Green, Red, Black, White: The Inner Journey of a Muslim Heart

Four Colors Of The Inner Journey In Islam

Some of the early scholars in Central Asia used colors to describe what happens inside a believer over a lifetime. They spoke of four recurring stages in the heart.

Green. Red. Black. White.

These are not personality types or spiritual “levels.” They are movements of the soul that return again and again, sometimes in one year, sometimes in one month, sometimes in a single day.

The Qur’an reminds us that this world is full of adornment and competition in wealth and status, which eventually withers, “like plants that delight the farmers, then you see them turn yellow, then they become debris.” (Qur’an 57:20)

The colors help us notice how Allah is working on our hearts inside that passing world, so that every season becomes a doorway to Him rather than a distraction from Him.

The Green Stage

Beauty Without Attachment

Green is the color of life and growth. In this stage we look at what we wear, where we live, and how we present ourselves.

Sayyiduna ʿUmar ibn al Khattab رضي الله عنه was seen wearing garments with many patches. He was the ruler of a vast empire, yet he walked with visible simplicity. We are not required to be that threadbare. The Sunnah is to be clean, dignified, and presentable.

The Prophet ﷺ said that no one with even an atom’s weight of arrogance will enter Paradise. A man asked, “What if a person likes his clothes to look good and his shoes to look good?” The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Allah is Beautiful and He loves beauty. Arrogance is rejecting the truth and looking down on people.” (Sahih Muslim 91a)

So the problem is not a beautiful outfit, a well-designed home, or excellence in our work. The problem is attachment, pride, and showing off.

Green asks a simple question:

Modern psychology shows that when our sense of worth depends on external validation, we become more anxious, defensive, and prone to perfectionism. We chase flawless images of ourselves and feel shattered when we cannot maintain them. The Green Stage is where we begin to loosen that grip.

We still dress with care, we still take Ihsan seriously in our work and homes, but we no longer let those things define who we are. Our dignity flows from being servants of Allah, not from the labels on our clothes or the admiration of people.

This is where hope and humility in Islam meet: hope in Allah’s gaze, humility before His gifts.

The Red Stage

How We Walk Through Pain

Red is the color of heat and trial, like the fire a blacksmith uses to soften and shape metal.

This is the stage of illness, loss, disappointment, humiliation, and all the blows of life that make the heart ache. Allah has already told us that tests will come:

The Prophet ﷺ described the inner secret of these moments:

Red is not just about gritting our teeth and surviving. It is about responding to pain with sabr, duʿa, and a quiet dignity that refuses to accuse Allah or doubt His mercy.

From a neuroscience perspective, chronic stress and unprocessed pain can rewire the brain’s threat systems and amplify our sensitivity to pain and fear. Yet practices like mindful breathing, heartfelt duʿa, and reframing hardship as a meaningful test improve emotional regulation and resilience.³ This is part of the Islamic psychology of resilience: we do not deny pain, but we frame it within divine wisdom.

In the Red Stage we learn to say, not only on our tongues but in our bones:

The same heat that burns can soften and refine. Trials that once fed shame and despair become occasions of repentance and forgiveness in Islam, where we return to Allah with a broken, honest heart and find Him more Merciful than we expected.

The Black Stage

Saying No To The Ego

Black here is not the darkness of sin, but the stillness of a quiet, empty space.

In this stage the believer begins to go against the lower self. The nafs delights in color and noise. It loves chase after every bright thing that the world offers: a new purchase, a new notification, a new argument to win.

The Black Stage is when we consciously turn away, even when no one is watching. We close the tab, end the conversation, delete the message, or walk away from the gathering that plants seeds of envy or desire.

From the outside, this can look like “less fun.” You might speak less in certain circles. You might seem less available on social media. You might decline invitations that everyone else finds exciting.

Inside, however, something else is happening. The heart is becoming spacious and calm. The Prophet ﷺ said:

When we say no to the ego’s demands, we are clearing out clutter from that inner room. This is a powerful medicine for mental health and Islam: many modern therapies involve learning to tolerate discomfort without immediately obeying every impulse.

Black is the color of restraint. It is where we stop being driven only by what feels good in the moment and start asking a deeper question:

Here, overcoming shame in Islam means refusing to keep feeding habits that secretly make us hate ourselves, and instead taking small, sincere steps away from them. Even if nobody else ever sees the victory.

The White Stage

Hunger, Clarity, And Light

White is linked to hunger and restraint, to leaving some space in the body so the soul can breathe.

Ramadan teaches this once a year:

When the stomach is not constantly full, the heart hears better. When desire is not always satisfied, prayer tastes different. There is a particular sweetness that comes from saying “no” to the nafs for the sake of Allah alone.

Modern research on Ramadan and intermittent fasting suggests that regular, healthy fasting can improve emotional resilience, self-control, and mental clarity, and may even promote beneficial changes in brain plasticity.

The White Stage is where you start to taste this:

• You eat a little less and notice your duʿa feels more present.

• You speak a little less and notice your thoughts become more honest.

• You consume fewer distractions and find more room for Qur’an, silence, and reflection.

In return, Allah grants more presence, more softness, and more light. White is not only about hunger of the body. It is about clarity of the heart.

How The Four Colors Connect

A Gentle Map For Perfectionism, Shame, And Hope

Seen together, the four colors form a gentle pattern of hope and humility in Islam.

• Green loosens attachment to your outer life and heals the perfectionism that relies on image and performance.

• Red shapes your response to difficulty and deepens trust in Allah, transforming hardship into resilience.

• Black turns you away from empty pleasures and strengthens your will, helping you break cycles that fuel shame.

• White disciplines desire and opens space for light, bringing you into a simpler life where repentance and presence feel natural.

You will move through these colors many times. The point is not to label yourself. The point is to notice where Allah is working on you today.

• If you are obsessed with how you appear, perhaps He is inviting you into Green.

• If you are grieving or humiliated, perhaps He is refining you in Red.

• If you are quietly stepping away from sins and distractions, you may be walking through Black.

• If you are tasting the sweetness of restraint, you may be in White.

In every stage there is an open door to repentance and forgiveness in Islam, because Allah is with the broken heart that turns back, whether it is dressed in green, walking through red fire, sitting in black stillness, or glowing with white hunger.

Applying This Teaching To Our Personal Lives

Below are some practical Sunnah-rooted ways to live these four colors with both spiritual depth and psychological wisdom.

1. Dress With Intention, Not Exhibition (Green)
Sunnah practice:
Wear clean, dignified clothing, seeking Allah’s beauty rather than people’s praise. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Allah is Beautiful and He loves beauty… pride is rejecting the truth and despising people.” (Sahih Muslim 91a)

Spiritual and psychological benefit:
Before you leave home, make a simple intention: “O Allah, make my outward state a reflection of gratitude, not arrogance.” This reframes clothing as shukr, not a competition. It gently dissolves social anxiety and perfectionism in Islam around appearance.

Science link:
Self-compassion and non-contingent self-worth (feeling worthy without constant external validation) are associated with lower anxiety and better mental health. By tying our sense of worth to Allah’s gaze, we create a more stable inner base.

2. A Red-Stage Duʿa Ritual During Hardship
Sunnah practice:
When hardship strikes, respond as the Qur’an teaches:

Combine this with the hadith, “Amazing is the affair of the believer…” (Sahih Muslim 2999).

How to do it practically:

1. Pause, place your hand over your heart.

2. Take three slow breaths.

3. Say Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajiʿun and then, “O Allah, let there be good for my dunya and akhirah in this test.”

Science link:
Slow breathing and meaning-based reframing activate parts of the nervous system that calm fight-or-flight responses, reducing stress hormones and emotional reactivity. This supports both physical pain regulation and emotional stability.

3. Five Minutes Of Black Silence Before Sleep
Sunnah practice:
The Prophet ﷺ encouraged nightly reflection and remembrance before sleep. We can pair this with a short practice of silent muraqabah.

How to do it:

• Put your phone away ten minutes before bed.

• Sit or lie down, lights low.

• Spend five minutes simply watching your thoughts and repeating in your heart, “Allah is watching over me and He knows my struggles.”

Spiritual and psychological benefit:
This is a Black Stage exercise, gently training the nafs to sit without constant stimulation. It dismantles some of the habits that fuel shame and compulsive behavior.

Science link:
Regular mindfulness practice is linked to better emotion regulation, reduced rumination, and improved sleep quality. It also supports healthier patterns in brain networks responsible for self-awareness and impulse control.

4. White Stage Fasting On Mondays And Thursdays
Sunnah practice:
The Prophet ﷺ regularly fasted on Mondays and Thursdays. (Sunan Abi Dawud 2436, Jamiʿ at-Tirmidhi 747)

How to do it:
Choose one or both days weekly. Keep your suhoor and iftar simple. During the day, add Qur’an, dhikr, or a short walk instead of scrolling.

Spiritual and psychological benefit:
You experience hunger in a contained way, with a clear intention and sacred framing. This builds trust in Allah, strengthens willpower, and makes the heart more sensitive to prayer.

Science link:
Studies show that Ramadan and intermittent fasting can improve self-control, emotional resilience, and mental well-being, and may even support neuroplasticity and cognitive function.

5. A Daily “Four Colors” Check-In
At the end of each day, take two minutes and ask yourself:

1. Green: Where did I seek beauty in a way that pleased Allah, and where did I seek it only for people?

2. Red: What difficulty did I face today, and how did I respond? With resentment or with sabr and duʿa?

3. Black: Where did I say no to my ego and step away from a temptation or useless distraction?

4. White: Where did I practice any form of restraint, in food, speech, or consumption? Did it bring clarity?

This simple journaling practice is a gentle form of Islamic psychology of resilience, integrating spiritual awareness with emotional self-reflection.

FAQ

1. How do these four stages help with perfectionism in Islam?
Perfectionism in Islam often shows up as fear of making mistakes and an obsession with appearing flawless. The Green Stage teaches us to enjoy beauty without turning it into identity. The Black and White Stages train us to accept limits, practice restraint, and value sincerity over image. Over time, we shift from “I must never fail” to “I am allowed to grow, repent, and be loved by Allah even when I fall.”

2. What do the colors teach about overcoming shame in Islam?
Shame whispers that our flaws make us unlovable. The Red Stage reframes painful experiences as tests filled with hidden good, not punishments that prove we are worthless. The Black Stage helps us quietly leave behaviors that feed shame, while the White Stage lets us taste a pure, simple closeness to Allah. Together, they show that shame is not a life sentence, and that sincere tawbah always opens a door to honor with Allah.

3. How do these stages relate to repentance and forgiveness in Islam?
Every stage contains an invitation to tawbah. In Green, we repent from showing off. In Red, we repent from complaining against Allah and return with gratitude. In Black, we repent from heedless habits and secret sins. In White, we repent from indulgence and rediscover the sweetness of simplicity. Allah’s forgiveness meets us in each color, and every turn back, even small, is beloved to Him.

4. What is the link between hope and humility in Islam within this model?
Hope without humility can become entitlement. Humility without hope can become despair. Green and Black teach humility, by loosening attachment to status and ego. Red and White teach hope, by showing how Allah brings good through trials and restraint. Together, they produce a heart that says, “I do not deserve anything by my own merit, yet I hope for everything through Your mercy.”

5. Can these four stages support mental health from an Islamic perspective?
Yes. They are not a replacement for therapy or medical care, but they offer a deeply Islamic frame for emotional work. Green addresses identity and self-worth, Red addresses trauma and loss, Black addresses habits and impulses, and White addresses overstimulation and lack of inner space. When combined with appropriate professional support where needed, these colors can enrich both faith and psychological healing.

Footnotes

1. On self-worth and external validation, see research on self-compassion and psychological well-being in clinical and non-clinical populations (e.g., Kristin Neff’s foundational work on self-compassion scales, widely cited in contemporary psychology).

2. Studies on chronic stress indicate that prolonged activation of the stress response alters brain regions such as the amygdala and prefrontal cortex, heightening threat perception and emotional reactivity. See general summaries in health psychology and neuroendocrinology literature.

3. Cognitive and behavioral therapies that incorporate breathing exercises and cognitive reframing show significant reductions in anxiety and depressive symptoms across multiple meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials.

4. Behavioral approaches like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) emphasize tolerating uncomfortable inner experiences without acting on every impulse, a concept that resonates with the Black Stage’s restraint of the nafs.

5. Recent work on Ramadan fasting reports improvements in self-discipline, emotional resilience, and mental well-being among fasting Muslims, along with benefits in metabolic and cardiovascular health.