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GHEEBAH (BACK-BITING)
Back-biting
means to speak someone’s defects
behind him. If the defect we are
speaking about is not present in
that person, then it is
allegation, which amounts to
double sins. Truly, it is a
taste-less sin.
When
back-biting ingresses in to our
conduct, it leaves adverse
effects on the soul. One of
which is enmity and hatred
towards the victim, which
gradually increases. At the time
of death, when the veils of
angelic realms are lifted, the
back-biter may be brought to
witness the station of his
victims before Almighty Allah,
and the honor and blessings
bestowed upon them by the
Almighty.
QUR’ANIC PRONOUNCEMENTS:
1.
“…nor let some of you back-bite
others” (49:12)
2.
“Does one of you like to eat the flesh
of his dead brother. But you
abhor it” (49:12)
3.
“Surely (as
for) those who love scandal
should circulate respecting
those who believe, they shall
have a grievous chastisement in
this world and hereafter.”
(24:19)
4.
“Surely, the
hearing and the sight and the
heart, all of these shall be
questioned about that.” (17:36)
5.
“Wael (woe)
to every slanderer, the
defamer.” (104:1)
6.
“Allah does
not love public accusations
unless one is truly wronged.
Allah is All-Hearing and
All-Knowing.” (4:148)
The Holy
Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said: “O Ali,
if some one hears the
back-biting of his Muslim
brother committed in his
presence, yet he does not rally
to his assistance, despite being
capable of doing so, Allah shall
humiliate him in this world and
hereafter.”
On inquiry
from Abu Zar (r.a.) as to what
is Gheebah, he said, “It is to
mention about your brother that
which he detests.”
“The
listener is one of the two
back-biters”
“Back-biting
is worst than adultery. One
indulges in adultery.
Thereafter, if he really feels
ashamed of it and makes true
repentance, and sincerely seeks
forgiveness, Allah forgives him.
But if a person back-bites
someone after this even if he
repents, it is of no use until
that person forgives him. That’s
why back-biting is worse than
adultery as it is bilateral,
where as adultery concerns only
Allah. Back-biting involves both
Allah and the poor person who
was back-bitten. Unless that
person forgives, Allah will not
forgive him”
“No fire is
faster in consuming dry wood
than gheebah in consuming a
devotee’s virtues”
Hazrat A’isha
narrates, “Once a woman came to
visit us and when she turned to
go away, I made a gesture by my
hand to indicate that she was
short in height. There upon The
Prophet, may Allah’s blessings
be on him and his progeny, said,
“You have committed her gheebah.”
Once, the
Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) stoned a
man for commission of adultery.
One of the persons present
remarked to his friend, “This
one was finished where he stood,
like a dog.” Thereafter, the
Prophet (s.a.w.s.) accompanied
by the two men passed by a
carcass and he said to them,
“Now take a bite of it, you two”
They said, “O Messenger of
Allah, should we take a bite of
a carcass?” The Prophet (s.a.w.s.)
replied, “That which you have
taken of your brother was more
rotten than this.”
“One who
walks on the path of gheebah of
his brother and divulging the
defects, the first step that he
takes will be into Hell and
Allah shall divulge his defects
in front of all creatures.”
“Whoever
back-bites a Muslim spoils his
fasts and breaks his wuzu and
shall come on the Day of
Resurrection with his mouth
stanching more rotten than a
carcass.”
“On the night
of Mairaaj, I passed by a people
who were scratching their faces
with their finger nails. I said:
O Gibraeel! Who are these
people? He replied, “These are
those who perpetrated the
people’s gheebah and slandered
their reputation.”
Commander of
the Faithful Imam Ali (a.s.) addressed to
his companion, Nawf al-Bakali:
“Abstain from gheebah, for it is
the food of the dogs of Hell
fire. O Nawf, untrue is the one
who claims to be of legitimate
birth and yet devours the flesh
of people through back-biting.”
Nahjul
Balagha, sermon 140 is titled
as: About back-biting and
speaking ill of others.
Imam Jaffer
al-Sadiq (a.s.) said, “One
who spreads and talks about what
he saw or heard about a believer
is one of those who, as
mentioned by Allah in Holy
Qur’an, will taste a painful
chastisement as he likes to
expose evil deeds.” “Allah
drives such person out of His
shelter even if this man had
fasted in Ramazaan.”
“The havoc
wrought on the believer’s face
by back-biting is swifter than
the one wrought by ‘akalah’ (a
disease that consumes the flesh)
in the side of his body”
“Whoever does
a favor to his brother by
refuting his back-biting upon
hearing it in a gathering, Allah
shall save him from a thousand
kinds of evils in this world and
hereafter. And if he does not do
so despite his ability to refute
it, on him shall be the burden
of one who commits his
back-biting seventy times.”
“O You who
have embraced Islam with your
tongues but in whose hearts
Islam has not entered, do not
disparage Muslims and do not
seek their defects. Verily,
Allah will seek out the person
who is after their defects; and
one who has Allah after his
defects will be humiliated even
in his own abode.”
“Gheebah is
equal to infidelity, and
listening to and being pleased
with it, is polytheism.”
Imam Musa
al_Kazim (a.s.) said, “If one
speaks about a person in his
absence about those of his
traits which are actually
present in him and people are
also aware of it then it is not
gheebah. But if he mentions some
thing which is present in the
person but people are unaware of
it, it would be gheebah.
Moreover, what he says is not
present in the man, it is
allegation.”
Back-biting
Permissible in the following situations:
To protect
Muslims from the evils of
another person including the
situation when one is required
to vouch for the integrity of a
marriage prospects.
When the
person being talked about does
not conceal his violations of
the Divine Commands.
To describe
the fault of a patient before a
physician for purposes of
treatment.
To criticize
a narrator of a Tradition for
authenticity.
Cure for the
spiritual disease:
The
back-biter should purge this bad
habit and nourish the roots of
unity, sincerity and solidarity
in his or her heart and follow
these steps:
1.
Reflect about
the effects of back-biting in
this world and life hereafter.
Ponder over the golden words of
Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) and
his Progeny and the consequent
chastisement.
2.
Even if one
has enmity with a person he
should not resort to
back-biting. It is mentioned in
traditions that the good deeds
of the back-biter are
transferred to the book of deeds
of the victim and his bad deeds
are transferred to the
back-biter.
3.
If possible,
repent and seek the victim’s
forgiveness. Otherwise seek
mercy of Allah for him.
4.
Make
determination to get rid of this
habit and control one’s tongue.
5.
The
back-biter should search if he
has any traces of inferiority
complex. |
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