Ibn Qayyim wrote in his highly esteemed book, Al Fawa’id: “How perfect is Allah! In the soul of man is the pride of Iblis, the jealousy of Qabil, the insolence of the people of ‘Ad, the tyranny of Thamud, the temerity of Namrud, the arrogance of Pharaoh, the wrongdoing of Qarun, the trickeries of the people of Sabt, the rebelliousness of Al-Walid, the ignorance of Abu Jahl, and the impudence of Haman. The soul of man also has many characteristics of beasts. He has the avarice of a crow, the gluttony of a dog, the display of the peacock, the filth of the hog, the malice of the camel, the predatory nature of the lion, the venom of the snake, the frivolity of the ape, the greed of the ant, and the deception of the fox.”
The rigid training of the soul exercises these conditions; however, if one allows any of these traits to linger and prevail, one then becomes akin to the ones cursed by Allah, and akin to the beasts possessing lowly characteristics. A person who allows these traits to dominate his soul is not that commodity in the contract described by Allah (the Exalted):
“Verily, Allah has purchased of the believers their lives.” (Qur’an 9:111)
Such a commodity (soul) must be refined by faith and purified by repentance and attentiveness in worship. The commodity must also be protected from defects or from being destroyed so as to allow the buyer to accept it.
[Gems And Jewels by Abdul-Malik Mujahid, p.76]
