An incantation for a snake is what draws it out of its hole; an incantation against the evil eye and venom is what brings about recovery. An incantation for unlawful sexual intercourse is what invites it and draws this vile conduct and foul deed out of a man, just as wine is the mother of evils. Ibn Masʿūd said:
“Singing causes hypocrisy to grow in the heart just as water causes plants to grow.”
Allah Most High said to Iblīs:
“Incite whoever you can among them with your voice, rally against them your cavalry and infantry, and share with them in wealth and children.”
His inciting them with his voice takes place through singing—as some of the early generations explained—and through other sounds, such as wailing and the like. All these sounds stir the heart and the corrupt soul toward such things, setting them into rapid, agitated motion, until Satan toys with these people even more than children play with a ball. The soul is in motion; if it comes to rest, it does so by Allah’s permission. Otherwise, it remains continually in motion.
Some have likened it to a ball on a smooth, level surface, continually moving upon it. In a hadith traced back to the Prophet:
“The heart is more restless than a pot at a rolling boil.”
In another hadith:
“The heart is like a feather in an open wilderness, moved about by the wind.”
In Sahīh al-Bukhārī, Sālim narrates from Ibn ʿUmar, who said:
“The oath of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was: ‘No, by the Turner of hearts.’”
In Sahīh Muslim, ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmr reported that he heard the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say:
“O Allah, Director of hearts, direct our hearts toward obedience to You.”
And in al-Tirmidhī