Wisdom and Sentimentalism

One of the greatest factors which can blur one’s wisdom is sentimentalism. This is a quite harmful state of mind which is inimical to the proper functioning of human reason.

Indeed sentimentalism is an explicit danger to reason. It exercises control over the faculty of reason to the point of negative sensible judgments. Under the sway of emotions, a sentimental person can easily engage in unwise and imprudent deeds. A believer, on the other hand, always keeps his emotions under the command of reasoning.

The concept of love, for instance, may have two separate dimensions; it may be either emotional or rational. The sentimental person feels a profound attachment for people or objects who truly do not deserve affection. As is prevalent in many cultures - especially the eastern cultures- a deep devotion is demonstrated to those who pay no respect to one’s devotion or who give pain in return for sincere love.

On the contrary, the love of a believer is always based on solid grounds. In the object of his love he primarily identifies the existence of “attributes of faith” or “attributes of a believer” as defined in  the Qur’an. A believer never shows affection to anyone who is unworthy of being loved.
Allah in many verses, attracts our attention to the dangers exposed inherent in sentimental love:

The above words of Allah explain the grounds for it being irrational to feel love for unbelievers. Such an attitude can be explained only by sentimentalism.

Many other verses in the Qur’an advise giving careful consideration to the dangers of feeling love for unbelievers. The story of Prophet Noah sets an example for this subject; Noah asked for forgiveness of Allah for his son who did not worship Him and prayed that he be saved from the flood. Allah told Noah that his son was also among the unbelievers and that he (Noah) should not offer him his love:

The message of the verse is apparent: Even if the immediate family members are in question, the believers do not feel an attachment for unbelievers. It is only wise to love people who really deserve love. Moreover, a believer never develops a feeling deep in his heart for someone who goes astray.

The wives of Noah and Lut were also among the unbelievers who deserved to be severely penalized by Allah. The people of Lut went astray and, hence, they were utterly destroyed. Just before the destruction, the angels came to Lut telling him to abandon the city and to leave his wife behind. Without a moment’s hesitation, Lut obeyed the command:

Lut had fully obeyed the command of Allah. This is exactly the type of behaviour that one can expect from a believer. Having a sentimental attachment for those who disobey the judgement of Allah is not an attribute that one can see among believers:

The essence of this attitude, so purified of emotion, is no doubt the understanding of love which is peculiar only to believers. Allah informs us about the different concepts of love held by believers and unbelievers in the following verse:

As Allah states in the verse, believers truly love  Allah. The affection they feel for people is merely a reflection of their love for Allah. They love only believers,because  believers are those people “who truly adopt the moral framework the Qur’an presents man with.” Unbelievers, on the other hand, live according to their whims and desires. In this sense, they follow the path of Satan. Hence, it is impossible for believers to feel close to them. Unbelievers, on the other hand, are inclined to have affection for people or objects individually. They assume everything to have an existence independent of Allah. In the Qur’an, this is called “associating partners with Allah”, or in other words, paganism.

In the Qur’an, non-emotive behaviours demonstrated by believers is not limited only to love. There are many other rational kinds of behaviours recounted in the Qur’an. The following are all examples to such kinds of behaviours ; the mother of Moses left her baby floating in the river without any hesitation when she received inspiration from Allah (Al-Qasas, 7); the believers restrain their anger and pardon men (Al-E-Imran, 134); and do not despair over matters that pass them by (Al-Hadid, 23); and spend from what they most dearly love.(Al-Imran, 92).

However, one point needs further clarification here: not being sentimental does not in any way mean being insensitive. On the contrary, believers are tender-hearted people. The attributes of the Prophet Abraham are related in the Qur’an: “Abraham was most tender-hearted, and forbearing.” (At-Tawba, 114). What is criticized about sentimentalism here is its negative aspect prevalent in the culture of an ignorant society. In a sentimental way of thinking, emotions completely cloud the faculty of judgment and make one develop unsound reasoning contrary to the principles of the Qur’an. In this culture, not the spirit but the negative side of the soul stirs up these emotions.

In a community, various examples of such an attitude can be observed: sentimentalism displayed by young girls is a typical example. Being under the influence of emotions, a young girl loves the image of a man rather than his character and spirit. This is no doubt due to the mentality indoctrinated in her by the society. However, lessons drawn from experience lead eventually to wisdom. Mostly after spending only a short time with him, the young girl realizes the negative, or inhumane side of the man she loves.