturally and that society imposed clothing on us. It is not the natural state of human beings to be fully clothed. Hence, those who dwell in nudist colonies see it as trying to 'get in touch with nature.'

In fact even the Quraysh of Arabia in pre-Islamic times, when they used to make tawaaf around the Ka'bah would say that clothing is unnatural. They would say Allah should be worshiped in the natural state and this was their logic behind doing tawaaf of the Ka'bah naked. They believed clothing was an impurity as it is man-made, it is contaminated with sin. The Qur'an's perspective is that our natural state is to be clothed and to have shame. That's the starting point of humanity from the very beginning as will be analysed in the creation of Adam and Eve.

A common misconception in Islam is that when the topic of shame or hayah is mentioned, many people think it is to do with women's clothing. In fact, 16 years had passed after the first revelation the Prophet pbuh received and then the verse of women's clothing was revealed. But fahshaa or shamelessness was talked about in the Qur'an before this.

The story of Adam is the best place to learn about shame. It begins by Allah saying:

And We have certainly established you upon the earth and made for you therein ways of livelihood. Little are you grateful. [7.10]

Adam and Eve were sent to the Earth not as a punishment as believed by some, but Allah settled them with a means of a good life here. Allah says in the ayat he gave them all kinds of means to live and enjoin in a good life here. There are glimpses of Jannah on this earth. Enjoyment comes when you get what you desire. When cravings are fulfilled then life is enjoyable. Allah reminds he has given us the means to fulfill our cravings and temptations yet we are still ungrateful. The story moves on and Allah says:

And We have certainly created you, [O Mankind], and given you [human] form. Then We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam"; so they prostrated, except for Iblees. He was not of those who prostrated. [ Allah ] said, "What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?" [Satan] said, "I am better than him. You created me from fire and created him from clay."[7, 11-12]

From the above we can clearly see that even Satan believes and knows Allah created him. His disbelief is his disobedience. Again I repeat, his disbelief is his disobedience. Satan doesn't need to get us to disbelieve to drag us with him into the hell-fire, that's not his purpose, he wants to get us to disobey Allah. And Allah responded to Satan and said 

Descend from Paradise, for it is not for you to be arrogant therein. So get out; indeed, you are of the debased.[7,13] 

When you disobey Allah, you think you're greater than Allah. Then Allah casts out Satan. Satan asks Allah to give him time until Judgement Day and Allah gives it to him. Satan got into trouble with Allah because of us humans and now he wants to get back at us. He knows he's doomed to Hell and wants to drag as many humans down with him because he thinks we are the reason he had been humiliated in front of Allah. He wants to prove to Allah that humans weren't worthy of his prostration. Satan's plan is one of revenge. So he waits in ambush and whispers at the right moment in order to trap us into his evil plan. 

[Satan] said, "Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path. Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful [to You]."[7.14-15] 

His plan is to get to us in any way, when we are in good company or bad company he will continue to whisper and trap us. Thus, Allah says earlier in the ayahs, Allah has made the earth a place of livelihood, a place with a means of good living. All food and drink is permissible on this earth, with a few obvious exceptions [flesh of swine, dead meat, non-zabiha meat, alcohol etc]. Satan's plan is to lead the people away from all those that have been made halal for us on this earth and go after that which is haram in order to disobey our Lord, just to prove to Allah that we are ungrateful and we are not worthy of the status given to us humans by Allah. 

[Allah] said, "Get out of Paradise, reproached and expelled. Whoever follows you among them - I will surely fill Hell with you, all together."[7.16] 

This is a warning as Allah addresses us by saying he will fill Hell with you as in us!

"And "O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat from wherever you will but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers."[7.17]

Satan felt humiliated. He wants to take revenge against humanity. He wants to get human beings humiliated. Satan did not need to be inside jannah to be heard, his waswasa (whispering) could be heard from inside of jannah. Satan whispered to them over and over again. 

"But Satan whispered to them to make apparent to them that which was concealed from them of their private parts. He said, "Your Lord did not forbid you this tree except that you become angels or become of the immortal."[7.18]

Satan whispered to both Adam and Eve. Allah tells us what Satan's ultimate agenda was. It wasn't that Satan wanted to make them eat from the forbidden tree, he wanted to make them expose to each other that which was covered of their private parts. In order words, his ultimate agenda was to have their clothes removed! Satan knew one of the consequences punishments of disobedience to Allah was humiliation. Because the first gift of jannah is the clothes of jannah, clothes will be removed, ugliness exposed and ultimate humiliation for human beings. 

Satan's ultimate agenda for humanity is to have us remove our clothes. That is our humiliation. 

[This post is a snippet from Nouman Ali Khan's Thematic Series on Bayyinah TV on Shame]