Combining the Prohibition of Boycotting a Muslim with the Prophet’s Boycott of Ibn ‘Umar

Question : How do we reconcile the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), “A Muslim does not boycott his brother for more than three nights,” with the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) boycott of Ibn ‘Umar, his son, by not speaking to him for the rest of his life, and he did so?

Answer : We reconcile them by saying that if it is for the purpose of discipline and discretionary punishment, there is no harm, to the extent that the punishment is achieved. We do not know whether Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) remained without speaking to him until he died, or whether he spoke to him? I do not know about this.