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Fatwa CenterMaking up for backbiting
Question
HOW CAN A PERSON MAKE UP FOR BACKBITING ANOTHER ONE (BESIDE ESTEGHFAR) I.E. HOW TO MAKE IT WITH THE PERSON WHOM I SPOKE ABOUT? IF I TOLD THIS PERSON WHAT I SAID ABOUT HIM WILL, GOD FORGIVE ME?
Answer
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions. Backbiting is among the gravest sins. The backbiter is likened to the one who eats his dead brother's flesh. He should immediately repent from backbiting and ask forgiveness from Allah. And one is obliged to ask forgiveness from the person whom he has backbitten. This is the preponderant opinion of the scholars. Since backbiting is a kind of injustice one has committed against one's brother, one must ask pardon from him just as one asks the pardon for an injustice concerning one's body and property. Imam al-Bukhari related in his Sahih from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet Muhammad (Blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "If any Muslim has opposed his brother concerning honour or anything else, let him obtain his pardon today (in this world) before the time comes when he will have neither Dinars nor Dirhams (i.e. he will be penniless). If the aggressor may have some good deeds ( in his account) the same would be deducted in equal proportion to his wrongs, if the aggressor will have no good deeds in his account, the wrongs of the aggrieved would be added to the account of the aggressor in equal proportion". Only informing one who was backbitten is not sufficient, but one should ask his pardon for this injustice. If one could not find the person, one should continue asking forgiveness from Allah for himself and for the person who was backbitten. There is hope that Allah will accept the repentance. Allah knows best.
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