Backbiting of Innovators, Such as the Sufis, and How to Advise Them

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Question:
Your Eminence the Shaykh, is it permissible to backbite innovators, such as the Sufis and those similar to them? And how is their advice to be given?

Answer:
The most prominent evil for which backbiting is permissible is bid'ah (religious innovation) or any other evil. One who does not display an evil is not to be backbitten. However, one who displays an evil may be backbitten regarding what he has displayed. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by

With two funerals, so the one present said of one of them, "We have spoken well of her," and he said, "It is decreed." And the one present said of the second, "We have spoken ill of her," and he said, "It is decreed." O Messenger of Allah, what is decreed? He said, "You are witnesses in

بجنازتين فقال الحاضر في إحداهما أهنوا عليها خيرا قال وجبت، وقال الحاضر في الثانية أهنوا عليها شرا قال فوجبت يا رسول الله ما وجبت؟ قال أنتم شهداء في

the land. They said, "We have spoken well of this one, so Paradise is decreed for it, and we have spoken ill of this one, so the Fire is decreed for it." He did not object to their speaking ill of it, because it was a display of evil. They testified against it with what it displayed, so the Fire was decreed for it. We ask Allah for safety. A man known for evil came to him, and he said to those present

Admit him. What an evil brother of his people or a son of his people.

ائذنوا له بئس أخو العشيرة، أو قال بئس ابن العشيرة

Sahih al-Bukhari 6054

. They said, "This indicates that one who displays evil is to be criticized openly, so that perhaps it may reach him, and perhaps he may stop, and perhaps he may be deterred, so that people may be warned of his evil."

Source لقاءات لابن باز - لقاء مع إخوة في الله - ابن باز - ١ — archive.org (1:20:59)

The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.

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