When one thinks of hearts, the image of softness, comfort and all positive caring images are brought to life, for the heart is the seat of emotion. There is also a darker image of broken hearts that is conjured up, but iron hearts? One would rarely, if never contemplate such a thing, for hearts are not made of iron. One thinks of an iron fist in relation to power, firmness, and assertiveness, but not an iron heart. Yet if we look around us today it would appear that many hearts have hardened, many have lost touch with feelings, as crimes and criminals are on the rise. Our hearts no longer absorb the numerous reminders, no longer soar with joy and fear when reciting the Holy Qur'an. Nor are we moved by the repeated images of sorrow, despair, and destruction that we have become accustomed to seeing every day. Our hearts have turned to stone, but even the hardest of stone cracks when water seeps through. Likewise, even a hard heart can be affected by the remembrance of Allah and by the Qur'an. {If We had sent down this Qur'an upon a mountain, you would have seen it humbled and coming apart from fear of Allah. And these examples We present to the people that perhaps they will give thought.} (Chapter 59, verse 21) Without fail, this verse always succeeds in stirring emotions. We need to reflect upon this. If mountains; the pegs of the earth, firm, unmovable rock, can become dust and crumble to rubble due to the impact and weight of the Qur'an, what about our hearts? Will they humble to the verses of the Qur'an or have our hearts become as hard as iron? We have locked away our own hearts, shut them off from the reminders, and prevented the light from penetrating their depths. This reminds me of another verse, in which Allah says, {Then, do they not reflect upon the Qur'an, or are there locks upon [their] hearts?} (Chapter 47, verse 24) This rhetorical question should open up our eyes and awaken our hearts. Allah poses this question to us for us to ponder. Perhaps we have chosen to shut off our hearts, and we ourselves have sealed them by our own actions. Our hearts are sealed and remain unaffected, tainted with the rust of sins. If only we could clean away those dark spots to open our hearts to ponder upon the words of Our Creator. If we did allow the light of the Qur'an to enter our hearts, it would bring us unbound joy, solace, comfort, peace, and faith. Abu Hurairah narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, "Verily, when the slave (of Allah) commits a sin, a black spot appears on his heart. When he refrains from it, seeks forgiveness and repents, his heart is polished clean. But if he returns, it increases until it covers his entire heart. And that is the ‘Raan' which Allah mentioned in the Holy Qur'an, {Nay, but on their hearts is the Raan which they used to earn.}" (At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah) When one commits sins, it leaves a mark on the heart. With repetition of the sin and not seeking forgiveness, the mark gets larger and darker. The heart gets stained by sin, and if the sin increases, the stain grows bigger until it becomes Raan; this is a dark covering on the heart due to sin and evil deeds. It becomes like a seal, the heart becomes covered and sealed. By repentance, turning to Allah, refraining from the sin, and following the bad action with a good one, we can gradually cleanse the stains of sins from our hearts, and purify our hearts inside and out. Then, our hearts will be more receptive of the positive influence that the Holy Qur'an can have on our hearts and minds, and in turn we can experience empathy and caring for those around us.
