scholars have said that the concessions granted by the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, concern only this kind of speech, as in the hadith of Umm Kulthūm bint ʿUqba, who reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“The person who reconciles people, saying good things or intending good, is not a liar.”

He permitted what people call lying only in three situations: reconciling people, warfare, and a man’s conversation with his wife. The scholar holding this view said: “All of this consists exclusively of equivocal speech.” Thus, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, denied that it was lying in view of its intention and purpose. It is authentically reported that he said:

“War is deception.”

When he intended to undertake a military expedition, he would conceal his intention by indicating another destination. Another example is al-Siddīq’s statement about the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, during the migration journey: “This man guides me along the way.” There is also the Prophet’s reply, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to the unbeliever who questioned him during the expedition to Badr: “We are from water.”

Another example is his statement to the man who swore, concerning a Muslim whom the unbelievers intended to capture, “He is my brother.” He meant brotherhood in religion, whereas they understood brotherhood by descent. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“You were indeed the most upright and truthful of them. A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim.”

The point here is that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, distinguished backbiting from slander. He explained that someone who truthfully reports something about his believing brother that the latter dislikes is engaging in backbiting. In his words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, “Mentioning your brother in a way that