He—may Allah have mercy on him—was also asked:

Whom is it obligatory or permissible to hate or shun, or both, for the sake of Allah Most High? What conditions must be met by someone who hates or shuns another for the sake of Allah Most High? Does refraining from greeting someone fall within shunning? If the person being shunned greets the person shunning him first, is the latter obliged to return his greeting? Should hatred and shunning for the sake of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, continue until it is established that the characteristic for which the person was hated and shunned has disappeared? Or is there a specified period for this? If there is, what is its limit? Give us your ruling, and may you be rewarded.

The Answer

He replied:

Shunning prescribed by Islamic law is of two kinds: the first consists in keeping away from wrongdoing, and the second in punishment for it.

The first is mentioned in the words of Allah Most High:

“When you see those who engage in offensive discourse concerning Our verses, turn away from them until they engage in another conversation. And if Satan should cause you to forget, then, after remembering, do not sit with the wrongdoing people.”

And in His words, Most High:

“He has already revealed to you in the Book that when you hear Allah’s verses being denied