Shaytan's whispers - how they differ when I'm sinning vs when I'm remembering Allah
Assalamualaikum, Waswasa (hope I'm using that right - tell me if not) - the little whispers of Shaytan - have been a struggle for me for as long as I can remember. It feels like he's constantly trying to nudge me away from Allah in whatever way he thinks will work. Sometimes the thoughts are so dumb I literally roll my eyes and think, “is he really that desperate?” Since I've been trying to get back to my deen and fill my time with more worship and dhikr, I noticed the nature of those whispers has shifted. Back when I was living more carelessly (Astagfirullah), the waswasa would push me straight toward sinful things. For example, at gatherings where people were drinking, I’d get thoughts like “just have one” or “come on, don’t be boring, have another.” Those suggestions were clearly trying to pull me into sin. Now that I try to spend my time productively and remember Allah more, the whispers look different. The other day I was reading the Qur'an and kept getting this urge to stop and call my parents to catch up instead. It struck me - even something good like checking in on family can be used to distract me from dhikr and the Qur'an. Another one: when I want to pray the two sunnah rak‘ahs before Fajr, a thought will pop up like “just go pray the fard and skip the sunnah.” Alhamdulillah, it does seem easier to avoid major sins when we keep Allah in our hearts, but Shaytan still tries to derail us - sometimes by tempting us into bad deeds, and sometimes by distracting us with things that aren’t sinful but take us away from worship. May Allah keep us steadfast and help us recognize and resist those whispers. Ameen.