Chapter IV: Poverty and Renunciation
The second cause of back-biting is to support the opinion of friends- Its medicine is to oppose the opinion of friends in the matter of back-biting a man. You should know that if you incur the displeasure of God by pleasing your friends, God will be enraged on you. So how can you give up God for pleasing your friends? The third cause is to show one's piety by back-biting another. The medicine is as described above. You should know that in that case God's wrath will fall on you and that you are courting destruction in the next world absolving yourself from guilt in this world. You should also know that you are losing all your virtues by back-biting. The fourth cause of back-biting is to consider oneself pure and disclose one's prestige and pride. The medicine of this is to know that your glory and dignity may vanish and the people may look down upon you. The fifth cause is envy. Its medicine is as follows: You should know that if you envy anybody for his riches and honour in the world, you will be burnt by the fire of envy in this world in addition to your being burnt in Hell-fire. You have taken thereby the punishment of Hell and are bereft of riches and honour in this world. You should know that his sins will fall on you and your virtues will go to him. The sixth cause is ridicule and jest. You should know that you have ridiculed a man in presence of some people, but you will be ridiculed before all the creatures in the next world. The seventh cause is express sympathy for the sin of another and thereby back-biting him. The eighth reason is to express astonishment at the conduct of another. It is a mockery which is anactofsin.
BACK-BITING BY MIND: Know, O dear readers, that to back-bite another by mind is unlawful like back-biting by tongue. This means evil idea or thought about a person. What suddenly arises in mind is pardonable. God says: O those who believe, if a transgressor comes to you with a news, ascertain its truth, lest you do injury to a people out of ignorance and then be repentant for what you have done - 49 : 6Q. So to support the devil is unlawful. The Prophet said: God has made unlawful the
116 The Book of Destructive evils Vol-Hj
life and property of a Muslim and to entertain evil thought about him. So evil thought is unlawful. It leads to entry into his secrets which is also unlawful. God says: Don't enquire about secrets - 49 : 14Q.