Spiritual
DISCOURSE
By Mufti Taqi Usmani
A practical treatment for
backbiting
Maulana Ashraf ‘Ali Thanawi said:
If anyone backbites another or engages in vain
talk before a seeker and he does not have the
ability to admonish the backbiter, then he must
go away from there and not worry that he i.e.
the backbiter would be hurt by it. For, it is more
important to be cautious of one’s faith than of
breaking someone’s heart. If it is not possible to
get up from there immediately, then he should
excuse himself and provide a pretext, or change
the subject to something desirable.
We have mentioned earlier that just as
it is not allowed to backbite anyone,
so too it is not allowed to listen to one
who backbites. If a person is present
where another begins to backbite
someone then he should stop him
from proceeding further. There are
two ways to stop him. The first is to be
straightforward and tell him to refrain
from backbiting, saying in so many
words that it is a sin. If he cannot,
then the second option is to introduce
a new topic so that the evil is stopped.
If he cannot do either of the two, then
he should leave the gathering and go
elsewhere.
Let hearts break
Maulana Thanawi highlights an
important principle that one should
not care if anyone is hurt because it is
more important to protect one’s faith
than to avoid making one feel hurt.
Our problem is that we do not know
limits in anything we do. On the one
end, we do not give a thought to the
rights of fellow humans where rights
pertain to them or their properties.
On the other hand, those of us who
care about these rights go to such
extremes as to neglect the obligations
imposed on them by Shari‘a.
Salat at the right time
The wife of a physician told me
that her husband was a very good
man except that he does not pray
salat while he is at the clinic. When
she advised him to offer salat at the
proper time during clinic hours,
he said, “I am serving people and
fulfilling the rights of my fellow
human beings. How can I stand in
salat while the patients wait for me?”
So, when he came home, he offered
the missed salat of Asr and Maghrib
with ‘Isha. He argued that there was
no harm if he missed salat while he
was occupied in serving humanity.
He must know that service to fellow
humans is not a fard ‘ayn (individual
obligation) in the same way as salat.
Besides, service to humanity does not
bar him from offering the salat. He
could have easily prayed four rak‘a
of Asr salat and resumed examining
patients. Instead, he found a pretext
to postpone the salat. This habit of
going to extremes in religious matters
is because of a lack of understanding
in the deen. This is why Maulana
Thanawi said that it is not proper
to avoid hurting someone at the
expense of faith. Therefore, it does
not matter if someone is hurt that you
stopped him from backbiting or that
you got up and left from there. Your
responsibility to not hurt anyone is
important within the lawful limits,
but once there is risk of committing
a sin you are not bound to concern
yourself with that. Let him feel hurt.
Looking after others
The Prophet a said, “If anyone
ignores his lot in Paradise by devoting
himself to bettering someone else’s
life in this world, then Allah will
make that man his oppressor.” He
has ruined his own Hereafter for that
man’s transient life, and now Allah
will use that same man to destroy
your transient life too. It is known
from experience that those people
who earn unlawfully for the sake of
their wife and children, find later
that those very children turn against
them. This man displeased Allah in
order to please his wife and children,
so Allah made them his oppressors in
this very world.
Therefore, do not hurt your faith to
avoid hurting anyone.
Willpower required to avoid
backbiting
The Prophet a said, “No one should
be obeyed in anything that amounts
to disobedience of Allah.” It is not
necessary to listen to someone or
20 September – October 2021 | AL-MADINAH