Insulting (Beizzat/Zaleel)

Insulting the Believer

1ـ رسولُ اللهِ‏ِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): سابُّ المُؤمِنِ كالمُشرِفِ على الهَلَكَةِ.

1– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'The one who insults a believer is as one who is on the verge of ruin.’[Kanz al-`Ummal, no. 8093]

2ـ رسولُ اللهِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): سِبابُ المؤمِنِ فُسوقٌ ، وقِتالُهُ كُفرٌ ، وأكلُ لَحمِهِ مِن مَعصيَةِ اللّه‏ِ.

2– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'To insult a believer is a gross iniquity, to kill him is infidelity, and to backbite him is an act of disobedience of Allah.’[Bihar al-Anwar, v. 75, p. 148, no. 6]

النَّهيُ عن السِّبابِ

Prohibition of Insulting

3ـ رسولُ اللهِ‏ِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): لا تَسُبُّوا الرِّياحَ فإنّها مَأمُورَةٌ ، ولا تَسُبُّوا الجِبالَ ولا السّاعاتِ ولا الأيّامَ ولا اللَّيالِيَ فَتَأثَمُوا وتَرجِعَ علَيكُم .

3– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'Do not insult the winds for verily they are commanded [to blow], nor insult the mountains, nor time, nor the days, nor the nights, lest you transgress thereby and it comes back to you.’[`AeIlal al-Shara’i`a , p. 577, no. 1]

4ـ رسولُ اللهِ‏ِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): لا تَسُبُّوا الناسَ فَتَكتَسِبُوا العَداوةَ بَينَهُم .

4– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'Do not insult people lest you procure animosity from them.’[al-Kafi, v. 2, p. 360, no. 3]

5ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ) ـ لِقَنْبرٍ وقد رامَ أن يَشتِمَ شاتِمَهُ ـ: مَهْلاً يا قَنبرُ ! دَعْ شاتِمَكَ مُهاناً تُرْضِ الرَّحمنَ وتُسخِطُ الشَّيطانَ وتُعاقِبُ عَدُوَّكَ ، فَوَالذي فَلَقَ الحَبَّةَ وبَرَأ النَّسَمَةَ ما أرضَى المؤمنُ رَبَّهُ بِمِثلِ الحِلْمِ ، ولا أسخَطَ الشَّيطانَ بِمِثلِ الصَّمتِ ، ولا عُوقِبَ الأحمَقُ بمِثلِ السُّكوتِ عَنهُ.

5– Imam Ali (AS) said to Qanbar when he wished to insult a man who had insulted him, 'Careful Qanbar! Leave your insulter to his disdain and you will please the Beneficent Lord, displease Satan and punish thereby your enemy, for by the One who split the grain and created the breeze, there is no stance better than clemency with which a believer can please his Lord, and nothing like silence to offend Satan, and an idiot is best punished by ignoring him.’[Amali al-Mufid, p. 118, no. 2]

6ـ الإمامُ الكاظمُ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ) ـ لَمّا رَأى رَجُلَينِ يَتَسابّانِ ـ: البادِي أظلَمُ ، ووِزرُهُ ووِزرُ صاحِبِهِ علَيهِ ما لَم يَعتَدِ المَظلومُ.

6– Imam al-Kazim (AS) when he saw two people insulting each other, said, 'The initiator is the more unjust and bears his own sin as well as the sin of his opponent as long as the latter does not retort.’[Tuhaf al-`Uqoul, no. 412]

7ـ الإمامُ الكاظمُ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): ما تَسابَّ اثنانِ إلّا انحَطَّ الأعلى إلى مَرتَبةِ الأسفَلِ.

7– Imam al-Kazim (AS) said, 'Whenever two people insult each other, the more superior of the two sinks to the level of the more inferior one.’[A`alam al-Din, p. 305]

جزاءُ مَن سَبَّ الأنبياءَ والأوصياءَ

The Punishment of One Who Insults the Prophets and the Vicegerents

8- رسولُ اللّه صلى‏الله‏عليه‏و‏آله : مَن سَبَّ نَبيّا مِنَ الأنبياءِ فاقتُلُوهُ ، ومَن سَبَّ وَصِيّا فقد سَبَّ نبيّا .

8– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'Whoever insults any of the prophets, kill him; and he who insults a vicegerent is as one who has insulted a prophet.’[Amali al-Tusi, p. 365, no. 769]

9- الإمامُ الصّادقُ عليه‏السلام لَمّا سُئلَ عَمَّن شَتَمَ رسولَ اللّه صلى‏الله‏عليه‏و‏آله: يَقتُلُهُ الأدنى فَالأدنى قَبْلَ أن يَرفَعَهُ إلى الإمام .

9– Imam al-Sadiq (AS) when he was asked about someone who insulted the Prophet (SAWA), replied, 'The most inferior person [in society] must kill him, and if not him, then the second most inferior, and so on until at the last resort he must be killed by the im?m [leader of the congregational prayer].’[al-Kafi, v. 7, p. 259, no. 21]

السَّبُّ المُرَخَّصُ فيهِ

Permissible Insult

10- رسولُ اللّه صلى‏الله‏عليه‏و‏آله : إذا شَتَمَ أحَدُكُم أخاهُ فلا يَشتِمْ عَشِيرَتَهُ ، ولا أباهُ ، ولا اُمَّهُ ، ولكنْ لِيَقُلْ إن كانَ يَعلَمُ ذلك : إنّكَ لَبَخِيلٌ ، وإنّكَ لَجَبانٌ ، وإنّكَ لَكَذُوبٌ ، إن كانَ يَعلَمُ ذلكَ مِنهُ.

10– The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'If any of you ever insults his fellow brother, he must not insult his family or his father or mother. He can only say - if he knows these flaws for certain - 'You are indeed a miser, or you are indeed a coward, or you are indeed a liar' only if he is certain of the existence of these traits.[Kanz al-`Ummal, no. 8134]