Guarding the tongue

The book of guarding the tongue is among the most precious sections of Imam an-Nawawi's Kitab al-Adhkar, with 148 items on this page. An-Nawawi placed it in the Book of Adhkar because part of complete dhikr is that a Muslim guards his tongue from the forbidden, for the tongue that remembers Allah should not be soiled with backbiting, slander and lying. Its longest chapters are the prohibition of backbiting and slander.

An-Nawawi's method in guarding the tongue

An-Nawawi affirmed a famous rule of his, the gist of which is: a person who is accountable should guard his tongue from all speech except speech in which a benefit appears; if speaking and leaving it are equal in benefit, the Sunnah is to refrain from it, because permissible speech may drag into the forbidden or the disliked.

Hadiths on the virtue of guarding the tongue

• In the two Sahihs from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him): "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent."
• In the two Sahihs from Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) the Prophet ﷺ was asked: Which Muslims are best? He said: "The one from whose tongue and hand the Muslims are safe."
• In Sahih al-Bukhari from Sahl ibn Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him): "Whoever guarantees me what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I guarantee him Paradise."
• In the two Sahihs, a servant may say a word without realising what it entails, by which he slips into the Fire farther than the distance between the east and the west.
• At-Tirmidhi reported the long hadith of Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him), in which is: "And does anything throw people on their faces into the Fire except the harvests of their tongues?" and he said: hasan sahih.

Allah the Most High said: ﴿Man does not utter any word except that with him is an observer prepared [to record]﴾ (meaning: "Not a word does he utter but there is a watcher beside him, ready") [Qaf: 18].

What are backbiting and slander?

In Sahih Muslim from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) the Prophet ﷺ defined backbiting as "your mentioning your brother with what he dislikes"; if what you say is in him, you have backbitten him, and if it is not in him, you have slandered him.

As for slander (namimah), it is carrying the words of people to one another in order to cause corruption. In the two Sahihs from Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him): "A slanderer will not enter Paradise."

The Qur'an depicted the ugliness of backbiting, and the Most High said: ﴿And do not backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it﴾ (meaning: "Do not backbite one another; would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it") [Al-Hujurat: 12].

When is it permissible to mention another with what he dislikes?

An-Nawawi mentioned in al-Adhkar and in "Riyad as-Salihin" that backbiting is permitted for a sound legal purpose that cannot be reached except through it, and counted six reasons:

• Complaint to someone able to give justice to the wronged.
• Seeking help in changing a wrong.
• Seeking a fatwa, such as asking the mufti about the state of one who wronged him.
• Warning the Muslims against evil and advising them, such as criticising narrators and consultation in marriage and dealings.
• One who openly commits sin or innovation, only in what he does openly.
• Identification, if the person is known by a nickname by which he is known only, without intent to belittle.

How do you repent from backbiting?

The scholars mention that repentance from backbiting is with regret, stopping and resolve, then seeking forgiveness for the one you backbit and praising him with good in the places where you mentioned him with evil. As for asking his pardon, the scholars differ on it according to the harm that would result from it.

Practical advice for guarding the tongue

• Before you speak, ask yourself: is there benefit in my speech?
• If you hear backbiting, defend your brother's honour, change the subject, or leave the gathering.
• Occupy your tongue with dhikr, for if you do not occupy the tongue with good it will occupy you with other than it.

Conclusion

Guarding the tongue is half the road to sound dhikr. Make this book of an-Nawawi's adhkar a daily mirror in which you review your speech, and use the app's counter to occupy your tongue with tasbih and istighfar.

Machine translation