—the son of Adam rises in the morning, every one of his limbs submits to the tongue, saying, “Fear Allah with regard to us, for we are only as you are: if you are upright, we are upright, and if you are crooked, we are crooked.” Reported by al-Tirmidhī.
The phrase “tukaffiru al-lisān” means that the limbs humble themselves and yield to it. (1)
- Muʿādh (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “I asked, ‘Messenger of Allah, tell me of a deed that will admit me to Paradise and keep me far from the Fire.’ He replied, ‘You have inquired about something tremendous, yet it is easy for whomever Allah Most High makes it easy: worship Allah, associating nothing with Him; establish the prayer; pay the zakat; fast Ramadan; and perform pilgrimage to the House.’ He then said, ‘Shall I point you to the gateways of goodness? Fasting is a shield; charity extinguishes sin just as water extinguishes fire; and a man’s prayer in the depths of the night (2).’ Then he recited, ‘Their sides forsake their beds…’ until he reached, ‘…for all that they used to do’ (Quran 32:16).
He continued, ‘Shall I tell you the head of the matter, its pillar, and its highest peak? (3)’ I said, ‘Yes, Messenger of Allah.’ He said, ‘The head of the matter is Islam, its pillar is prayer, and its highest peak is jihad.’ He then said, ‘Shall I inform you of what controls all of that?’ I said, ‘Yes, Messenger of Allah.’ He took hold of his own tongue and said, ‘Restrain this.’ I asked, ‘Messenger of Allah, will we really be held accountable for what we say?’ He replied, ‘May your mother be bereaved of you! (4) Is anything that topples people on their faces into the Fire more than the harvest of their tongues?’ Reported by al-Tirmidhī, who said, “A ḥadīth that is ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ.” Its detailed explanation has already preceded in a previous chapter.
- Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Do you know what backbiting is?” They said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “It is your mentioning your brother with something he dislikes.” It was asked: