Traps of Shaitaan

Hazrat Sayyiduna Wahb bin Munabih (R.A) narrates in Tambi-ul-Ghaafileen; that once a pious man was travelling when, on the way, a stone plateau fell from the top, close to his head. He started the Zikr of Allah (S.W.T) and it moved away from him. Scary beasts and lions then started to appear in front of him, but he did not panic and continued with the Zikr of Allah (S.W.T).

When the pious man started his Salah, a snake wrapped itself around his foot, and crawled over his body, so much so that it reached his head. When the pious man intended to prostrate, the snake would wrap itself around his face. When he would bow his head to prostrate, the snake would open its mouth as if to bite his forehead, but the pious man would remove him and successfully prostrate.

When he finished praying, Shaitaan openly came in front of him and said, “I was the one who was doing all this. You have a lot of courage. I'm quite impressed by you. Therefore, I have decided that I won't ever whisper (my) evil to you. Please be my friend.” The pious man refuted this attack of Shaitaan also and said, “You tried to scare me but Alhamdu-Lillah, I didn't get scared. I will never be your friend.”

Shaitaan said, “Okay, ask me the states of your family after you and what will they go through.” The pious man said, “I do not need to ask you.” Shaitaan then said, “At least ask me how I deceive people.” The man said, “Yes, tell me that.” Shaitaan said, “I have three traps: (1.) Love of Money, (2.) Anger and (3.) Intoxication.”

Explaining all three of these, he said, “When I cast the net of Love of Money on someone, he gets stuck in the web of wealth. I keep reminding him that you have very little money, this way he gets engrossed in the love of money and even refrains from spending on obligatory matters and even gets attracted to other people’s money and this way he gets entrapped in the love of money and falls into sin”.

“When someone falls in my trap of Anger, I play with him and toss him around in my group of Shaitaans in the same way that children play with a ball. An angry person, regardless of his high status or knowledge, even if he can resurrect the dead with his prayers, I’m never upset with him. I always hope that someday he might lose control in a burst of anger and say something that will destroy his hereafter”.

“As for Intoxication, the person who falls in this trap (the alcoholic or drug addict), I take him by the ear towards evil the way a shepherd takes a sheep.”

O Believers! Enter into Islam as a whole and never follow the footsteps of the Shaitaan (Devil). Surely he is your open enemy.(Holy Quran 2:208)