As the media continues to distort reality feeding false narratives upon false narratives, and megalomaniacal despots continue to lie brazenly, eliciting the truth is not always straightforward.
At an interpersonal level, as Shaytan comes back post-Ramadan, conflicts resume between individuals, family members, friends. Inflamed by a distorted recollection of an exchange, false narratives take root within people’s minds. Preyed on by Shaytan, it is easy to become trapped in false narratives of our own making.
While we’re often quick to spot deception in the media or from world leaders, what about the false narratives we construct in our own lives?
Post-Ramadan realities
As the tranquility of Ramadan fades and Shayṭan is unleashed, tensions begin to rise — in families, in friendships, in communities. Minor misunderstandings are magnified. Words are remembered not as they were spoken, but as they were felt.
Shaytan whispers, fuelling egos and inflating the sense of being wronged. The mind replays conversations with a distorted lens, letting grudges take root.
Two people, two realities
Every interaction between two people is experienced in two different ways.
In the story of Dawood (peace be upon him) when he was asked to judge between two brothers one with 99 sheep and the other with just one, he was presented with two conflicting narratives, and was mistakenly swayed by sympathy for the poorer brother. Allah Almighty corrected his judgement, stating in Surat Sad:
يَٰدَاوُۥدُ إِنَّا جَعَلۡنَٰكَ خَلِيفَةٗ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ فَٱحۡكُم بَيۡنَ
ٱلنَّاسِ بِٱلۡحَقِّ وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ ٱلۡهَوَىٰ فَيُضِلَّكَ
عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَضِلُّونَ عَن
سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ لَهُمۡ عَذَابٞ شَدِيدُۢ بِمَا نَسُواْ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡحِسَابِ
˹We instructed him:˺ “O David! We have surely made you an authority in the land, so judge between people with truth. And do not follow ˹your˺ desires or they will lead you astray from Allah’s Way. Surely those who go astray from Allah’s Way will suffer a severe punishment for neglecting the Day of Reckoning.” (38:26)
Rising emotions
Misunderstandings are easy. How often do we assume the worst, convinced of our own moral high ground? We see ourselves as victims, rarely the cause.
Sometimes, our anger isn’t actually about what happened in the moment — but about unresolved baggage, past pain, or unspoken emotions. Shaytan preys on this, nurturing resentment with stealth and precision.
A dua for clarity
This dua reminds us of the need to check whether what we perceive is an assumption, a misunderstanding, a lie or in fact the truth.
اللهم أرنا الحق حقًا وارزقنا اتباعه، وأرنا الباطل باطلًا وارزقنا اجتنابه
Allahumma arinal-ḥaqqa ḥaqqan warzuqnā ittibāʿah, wa arinal-bāṭila bāṭilan warzuqnā ijtinābah
O Allah! Show us the truth as truth and inspire us to follow it.
Show us falsehood as falsehood and inspire us to stay away from it.
Deflating our egos
In the grand scheme of the universe, we are smaller than an ant, yet our egos are larger than a giant’s. While we hate to have our ‘toes stepped on’, one might ask, how big are our toes?
If Ramadan taught us anything, it is that life is short. Many people passed away during the holy month — some with unresolved pain, some with broken relationships. Without diminishing the real hurt we sometimes feel from others’ words or actions, we must ask which grudges are we holding onto? And at what cost?
Rewrite the story
False narratives imprison us. They cloud our judgment, disrupt our relationships, and steal our peace. We need to look inward and ask:
What stories are we telling ourselves? Are they really true?
May Allah grant us the tawfiq to question our assumptions, forgive where we can, and always seek the truth — not just outside, but within our own hearts.
Relates posts
Evils of the tongue 5 – praise
Evils of the tongue 4 – joking
Evils of the tongue 3 – arguing