Characteristics of a Hypocrite – Have you ever told someone a secret that you thought was private enough because that person promised not to tell your secret to other friends? However, when you feel safe telling that person your secret, you are suddenly surprised because your secret was leaked because the person you told apparently didn’t keep his promise to you.
Sometimes we misjudge people because that person’s good attitude is shown to us. However, no one knows what he looks like in our absence. This does not mean that we have to suspect everyone around us. Sorting out friends is not an easy matter, but as intelligent human beings we are given thoughts and feelings so that we can judge good and bad friends.
A healthy circle of friends in the inner circle is indeed very important because it influences our attitudes and behavior in the future. In addition, many healthy environments filled with good people bring lots of luck and fortune. On the other hand, if the inner-circle is not healthy, sometimes it will bring bad things.
Therefore, it is very important to be able to sort out friendships because good people will bring good things. To be able to avoid bad people like hypocrites, you need to know their characteristics so that when you encounter similar things in real life you can avoid people with these characteristics, you can even prevent yourself from falling into bad traits. just as bad.
Definition of a Hypocrite
Munāfiq or Munafik (noun, from Arabic: منافق, plural munāfiqūn ) is the terminology in Islam to refer to those who pretend to follow the teachings of Islam, but in fact their hearts deny them.
In the Qur’an this terminology refers to those who do not believe, but pretend to do.
“ When the hypocrites come to you, they say: ‘We admit that you are truly Allah’s Apostle’, and Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger; and Allah knows that the hypocrites are really liars. They took their oath as a shield, then they hindered (people) from the path of Allah. Indeed, it is very bad what they have done. That is because they actually believed, then became disbelievers (again) then their hearts were sealed; therefore they cannot understand.” (Surah Al-Munafiqun 63:1-3).
In Islam, hypocrisy is a disgraceful trait which if done will get a big sin. Not only Islam, any religious background does not justify this despicable nature. Hypocrisy is a trait that always says not according to reality. This behavior is disgraceful because it likes to lie, betray, and break promises. These properties should be avoided because it is a liver disease. It is said to be a disease because once doing this behavior can cause someone to do other bad behavior.
Its presence that controls the hearts and minds of humans can make it difficult to let go of hypocrisy. Therefore, it is important for us to understand the deviant qualities that are included in hypocrisy so that we ourselves and others around us are not negatively affected.
If you look at it in terms of terms, this word hypocrite refers to the definition of someone who says good in front of people, but his heart doesn’t match what he conveys. The definition of hypocrite according to KBBI (Big Indonesian Dictionary) is pretending to believe and be loyal, be it to religion or other things, but in his heart does not reflect that. Someone who is infected with a spiritual disease will be seen from his actions and actions that are not in line.
Characteristics of a Hypocrite
In the Al-Qur’an and Hadith, many characteristics of hypocrites are mentioned. Following are these characteristics:
1. Characteristics of a Hypocrite According to the Qur’an
- A very strong preference for things related to lust [Al-Ahzab: 32].
- Tend to deviate from things that are doubtful [Al-Hajj: 53].
- Bad thought of Allah [Al-Fath: 6].
- Sitting around with people who like to make fun of Allah’s verses [An-Nisa’: 140].
- Make fun of Allah’s verses [At-Taubah: 64-65].
- Hiding behind some of the prescribed actions with the aim of inflicting harm on the believers, breaking up the unity of the believers, carrying out evil conspiracies, igniting the fires of slander, exploiting disputes, expanding the reach of disputes, and doing damage to the earth. At-Taubah: 107].
- His heart hurts [Al-Baqarah: 10].
- Claiming himself to do repairs [Al-Baqarah: 11-12].
- Stupid [Al-Baqarah: 13].
- Accusing the believers of being fools [Al-Baqarah: 13].
- Being very harsh in disputes, but sometimes under certain circumstances accompanied by beautiful words [Al-Baqarah: 204].
- Not returning to the truth and being fanatical [Al-Baqarah: 206].
- Make a deal with the people of the book to fight the believers [Al-Hashr: 11].
- Running against the enemy during the war [Al-Hashr: 12].
- His heart is closed and unable to understand the truth [Muhammad: 16].
- Slandering humans [Al-Hadid 12 and 14].
- Punish thaghut [An-Nisa: 60].
- Very strong in blocking God’s law and not willing to judge God’s law [An-Nisa’: 61].
- Trust the disbelievers [An-Nisa’: 138-139].
- Waiting to see the condition of the believers [An-Nisa: 141].
- Deceiving Allah [An-Nisa’: 142].
- Lazy in praying [An-Nisa’: 142].
- Riya’ [An-Nisa’: 142].
- Do a little remembrance [An-Nisa’: 142].
- Tossed and turned between the believers and the unbelievers [An-Nisa’: 143].
- Deceiving the believers [Al-Baqarah: 9].
- Causing damage among the believers [At-Taubah: 47].
- False oath, cowardice, and coward [At-Taubah: 56].
- Hate Muslims and get out of their territory [At-Taubah: 57].
- Fear appears in them when war is mentioned in the verses of Allah [Muhammad: 20].
- Reproaching good deeds [At-Taubah: 58].
- Willing and hate because of self-interest [At-Taubah: 58].
- Insulting the little deeds of the believers and there is nothing that can make them happy [At Taubah: 79].
- Rida with the most despicable position [At-Taubah: 86-87].
- Commanded against evil [At-Taubah: 67].
- Forbidding things that are good [At-Taubah: 67].
- Bakhil [At-Taubah: 67].
- Forgetting Allah [At-Taubah: 67].
- Differing and not fulfilling the agreement with Allah [At-Taubah: 75-77].
- Happy for not participating in jihad and hating jihad [At-Taubah: 81].
- Remind each other not to do jihad [At-Taubah: 81].
- Abandoning jihad and spreading news that is frightening to shake the soul to undermine the belief, sense of security, and faith in the souls of believers (in Arabic it is called al-irjaf ) [Al Ahzab: 12].
- There is no help from Allah for them [An-Nisa’: 145].
- Breaking the relationship [Muhammad: 22].
- Obey disbelievers, hypocrites, and wicked in some affairs [Muhammad: 26].
- Hating everything that pleases Allah [Muhammad: 28].
- Envy of the believers [Muhammad: 29].
- They can be identified from lahnil qoul (figuratively speaking) [Muhammad: 30].
- The believers are slow in their jihad [An Nisa’: 72-73].
- Al-Qur’an is not useful for them, even adding to their disbelief in addition to pre-existing disbelief [At Taubah: 124-125].
- Back to doing something that was forbidden to do, holding secret conversations in terms of sin, enmity, and disobedience to the Messenger [Al Mujadilah: 8].
- Ask permission not to engage in jihad on the grounds that you are afraid of being slandered [At-Taubah: 49].
- Looking for excuses when not going to jihad [At-Taubah: 94].
- Hiding from humans [An-Nisa’: 108].
- Liking abominable deeds is widespread among believers [An-Nur: 19].
- Happy when a disaster befalls the believers and do not like it when Allah gives them power on earth [At Taubah: 50].
- Sometimes given the advantage physically [Al-Munafiqun: 4].
2. Characteristics of a Hypocrite According to Hadith
Based on the hadith, the Prophet Muhammad SAW said, “There are three signs of a hypocrite, namely if he speaks a lie, if he promises to break it, and if he is trusted to betray”. Furthermore, there is another hadith which explains that arguing beyond the limits is included in the hypocrite category.
It is important for us to know the characteristics of hypocrisy in order to avoid this heart disease. The characteristics below are hypocrites that should be avoided.
آيَةُ الْمُنَافِقِ ثَلَاثٌ إِذَا حَدَّثَ كَذَبَ وَإِذَا وَعَدَ أَخْلَفَ وَإِذَا اؤْتُمِنَ خَانَ
“Rasulullah SAW said: The sign of a hypocrite is three; when he says he lies, when he promises he denies it, and when he is trusted he betrays.”
a . Lie
Neither in any religious teachings that justify a lie. Likewise with Islam. Whatever form a lie is still a lie. This is also very hated by fellow humans and also God. Saying dishonestly, or saying something that is not true can harm many parties.
Once a person lies then that person will continue to lie again and again. For example, when a child lies to his parents, saying he will only go to the neighbor’s house, but in reality he is going far away. Then one day the father asked why the child had been there for so long.
Automatically the child must be forced to find new reasons to cover up his lie earlier. This will often happen continuously and become a big lie that has no end. That’s why once a person commits a lie, he will be involved in a vicious circle that makes that person continue to lie again and again.
Lying like this can harm yourself and others. People who like to lie or lie are even capable of turning facts around, which in turn will result in another bad trait, namely slander.
b. Broken promise
Another hypocritical trait that Allah also hates is broken promises. People who often deny it means that person can’t hold on to what he says. This makes it difficult for other people to put their trust in people who never keep their promises. In addition, breaking promises will also result in harm to others. A promise is an oath that is obligatory to keep.
If someone has promised, but does not keep it, that person is included in the class of hypocrites. For example, if someone has promised not to divulge a secret which is a bad secret, it seems that the person who promised it actually tells it to someone else. That’s a sign that the person has broken his promise.
So he sinned for not keeping his promise and also sinned for spreading someone’s bad disgrace which would eventually hurt the person concerned. Seeing from this situation it can be said that a bad behavior will have bad consequences for oneself and others.
It is better for someone who is not sure that he can keep his promise, he does not need to make the promise himself. Because, this promise is an oath that is obligatory to obey. Both our promises to fellow human beings and our promises to Allah SWT.
In the Al-Quran An-Nahl verse 91 explains that we must keep the promises that have been made, because we make Allah a witness of all our promises and oaths. Indeed, Allah knows what we have done.
Breaking a promise is the same as lying to God, so you will get a big sin if you don’t obey it. This is the reason why some jobs that have big responsibilities such as law enforcement, the DPR, the MPR, the President and even officials are required to swear an oath in the name of Allah in order to remain trustworthy in carrying out their work.
c. Betrayed
Betrayal is another despicable trait that belongs to the class of hypocrites. This traitor is a person who violates or destroys the trust that has been placed on him. People who like to betray like this if given responsibility and a mandate will actually do the opposite.
For example in human relations such as a pair of lovers or husband and wife. If in a relationship the couple previously promised and are able to love each other. But then one day one of the couple secretly liked someone else so he cheated on her. So that person betrayed his partner.
For letting go of responsibility and breaking promises that have been made. And hurt his partner. Someone who betrays like the example above will be very detrimental to others. Apart from hurting the partner’s feelings, he is also a sinner because he has given hope to his partner but was denied.
d. Lazy When Doing Worship
After lying, denial, and betrayal, the dominant trait of a hypocrite is the tendency to be lazy in worshiping Allah, both in terms of mahdhah worship and in terms of muamalah . Muamalah worship such as helping others maybe they will still do it, instead of getting pleasure and reward from Allah SWT. However, only to elevate the image in front of humans alone.
These hypocritical signs are relevant to the word of Allah in the Qur’an Surah An-Nisa verse 142 which has more or less the following meaning:
“ Indeed, this group of hypocrites have lied to their Lord (Allah SWT), and Allah will reward their deceit later. When they stand up to pray, they will stand up in a lazy state. They keep the intention (ie riya’ or takabur) in their prayers in front of other humans. They do not say the names of Allah SWT, but only a little bit “.
The characteristic of these hypocrites in their hearts is that they will think that worship is a heavy burden for them to carry out, even though it is this creator of heaven and earth that we should have prioritized. Obligatory worship does not take up 24 hours of our time, while being busy with work in the world we make it something important and main. Be careful, this could involve being a hypocrite.
The Danger Level of Hypocrisy
In Islam, hypocrites are more dangerous than infidels. This level of danger is based on the frank nature of being hostile to Islam. The infidel who is hostile to Islam will openly declare his hostility, while the hypocrite declares that he is Muslim, but secretly opposes him.
Hypocrites harm Muslims because they have the intention to fight back if they have the chance. Hypocrisy can appear in various fields of life, including in the fields of politics, religion, the press and thought. Hypocrisy also appears in many types of work, including employees, entrepreneurs, artists, and athletes.
The comparison can also be obtained from the Qur’an. Allah conveys His words to believers to deal with hypocrites in just two verses. Likewise dealing with infidels there are only two verses. Meanwhile, in dealing with hypocrites, Allah sent down His word as many as 13 verses in Surah Al-Baqarah.
Well, that’s a brief explanation of the meaning of hypocrisy and its characteristics. These deviant behaviors are prohibited religiously and in humanity are not worthy to have in us. By knowing the characteristics of hypocrites that have been summarized above, we can make it material for more muhasabah and a place for self-introspection. Humans even though they are perfect creatures with their minds still cannot be clean from escape and sin.
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