By Shamsi Ali Al-Nuyorki
Revenge (al-hiqd) is silent. It does not roar like anger, nor does it bleed like an open wound. Yet it lives in the hurried beat of a restless heart, in the shallow breath of an uneasy soul, and in the spirit that slowly loses its light.
Scientifically, revenge is more than an emotion. It is a chain reaction in the body. When you recall an old hurt, your brain activates the amygdala, the center of threat, and your body releases stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
Your body prepares for war, even though the enemy is only a shadow from the past. Your blood runs faster, your pressure rises, your immune system weakens.
In biochemical terms, revenge is a poison you produce yourself and sip a little more each day.
So the experts are right: “Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”
Yet the wise understood this long before science wrote it in journals. One of them once said: “Revenge is a prison without bars, where you are both the guard and the prisoner.”
In Islam, revenge is a _hijab_ — a veil that blocks the heart from Divine light. It hardens the “qalb” darkens the conscience, until prayer feels empty and prostration loses meaning.
Has not Allah reminded us: “Those who restrain their anger and pardon people and Allah loves the doers of good.” (Ali ‘Imran: 134)
To forgive is not to be weak or defeated. It is the highest form of inner victory. Because when you forgive, you do not only set the other person free, you set yourself free.
Psychospiritually, forgiveness activates the center of calm in the brain, the prefrontal cortex. It lowers stress and increases the hormones of peace and joy- serotonin and oxytocin. Your body grows light. Your soul grows spacious. And your heart… comes alive again.
Picture two people: one who carries a grudge for years, and one who releases it with sincerity. The first walks with an invisible burden; the second moves like the wind light, free, at peace.
A wise once said: “If you wish to be near God, do not carry hatred in your heart, for God is Light, and hatred is darkness.”
Revenge never heals a wound. It only preserves it. So let it go. Not necessarily because they (people did bad to you) deserve your forgiveness, but because your heart deserves peace.
Because in the end, the strongest is not the one who can repay harm, but the one who can release it with a heart that remains pure and a soul that still loves.
Peace is precious. And revenge… is far too costly to keep.
Jamaica Hills, April 19, 2026
Director. Jamaica Muslim Center & President, Nusantara Foundation