His saying, the Almighty: "O you who have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption."

18614 - From Ibn 'Abbas regarding the saying of the Almighty: "O you who have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption," he said: Allah forbade a believer from assuming evil about a believer.(1)

His saying, the Almighty: "And do not spy."

18615 - From Ibn 'Abbas regarding his saying: "And do not spy," he said: Allah forbade a believer from following the private flaws of his believing brother.(2)

18616 - Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah told us, Abu Mu'awiyah told us, from al-A'mash, from Zayd, who said: A man was brought to Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), and it was said to him: "This is so-and-so, his beard is dripping with wine." 'Abd Allah said: "We have been forbidden from spying, but if something becomes manifest to us, we shall take action against it."(3)

Ibn Abi Hatim named him in his narration as al-Walid ibn 'Uqbah ibn Abi Mu'ayt.

Al-Awza'i said: "Tajassus" (spying) is searching for a thing, while "tahassus" is listening to the speech of a people while they dislike it, or listening at their doors. "Tadabur" (turning away) is breaking ties.(4)

His saying, the Almighty: "And do not backbite one another."

18617 - From Ibn 'Abbas regarding his saying: "And do not backbite one another," the verse, he said: Allah forbade that a believer be backbitten for anything, just as He forbade the flesh of a dead animal.(5)

18618 - My father told us, Ahmad ibn 'Abdah told us, Abu 'Abd al-Samad 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd al-Samad al-'Ammi told us, Abu Harun al-'Abdi told us, from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri who said: We said: "O Messenger of Allah, tell us what you saw on the night you were taken on the Night Journey?"... He said: "Then I was taken to many of Allah's creatures, men and women, with men assigned to them who would go to the side of one of them and cut off a piece like the size of a sandal, then place it into their mouths and it is said to them: 'Eat as I have eaten,' and he finds the taste of death in his eating—O Muhammad—if he were to find death, yet he is forced to it." I said: "O Gabriel, who are these?" He said: "These are the defamers, the mockers, the people of gossip (al-namimah)." It is said: "Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it," and he is forced to eat his flesh."(6)