Is it better to forgive the one who backbites and overlook his fault, or not?

The questioner : She says: What is best for a Muslim when he is backbitten? Honorable Shaykh, does he forgive the one who backbitten him, or does he wait for the reward from Allah the Mighty and Majestic?

The Shaykh : And if he forgives him, he waits for the reward from Allah, but do not say, "No, I will not forgive him, and I will take it from his good deeds on the Day of Resurrection."

The questioner : Yes, Shaykh.

The Shaykh : We say that the best is to forgive. The best is to forgive him, for Allah the Exalted said in the Noble Book: . And if the reward is with Allah the Mighty and Majestic, it is more complete and better. But on this occasion, I would like to advise our Muslim brothers regarding backbiting. Backbiting is among the major sins. Allah the Exalted likened it to the ugliest image. He said: . Have you found anything uglier than a man who sees his brother dead and eats from his flesh? Backbiting is among the major sins, as Imam Ahmad stated explicitly in what Ibn 'Abd al-Qawi transmitted from him in his poem, where he said: "And it has been said that minor backbiting and talebearing are both major sins, according to the explicit statement of Ahmad." Let the brothers beware of backbiting. I fear that if a man backbites someone, Allah will allow someone to backbite him in return, as a just recompense. So if you backbite someone and it reaches him that you have backbitten him, and you want to make sincere repentance, you must go to him, apologize to him, and ask him to forgive you. But if he did not know and is not expected to know, then you seek forgiveness for the one you backbitten and speak well of him in the gatherings where you backbitten him, for good deeds erase bad deeds.