Speaking ill of the Arabs
Question
I have heard the the Hadith wherein Nabi صلى الله عليه وسلم said something to the effect that “Don’t speak bad about the Arabs because I am from amongst the Arabs.”
Today we hear a lot of people speaking bad about the Arabs. Could Mufti Saheb please clarify and shed some light on this.
Answer
We could not locate the narration mentioned in the query in any authentic Kitaabs of Hadith. In fact, some scholars have mentioned that the narration is fabricated.
Yes, there is a narration in which Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam states, “Love the Arabs because I am an Arab, the Quraan Majeed is in Arabic and the language of the inmates of Jannah is Arabic. [Mu’jamul Kabeer]
There is no harm speaking of the wrong practices of the Arabs with the intention of protecting others. Many people feel that the Arabs follow the Quraan and Hadith hence they are worthy of being emulated, whereas this is not the case. They misinterpret the Quraan and Hadith to suit their own whims and fancies. However, speaking ill of them as a hobby or as a pastime is incorrect and in such an instance we advise abstention. The Hadith states, “Speak good or keep silent.”
References (Arabic / Urdu sources)
عَنْ عَطَاءٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِي اللهُ عَنْهُمَا، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: ” أُحِبُّوا الْعَرَبَ لِثَلَاثٍ: لِأَنِّي عَرَبِيٌّ، وَالْقُرْآنُ عَرَبِيٌّ، وَكَلَامُ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ عَرَبِيٌّ “(المعجم الكبير #11441)
- Answered by
- Maulana Abdul Kader Fazlani
- Checked & approved by
- Mufti Mohammed Desai Saheb
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