Shaykh Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Fawzān, may Allah preserve him, said:
The Prophet Muḥammad said:
كل المسلم على المسلم حرام: دمه وماله وعرضه.
“Every aspect of a Muslim is inviolable to another Muslim: his blood, wealth and honour.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 2564)
Allah has made the Muslim sacred. The meaning of the statement “every aspect of a Muslim” refers to his blood, his wealth and his honour. Thus, the latter part of the statement explains the first part. Concerning his statement, “His blood,” this means that Allah has prohibited the killing of a believer.
Allah said:
﴿وَمَن يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُّتَعَمِّدًا فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا﴾
“And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell to abide therein, and the Wrath and Curse of Allah are upon him, and a great punishment is prepared for him.” [Q 4:93]
The Prophet also said:
لا يحل دم امرئ مسلم إلا بإحدى ثلاث: النفس بالنفس، والثيب الزاني، والتارك لدينه المفارق للجماعة.
“The blood of a Muslim is not lawful except in one of three cases: a life for a life, the adulterer who has been married, and the one who abandons his religion and separates from the community.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 6878; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1676)
In these three situations, it is permissible for his blood to be shed.¹ Legal retaliation (qiṣāṣ) is applied in its prescribed case. The punishment for adultery is applied to the adulterer who has been married, and if a person apostatises from his religion, he is executed. However, if none of these three circumstances are found in him, then his blood is inviolable and impermissible to spill. Concerning his statement, “His wealth,” likewise, the wealth of a Muslim is sacred.
Allah said:
﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُم بَيْنَكُم بِالْبَاطِلِ إِلَّا أَن تَكُونَ تِجَارَةً عَن تَرَاضٍ مِّنكُمْ﴾
“O you who believe! Do not consume your wealth among yourselves unjustly, except that it be a trade amongst you by mutual consent.” [Q 4:29]
Thus, the wealth of a Muslim, like his blood, is sacred. It is not permissible to take it except with his mutual consent. The Prophet said:
لا يحل مال امرئ مسلم إلا بطيب نفس منه.
“A Muslim’s wealth is not lawful to take except with his willing consent.” (Aḥmad, al-Musnad, no. 20695; al-Bayhaqī, as-Sunan al-Kubrā, no. 11654)
Meaning: with his approval, and not by force, theft, betrayal or deception. It is not permissible to cheat him in transactions or to take his wealth unlawfully. His wealth is forbidden to take except through correct and lawful dealings, such as a valid and approved transaction. Likewise, he is not to be forced to buy or sell unjustly. However, if he has outstanding debts and refuses to repay them, then the ruler² may intervene by taking from his wealth, selling his assets and settling the debt, because this is done justly. Outside of this, it is not permissible. Forcing him to buy or sell is unlawful without his consent. Allah said: “by mutual consent” [Q 4:29].
Concerning the Prophet’s statement, “His honour,” honour includes everything that may be subject to praise or slander. A Muslim must not speak about the honour of his brother through backbiting, tale-carrying, insults or belittlement. He must not curse him, demean him or humiliate him, for his honour is sacred. Rather, he should defend him and repel backbiting directed against him. This is an obligation upon all Muslims. It is impermissible for a person to speak about the honour of his brother in gatherings and assemblies and to spread matters concerning him, even if he has committed errors or fallen into sins. One must not publicise his faults. Instead, he should advise him privately, in what is between himself and his brother. This is his right over him. However, speaking about him in sittings and gatherings, and mentioning his sins and shortcomings, is not permissible. This is backbiting.
Allah said:
﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اجْتَنِبُوا كَثِيرًا مِّنَ الظَّنِّ إِنَّ بَعْضَ الظَّنِّ إِثْمٌ ۖ وَلَا تَجَسَّسُوا وَلَا يَغْتَب بَّعْضُكُم بَعْضًا ۚ أَيُحِبُّ أَحَدُكُمْ أَن يَأْكُلَ لَحْمَ أَخِيهِ مَيْتًا فَكَرِهْتُمُوهُ ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَوَّابٌ رَّحِيمٌ﴾
“O you who believe! Avoid much suspicion; indeed, some suspicion is sin. And do not spy, nor backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it. And fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Accepting of repentance, Most Merciful.” [Q 49:12]
The Prophet also said:
أتدرون ما الغيبة؟ قالوا: الله ورسوله أعلم. قال: ذكرك أخاك بما يكره. قيل: أفرأيت إن كان في أخي ما أقول؟ قال: إن كان فيه ما تقول فقد اغتبته، وإن لم يكن فيه فقد بهته.
“Do you know what backbiting is?” They replied: “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said: “Mentioning your brother in a way he dislikes.” He was asked: “What if my brother has what I say about him?” He replied: “If he has what you say, you have backbitten him; if he does not, you have slandered him.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 2589)
This means that speaking about people in gatherings inevitably leads to one of two things: either a person becomes a liar by fabricating lies about his brother, or he becomes a backbiter by mentioning his faults. Both are impermissible, because the Muslim is sacred. It is obligatory to advise him secretly, without exposing, shaming or spreading reports about him.³
Allah said:
﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُحِبُّونَ أَن تَشِيعَ الْفَاحِشَةُ فِي الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ ۚ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ﴾
“Verily, those who love that immorality should be spread among the believers will have a painful punishment in this world and in the Hereafter. And Allah knows, and you do not know.” [Q 24:19]
The remedy for evil is not to spread it, speak about it publicly or circulate rumours. Rather, its remedy lies in sincere advice, enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, in accordance with the guidance of Islamic legislation, as Shaykh al-Islām Abū al-ʿAbbās Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH/1328 CE) mentioned in al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah.
Translator’s Notes
¹ Islamic punishments are implemented only under an Islamic ruler or authority. Cases are presented before an Islamic judge in an established court. Members of the public may not take these matters into their own hands.
² “The ruler” means the ruler or lawful Islamic authority.
³ Backbiting may be permissible when required for warning and clarification. Abū Zakariyyā Yaḥyā ibn Sharaf an-Nawawī (d. 676 AH/1277 CE) explains in Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn, chapter 256, that it is permitted for a valid religious purpose which cannot otherwise be achieved. Under the fourth ground, warning Muslims and advising them, he includes criticism of narrators and witnesses when necessary, advice about marriage and dealings, and warning a student who risks harm by learning from an innovator or a sinful person. He qualifies the last example:
بشرط أن يقصد النصيحة، وهذا مما يغلط فيه، وقد يحمل المتكلم بذلك الحسد، ويلبس الشيطان عليه ذلك، ويخيل إليه أنه نصيحة فليتفطن لذلك.
“Provided that he intends sincere advice. This is a matter in which mistakes occur: envy may motivate the speaker, while Satan confuses him and makes him imagine that it is sincere advice. He should therefore be alert to this.” (An-Nawawī, Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn, chapter 256, p. 432)
References
- Al-Fawzān, Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān ibn ʿAbd Allāh, explanation of the ḥadīth “Every aspect of a Muslim is inviolable to another Muslim”, translated in this article.
- The Qurʾān: [Q 4:29], [Q 4:93], [Q 24:19], [Q 49:12].
- Al-Bukhārī, Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl (d. 256 AH/870 CE), Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (al-Maṭbaʿah al-Kubrā al-Amīriyyah [as-Sulṭāniyyah] edition), no. 6878, 9/5.
- Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj (d. 261 AH/875 CE), Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, ed. Muḥammad Fuʾād ʿAbd al-Bāqī, no. 1676 (3/1302), no. 2564 and no. 2589 (4/2001).
- Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (d. 241 AH/855 CE), al-Musnad (Muʾassasat ar-Risālah edition), no. 20695, 34/299.
- Al-Bayhaqī, Abū Bakr Aḥmad ibn al-Ḥusayn (d. 458 AH/1066 CE), as-Sunan al-Kubrā, ed. ʿAbd Allāh at-Turkī, no. 11654, 12/62.
- An-Nawawī, Abū Zakariyyā Yaḥyā ibn Sharaf (d. 676 AH/1277 CE), Riyāḍ aṣ-Ṣāliḥīn (Muʾassasat ar-Risālah edition), chapter 256 (Bāb mā yubāḥu min al-ghībah), p. 432.
- Ibn Taymiyyah, Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm (d. 728 AH/1328 CE), al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah.
