The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked: Messenger of Allah! What is back-biting? He replied: It is saying something about your brother which he would dislike. He was asked again: Tell me how the matter stands if what I say about my brother is true? He replied: If what you say of him is true, you have slandered him, and if what you say of him is not true, you have reviled him.
I said to the Prophet (ﷺ): It is enough for you in Safiyyah that she is such and such (the other version than Musaddad's has:) meaning that she was short-statured. He replied; You have said a word which would change the sea if it were mixed in it. She said: I imitated a man before him (out of disgrace). He said: I do not like that I imitate anyone even if I should get such and such.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: The gravest sin is going to lengths in talking unjustly against a Muslim's honour, and it is a major sin to abuse twice for abusing once.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: When I was taken up to heaven I passed by people who had nails of copper and were scratching their faces and their breasts. I said: Who are these people, Gabriel? He replied: They are those who were given to back biting and who aspersed people's honour.
Abu Dawud said: Yahya b. 'Uthman has also transmitted it from Baqiyyah, there is no mention of Anas in it.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: O community of people, who believed by their tongue, and belief did not enter their hearts, do not back-bite Muslims, and do not search for their faults, for if anyone searches for their faults, Allah will search for his fault, and if Allah searches for the fault of anyone, He disgraces him in his house.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If anyone eats once at the cost of a Muslim's honour, Allah will give him a like amount of Jahannam to eat; if anyone clothes himself with a garment at the cost of a Muslim's honour, Allah will clothe him with like amount of Jahannam; and if anyone puts himself in a position of reputation and show Allah will disgrace him with a place of reputation and show on the Day of Resurrection.
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: If anyone guards a believer from a hypocrite, Allah will send an angel who will guard his flesh on the Day of Resurrection from the fire of Jahannam; but if anyone attacks a Muslim saying something by which he wishes to disgrace him, he will be restrained by Allah on the bridge over Jahannam till he is acquitted of what he said.
Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah ; AbuTalhah ibn Sahl al-Ansari:
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: No (Muslim) man will desert a man who is a Muslim in a place where his respect may be violated and his honour aspersed without Allah deserting him in a place here he wishes his help; and no (Muslim) man who will help a Muslim in a place where his honour may be aspersed and his respect violated without Allah helping him in a place where he wishes his help.
Yahya said: 'Ubaid Allah b. 'Abd Allah b. 'Umar and 'Uqbah b. Shaddad transmitted it to me.
Abu Dawud said: This yahya b. Sulaim is the son of Zaid, the freed slave of the Prophet (ﷺ), and Isma'il b. Bashir is the freed slave of Banu Maghalah. Sometimes the name of 'Utbah b. Shaddad is mentioned instead of 'Uqbah.
Chapter 42: Cases where it is not backbiting - كتاب الأدب
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ نَصْرٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الصَّمَدِ بْنُ عَبْدِ الْوَارِثِ، مِنْ كِتَابِهِ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي، حَدَّثَنَا الْجُرَيْرِيُّ، عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الْجُشَمِيِّ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا جُنْدُبٌ، قَالَ جَاءَ أَعْرَابِيٌّ فَأَنَاخَ رَاحِلَتَهُ ثُمَّ عَقَلَهَا ثُمَّ دَخَلَ الْمَسْجِدَ فَصَلَّى خَلْفَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَلَمَّا سَلَّمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَتَى رَاحِلَتَهُ فَأَطْلَقَهَا ثُمَّ رَكِبَ ثُمَّ نَادَى اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْنِي وَمُحَمَّدًا وَلاَ تُشْرِكْ فِي رَحْمَتِنَا أَحَدًا . فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم
" أَتَقُولُونَ هُوَ أَضَلُّ أَمْ بَعِيرُهُ أَلَمْ تَسْمَعُوا إِلَى مَا قَالَ " . قَالُوا بَلَى .
Narrated Jundub:
A desert Arab came and making his camel kneel and tethering it, entered the mosque and prayed behind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). When The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had given the salutation, he went to his riding beast and, after untethering and riding it, he called out: O Allah, show mercy to me and to Muhammad and associate no one else in Thy mercy to us. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) then said: Do you think that he or his camel is farther astray? Did you not listen to what he said? They replied: Certainly.
Is one of you helpless to be like AbuDaygham or Damdam (Ibn Ubayd is doubtful) who would say when morning came: O Allah, I gave my honour as alms to Thy servants?
‘Abd al-Rahman b. ‘Ajlan reported the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) as saying :
Is one of you unable to be like Abu Damdam? The people asked: who is Abu Damdam? He replied : A man of old before you. He then mentioned the rest of tradition to the tradition to the same effect. This version has : who would say (in the morning) : My honors is for the one who reviles me.
Abu Dawud said: This tradition has also been transmitted by Hashim bin al-Qasim from Muhammad b. 'Adb Allah al-'Ammi from Thabit on the authority of Anas from Prophet (ﷺ) to the same effect.
Abu Dawud said: The tradition of Hammad (i.e. 'Abd al-Rahman's version) is sounder.
حَدَّثَنَا عِيسَى بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الرَّمْلِيُّ، وَابْنُ، عَوْفٍ - وَهَذَا لَفْظُهُ - قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا الْفِرْيَابِيُّ، عَنْ سُفْيَانَ، عَنْ ثَوْرٍ، عَنْ رَاشِدِ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، عَنْ مُعَاوِيَةَ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ
" إِنَّكَ إِنِ اتَّبَعْتَ عَوْرَاتِ النَّاسِ أَفْسَدْتَهُمْ أَوْ كِدْتَ أَنْ تُفْسِدَهُمْ " . فَقَالَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ كَلِمَةٌ سَمِعَهَا مُعَاوِيَةُ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَفَعَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِهَا .
Narrated Mu'awiyah:
I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: If you search for the faults of the people, you will corrupt them, or will nearly corrupt them. AbudDarda' said: These are the words which Mu'awiyah himself from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and Allah benefited him by them.
Zayd ibn Wahb said: A man was brought to Ibn Mas'ud. He was told: This is so and so, and wine was dropping from his beard. Abdullah thereupon said: We have been prohibited to seek out (faults). If anything becomes manifest to us, we shall seize it.
AbulHaytham quoted Dukhayn, the scribe of Uqbah ibn Amir, saying: We had some neighbours who used to drink wine. I forbade them, but they did not stop.
I then said to Uqbah ibn Amir: These neighbours of ours drink wine, and I tried to prevent them but they did not stop, and I am going to call the police about them.
He said: Leave them.
I again came to Uqbah ibn Amir and said: Our neighbours have refused to refrain from drinking wine, and I am going to call the police for them.
He said: Woe to thee! Leave them alone. I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: he then mentioned the tradition to the same effect as recorded above on the authority of the narrator Muslim.
Abu Dawud said: In this version Hashim b. al-Qasim said on the authority of Laith: Do not do it, but preach them and threaten them.
‘Abd Allah b. Umar reported the prophet (May peace be upon him) as saying :
A Muslim is a Muslim’s brother: he does not wrong him or abandon him. If anyone cares for his brother’s need, Allah will care for his need ; if anyone removes a Muslim’s anxiety, Allah will remove from him, on account of it, one of the anxieties of the Day of resurrection ; and if anyone conceals a Muslim’s fault, Allah will conceal his fault on the Day of resurrection.
Abu Hurairah reported the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) as saying:
when two men abuse one another, what they say is laid to the charge of the one who began it, so long as the one who is wronged does not go over the score.
حَدَّثَنَا عِيسَى بْنُ حَمَّادٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا اللَّيْثُ، عَنْ سَعِيدٍ الْمَقْبُرِيِّ، عَنْ بَشِيرِ بْنِ الْمُحَرَّرِ، عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ الْمُسَيَّبِ، أَنَّهُ قَالَ بَيْنَمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم جَالِسٌ وَمَعَهُ أَصْحَابُهُ وَقَعَ رَجُلٌ بِأَبِي بَكْرٍ فَآذَاهُ فَصَمَتَ عنه أَبُو بَكْرٍ ثُمَّ آذَاهُ الثَّانِيَةَ فَصَمَتَ عَنْهُ أَبُو بَكْرٍ ثُمَّ آذَاهُ الثَّالِثَةَ فَانْتَصَرَ مِنْهُ أَبُو بَكْرٍ فَقَامَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم حِينَ انْتَصَرَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ فَقَالَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ أَوَجَدْتَ عَلَىَّ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم
" نَزَلَ مَلَكٌ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ يُكَذِّبُهُ بِمَا قَالَ لَكَ فَلَمَّا انْتَصَرْتَ وَقَعَ الشَّيْطَانُ فَلَمْ أَكُنْ لأَجْلِسَ إِذْ وَقَعَ الشَّيْطَانُ " .
Narrated Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab:
While the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was sitting with some of his companions, a man reviled AbuBakr and insulted him. But AbuBakr remained silent. He insulted him twice, but AbuBakr controlled himself. He insulted him thrice and AbuBakr took revenge on him. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) got up when AbuBakr took revenge.
AbuBakr said: Were you angry with me, Messenger of Allah?
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied: An angel came down from Heaven and he was rejecting what he had said to you. When you took revenge, a devil came down. I was not going to sit when the devil came down.
The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Abu Hurairah through a different chain of narrators. This version has:
A man was reviling Abu Bakr. He then mentioned the rest of the tradition in a similar manner.
Abu Dawud said: Similarly, it has been transmitted by Safwan b. ‘Isa, from Ibn ‘Affan, as Sufyan said.