Ali 'Imran 14: Mankind has an affinity towards (worldly) desires, women, sons, stacked gold and silver, branded horses, cattle and tilth. These are the temporary benefits of worldly life. Certainly, the good place to return is with Allah.

Surah Al-Imran, the 14th verse: toward the desires of the self, especially toward women, sons, heaped-up gold and silver, branded horses, livestock and crops. Toward crops. here there is a wrong rendering now. (?) up to here it is right; here there is a wrong rendering. What does it say? It says: fondness for them was made attractive to people.

What was it?

Toward livestock and crops, toward fondness was made attractive to people. Whereas that is not the meaning of the verse. People are drawn to and fond of livestock and crops. If people themselves if all of Allah's word were like this, I mean, rendered wrongly as here, I mean these, well, fondness was made attractive to people. Then you would say: You made it attractive to me, what do You want from me? to Allah Almighty. To these animals, within the feelings of the self, to such material things, to gold: You made me drawn to them, my Lord; since You created it this way, could I have resisted it? I could say that here.

This is wrong. What is right? The right one is: people are drawn to and fond of livestock and crops. Of wealth, property, well, things like that. These are the passing benefits of the life of this world, it says. Now Allah Almighty made it attractive like this, and also says these are the passing benefits of the life of this world. You made this fine, and the passing life fine as well. So should I do what You said there, or what You said here? But if this state in a person's own self is fond of it, then by the decision a person gives in his own being, its reward and its sin. Now we read the verse correctly.

To the desires of the self, especially women, sons, heaped-up gold and silver, branded horses, livestock and crops, people are drawn and fond. These are the passing benefits of the life of this world. Whereas the good place to return to is with Allah. This is the correct verse. Yes. Allah

Almighty tells people what things the self delights in. What the self delights in. Because Allah created the self. Spirit, self and life are (?) separate. In this case the self, which moves and changes place, which mates and reproduces, which has desire and want,

which, to fulfil all worldly desires, pushes every kind of person with feelings of the self to take it, carving everything for itself; that is how it was created.

If you reform it, with your reason, your faith, if you reform it, you will have turned toward your Lord's commands. If you cannot reform it, the self will never move on your Lord's path. It makes you drink, makes you gamble, makes you commit adultery, makes you indulge in (?). the self's rebellion against all the verses you will see in your own self. And once Satan gives such people a (?), may Allah keep them safe.

Yes.

Because the self, Allah created the self. And He declares to people what it delights in. O people! The self delights especially in women, children, well-fed horses, gold and silver, crops. These are what people desire, the feelings of the self to own them. Allah Almighty's purpose in creating the self like this: man comes into the world and, being busy with the life of the world, will work, desire, assert himself, possess, so that he becomes attached to life. So that life becomes colourful for him. Yes. People without these desires become like a vegetative life, content with their state. In this respect, Allah Almighty, through the colouring of human life and through longing for created things and being occupied with them, will also bring about reward and sin.

So Allah Almighty addresses people: O people! Against these desires of your self, We have shown you how to act, the ways. With what? With the rulings of the Sharia.

Yes. We sent prophets and books so that you do not follow the desires of this self. Because the self always wants to take, without asking halal or haram. But We advised you to mind halal and haram, to respect people's rights and claims, and to turn to taqwa. Now, for the passing benefits of this world, will you leave Allah's path and chase the desires of your self? The world is a guesthouse that people and creatures pass through. For the short time in this guesthouse, will you be carried away by its charm and forget Allah? Whereas the good place to return to is with Allah. Surely, in the hereafter, which admits no doubt, all living beings will be gathered before Allah Almighty.

There, whoever did good deeds in this worldly guesthouse will receive from Allah a fine reward as recompense. And whoever traded their hereafter for the life of this world will be punished. As human beings, people may be deceived by the blessings of this world. People are those who, seeing the shortcomings of what they did, should return to Allah Almighty. Let them repent. Allah always wills that people return. Allah wills no injustice to any of His creatures. People, created in the finest form; Allah, who created people in the finest form, for people returning to their Lord, has prepared for them paradise, and also spouses whom neither (?) nor human has seen.

Yes.

In His verses, in many places, Allah Almighty says: who is as faithful to his word as Allah is? He says. So listen to Allah's word; paradise and houris aside, turn to taqwa, be a servant of Allah, escape Allah's punishment, so that you will have deserved what Allah has promised.