What are the rules for boycotting a Muslim?

The questioner: Go ahead.

The questioner : Regarding the topic of boycotting a Muslim, we discussed it on the phone the other day, and then we postponed the research on the topic to a second session. Of course, the hadiths regarding boycotting a Muslim and the great sin that befalls a Muslim from boycotting his Muslim brother are well known. So we want the Shaykh to speak to us on this topic, for we are human and we see that things happen in this regard.

The Shaykh : There is no doubt that the topic of boycotting involves a precision similar to the precision in the topic of backbiting.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : The commonality between the two matters is that just as it is not permissible for a Muslim to boycott another Muslim, it is not permissible for a Muslim to backbite another Muslim. And just as there is a known exception in the Shari'ah for forbidden backbiting, there is an exception in the Shari'ah for boycotting. It is permissible to boycott a Muslim for a non-Muslim, or for a non-Shari'ah reason, for only three days, and beyond that it is forbidden, based on the well-known hadith in the two Sahihs from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: . In this hadith, there is a clarification of the prohibition of boycotting, along with a dispensation to boycott for these three days or three nights. This is, in reality, due to the weakness of the human being whom Allah (Mighty and Majestic) created and described in His saying: . Our Lord (Mighty and Majestic) showed leniency toward him and permitted him, as a means of relieving the anger in his heart regarding a Muslim brother whom he has boycotted, to boycott him for these three days, and then the matter ends. If he exceeds that, the boycotting becomes forbidden by the text of this hadith, which began with , meaning it is forbidden.
As for the exception we mentioned, or as we referred to regarding the exception from forbidden backbiting, it is only if the motive for the boycotting is to educate the one being boycotted and turn him away from any Shari'ah violation he may be committing. If a Muslim boycotts him for this purpose, which is clearly a reformative purpose for the sake of this boycotted person himself, it is permissible; otherwise, it is not permissible, and the ruling reverts to the original rule, which is that it is forbidden after three days. It often happens among people that a Muslim boycotts his brother for material matters, not for a Shari'ah educational purpose for the boycotted person. The one boycotting imagines that in his boycotting of that Muslim brother, he is among those who do good, whereas in reality, he did not boycott him because that man is committing a sin or transgression that he persists in and is attached to, but rather to quench the anger in his heart. Therefore, the issue of a Muslim boycotting his Muslim brother—Shari'ah boycotting—is one of the most precise matters in which a Muslim must be extremely cautious so as not to get entangled and fall into it, thereby violating the aforementioned hadith that forbids boycotting, without knowing or realizing it.

The questioner : Does our statement apply to our previous statement on the topic of backbiting, that the intention is what determines permissibility or impermissibility?

The Shaykh : Yes, but the intention is undoubtedly the criterion for all deeds, for deeds are judged by intentions. However, what I wanted to draw attention to is that a person should be mindful of himself so that he does not boycott his brother for a purely worldly reason, while he imagines to himself that he is boycotting him with the intention of disciplining him. A person may lie, for example, or fabricate a lie, and then boycott him. This lying or fabrication is not a characteristic of that boycotted person. Rather, a person should advise him and remind him of the prohibition of what he did. Otherwise, if the door of boycotting a Muslim brother is opened merely because he committed a mistake, this means that Muslims must boycott one another, cut off ties, ignore one another, and not be brothers as Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) described them. This is what I wanted to draw attention to.

The questioner : And then, religion is sincere advice, acting on the hadith: .

The questioner : If the purpose of discipline is not achieved, who decides that the discipline has occurred and the lesson has been learned?

The Shaykh : If repentance and turning back to Allah appear from the boycotted man, or at least an apology for what he did, then we have nothing more to ask for.