ON BACKBITING AND SLANDER

You should know that Allâh specifically denounced backbiting in His Book and compared the backbiter to the person who eats the flesh of a corpse. Allâh says: “nor backbite one another. Would any one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother who is dead?” [70]

The Messenger of Allâh said: “The following is unlawful to every Muslim concerning his fellow Muslim: his blood, his wealth and his honour.”

The Messenger of Allâh said: “Beware of backbiting for it is more serious than adultery.” A person may commit adultery and repent, and Allâh may accept his repentance. As for the person who backbites, he will not be forgiven until the person whom he had backbitten does not forgive him. It is said that the person who backbites people is like a person who sets up a catapult and catapults right and left [without really aiming]. He thereby even strikes his own good deeds [and destroys them].

The Messenger of Allâh said: “Whoever strikes his fellow brother with backbiting in order to discredit him, Allâh will cause him to stand on the bridge of Hell-fire on the day of resurrection until he retracts from what he said.”

The Messenger of Allâh said: “Backbiting entails mentioning qualities about your fellow brother which he dislikes.” In other words, irrespective of whether you speak about some defect in his body, his lineage, his actions, his speech, his religious matters, his worldly matters, and even his clothing, his outer garment or his animal. In fact, some past scholars state that if you say: “Such and such person’s garment is long or short”, it will be considered to be backbiting. How much more serious it will then be if you mention something which he dislikes about his own self?!

It is related that a short woman came to the Prophet for some work. When she left, ‘Â’ishah radiyallâhu 'anhâ said: “How short she is!” The Messenger of Allâh replied: “You have backbitten her, O ‘Â’ishah!”

The Messenger of Allâh said: “Beware of backbiting for it has three harms: (1) the person’s supplications are not answered, (2) his good deeds are not accepted, (3 evil deeds are piled upon him.”

The Messenger of Allâh said the following in denouncing slander: “The worst person on the day of resurrection shall be the two-faced person. He is the slanderer who comes to these people with a certain face, and goes to those people with another face. The person who is two-faced in this world shall have two tongues of fire on the day of resurrection.”

The Prophet said: “The slanderer will not enter Paradise.” If it is asked what is the wisdom behind Allâh creating every creation with either the power of speech or without the power of speech, while the fish has no tongue whatsoever, it will be said that it is because when Allâh created Âdam , He ordered the angels to prostrate before him. They all did so except for Satan.Allâh therefore cursed him, expelled him from Paradise and distorted him. He fell to earth and went to the oceans. The first thing that he saw was the fish. He informed it of the creation of Âdam and said to it: “Âdam will hunt and capture the animals of the sea and land.” The fish conveyed this news about Âdam to the animals of the sea, so Allâh snatched its tongue away.

It is related that ‘Amr ibn Dînâr said: A person from Madinah had a sister living on the outskirts of Madinah. She complained [of some illness] so he used to go to visit her. She then passed away. He shrouded her and carried her to the grave. When she was buried, he returned to her family. He then remembered that he had a bag which was with him which he dropped in the grave. He asked one of his friends to help him, and so the two of them went to the grave and dug it up. They then found the bag. The person then said to his friend: “Move aside so that I may see in what condition she is.” He then removed some of the covering that was on the actual place where she was placed and saw that it was a blazing fire. He returned to his mother and asked her: “Tell me, how had my sister been living?” She replied: “Your sister used to go to the doors of the neighbours, place her ears against the doors so that she could hear what they were saying and then slander them.” The man realized that this was the reason for her punishment in the grave. So whoever wishes to be safe from the punishment of the grave should abstain from slander and backbiting.

It is related that Abû al-Layth al-Bukhârî left for the pilgrimage. He placed two dirhams in his pocket and took an oath that if he were to backbite about anyone during his forward or return journey from Makkah, it will become incumbent upon him to give these two dirhams in charity for the pleasure of Allâh . So he went to Makkah and eventually returned to his house, with his two dirhams still in his pocket. Someone asked him about this, so he replied: “I would rather commit adultery 100 times than backbiting a single time.”

Abû Hafs al-Kabîr said: “I would rather not fast in the month of Ramadân than backbiting about someone.” He then said: “The person who backbites about a jurist (faqîh) will come on the day of resurrection with the following written on his face: ‘This person has no hope of the mercy of Allâh.’”

Anas ibn Mâlik said that the Messenger of Allâh said: “On the night of mi‘râj, I passed by some people who were scratching their faces with their nails and eating corpses. So I asked: Who are these people, O Jibra’îl? He replied: ‘These are the people who eat the flesh of people in the world.’”

Al-Hasan said: “Backbiting is far swifter in causing harm to the Islam of a person than a germ that enters the body.”

Abû Hurayrah said: “One of you sees the filth in his fellow brother’s eye but he does not see the calamity in his own eye.”

It is related that Salmân was on a journey with Abû Bakr and ‘Umar and he used to prepare the meals for them. They stopped over at a place and Salmân was unable to provide them with any food. They sent him to the Prophet to see if he has any food. He did not find anything with him and therefore returned to them. Consequently, Abû Bakr and ‘Umar said: “Even if he [Salmân] went to a certain well for water, its water would run dry.” This verse was then revealed: “nor backbite one another. Would any one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother who is dead? You will abhor it.” [71]

Abû Hurayrah narrates that the Messenger of Allâh said: “Whoever eats the flesh of his brother in this world [by backbiting],Allâh will present before him his flesh on the day of resurrection and say to him: ‘Eat his flesh while he is dead for you ate it when he was alive.’ The person will then have to eat it. The Messenger of Allâh then recited this verse: “nor backbite one another. Would any one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother who is dead?”

It is related from Jâbir ibn ‘Abdillâh al-Ansârî that the smell of backbiting used to be clearly recognized in the era of the Messenger of Allâh because it [backbiting] was so rare. As for these times, backbiting has become so common and the noses are so filled with it that the smell of it cannot even be recognized. This is similar to a person who enters a house where tanners live. He cannot remain in that house because of the smell and stink [that is emitted when leather is tanned]. On the other hand, the inhabitants of that house [are living a normal life], eating and drinking therein, without that stinking smell getting to them. This is because their noses are filled [and used] to it. Similar is the case with backbiting in these times of ours.

Ka‘b said: “I read in a book that the person who passes away repentant from backbiting will be the last to enter Paradise. And the person who passes away persistent in backbiting will be the first to enter Hell-fire.”

Allâh says: “There is great destruction for every such person who is a backbiter, slanderer.” [72] In other words, the worst punishment is meted out to the backbiter. A backbiter is he who speaks ill of you in your absence while the slanderer is he who speaks ill of you in your face. This verse was revealed with regard to al-Walîd ibn al-Mughîrah who used to speak ill of the Messenger of Allâh and the Muslims in their faces. Although the reason for its revelation is specific, this warning can be all-inclusive and applicable to everyone.

The Messenger of Allâh said: “Beware of backbiting because it is worse than adultery.” The Companions asked: “How can backbiting be worse than adultery?” He replied: “A person commits adultery and repents thereafter. Allâh accepts his repentance. As for the person who backbites, he is not forgiven until the person whom he spoke ill of does not pardon him.” It is therefore incumbent on the backbiter to regret and repent in order to come out of the grasp of Allâh , and then to absolve himself from the person whom he spoke ill of so that he may come out of his wrongdoing.

The Messenger of Allâh said: “The person who backbites his fellow Muslim, Allâh will turn his face towards his back on the day of resurrection.” It is therefore the duty of the backbiter to seek forgiveness from Allâh before he even gets up from that place wherein he engaged in backbiting and even before this backbiting reaches the person whom he spoke ill of. This is because if he repents before it reaches the person whom he spoke ill of, his repentance is accepted. But if it reaches him, he is not absolved of the sin by repentance until the person absolves him. In like manner, when a person commits adultery with a married woman and her husband comes to know of it, the sin of this cannot be absolved by repentance as long as the husband does not forgive him. As for missing out salâh, not paying zakâh, not fasting, nor performing the pilgrimage – these are not absolved by repentance. Rather, a person has to make up for whatever he has missed of these duties by making qadâ (fulfilling) of them. Allâh knows best.