The gist of this is that speaking little about what is not beneficial is recommended in every circumstance as a way of protecting oneself from vain talk, falling into lying, or that which is not permissible, for whoever speaks much commits many errors. In the Hadith, on the authority of Abu Hurayrah, from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), he said: "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent" (1). Al-Tirmidhi said: This is a hasan sahih (good and authentic) hadith. It is agreed upon. And from him, he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Part of the perfection of a person's Islam is his leaving that which does not concern him" (2). It was narrated by Ibn 'Uyaynah, from al-Zuhri, from Abu Salamah, from Abu Hurayrah. It was also narrated in al-Musnad (3), from al-Husayn ibn Ali, from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Abu Dawud said: The foundations of the Sunnah consist of four hadiths; this is one of them. This is even more strongly recommended in the state of Ihram, because it is a state of worship and consciousness of obedience to Allah the Almighty, thus it resembles I'tikaf (seclusion in the mosque). Ahmad used this as an argument, saying that Shurayh (may Allah have mercy on him) used to act, when he entered Ihram, as if he were a deaf serpent. It is therefore recommended for the Muhrim to occupy himself with the Talbiyah, the remembrance of Allah the Almighty, reciting the Quran, enjoining good, forbidding evil, teaching the ignorant, giving instructions for his necessary needs, or remaining silent. If he speaks of that in which there is no sin, or recites poetry that is not ugly, it is permissible, though he should not do so excessively. It has been narrated from Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that he was on his riding camel while in the state of Ihram, and he began to say: 'As if its rider is a branch swaying with a fan, when it leans with him, or a drunkard' (6). Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest (7). This indicates permissibility, though the former is the superior virtue (8). 570 - Issue: He said: "And the Muhrim should not groom himself (i.e., remove lice), nor should he kill lice, but he may scratch his head and body gently." There is a difference of opinion narrated from Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) regarding the permissibility of killing lice. One view is its permissibility, because it is among the most annoying of vermin, so its killing is permitted like fleas and other harmful things. The saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "Five are fawasiq (harmful creatures) which may be killed in the state of being free of Ihram and in the Sacred Precinct" (1), indicates by its meaning the permissibility of killing everything that harms human beings in their persons and their property. Another view is that killing it is forbidden. This is the apparent meaning of the words of al-Khiraqi, because one derives comfort by removing it from himself, so it is prohibited like cutting hair. Furthermore, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw Ka'b ibn 'Ujrah with lice swarming over his face, so he said to him: "Shave your head" (2). So if...
(1) Narrated by al-Bukhari, in: The chapter of whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him not harm his neighbor, and the chapter of honoring the guest and serving him himself..., from the Book of Etiquette; and in: The chapter of guarding the tongue..., from the Book of Softening Hearts. Sahih al-Bukhari 8/13, 39, 125. And Muslim, in: The chapter of urging the honoring of the neighbor..., from the Book of Faith; and in: The chapter of hospitality and the like, from the Book of Found Property. Sahih Muslim 1/68, 3/1353. And Abu Dawud, in: The chapter on the right of neighborhood, from the Book of Etiquette. Sunan Abi Dawud 2/632. And al-Tirmidhi, in: The chapter 'Suwayd narrated to us...', from the Chapters of the Resurrection. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 9/309. And Imam Malik, in: The chapter of the collection of what has been said regarding food and drink, from the Book of the Description of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Al-Muwatta 2/929. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 2/174, 267, 433, 4/31, 6/69, 384, 385. (2) Its chain of narration was previously provided in 4/480. (3) Al-Musnad 1/201. Its wording therein is: "Indeed, part of the perfection of a person's Islam is speaking little about that which does not concern him." It was also narrated by al-Tirmidhi, in: The chapter 'Sulayman ibn 'Abd al-Jabbar narrated to us...', from the Chapters on Asceticism. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 9/196, 197. (4) Missing from the original manuscript.
وجُمْلَةُ ذلك أنَّ قِلَّةَ الكلامِ فيما لا يَنْفَعُ مُسْتَحَبَّةٌ فى كل حالٍ، صِيَانَةً لِنَفْسِه عن اللَّغْوِ، والوُقُوعِ فى الكَذِبِ، وما لا يَحِلُّ، فإنَّ مَن كَثُرَ كَلَامُه كَثُرَ سَقَطُهُ، وفى الحديثِ، عن أبى هُرَيْرَةَ، عن رسولَ اللهِ -صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ-، أنَّه قال: "مَنْ كَانَ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ، فَلْيَقُلْ خَيْرًا أوْ لِيَصْمُتْ" (١). قال التِّرْمِذِىُّ: هذا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ. مُتَّفَقٌ عليه. وعنه قال: قال رسولُ اللهِ -صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ-: "مِنْ حُسْنِ إسْلَامِ المَرْءِ، تَرْكُهُ مَا لَا يَعْنِيهِ" (٢). رَوَاهُ ابنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عن الزُّهْرِىِّ، عن أبِى سَلَمَةَ، عن أبِى هُرَيْرَةَ. وَرُوِىَ فى "المُسْنَدِ" (٣)، عن الحسينِ بنِ علىٍّ، عن النَّبِىِّ -صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ-. وقال أَبو دَاوُدَ: أُصُولُ السُّنَنِ أرْبَعَةُ أحادِيثَ، هذا أحَدُها. وهذا فى حالِ الإحْرامِ أشَدُّ اسْتِحْبَابًا؛ لأنَّه حالُ (٤) عِبادَةٍ واسْتِشْعَارٍ بِطَاعَةِ اللهِ عَزَّ وجَلَّ، فَيُشْبِهُ الاعْتِكافَ، وقد احْتَجَّ أحمدُ على ذلك، بأنَّ شُرَيْحًا، رَحِمَهُ اللهُ، كان إذا أحْرَم كَأنَّه حَيَّةٌ صَمَّاءُ. فيُسْتَحَبُّ لِلْمُحْرِمِ أن يَشْتَغِلَ بِالتَّلْبيَةِ، وَذِكْرِ اللهِ تعالى، أو قِراءَةِ القُرْآنِ، أو أمْرٍ بِمَعْرُوفٍ، أو نَهْى عن مُنْكَرٍ، أَو تَعْلِيمٍ لِجَاهِلٍ، أو يَأْمُرَ بِحَاجَتِه، أو يَسْكُتَ، وإن تَكَلَّمَ بما لا مَأثَمَ فيه، أو أنْشَدَ شِعْرًا لا يَقْبُحُ، فهو
(١) أخرجه البخارى، فى: باب من كان يؤمن بالله واليوم الآخر فلا يؤذ جاره، وباب إكرام الضيف وخدمته إياه بنفسه. . .، من كتاب الأدب، وفى: باب حفظ اللسان. . .، من كتاب الرقاق. صحيح البخارى ٨/ ١٣، ٣٩، ١٢٥. ومسلم، فى: باب الحث على إكرام الجار. . .، من كتاب الإيمان، وفى: باب الضيافة ونحوها، من كتاب اللقطة. صحيح مسلم ١/ ٦٨، ٣/ ١٣٥٣. وأبو داود، فى: باب فى حق الجوار، من كتاب الأدب. سنن أبى داود ٢/ ٦٣٢. والترمذى، فى: باب حدثنا سويد. . .، من أبواب القيامة. عارضة الأحوذى ٩/ ٣٠٩. والإمام مالك، فى: باب جامع ما جاء فى الطعام والشراب، من كتاب صفة النبى -صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ-. الموطأ ٢/ ٩٢٩. والإمام أحمد، فى: المسند ٢/ ١٧٤، ٢٦٧، ٤٣٣، ٤/ ٣١، ٦/ ٦٩، ٣٨٤، ٣٨٥.(٢) تقدم تخريجه فى ٤/ ٤٨٠.(٣) المسند ١/ ٢٠١. ولفظه فيه: "إن من حسن إسلام المرء قلة الكلام فيما لا يعنيه".كما أخرجه الترمذى، فى: باب حدثنا سليمان بن عبد الجبار، من أبواب الزهد. عارضة الأحوذى ٩/ ١٩٦، ١٩٧.(٤) سقط من الأصل.
