A questioner mentions that his elderly mother backbites him in front of neighbors and relatives, so how should he handle this?
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The questioner : The second point, O honorable Shaykh, is that she backbites him in front of neighbors, acquaintances, and relatives?
The Shaykh : As for the second point, which is that she backbites him in front of neighbors, acquaintances, and relatives, I offer her advice and say to her: Backbiting her son is one of the major sins, and it becomes even more serious when the backbiting is about her son, because her son is among her relatives, indeed he is the closest person to her. And in backbiting him, she severs the family tie. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1909Sahih (Darussalam) meaning one who severs the family tie.
And Allah the Exalted said in His Book:[Muhammad 47:22-23] So my advice to this mother is to refrain from backbiting her son.
As for the son, he must be patient, seek reward from Allah, and respond to this with forgiveness and leniency toward his mother, so that the day does not come when he is a plaintiff against her before Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The Shaykh : As for the second point, which is that she backbites him in front of neighbors, acquaintances, and relatives, I offer her advice and say to her: Backbiting her son is one of the major sins, and it becomes even more serious when the backbiting is about her son, because her son is among her relatives, indeed he is the closest person to her. And in backbiting him, she severs the family tie. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
The one who severs ties will not enter Paradise.
لا يدخل الجنة قاطعAnd Allah the Exalted said in His Book:
(22) So would you perhaps, if you turned away, cause corruption on earth and sever your [ties of] relationship? (23) Those [who do so] are the ones that Allah has cursed, so He deafened them and blinded their vision.
فَهَلْ عَسَيْتُمْ إِنْ تَوَلَّيْتُمْ أَنْ تُفْسِدُوا فِي الأَرْضِ وَتُقَطِّعُوا أَرْحَامَكُمْ * أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ لَعَنَهُمُ اللَّهُ فَأَصَمَّهُمْ وَأَعْمَى أَبْصَارَهُمْAs for the son, he must be patient, seek reward from Allah, and respond to this with forgiveness and leniency toward his mother, so that the day does not come when he is a plaintiff against her before Allah (Mighty and Majestic).