Dua for Backbiting
Dua for Preventing Oneself From Backbiting Others
The following words may be recited as a reminder of Allah’s constant knowledge and awareness, helping a person guard their tongue from backbiting.
Backbiting in Islam
Backbiting is to mention something about a person that he would dislike, whether it concerns his body, his religion, his worldly affairs, his character, or anything connected to him. This includes speaking about his wealth, his children, his parents, his spouse, his clothing, his conduct, his movements, his manner of speaking, or his appearance.
It makes no difference whether this is said openly or in private, whether it is spoken or written, or even conveyed through gestures, facial expressions, or subtle hints. A raised eyebrow or a knowing look can carry the same weight as spoken words.
Backbiting Related to the Body
With regard to physical appearance, backbiting includes pointing out traits such as blindness, lameness, baldness, shortness, tallness, or any other feature that the person would be hurt by if it were mentioned.
What matters is not the accuracy of the statement, but the harm it causes and the disrespect it carries.
Backbiting Related to Religion
In matters of religion, backbiting includes saying that a person is corrupt, deviant, dishonest, or sinful. It also includes accusing him of being negligent in prayer, careless about purification, disrespectful to his parents, or failing to give charity properly.
Even claiming that someone engages in backbiting, when said behind his back, becomes an act of backbiting itself.
Backbiting in Worldly Affairs
Backbiting also occurs in everyday matters. This includes saying that a person has bad manners, looks down on others, talks excessively, eats or sleeps too much, sleeps at improper times, or places himself where he does not belong.
These statements often appear harmless, yet they carry the same moral weight when made in the person’s absence.
Backbiting Through Family and Lineage
A person may also be backbitten through those connected to him. This includes insulting his father, his family background, his lineage, or his occupation with the intention of belittling him.
Such speech combines backbiting with arrogance and contempt.
Backbiting of Character and Conduct
As for character, backbiting includes describing a person as arrogant, ostentatious, harsh, irresponsible, reckless, weak-hearted, tyrannical, or morally corrupt.
These judgments, when made in the absence of the person concerned, are among the most destructive forms of speech.
Backbiting Through Appearance and Dress
Even remarks about clothing and outward appearance fall under backbiting. Saying that someone’s clothes are excessively long, dirty, or unbecoming is included when the person would dislike such remarks being shared.
The General Principle of Backbiting
The examples are many, and what has been mentioned is sufficient to understand the principle. The essence of backbiting is to mention anything about your brother that he would dislike if he were to hear it.
This applies regardless of how it is conveyed and regardless of how widespread or socially acceptable it has become among people.
The Ruling on Backbiting and Slander
The ruling regarding backbiting and slander is clear and undisputed. Both are haram by the unanimous agreement of the Muslims. There is no difference of opinion on this matter, as explicit evidence from the Quran, the Sunnah, and the consensus of the Ummah all confirm their prohibition.
These are not minor sins, nor are they excused by habit or social norms. Rather, they are among the serious offenses of the tongue that corrupt hearts, destroy trust, and fracture communities.
Evidence from the Quran
Allah commands clearly and without ambiguity:
Allah also issues a stern warning:
And Allah further describes such behaviour as a blameworthy trait:
Evidence from the Hadith
Abu Hurayrah I reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ asked:
“Do you know what backbiting is?” They replied, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He ﷺ said, “It is to mention about your brother something that he would dislike.” Someone asked, “What if what I say about my brother is true?” He ﷺ replied, “If what you say is true, you have backbitten him, and if it is not true, you have slandered him.”
At-Tirmidhi (1935)
It is related that Hudhayfah I reported that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“No talebearer will enter Paradise.”
Al-Bukhari (6055)
Ibn Abbas I reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by two graves and said:
“These two are being punished, and they are not being punished for something they considered serious.” In another narration, he ﷺ said, “Indeed, it is serious.” One of them used to go about spreading tales, while the other did not protect himself from urine.
Al-Bukhari (216)
Abu Bakrah I reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said during his sermon on the Day of Sacrifice at Mina, during the Farewell Pilgrimage:
“Indeed, your blood, your wealth, and your honour are sacred to one another, just as the sanctity of this day of yours, in this month of yours, in this land of yours. Then he said: Have I conveyed the message?”
Al-Bukhari (105)
A’ishah J said:
“I said to the Prophet ﷺ, ‘Is it not enough for you that Safiyyah is such-and-such?’” One of the narrators explained that she was referring to Safiyyah being short. The Prophet ﷺ replied: “You have uttered a word which, if mixed with the water of the sea, would have tainted it.” A’ishah J also said: “I once imitated a person in his presence, and he said, ‘I would not wish to imitate anyone, even if I were given such-and-such in return.’”
At-Tirmidhi (2504)
Anas I narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“During my Mi’raj, I passed by people with copper claws scratching their faces and chests. I asked, ‘Who are these people, O Jibril?’ He replied, ‘They are those who used to devour the flesh of others and dishonour them.’”
Abu Dawud (4878)
Sa’id ibn Zayd I narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“The worst form of usury is to violate the honour of a Muslim without just cause.”
Abu Dawud (4876)
Abu Hurayrah I reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“A Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. He does not betray him, lie to him, or abandon him. The honour, wealth, and blood of every Muslim are sacred to another Muslim. God-consciousness is here. It is enough evil for a person to look down upon his Muslim brother.”
At-Tirmidhi (1928)
Listening to Backbiting and the Responsibility of the Listener
Just as backbiting is haram for the one who speaks it, it is also haram for the one who listens to it and silently approves of it. Sin is not limited to the tongue alone. It also includes the ear and the heart when they accept what Allah has forbidden.
For this reason, anyone who hears another person beginning to backbite is required to act, provided there is no clear fear of harm.
The Obligation to Stop Backbiting
If a person hears backbiting and is able to stop it without risking harm, then it is obligatory for him to do so. This may be done by directly condemning the speech, advising the speaker, or interrupting the conversation and steering it toward something permissible.
Remaining silent when one has the ability to intervene is itself an act of disobedience.
When There Is Fear of Harm
If a person fears harm, whether physical, social, or otherwise, then he is not required to speak out. In such a case, he must reject the backbiting in his heart and distance himself from it inwardly. If he is able to leave the gathering without consequences, then he should do so.
If leaving is not possible, then he must ensure that he does not listen to or engage with what is being said.
Condemning with the Tongue and the Heart
If a person says with his tongue, “Be quiet,” or “Stop,” but inwardly wishes that the backbiting would continue, then this is not a true rejection of the sin.
As Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali V explains, this behaviour is hypocrisy and does not free a person from sin. True disapproval must exist in the heart. It is essential that the believer genuinely dislike backbiting and feel discomfort when it occurs.
When One Is Forced to Remain
If a person is forced to stay in a gathering where backbiting continues, and he cannot successfully condemn it, nor withdraw from it, then it is forbidden for him to listen attentively or take pleasure in what is being said.
His way out is to occupy himself with the remembrance of Allah, either silently or aloud, or to deliberately think about something else so that he does not engage with the speech. In such circumstances, if words reach his ears without his attention or approval, he is not held accountable.
However, if he later finds an opportunity to leave while the backbiting persists, then it becomes obligatory for him to withdraw.
A Lesson from the Early Righteous
It is reported that Ibrahim ibn Adham V was once invited to a wedding feast. He attended, and during the gathering people began speaking negatively about a man who was not present, saying that he was boring.
Upon hearing this, Ibrahim said, “I have brought this upon myself by entering a place where people are slandered.” He immediately left the gathering and did not eat for three days.
When Backbiting Becomes Permissible
Although backbiting is haram in principle, it may become permissible in specific situations where a legitimate Shariah objective cannot be achieved by any other means. In such cases, the permissibility is not based on desire or emotion, but on necessity and sincere intent.
The scholars have identified six situations in which backbiting is allowed, provided that the purpose is sound and the intention is free from malice.
1. Complaining of Injustice
It is permissible for a person who has been wronged to speak about the wrongdoing in order to seek justice. He may complain to a ruler, judge, or anyone who has the authority or ability to remove the injustice.
In doing so, he may say that a specific person wronged him, harmed him, or took something from him. This is allowed because the objective is to restore rights and remove oppression, not to disgrace the wrongdoer.
2. Seeking Help to Remove an Evil
Backbiting is permissible when the intention is to seek help in correcting a wrong or stopping sinful behaviour. This applies when one speaks to someone who has the authority or influence to address the issue.
For example, a person may say that someone is committing a certain wrongdoing and should be advised or restrained. The condition is that the sole aim must be to eliminate the objectionable act. If the intention is anything else, then the speech becomes haram.
3. Seeking a Legal Ruling
It is permissible to mention another person’s actions when seeking a legal verdict. A person may say to a scholar or mufti that his father, brother, spouse, or another individual has treated him unjustly, and ask whether such behaviour is allowed and how he may reclaim his rights.
Although it is more cautious to speak in general terms without naming the individual, specifying the person is still permissible when necessary. This is established by authentic reports, such as the well known case of Hind, the wife of Abu Sufyan L, when she complained to the Prophet ﷺ about her husband’s stinginess and was not reproached for doing so.
4. Warning Muslims and Giving Sincere Advice
It is permissible, and at times obligatory, to warn Muslims about harm. This includes exposing unreliable narrators, false witnesses, or individuals whose conduct may harm others.
If someone seeks advice regarding marriage, business partnerships, trust matters, or other dealings, it becomes obligatory to provide honest counsel. If the objective can be achieved without mentioning faults explicitly, then one should limit himself to general advice. If that is not sufficient, then mentioning specific details becomes permissible.
This also applies to defects in goods being sold. Anyone aware of such a defect must inform the buyer if he does not already know.
Similarly, if a student of knowledge regularly studies with an innovator or deviant and there is fear that he will be harmed, it is obligatory to advise him by explaining the reality of that person. The intention must be sincere advice. One must be cautious here, as jealousy or self deception can lead a person to believe he is advising, when in reality he is merely backbiting.
The same principle applies to individuals placed in authority who are unfit, negligent, or corrupt. It becomes obligatory to inform those in higher authority so that harm may be prevented and responsibilities entrusted to those who are suitable.
5. When a Person Openly Commits Sin
If a person openly and publicly commits sinful acts, such as drinking wine, seizing people’s property, imposing unjust levies, or engaging in clear wrongdoing, then it is permissible to mention what he does openly.
However, it remains unlawful to mention other faults that he does not commit publicly, unless another valid reason exists that makes it permissible.
6. Identification
It is permissible to identify a person using a commonly known nickname that refers to a physical trait, such as blindness, lameness, or similar descriptions, when the sole intention is identification.
It is haram to use such descriptions to mock or belittle. Whenever possible, it is preferable to identify a person by another name that does not refer to a defect.
