Spiritual Disease and Its Cure by Imam Shams-ud-Deen Muhammad bin Abi Bakr bin Qayyim AlJ awziyyah

Sins disgrace the self and tum into the meanest and lowest of all creations, just as acts of obedience to Allah ~ tum it into the most honourable and praiseworthy; for Allah ~ said: (Indeed, he who succeeds is he who purifies his own soul. And indeed he who fails is he who corrupts his own soul) 1 (i.e. the one who succeeds is the one who obeys and performs all that Allah has ordered, by following the true faith of Islamic Monotheism and by doing righteous deeds; but the one who fails is the one who disobeys what Allah has ordered, by rejecting the true faith of Monotheism or by following polytheism, or by doing every kind of evil.) A sinner conceals his/herself in his/her sins and hides; avoiding meeting people because of his/her sinful activities. Whereas an obedient Servant of Allah ~ feels his/herself elevated and honoured; and this state of dignity is due to his/her righteousness.