The Abode of Those Who Do Not Follow Their Conscience

We have stated that there is a conviction prevalent in society that following the conscience will harm one's interests. Those who believe this think that by not following their conscience, they can satisfy their wishes and desires, guard their interests, and thus profit. This is one of their biggest misconceptions, as they in fact lose both the world and the hereafter because of this perverted belief.

Conscience is under the command of Allah and is totally out of man's control. Whatever decision a person may make, his conscience never leaves him and always tells him the truth. Hearing the truth on the one hand, and not following it on the other, causes a great 'twinge of conscience'. This 'twinge of conscience' is not like any other form of distress. It is a distress Allah has given people in return for what they have done and also as an opportunity to correct their mistakes. In the Qur'an, Allah mentions the three men who suffered because they did not follow their conscience. Their worldly concerns prevented them from accompanying the Muslims on a campaign. They deeply regretted their negligence, could hardly endure the distress, and subsequently repented with all sincerity.

In the Qur'an, one of those whose twinge of conscience has been quoted as an example is Prophet Yunus (AS), a praised messenger of Allah. Prophet Yunus left his people when they did not listen to him. A while later, after suffering great distress, he understood that it was wrong to have abandoned them; he felt great remorse and repented to his Lord. Allah accepted his repentance and sent him to a new community as messenger. This is described in different verses of the Qur'an:

It should be stated that both of the examples above are about believers who repented because of the twinge of their conscience, and were saved. These examples show us that in order for a man to find peace, it is imperative that he follow his conscience and turn to Allah in repentance when he makes a mistake. Those who do the opposite will be full of grief and anxiety throughout their lives.

Nevertheless, there are many who, despite the twinge of conscience they feel, carry on their resistance against righteousness. They try to silence the voice inside them by deferring, putting forward excuses or 'talking themselves round'. In the Qur'an, Allah describes the inner distress and spiritual void felt by those who do not follow their conscience, and whose hearts are insensitive to Islam:

In addition to this inner distress, their souls can never be satisfied. Even if they acquire the greatest benefit they can have in worldly terms, they are not satisfied with it. They always feel incomplete and unfulfilled. For Allah has created man's soul in such a way as to be satisfied only by following his conscience and earning the good pleasure of Allah. A verse reads:

In the same way that a conscientious person is always surrounded by conscientious people, an evil person is condemned to be surrounded by evil people, following in the footsteps of the shaytan. Those who do not practise the truth despite their knowledge of it, who are averse to making sacrifices, who act unjustly, who envy, who ridicule others, who are arrogant and who practise all kinds of similar bad habits will receive the same treatment in return. Such behaviour creates an atmosphere of great restlessness in everyone. People cannot know what treatment to expect from one another. There cannot be real friendships, loyalty or understanding, and self-sacrifice is never displayed.

Thus, they live in an atmosphere of hell both physically and spiritually. Sometimes they cannot even understand the reason for the distress they are in. As a penalty from Allah for not following their conscience, they live an unsatisfactory, restless and displeasing life. This is only the grief they suffer in this world. The eternal grief they may meet in the hereafter will be too horrible and dreadful to be compared to the one in this world. The recompense that will be given to those who act out wickedness in the world is stated as follows in the Qur'an:

Just as conscientious people prepare their places in paradise, so do wicked people prepare their places in hell, but they are unaware of it: