Worldly attachment is not about owning things. It is about being owned by them. Islam does not forbid enjoying dunya. It teaches you not to let it control your heart.
How to Let Go of Worldly Attachment?
1. Understand What Dunya Really Is
Allah says:
اعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ وَزِينَةٌ وَتَفَاخُرٌ بَيْنَكُمْ
“Know that the life of this world is play, amusement, adornment, and mutual boasting among you.”
[Qur’an 57:20]
Dunya is temporary. It feels permanent because we are inside it.
2. Remember That It Ends for Everyone
Allah says:
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ
“Every soul will taste death.”
[Qur’an 3:185]
Attachment weakens when you remember you cannot carry anything with you.
3. Redefine Success
Allah says:
فَمَن زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ
“Whoever is saved from the Fire and admitted into Paradise has truly succeeded.”
[Qur’an 3:185]
Real success is not wealth, status, or admiration. It is salvation.
4. Reduce Comparison
Comparison fuels attachment.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
انْظُرُوا إِلَى مَنْ هُوَ أَسْفَلَ مِنْكُمْ وَلَا تَنْظُرُوا إِلَى مَنْ هُوَ فَوْقَكُمْ
“Look at those below you, not those above you.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2963]
Gratitude weakens greed.
5. Increase Charity
Giving loosens the grip of ownership.
Allah says:
لَن تَنَالُوا الْبِرَّ حَتَّىٰ تُنفِقُوا مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَ
“You will not attain righteousness until you spend from what you love.”
[Qur’an 3:92]
Spend from what you value. It trains your heart.
6. Remember the Temporary Nature of Pleasure
The Prophet ﷺ said:
وَاللَّهِ مَا الدُّنْيَا فِي الآخِرَةِ إِلاَّ مِثْلُ مَا يَجْعَلُ أَحَدُكُمْ إِصْبَعَهُ هَذِهِ - وَأَشَارَ يَحْيَى بِالسَّبَّابَةِ - فِي الْيَمِّ فَلْيَنْظُرْ بِمَ يَرْجِعُ
“By Allah, this world (is so insigni- ficant in comparison) to the Hereafter that if one of you should dip his finger- (and wnile saying this Yahyg pointed with his forefinger) -in the ocean and then he should see as to what has stuck to it.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2858]
What you see on your finger is nothing compared to what remains.
7. Guard Your Time
Time is more valuable than money.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
نِعْمَتَانِ مَغْبُونٌ فِيهِمَا كَثِيرٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ: الصِّحَّةُ وَالْفَرَاغُ
“There are two blessings many people waste: health and free time.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6412]
Attachment often grows when time is wasted.
8. Keep the Hereafter in Daily View
Allah says:
وَالْآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ وَأَبْقَىٰ
“And the Hereafter is better and more lasting.”
[Qur’an 87:17]
Repeat this meaning in your mind when tempted.
9. Do Not Let Possessions Define You
The Prophet ﷺ said:
تَعِسَ عَبْدُ الدِّينَارِ وَعَبْدُ الدِّرْهَمِ وَعَبْدُ الْخَمِيصَةِ
“Let the slave of Dinar and Dirham, of Quantify and Khamisa perish.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2887]
When wealth becomes identity, it becomes worship.
10. Build for Ākhirah More Than Dunya
Allah says:
وَابْتَغِ فِيمَا آتَاكَ اللَّهُ الدَّارَ الْآخِرَةَ وَلَا تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا
“Seek, through what Allah has given you, the home of the Hereafter, and do not forget your share of the world.”
[Qur’an 28:77]
Balance is the goal. Not rejection. Not obsession.
