The Pride Beneath the Love of Praise
One of the most significant afflictions that strokes a person’s ego and leads them away from their Lord through spiritual intoxication is the love of fame and the desire for praise. While analyzing why people derive so much pleasure from being praised, Imam Ghazali points out that the underlying reason is “pride” and the desire to believe in the perfection of one’s own self. The person who is praised feels as if they have conquered their ego with the words of the praiser, feeling that their power and superiority are affirmed. However, this pleasure is nothing more than the awakening of a hidden Pharaoh-like quality in the heart—the delusion that “I am the greatest.” Love of grandeur and status is an unrelenting disease that rusts the heart and uproots sincerity.
Being Deceived by False Praise
One of the most striking examples showing how prone humans are to pride is their willingness to be deceived even by false praise. Sometimes a person clearly knows that the person in front of them is lying, expecting benefits and acting as a sycophant, and even openly mocking; yet they inwardly enjoy hearing those flattering words. This indicates that the person has fallen captive to the mere words of praise. A person who clings to these false exaltations despite knowing the truth has completely abandoned disciplining their ego and lost their reason in the shadow of pride. True gnostics have seen the praise of people as scorpion venom and vehemently avoided it.
Tawhid and True Dignity Against Praise
A sincere believer knows very well his own shortcomings and helplessness, even if all the people on earth elevate him to the heavens. He knows that absolute praise (hamd) belongs only to Allah. The praise of people does not pamper him, nor do criticism and condemnation upset him; because his sole goal is to please his Lord. As long as self-satisfaction (ucub) and the ambition to expect applause from people are not uprooted from the heart, one cannot attain a complete sense of servitude. When a servant escapes the captivity of false status and false praise, he attains the highest honor in the sight of Allah and tastes true spiritual freedom.