Abdur Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera – Spying the Appetite to Know About Others
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Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim Al hamdu Lillahi Rabbil Alameen wa
salatu salam ala UB mursaleen
were either early he or sahih or Baraka was seldom at the Sleeman
Kathira en la COVID-19 a member
called Allah with the baraka with the IRA. Yeah you're Latina arm
and then you will get here on men have one in our above one is
well, to just sue when I thought about dokkan Bala
are called an abuse Allah Allahu alayhi wa sallam, whether they
just sue whether the hustle while at about how to whether to double
Hakuna about Allahu Allah.
Allah subhanaw taala. In this verse, he says several different
things. And this is more about inter community interpersonal
relationships. So this verse that I just read of sorbitol, who gerat
It speaks about how communities and individuals should live with
one another. It's got some guidance regarding that. What it
specifically talks about is that Backbiting is a bad thing. And we
speak a lot about backbiting. Backbiting is generally discussed
in numerous lectures. So I'm not going to speak about backbiting
directly. There's another aspect here, both in the Hadith that I
mentioned.
And in the verse that I just really read, which is related to
backbiting, which is spying,
spying and trying to find out about other people, things that
are absolutely nothing to do with us. So this is to try to find out
what somebody else is doing, or what somebody else is saying, or
what somebody else does, in a way that has no necessary relevance to
us. It's just this hunger, a voracious appetite, for just
knowing about people, negatively speaking about them negatively,
just gathering information about them. So maybe you can use it
against them, maybe then backbiting, because backbiting,
generally is going to be about something about a person. So you
need to find out about the person first. So some people have such an
information, they just need to know everything. It's a sickness
of the heart that you need to know everything negative about
somebody.
You know, there's one is that somebody does something openly,
and you know about that,
that you can't help knowing there's a different way to deal
with that. But the other one is that you don't know something
about somebody or you know a bit about someone, and then the knifes
and your ego, your desire, you want to find out everything about
them
for negative reasons. Now, it's understandable that there's
somebody who's showing a lot of positivity, showing a lot of
virtue, and you want to find out more about them, because you want
to benefit from them. Because you know, humans are role models for
one another. So when you find out about somebody who's like, let's
just say there's a big worry of Allah and you find out that, you
know, there's a video of Allah coming to town, you want to be
with them all the time, so you can learn from them. See how they live
their life.
See how they do things, see if you can learn from their words, their
behavior, their attitude towards things, that's completely fine,
because that's what humans do. Now imagine if instead of the
positivity, we're actually looking at, what is he doing? What is she
doing? When do they do this? When do they go out of the house, who
they're visiting, who they're meeting? What are they doing in
their shopping and all of these things? It's number one, useless
information. Number two, it's actually harmful information.
Because the more negativity that we know or negativity we have, and
negative things we know about other people. It's actually bad
for us. Why would the other mentioned that? Cursing shaytaan
shaytaan has been a curse, he is the accursed. I will be learning
Mina shaytaan the regime, but if somebody was to sit all day and
just say shaitan is regime shaytaan is regime shaytaan is
regime
rather than that he should read Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu
Akbar. Because there is no specific benefit in saying just
continuously stating something negative, or stating something
evil, unless there's a reason to do so.
Unless there's a reason to tell us about evil about somebody,
somebody's cheating people, somebody swindling people,
somebody has evil within them and they're going to influence others.
That's valid reasoning.
But the problem is that where a lot of negativity comes is out of
just this desire, this appetite for knowing the wrong and that's
what the problem is. So Allah subhanaw taala says, well digests
us who do not do this spying do not do so by now or never have
explained that justice in a few different ways. So for example, is
that taboo our rottenness looking out for? Investigate
Seeing the hidden aspects of people
while they're doing something
discreetly, if somebody is doing it openly and it's in your face,
you're seeing it, you know, you're not so silly to not recognize that
that's a problem.
How you how you how you deal with that information, what you do with
that information is something different. But if somebody's doing
something's hidden, and you're trying to find out what they do,
and it's got nothing to do with others, then this is what it is
Ima be another la himbo home life or own like, either by looking at
them in a way that they don't realize, you know, you're peeking
in or some other way, or breaking into checking the email why
they're not around your your coworker sitting then you check
their email quickly see what's going on. Right? Check their
browsing history, all of this stuff, why would you need to know?
Even if you've got a suspicion unless you want to help them, then
you'd rather help them in some other way.
Where Mr. B is still rock is semi or eavesdropping.
That would be another one. So you're working, somebody's
discussing. And while you can kind of hear bits and bobs, right parts
of it, and you're like, let me get a bit closer.
So you try to listen. Or basically as a reading something about this
or just asking someone else about them? Well, what did he say to
you? What, what are you guys up to? Or what didn't know about what
he or she said to you? Just like, what are you guys up to? Like? Are
you are you doing anything or just to try to find out however you do
it, if there's no need for it, it's just extra dangerous
information. One of the reasons for this, obviously, it's simple.
I mean, the the social problems that come up with this, when you
find out about somebody, you're going to maybe let off some of
that, that's going to create hatred is going to create
animosity it's going to create, they're going to maybe do the same
to you.
So socially, it creates a massive problem. You know, you know about
what this does, there must be people in our families who have
done this and created problems, problems have been created because
of finding out about negative things that, you know, it didn't
need to be out there.
In fact, what then happens is several other things, right? So
one is the person doing the so called investigation or the
spying. Then there's the person who you're spying on. And then
there's everybody else. So I've already spoken about what
happened, what happens to everybody else, that they get to
find out about something that was not necessarily for them to find
out. The only reason they found out they didn't even have this bad
attitude of spying on people. But they found out. Now the harm in
there for the person who the spying is done on who you're
spying upon, is that when people feel vulnerable when they're spied
upon when they aggressed against when they somebody's after them,
right is that it really creates a real negativity in themselves.
It's very harmful. And what that then does is that he's probably
going to try to do that to others, he's going to try to find out
something about you.
So it just starts this whole war for no reason. At least at least,
I mean, even if you say I just want to know, and you don't want
to do anything against them, you don't even tell anybody, but if
they find out, people are not silly, people are not stupid, you
know, they find out these things. So imagine if they found somebody
looking into their email or eavesdropping on them, they're
just going to feel so vulnerable. Now what you've done to another
Muslim, or another human being is that you've just made them really
restless. You've made them anxious, you've made them
concerned.
You've basically wasted a huge amount of trust and respect.
And I'm so and I'm just talking about casual. Of course those who
do it to really betray people who basically may be giving
information. I mean, we're not even talking about spying on a
professional level. Like, you know, where communities are doing
this, whether different regimes are doing this, whether you're
doing this in a war situation, especially, for example, you know,
you've heard about Palestine where there's people from among the
Muslims there who are bought out to then spy on other Muslims so
that they can let the authorities know that are against them.
That's obviously a whole different level that's like on a big huge
level. That's completely haram anyway, there's betrayal in the
end everything I'm just talking about on a social level, how bad
it can become. Allah subhanaw taala says, for example, regarding
the McAfee team, when they wouldn't come the McAfee clean
like they what they would do sometimes is that when the battle
was on, or they were about to go out on an expedition,
the monarchy should would sometimes start off with them. And
then, at a short distance, they would actually
Come back. And that was to demoralize the rest of the army.
So imagine you go out right as a big group, right? They go out. And
numbers are a big issue. Numbers are a big strength, and then
suddenly you have like 15% 20% just walk away. That's very
demoralizing. So that's why Allah subhanho wa Taala says about this
situation. lo hara JioFi come. Mazza do Camilla, Habibollah
Walla, Walla, oh dharuhera, Allah come, you have who in a common
fitna, where fee come some owner will fee come some my own Allah
whom Allah who can even be avoided me, even if they did come up with
you don't worry about them, even if they come out of come out with
you. They're only going to cause you loss and weakness anyway, is
no point for them to come up with you. Don't worry about them.
Because there's even some summer ona people who hear a lot people
who try to listen a lot this summer when Allah Allah subhanaw
taala speaks about it, that these are the people who try to listen
up so that they can basically inform inform the other group
about you. That's what you call an effect. That's hypocrisy. Now, why
didn't our normal community social interactions, they may not be that
kind of betrayal going on, it's more about the evil of one's own
knifes. So we spoke about the person you're spying on, we spoken
about the other people once they find out, and the person
themselves who's spying.
That's even worse. Because that just shows a meanness in the
heart. It shows a real degeneration, or did a real
weakness in their behavior in their personality, that they love
to do these things, as you know, as I've said before,
observation is that there's some people who know so much about
others and who maintain and memorize that, and effortlessly,
it's not like they do, I will actually they do do doubt of it,
they actually do revise it. And the way you revise, you know, for
the last 1520 years, you've just remembered everybody and their
problems. So you can literally give a background information of
the last 20 years and somebody
right because you just remember everything how does a person like
that refresh and review everything, while you just tell
somebody about each person every once in a while that make you
review everything, because reviewing comes from repetition.
So that's how they keep it fresh.
And they do this effortlessly. It's not like they have to do like
a hips class student, you know, somebody who's memorizing the
Quran where they have to learn something and then read it every
day. These people they just have to tell other people. So they
mashallah these people, Allah subhanaw taala has given them a
lot of brainpower, a lot of memory, but they're just using it
in the wrong direction.
Some of these people, they're such that if they just focused on
memorizing the Quran, or Hadith, or good virtues, or just good
things, because a lot of these people you have to remember the
very, very good talkers as well because they'll know about these
things and then they'll entertain others with this information.
Personally, I think they should go out in the path of Allah and you
know, memorize some Hadith and basically give it out to others,
they would, they do a lot more because they've got enough memory
to, to to either learn the whole Quran or to do to basically learn
the knowledge course to become a London taxi driver. Because you
know, London, those black cabs, they have to literally know all
the all the roads of London how to go they have to know them by
heart, takes them two or three years to do that. So these people
they just don't know the the talent that they've gone, the
wasting shaytaan is making them wasted. And it's just a meanness
of the self. So, a few Hadith in this regard, the Prophet
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said as Abu Huraira the Allahu Anhu
reports in a hadith al Bukhari and Muslim. The Prophet sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam said, er, c'mon,
these are all related issues. Er, Kumar Vaughn. Why would you spy in
the first place?
You'd spy because you've got a doubt about somebody. You've got a
whiff of some drama, some saga some problem, right? There's a
soap opera cooking somewhere. Right? So er Kamasan stay away
from bad opinion
than just means opinion. But obviously negative opinions stay
away from that thought in other than that we'll Hadith because
conjecture and speculation like that is one of the most untruthful
one of the most false discourses because you can make up so much
and you'll be led to make up so much then you do a bit of spying
and then you add to it
for in them that they will Hadith and he says well at the hasta su
Allah to just assume and do not spy now do not lead your
speculation about something to go now spy.
Then the Prophet saw some said well enough as to what it has to
do do not have this negative competition within within one
another. Do not have
Do not have hate, sorry jealousy, mutual jealousy for one another.
Jealousy is not a good thing between you while at about how to
and don't basically have mutual hatred for one another. All of
this is going to create hatred. So all of that should be avoided.
While at work who knows about Allah Juana just be brothers for
Allah subhanaw taala just be brothers, just be servants of
Allah and brothers that you are all together as servants of Allah
be brothers and sisters. There's another Hadith from Abu Barza al
islamiya, or the Alon from telemovie Rasulullah sallallahu
sallam said, Yeah, Max shot I'm an amateur Billy Cerney What am yet
holy Iman or Kalba
look at the way that Orissa is addressing such people. He's
saying oh people who have OH group of those Oh congregation of
people, right of those who have brought faith with their tongue
meaning who say I am Muslim, who say I believe in Allah with the
tongue, but the Imam has not fully entered the heart.
What am I what am i According Iman, what am your coded Iman or
caliber who Iman has not fully entered the heart. This is talking
about the state of this person.
This state of the person who likes to spy on others, they Iman is
incomplete
because perfection of Eman completeness of human will prevent
you from doing that because you've got so many other things to worry
about. So Eman has not entered such person's heart. So he's
addressing such people a lot of taboo and Al Muslimeen do not
backbite Muslims, while at the W our Autohome you know this in
Arabic the word for spying is digesters. Another way they
explain it is the double our art, our art, plural of our which
basically means a pod, which needs to be concealed. So hidden issues
that should be kept hidden,
do not go after them do not pursue and spy on things which are not
supposed to be open. One of the questions that will be coming in
your mind I want to clarify now is what about if somebody is for
example involved is Xena?
Should you go after it?
Should you pursue it and find out? So first, you must ask you a
question yourself why?
So number one, if that is just the speculation, you've got reasons to
believe. Number one, you should not be telling anybody else.
Right? The only reason you could do this, if you do see something
like there's some inappropriate discussions taking place,
inappropriate communication or whatever, which is haram and you
want to correct the situation, then you have to use your most
wise this discretion to try to sort this matter out with the most
sincerity in using the most appropriate measures. You can't
use this as an excuse that okay, because he's doing wrong, I'm
allowed to tell everybody and just make it worse. Meaning we our
purpose of trying to correct somebody should not be by telling
everybody else and letting everybody know so that person
becomes a bit humiliated so then they stop.
You don't we don't use the humiliation card in this case.
But if you do want to say if it's a friend that's a family member or
somebody like that, then you need to give them advice in an
appropriate way.
What the W our Autohome for in the home Manitoba our auto home yet
yet bear Allah who our writer who now this is where the warning
comes from the Prophet sallallahu sallam, if you go behind
somebody's wrongs, so we have some children sitting here as well. So
if you find out something about a friend or you're trying to find
out about the bad points about somebody in your class,
anywhere,
it says that anybody who pursues the hidden things about others
than Allah subhanho wa Taala will go after their hidden parts.
And that is frightening. I mean, if that's not enough to frighten
you, I mean, that shouldn't be because everybody's got issues,
something or the other that we've got some embarrassment about. We
go after others, then Allah will go after our issues. Our hidden
issues were made yet Toby Rula who our auto, then you have Dahu
Phoebe t. Now when Allah comes down to doing that,
if Allah resorts to doing that, because we've done that to others,
then Allah, it says that whoever Allah then pursues for their
concealed parts, that Allah subhanaw taala will degrade them
in their own houses,
in their own homes and be degraded meaning in the vilest way, in the
worst way. So Allah will give us worse than what we did to others.
So that in itself should be enough to help us deal with this. So as I
said, it's a it's it's dangerous in that sense.
My we are the Allahu Anhu said, Imam Abu Dawood, relate says
Mario said I heard the Prophet sallallahu Sallam saying in Nikka
na Tabata our rottenness. Our rottenness? If you go after the
hidden things about people have set the home. Okita too soon, then
you will corrupt them, you will spoil them, spoil them and corrupt
them. As I said they they will feel negativity and all the rest
of it, they'll have major problems like that. And there's numerous
other kinds of corruptions that will ensue from that. It just
creates a whole social problem. Then Abdullah Hypno, Master Rudra,
the Allahu Anhu said,
in kutlu, Hina and it justice. Now this is the barriers right? In
Hakuna no Hina I needed we were prohibited from spying on anybody
while I can II have her Luna che will not hold up. Now look, if
something is quite clear, and something is evident in your face?
And is somebody doing something blatantly and openly on YouTube,
for example.
You know, you know, when you have these issues on YouTube, where
there's somebody who was an influencer, or somebody who's very
prominent YouTube, and they've done something weird, or whatever,
they they actually doing something weird. And then there's people who
criticize the strange behavior of that person online. There's people
who support that person, they say that, hey, you shouldn't be
speaking bad about people. You shouldn't be talking about the
negatives about people. But they're doing the negativity
online. It's for public, it's to see. I mean, of course, it just
because somebody is doing something negative online doesn't,
it's not the most appropriate thing for us to then go after
them. And like, it doesn't become halal for us. Even if somebody is
doing something in public, that's wrong, it does not give us the
right. So if I see somebody openly blatantly doing something, it does
not give me the right go on to tell everybody for the sake of
just putting him down. But if that's harmful for others, then I
can do that. So there there has to always be a valid reason for
bringing something up.
But at least if somebody has done something openly, then you know
that you're not just speculating, then it's quite clear that they're
doing something wrong.
In fact, even when it comes to Zina, it says that if you see
somebody committing Zina, it's not your responsibility to tell the
authorities even in a Muslim state, in fact, when it comes to
Zina, it's actually a big problem. Because you'd have to, you'd
actually need four people with yourself along with yourself for
it altogether, you'd need at least four people to say the same thing,
in this really, really graphic way. So that's very dangerous
anyway, because if three other people do not support you, in
saying that they also witnessed the same thing, then you would
actually get lashed for the accusation, even though you're
absolutely correct.
So when it comes to things like Xena, why, because Allah subhanaw
taala just doesn't want that discussion there in the public.
Yes, you if it's you know, someone, you can correct somebody,
you can help somebody, then you help them privately. Scholars have
said that anybody who's into spying and looking out for things
like that, they have the following problems. Number one, it's the
liloan Allah darkfield Iman where facade the whole look, this is a
delille. This is basically a proof that your iman is weak, right,
because you're not focused on the right things you're going after
negatives. And number two, that this is your clock and your
behavior are extremely corrupted. So anybody who likes to spy, just
be honest with ourselves, that it should frighten us that we would
be considered to be a bad character in front of Allah. And
this is a weakness of our email, that should be enough for us to
try to sort ourselves out. Number two, the Leeloo dinner at enough's
walk is 30 Ha, basically just shows lowliness of our nature and
behavior. It's just the loneliness of the self, the ego, the meanness
of the self. Number three,
it, it's going to create enmities, it's going to create harms, it's
going to create negativity, and it's just bad information that
you're carrying around you just carrying a lot of impurity in your
body. In your mind, actually imagine if you've got in your
pockets in your coat pocket in your
handbag and everything you've got bits of, let's not even say
impurity, but just dirty stuff, dirty rags and tissues and when he
caught it, and half eaten chocolates and things like that,
just how dirty it's gonna be. So imagine if you're keeping that in
the brain in the heart.
What purity is there going to be in the heart, fizzy infected the
purity of our heart is even more important than the physical,
physical,
physical purity sometimes.
Because that's going to affect everything that's going to create
negativity is going to give us nightmares are going to give us
all sorts of things. And then eventually Allah subhanaw taala
will open up our own faults as well.
Number four, he says you add the facade higher to a cash flow out
of course it creates communal problems, because you're revealing
things about people and then other that gets spread and then they
find out
And then that causes enmity with them and you and everybody else.
And then number five, the biggest problem is that the person who's
doing this, yes, the hate goes a lot of Allah with the hood and now
he becomes entitled to
receiving the Wrath of Allah and to entering Hellfire will area the
villa. So we ask Allah subhanaw taala, for protection from this.
Let me just read to you what Imam Nihilo he says about this. I'll
just I'll just read you what he says about this, because it's
really
he sums it up very well. So he says spying and asking about
others other asking about the faults of other people asking
about people's faults and probing into their affairs, is the spying
that Allah subhanaw taala predicts prohibits with his statement while
at the Justice. That's what he means by that. Because sometimes
it's permissible to spy when it's for defense, when it's for a valid
defense and so on. Namely, do not seek out the hidden faults of
others. Imam crocheted he says, He who knows Allah has no spare time,
from focusing on Allah.
Anybody who knows Allah, probably they're going to be so focused on
just worshiping Him and that they're not going to look at other
things mean things and lowly things like this. In fact, they
won't even have time to concentrate on what other people
look like, because they're so focused on their relationship with
Allah. So when are they going to have time? Forget about looking at
them? When are they going to have time to spy on them? So you can
see why where this thing comes from your focus is just wrong.
If he cannot notice his own self, how would he notice others because
he's so focused on Allah subhanaw taala. person is never going to be
focused on other people like that.
Then imagine Hello, he says it's narrated in a rigorously authentic
hadith that indeed were you to seek out people's hidden faults,
you would very well corrupt them, or come very close to doing so.
For example, because then it will result in backbiting, gossip
bases, accurate accusation, degeneration of one's honor, and
so on and so forth. Just facade in the community is also narrated on
the authority of Abu Bursa, Radi Allahu anhu, that the messenger of
allah sallallahu sallam said, oh, people who verbally profess Islam.
Yet faith has not yet entered the heart, we just read this hadith
above, do not back by others who seek out the hidden blemishes for
if one seeks out the hidden faults of his brother, Allah will seek
out his fault. And if Allah seeks out a person's fault, he will put
him to shame even in the middle of his own house.
And that's why it's from this perspective that scholars consider
it recommended to not testify in cases of penal punishment unless
required by law, so as to veil the sins of the disobedient, even
if the disobedient people, it's a disobedience to themselves and
leave them just make Naseeha to them, you're not obliged to tell
the authorities if it's not harmful to others.
So we ask Allah subhanaw taala to protect us from this kind of
meanness and other types of meanness of the self, because this
is the kind of weakness of Eman that we we suffer from, it's
hugely detrimental to the community breaks about families
because the first piece you do is, is to your close ones, because
those are who you interact with most. You don't do it to strangers
as much, you're going to do it to your sister, your brother, right?
Your nephews and nieces, uncles or aunts or whoever else it is
generally people closer to you people at your workplace. And
there's just so much that can go wrong and does go wrong with that.
So we ask Allah subhanaw taala to remove that from us and protect us
from others who do that to us as well. We ask Allah subhanaw taala
to help and that's why Bismillah Illa de la duro Maya asked me He
shaved on Philip they will have a semi or semi reality our will to
be cremated multi light multi Min shettima halacha these doors and
color will develop the further colada verbenas. Reading them is
actually useful because we hope that Allah will even protect us
from this kind of evil, not just like from the evil eye and from
magic and things like that. This kind of stuff, which is a lot more
mundane apparently. May Allah subhanaw taala protect us from
being harmed in this way and harming others in that way as
well. Working with our nine hamdulillahi rabbil aalameen