Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Speaking Tree Website | January 30, 2017
According to a hadith, the Prophet Muhammad said:“For whoever conceals the faults of a Muslim, God will conceal his faults in this world and the Hereafter.”(SunanIbnMajah, hadith no. 2544).
This hadith forbids using someone’s faults in order to defame him. It forbids talking about a person’s faults to unrelated people in order to spoil his image. On the other hand, helping someone improve or reform himself is the duty of every person of faith. As a hadith says: “A believer is like a mirror for another believer.” (Sunan Abu Dawud, hadith no. 4918). This hadith does not mean that a person’s fault should be hidden. Rather, it means that if a person has a certain fault or shortcoming, one should tell him about it, in a compassionate manner.
If you see or hear about a fault in someone, you could do one of two things. You could keep this fact in your heart and not speak about it to anyone. Or, you could meet the person yourself, and, in a spirit of compassion and genuine concern for his reform, speak to him about it. This method helps promotes positivity, in individuals and in the society at large.
As opposed to this, if you go about trying to find faults in others and gossip about them, it is tantamount to what is called ‘character assassination’.
If you have differences with somebody, you could respond to him by providing him evidences to support your stance. But to pick on his personal faults and defame him among other people is wrong and hypocritical.