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Imaam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (رحمه الله) said:

“All praise is due to Allaah who, in every age and interval between the Prophets, raises up a group from the people of knowledge, who call the misguided to guidance, patiently bearing ill-treatment and harm. With the Book of Allaah they give life to the dead and with the Light of Allaah they give sight to the blind. How many a person killed by Iblees (the Devil) they have revived. How beautiful their effect has been upon the people, and how vile the people have been towards them. They expel from the Book of Allaah the alterations of those going beyond bounds, the false claims of the liars and the false interpretations of the ignorant-ones – those who uphold the banner of innovation and let loose the trials and discords; who upon the Book, oppose the Book and agree upon opposing the Book. They speak about Allaah and his Book without knowledge, argue about what is ambiguous in the Book, and deceive the ignorant ones with such ambiguities. We seek refuge in Allaah from the trials of the misguided ones.”

“The devils defraud the son of Adam in order for him to fall into one of the following six affairs:

(1) disbelief, then
(2) bid’ah, then
(3) falling into the major sins, then
(4) the minor sins, then
(5) consuming his time with permissible amusement, then
(6) leaving that (action) which is more virtuous for that (action) which is less virtuous.

And if they (the devils) get tired of these six tricks, they embark on another mode of trickery which is: making the son of Adam allow the people of falsehood, bid’ah and darkness to have power over him (by listening to, and sitting and mixing with them).“

The Whispering of the Devil to the One Who Remembers Allaah

Shaykhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah – may Allaah have mercy on him – said,

“Waswaas is something that happens to everyone who turns to Allaah in Dhikr. It will inevitably happen to him. So he should be steadfast and remain patient, and persist in his Dhikr and prayer and not give up, for, by persisting in it he will foil the plot of the Shaytaan and, ‘ever feeble indeed is the plot of Shaytaan.’ [Surah an-Nisa 4:76]

“Every time a person wants to turn his heart to Allaah, whispers of other matters come to him. The Shaytaan is like a bandit; every time a person wants to travel towards Allaah, he wants to intercept him.

“Hence, it was said to one of the salaf, ‘The Jews and the Christians say, we don’t experience waswaas. He replied, ‘They are right! What would Shaytaan do with a ruined house?’”