A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah.
A mindset preoccupied with the base aspects of worldly life.
This is a mindset that traps its possessor in trivialities and petty matters,
far removed from noble pursuits.
Such as an obsession with the fleeting pleasures of this world, including wealth, status, and women.
Indeed, for those who hold this mindset, it may even escalate
to the pursuit of forbidden desires and the means to attain them.
How vast is the difference between one whose thoughts are fixed on noble matters,
such as the affairs of the Hereafter and preparing for it through righteous deeds,
or the affairs of the religion and calling others to Allah—Mighty and Majestic is He—
or striving in the path of Allah and supporting the religion and its people,
and one whose thoughts hover around base desires, false hopes,
and corrupt notions.
Regarding this, Ibn al-Qayyim—may Allah have mercy upon him—speaks.
This is the meaning behind the saying of some of the salaf:
"Hearts are constantly roaming."
There is a heart that circles around filth,
and a heart that circles with the angels around the Throne.
The greatest torment for the soul
is its immersion and defilement in base deeds,
its constant preoccupation with worldly pleasures,
and its detachment from the purpose for which it was created and prepared.