161
brother by repudiating the slander being spoke!,.
The Prophet (peace, be on him) said, If anyone defends his brother who is slandered in his absence, it will
be (his) due from Allâh to set him free from the Fire. (Reported by Ahmad on good authority.)
And again, If anyone defends his brother’s honor in this world, Allâh will shield his face from the Fire on the
Day of Resurrection. (Reported by al Tirmidhî on sound authority.) If a person does not have the courage to
speak out in defense of his brother against malicious tongues, the least he can do is to withdraw from such
company until they turn to some other topic otherwise, the verse, “Truly, you would then be like them”
(4:140) would apply to him.
Spreading Gossip
Another bad,which usually accompanies backbiting and is strictly prohibited by Isla, is gossiping. This means
passing on to others what you hear from someone in such a manner that will cause dissension among
people, sour their relationships, or increase already-existing bitterness between them.
From the very early Makkah period of revelation, the Qur‘ân condemned this trait saying, And do not obey
any despicable man, ready with oaths, a slanderer, going among the people with calumnies. (68: 10-11)
And the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, “The one who spreads gossip which he has overheard will not enter the
Garden” (Compiled by al-Bukhâri and Muslim.), and, The most evil among Allâh’s slaves are those who go
about spreading gossip dividing those who love each other and desiring to defame those who are innocent.
(Reported by Ahmad.)
In order to foster peace and reconciliation, Islâm permits a mediator to conceal the bad words said by one
person against another and permits him to add some good words which, in fact, neither of them has said.
This is not considered to be lying, for the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, “He is not a liar who makes peace between
two persons, saying what is good or adding something good.” (Compiled by al-Bukhâri and Muslim.)
Islâm’s anger is particularly directed against those people who, as soon as they hear something bad, hasten
to recount it for the sake of currying favor or merely out of love of causing trouble and dissension. Indeed,
many such people are not satisfied to simply repeat what they have heard but add to it or invent something
of their own. As a poet has said,
If they hear a good word they hide it,
And if a bad word they shout it,
And if nothing is heard they make up a lie.
A man came to ‘Umar bin ‘Abd al-‘Aziz and told him something about another person which the latter would
have disliked being mentioned. Thereupon ‘Umar said to him, “Let us examine your case: If you are lying,
you are one of those who is mentioned in the ayah, ‘If a wicked person brings you some news, investigate it‘
(49:6) and if you are telling the truth, you are one of those mentioned in the ayah, ‘A slanderer, going among
the people with calumnies.’ (68:11) But if you wish we may forgive you.” The man replied, Please forgive
me, O Ameer al-Mu‘mineen (Leader of the Believers). I shall never do it again.
The Sacredness of Honor
We have noted that the Islâmic teachings safeguard human dignity and honor, regarding them, in fact, as
inviolable and sacred. Once, while looking at the Ka‘aba, ‘Abdullah bin Umar remarked, “How great and
sacred you are! But the sanctity of the Believer is greater than yours“—and the sanctity of the Muslim
includes the sanctity of his life, his honor, and his property.
162
During the Farewell Pilgrimage the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) addressed the assembly of Muslims, saying, Your
lives, your honor, and your property are as sacred to each other as the sacredness of this your day, in this
your month, and in this your city. (Compiled by Muslim.)
Islâm safeguards the sanctity of a person’s honor against backbiting even if what is said about him is true.
How much more abhorrent it is, then, if what is said is false and baseless; this is a sheer wrong and a great
sin. The Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, If anyone says something about a person which is not true in order to
defame him, Allâh will confine him in the fire of Hell until it extinguishes his utterance. (Reported by al-
Tabarani)
‘Aishah reported that the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said to his Companions, ‘Do you know what the worst form of
usury is in the sight of Allâh?‘ They said, ‘Allâh and His Messenger know best‘ The Prophet (s.a.w.s.)
replied, ‘The worst form of usury is the violation of the personal honor of a Muslim.’ He then recited, ‘Those
who harm believing men and believing women undeservedly have laid upon themselves a calumny and a
manifest sin.’ (33:58) (Reported by Ibn Abû Hatim, Ibn Murdawai and al-Bayhaqi.)
The vilest kind of attack on personal honor is that of accusing a virtuous believing woman of immorality.
Such an accusation not only ruins her reputation and that of her family, destroying her future, but also
broadcasts scandals within the Muslim society. This is why the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) listed it among
the seven most heinous sins and the Qur‘ân threatened its perpetrators with dire punishments: Those who
accuse chaste but careless (or indiscreet) believing women shall be accursed in this world and in the
Hereafter, and theirs will be a grievous punishment on the Day when their tongues, their hands, and their
feet will bear witness against them concerning what they did. On that Day Allâh will pay them in full their just
due, and they will show that Allâh is indeed the manifest Truth. (24:23-25) Indeed, these who love that a
scandal should be spread concerning those who believe will have a painful punishment in this world and in
the Hereafter, and Allâh knows and you do not know. (24:19)
The Sacredness of Life
Islâm has made human life sacred and has safeguarded its preservation. According to its teachings,
aggression against human life is the second greatest sin in the sight of Allâh, second only to denial of Him.
The Qur‘ân declares,.. If anyone kills a person for any reason other than for (the killing of) a person or for
sowing corruption in the land, it will be as if he had killed the whole of mankind....(5:35 (32))
Because the human race constitutes a single family, an offense against one of its members is in fact an
offense against the whole of humanity. The crime is more serious if the slain is a believer in Allâh. And for
the one who kills a Believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein; and the wrath of Allâh is
upon him and His curse, and a tremendous punishment has been prepared for him. (4:93)
The Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, “The passing away of the world would mean less to Allâh than the murder of a
Muslim man.” (Compiled by Muslim, al-Nisai, and al-Tirmidhî) He also said, “A Believer remains within the
scope of his religion as long as he does not kill anyone unlawfully. (Compiled by al-Bukhâri.)
And again, Allâh may forgive every sin except in the case of one who dies a mushrik or one who kills a
Believer intentionally. (Reported by Abû Daoud, Ibn Hibban, and al-Hakim.)
On the basis of these verses and ahadith, Ibn ‘Abbas deduced that the repentance of the murder will not be
accepted by Allâh. For, he argued, since in the case of an offense against another individual, the
wrongdoer’s repentance is not accepted unless the wrong done to others is righted or their satisfaction
secured, the question is how, in the case of murder, one can restore the murdered person to life or secure
his satisfaction. Others say that sincere repentance is accepted by Allâh; if it erases even the greatest sin,
that of shirk or ascribing partners to Allâh, why not lesser sins? Allâh Ta‘ala says:...Those who do not
invoke, together with Allâh, any other deity, nor take the life which Allâh has made sacred except in (the
Dostları ilə paylaş: |