Fawaa'id:
Points of Benefit by Imaam Ibnul Qayyim al Jawziyyah
"There is no doubt that the heart becomes covered with rust, just as
metal dishes-silver, & their like- become rusty. So the rust of the
heart is polished with dhikr (remembrance of Allaah), for dhikr polishes
the heart until it becomes like a shiny mirror.
However, when dhikr is
abandoned, the rust returns, & when it commences then the heart again
begins to be cleansed.
Thus the heart becoming rusty is due to two
matters:
Sins & Ahafah (neglecting the remembrance of Allaah).
Likewise, it
is cleansed & polished by two things:
Istighfaar (seeking Allaah's
forgiveness) & dhikr."
