بسم الله الرحمان الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious
the Most Merciful.
Permissible Slander
Slander, though haraam, is sometimes permissible for a lawful purpose,
the legitimating factor being that there is some aim allowed by Sacred
Law (Shariah) that is impossible by other means. This may be for one
of six reasons.
Redressing Grievances
The first is the redress of grievances. Someone wronged may seek
redress from the Islamic ruler, judge, or others with the authority or
power to help one against the person who has wronged one. One
may say, ''So-and-so has wronged me,'' ''done such and such to me,''
''took such and such of mine,'' and similar remarks.
Eliminating Wrongdoing
The second is seeking aid in righting a wrong or correcting a wrongdoer,
such as by saying to someone expected to be able to set things right,
''So-and-so is doing such and such, so warn him not to continue,'' and
the like. The intention in such a case must be to take the measures
necessary to eliminate the wrong, for if this is not one's purpose,
it is haraam.
Asking For A Legal Opinion
The third is asking for a legal opinion, such as by saying to the mufti,
''My father (or ''brother,'' or ''So-and-so,'') has wronged me by doing
such and such. May he do so or not?'' ''How can I be rid of him,'' ''get
what is coming to me,'' ''stop the injustice,'' and so forth. Or such as
saying, ''My wife does such and such to me,'' ''My husband does such
and such,'' and the like. This is permissible when necessary, but to be on
the safe side it is best to say, ''What do you think of a man whose case
is such and such,'' and so on, since this accomplishes one's aim without
referring to particular people. But it is nevertheless permissible to
identify a particular person, as is attested to by the hadith in which Hind
said, ''O Messenger of Allah, Abu Sufyan is a stingy man....''
and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not forbid her.
Warning Muslims Of Evil
The fourth reason is to warn Muslims of evil and advise them, which
may take several forms, including :
(1) Challenging unreliable hadith transmitters or court witnesses, which
is permissible by consensus of all Muslims, even obligatory, because of
the need for it.
(2) When a person seeks one's advice about marrying into a certain
family, entering into a partnership with someone, depositing something
for safekeeping with him, accepting such a deposit, or some other
transaction with him, it is obligatory for one to tell the person asking
what one knows about the other by way of advising him. If one can
accomplish this by merely saying, ''Dealing with him is of no advantage
to you,'' '' Marrying into the family is not in your interests,'' ''Do not do
it,'' and similar expressions, then one may not elaborate on the indivi-
dual's shortcomings. But if it cannot be accomplished without explicitly
mentioning the individual, one may do so.
(3) When one notices a student of Sacred Law going to learn from a
teacher who is guilty of reprehensible innovations in religious matters
or who is corrupt, and one apprehends harm to the student thereby,
one must advise him and explain how the teacher really is. It is
necessary in such a case that one intend to give sincere counsel.
Mistakes are sometimes made in this, as the person warning another
may be motivated by envy, which the Devil has duped him into
believing is heartfelt advice and compassion, so one must beware
of this.
(4) And when there is someone in a position of responsibility who
is not doing the job as it should be done, because of being unfit for
it, corrupt, inattentive, or the like, one must mention this to the
person with authority over him so he can remove him and find
another to do the job properly, or be aware of how he is so as
to deal with him as he should be dealt with and not be deluded
by him, to urge him to either improve or else be replaced.
Someone Unconcerned with Concealing
Their Disobedience
A fifth reason that permits slander is when the person is making
no effort to conceal his corruption or involvement in reprehensible
innovation (bid'a), such as someone who openly drinks wine,
confiscates others' property, gathers taxes not permitted by
Sacred Law, collects money wrongfully, or perpetrates other
falsehoods, in which cases it is permissible to speak about
what he is unconcerned to conceal, but haraam to mention his
other faults unless there is some other valid reason that permits
it, of those we have discussed.
Identification
The sixth reason is to identify someone. When a person is known
by a nickname such as ''the Bleary-eyed,'' ''the Lame,'' ''the Deaf,''
''the Blind,'' ''the Cross-eyed,'' or similar, it is permissible to refer
to him by that name if one's intention is to identify him. It is haraam
to do so by way of pointing out his deficiencies. And if one can
identify him by some other means, it is better.
These then, are six reasons Islamic scholars mention that permit
slander in the above cases (al-Adhkar (y102), 455-69).
InshaAllah to be continued
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious
the Most Merciful.
Permissible Slander
Slander, though haraam, is sometimes permissible for a lawful purpose,
the legitimating factor being that there is some aim allowed by Sacred
Law (Shariah) that is impossible by other means. This may be for one
of six reasons.
Redressing Grievances
The first is the redress of grievances. Someone wronged may seek
redress from the Islamic ruler, judge, or others with the authority or
power to help one against the person who has wronged one. One
may say, ''So-and-so has wronged me,'' ''done such and such to me,''
''took such and such of mine,'' and similar remarks.
Eliminating Wrongdoing
The second is seeking aid in righting a wrong or correcting a wrongdoer,
such as by saying to someone expected to be able to set things right,
''So-and-so is doing such and such, so warn him not to continue,'' and
the like. The intention in such a case must be to take the measures
necessary to eliminate the wrong, for if this is not one's purpose,
it is haraam.
Asking For A Legal Opinion
The third is asking for a legal opinion, such as by saying to the mufti,
''My father (or ''brother,'' or ''So-and-so,'') has wronged me by doing
such and such. May he do so or not?'' ''How can I be rid of him,'' ''get
what is coming to me,'' ''stop the injustice,'' and so forth. Or such as
saying, ''My wife does such and such to me,'' ''My husband does such
and such,'' and the like. This is permissible when necessary, but to be on
the safe side it is best to say, ''What do you think of a man whose case
is such and such,'' and so on, since this accomplishes one's aim without
referring to particular people. But it is nevertheless permissible to
identify a particular person, as is attested to by the hadith in which Hind
said, ''O Messenger of Allah, Abu Sufyan is a stingy man....''
and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not forbid her.
Warning Muslims Of Evil
The fourth reason is to warn Muslims of evil and advise them, which
may take several forms, including :
(1) Challenging unreliable hadith transmitters or court witnesses, which
is permissible by consensus of all Muslims, even obligatory, because of
the need for it.
(2) When a person seeks one's advice about marrying into a certain
family, entering into a partnership with someone, depositing something
for safekeeping with him, accepting such a deposit, or some other
transaction with him, it is obligatory for one to tell the person asking
what one knows about the other by way of advising him. If one can
accomplish this by merely saying, ''Dealing with him is of no advantage
to you,'' '' Marrying into the family is not in your interests,'' ''Do not do
it,'' and similar expressions, then one may not elaborate on the indivi-
dual's shortcomings. But if it cannot be accomplished without explicitly
mentioning the individual, one may do so.
(3) When one notices a student of Sacred Law going to learn from a
teacher who is guilty of reprehensible innovations in religious matters
or who is corrupt, and one apprehends harm to the student thereby,
one must advise him and explain how the teacher really is. It is
necessary in such a case that one intend to give sincere counsel.
Mistakes are sometimes made in this, as the person warning another
may be motivated by envy, which the Devil has duped him into
believing is heartfelt advice and compassion, so one must beware
of this.
(4) And when there is someone in a position of responsibility who
is not doing the job as it should be done, because of being unfit for
it, corrupt, inattentive, or the like, one must mention this to the
person with authority over him so he can remove him and find
another to do the job properly, or be aware of how he is so as
to deal with him as he should be dealt with and not be deluded
by him, to urge him to either improve or else be replaced.
Someone Unconcerned with Concealing
Their Disobedience
A fifth reason that permits slander is when the person is making
no effort to conceal his corruption or involvement in reprehensible
innovation (bid'a), such as someone who openly drinks wine,
confiscates others' property, gathers taxes not permitted by
Sacred Law, collects money wrongfully, or perpetrates other
falsehoods, in which cases it is permissible to speak about
what he is unconcerned to conceal, but haraam to mention his
other faults unless there is some other valid reason that permits
it, of those we have discussed.
Identification
The sixth reason is to identify someone. When a person is known
by a nickname such as ''the Bleary-eyed,'' ''the Lame,'' ''the Deaf,''
''the Blind,'' ''the Cross-eyed,'' or similar, it is permissible to refer
to him by that name if one's intention is to identify him. It is haraam
to do so by way of pointing out his deficiencies. And if one can
identify him by some other means, it is better.
These then, are six reasons Islamic scholars mention that permit
slander in the above cases (al-Adhkar (y102), 455-69).
InshaAllah to be continued
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