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The self-reproaching soul (nafs lawwama)

النفس اللوامة

Sha'rawi holds that the human soul contains a faith-cell which wakes after heedlessness and reproaches its owner for a fault, bringing him back to the law. This is the self-reproaching soul. If that reproach is absent, the soul commands evil, and the surrounding community becomes the place where a person is turned back by the good cells within it 123.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Prophetic Era
Region
Global / Diaspora
Review
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Ethics and character

Summary

Sha'rawi speaks of three states of the soul in the context of God's law and people's drift from it: the self-reproaching soul, the soul that commands evil, and the community that turns a person back to what is right 1.

The self-reproaching soul

Sha'rawi says a person may be heedless of one part of the law and commit a wrong. His soul then wakes and reproaches him for leaving it, and he returns in repentance and seeks forgiveness. He explains this by a "faith-cell" in the soul that alerts its owner 12.

The soul that commands evil

When the self-reproaching soul does not do its work, the soul commands evil and inclines toward deviation. Around each soul there are other forces from the environment and society that try to set the crooked straight. If the community includes someone who guides a person to what is right, the drift does not close in on him 2.

General corruption

Sha'rawi asks what happens if all members of a society have come to command evil. His answer is that darkness then spreads, and God sends a messenger to rekindle the light of faith. He notes that God has promised the community of Muhammad that no prophet will come after him, so good remains in it through the self-reproaching soul and a believing community together 23.

Note on this entry

This is Sha'rawi's reading alone, taken from a scanned copy whose edition is not yet verified, and it is presented under his name. No reference from Islamic psychology or from works of asceticism and Sufism has yet been added for this division (needs_source). See also The covenant of the prophets and Guidance.

People and things also explored

Ada' al-dayn (paying a debt: its ruling, the manner of payment, insolvency and the debts of the dead)· Ada' al-shahada (performing testimony: the duty on request, the excused witness, and the wording)· Manners of the Qur'an bearer· Biting and the liability for injury it causes (add)· Adha (harm of a slight kind: removing harmful things and the duty not to harm)· Justice and grace (adl wal-fadl)· Pardon (afw) in purity, worship, contracts and penalties· Covenant (ahd) and the duty to keep it; oath by the covenant of God

Sources

  1. Sha'rawi's Khawatir around the Holy Quran, volume one (scan copy) , p.1525
  2. Sha'rawi's Khawatir around the Holy Quran, volume one (scan copy) , p.1526
  3. Sha'rawi's Khawatir around the Holy Quran, volume one (scan copy) , p.1567
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The self-reproaching soul (nafs lawwama)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/nafs-lawwama/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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Wing

People

Prophets, companions, scholars, rulers, scientists, poets, travelers: women and men who shaped the story. Related

Ada' al-dayn (paying a debt: its ruling, the manner of payment, insolvency and the debts of the dead)

Paying a debt in the form owed is obligatory by consensus. A debt due now must be paid on demand when the debtor can pay; a deferred debt is not due before its term. Payment is made in like items, with value owed where there is no like; a better payment is allowed when unconditioned. Remission, gift, assignment, set-off and settlement take the place of payment. A solvent debtor who refuses is compelled, imprisoned and his apparent property sold; the majority hold that a bankrupt is put under interdiction and his property divided among creditors, against Abu Hanifa. The insolvent is given respite, and his debt may be paid from zakat if he borrowed for himself in a lawful matter. A dead person's debt attaches to his estate and takes precedence over bequests and inheritance.