- An exploration of how modern trends, politics, and cultural shifts echo Shaytan’s timeless strategies to divert Muslims from faith.
- This is a call for us all to resist with awareness and remembrance of Allah.
“He said, ‘Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path.
Then I will come at them from before them and from behind them and from their right and from their left — and You will not find most of them grateful.’”
(Qur’an 7:16–17)
1.The Gora Complex is thriving – Conservative Muslim nations believing that liberalism is progression
Take for instance, “Pakistani Love Island” Laza wal Ishq (Ever lasting love). The show centres on a group of men and women cohabiting in a villa, forging romantic bonds and engaging in provocative challenges, all captured on camera for viewers. Hosted by actress Ayesha Omar. Omar contends that the show is illustrating the progression of Pakistani society. However, a petition in court contends that the program promotes “obscenity” and “moral decay” in society. Filed by the Amaan Taraqqi Party, it asserts that the show erodes Pakistan’s social and cultural values. The hearing will resume on November 20.
Similarly, Horror Con, the largest Horror festival for Halloween is currently taking place in Jeddah. MBS continues to alter the map of the Kingdom, figuratively speaking. Saudi Arabia is the hub of Islam, and home to the most sacred, and holiest sites. Recently a comedy festival also took place in Jeddah with obscene jokes being performed.
2. Forget the far-right: Nationalism is rife in the Ummah!
The growing monster of racist nationalism is thriving. Take for instance, the recent interaction between, now suspended, Imam Umayr from Nottingham and convicted criminal, Tommy- the chav- Robinson, where Pakistanis were blamed for Robinson’s anti-Muslim and vile Islamophobic rhetoric. May Allah forgive our brother.
3. The wrecking ball sent in by Shaytan: Some of our duat are behaving as if they are average – Joe – content creators
Sadly, we have recently seen some of our duat engaging in nonsensical drama online. These are our leaders and this is a distraction Shaytan loves. Moreover, Shaytan loves watching us argue amongst ourselves over trivial matters. When this happens: expect a firestorm of a reaction.
4. British and American Accent School
As if doom scrolling wasn’t bad enough, Shaytan is finding additional ways to make us waste our time: British and American Accent School for instance. Some lay out their personal ambitions and the path towards them with quite such sledgehammer precision. But for those who do manage to pull it off, was it all really worth it?
British and American accent schools are booming across South Asia, the Middle East, and Iran. Muslims are spending countless hours and large sums of money trying to sound like someone else. Instructors freeze-frame actors like Thomas Shelby, dissecting every syllable of his Brummie diction — but to what end? Shaytan delights in wasted time, and this obsession is just that.
Our accents carry our stories: the places that shaped us, the voices that surrounded us, the shows that coloured our childhood. To chase another voice is to lose a part of our own. Allah created us with distinct accents and placed us in diverse tribes so that we might recognise and celebrate one another, not erase the beauty in our differences. And if someone recites Qur’an with poor Tajweed yet invests time in mastering the British accent — how tragic is that?
5. Revealing the neck has become increasingly normalised among Hijabis
An important caveat: I am not referring to my warrior sisters who are striving to observe hijab. Despite their struggles and the rise in Islamophobia, they continue to cover themselves in the best way they can, however it may look.
May Allah reward these sisters immensely for their effort, and may He keep us all steadfast upon guidance.
Rather, I am speaking about the normalisation and acceptance of a particular way of observing hijab: the recent style of neck-revealing that is prevalent absolutely everywhere. To the extent that, even as sisters, when we look online to buy a Hijab or Jilbab, such images crop up.
Throwing the hijab behind the back and showing the neck was in fact how the women of the Qur’aysh would wear it. This was prior to Allah’s command to correct this, instructing us instead to draw our garments over ourselves from the front and cover the neck.
“It’s not that deep”
Shaytan hates hijab. No, in fact, he loathes it. He has not stopped to try and attack it through various different fashion trends.
6. Corrupt Muslim leaders selling their souls to America
No. No way on earth is this continuing to happen, particularly after Gaza: oh but it is!
Leaders such as Shahbaz Sharif continue to be a source of profound international embarrassment. Take for instance, his recent speech at Sharm el-Sheikh directed towards Donald Trump. This blind subservience reflects not just a political problem, but moreover, a moral and spiritual one. Our ummah continues to bleed while we are being unable to overthrow such corrupt leaders.
7. Do you want to be a good person or do you want people to think you’re a good person?
The pursuit of status becoming a definition of success in the mind of a Muslim. Many of us are consumed with how we are perceived, so much so that we come away from who we are.
8. Divorce is rife!
Remember, Shaytan delights in division and strives to prevent the unity that marriage brings. Though divorce is lawful in Islam, its rising frequency is concerning.
9. Gender Wars
Muslim women and men must stand together in harmony, not in conflict, for they are bound by the same mission.
10. The Ummah not doing enough for Palestine
Are we genuinely doing enough? This is a question we must all pause to consider, for our brothers and sisters continue to endure immense hardship.
11. Muslims bypassing the Qur’an to cure Anxiety and Depression
Shaytan takes pleasure in our despair. Too often, Muslims neglect the Qur’an as a source of healing for widespread issues such as anxiety and depression. They rely solely on Western psychology instead.
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Many of the points addressed above are a reminder to myself first and foremost.
These 11 tricks aren’t new, they’re just repackaged for our time. Shaytan’s goal never changes, it is always to lead believers away from Allah’s path and be in disharmony with one another. As Muslims in 2025, our greatest defence is awareness, sincerity, and steadfast remembrance of Allah. The more we recognise Shaytan’s traps, the easier it becomes to avoid them.
May Allah grant us insight to see through deception and the strength to remain firm upon the Haq. Ameen.
“Indeed, Shaytan is an enemy to you; so take him as an enemy.” (Qur’an 35:6)
