The Mother of all Spiritual Maladies

Hazrat Moulana Ashraf Ali Thanwi (rahmatullahi ‘alaih) once mentioned:

Greed is the root cause of all problems. It is such an evil trait and spiritual malady that it should be regarded as the mother of all spiritual maladies. It is on account of greed that disputes and fights occur, and it is on account of greed that most of the court cases take place. If it was not for the greed of wealth, then no person would have trampled the rights of the next.

Theft and zina also stem from greed for wealth and greed for haraam passions. Evil character also originates from the same root, as the friends of Allah Ta‘ala say that evil character stems from pride, which is the greed for recognition. Hence, even pride stems from greed.

(Malfoozaat Hakeemul Ummat 23/146)