thatHe considerssuchsins as“injustice”.AndHe surelydoesnot like
the unjust people!
4.“Oyouwhobelieve!Avoidmostofthesuspicious[thoughtsabout
other Muslims].”(49:12)
The reason why Allah wants us to avoid most of the suspicious
thoughtsabout otherMuslimshasbeen explainedbyAllah inthe next
sentence:“Surelysuspicion in most casesis asin.”Islam wants youto
think positively about your Muslim brother and sister.
5.“And do not spy [on each other].”(49:12)SpyingonyourMuslimbrotherorsisterandtryingtofindtheirweak
points and secrets is not allowed in Islam.
6.“Nor should some of you backbite others.” (49:12)“Backbiting”isknowninArabicasghibat.Ghibatmeanstalkingabout
thehiddenbodilydefectsorsecretinappropriatebehaviourofsomeone
behind his/her back.
The reasonwhy ghibatof another Muslimis forbiddenin Islamhas
beenexplainedbyAllahinthenextsentenceoftheverse:“Doesanyone
of you like to bite the flesh of his dead brother?! Surely you dislike it.”
Ghibatisjustlikebitingthedeadbodyofyourownbrother:hecannot
defend himself. Saying badthings about someonein his absence is al-
mostthe same—he is not present to defend himself. In thissense, the
term “backbiting” is very close to the meaning of“ghibat”.
Thelastthreesins—suspicion,spyingandbackbiting—areconnected
toeach other.If youavoid thefirstone, youwillbe abletostay away
fromtheothertwosins.Butifyoualwayssuspectothers,thenyouwill
betemptedtospyonthemorfindbadthingsaboutthem.Ifyoufindout
anythingnegative about others, thenyou are temptedto gossip about
them.