Characteristics of a Pure and Sound Heart

A pure heart is the heart that has submitted to its Lord and His command without entertaining any resentment to His command or opposition to His saying. It is free from anything besides Allah and His injunction; it does not desire anything save Allah and it does not do except what Allah has ordered. Hence, Allah alone is its goal, His order and law are its way and path, and no doubt comes between it and believing the information of its Lord.  An iota of doubt will never pass through it except that the heart surmounts it knowing that there is no dwelling for it therein, and no lust comes between it and following the pleasure of its Lord.

Whenever a heart is in this state, it will be free from shirk, free from innovations, free from oppression and free from falsehood as well as all the sayings whose explanations have been abrogated. The truth is that this heart has submitted to the servitude of its Lord out of modesty, fear and hope; it is absorbed in His love, His fear and His hope alone. Indeed, it has acquiesced to the order of Allah and His messenger out of faith and obedience as preceded. Besides, it has surrendered to the decree and preordainment of Allah without panning Him or wrangling with Him.

It does not become angry at the decree of Allah but surrenders to Him out of submission, humility and devotion. It has submitted all its state of affairs, sayings, actions, inclinations and likings, inward and outward, to whatsoever come from the niche of His messenger and it has subjected any other thing to the niche of the messenger; it accepts whatever conforms to it and rejects whatever contradicts it.

It will suspend or defer anything that is not clear to him as to whether it is in   conformity or inconsistent until it becomes readily apparent to him. Equally, it makes peace with the friends of Allah and His party, the successful party who defends His religion and the Sunnah of His Messenger and implements it. On the other hand, it shows enmity to His enemies who go against His Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger, those who rebel against the two and invite to what is contrary to them.

Source: Miftaah Daar as-Sa‘aadah wa Manshoor Wilaayah Ahl al-‘Ilm wal-Iraadah by Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah