Allah said in Surat Ibrahim, Ayah 34:
وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نَِعْمَتَ اللَّهِ لَا تُحْصُوهَآ
It means: [Should you attempt to count your endowments from Allah, you would be unable.]
The tongue is one of many endowments Allah bestowed upon His slaves. Although the tongue is a tiny organ, the person who uses it to comply with the orders of Allah, the teachings of the Qur’an, and the teachings of the Prophet peace be upon him earns blessings in this world and the Hereafter. However, the one who uses his tongue in disobedience does not display thankfulness to Allah[1] and leads himself to his own destruction. Certainly, being thankful to Allah means to avoiding using the endowments bestowed by Allah in what is forbidden.
One needs to know that the sins of the tongue can be small or enormous. Also, one should be aware that some of these sins take the person out of Islam, as the Prophet ﷺ, said in the hadith, related by at-Tirmidhiyy:
إِنَّ العبدَ لَيَتَكَلَّمُ بالكَلِمَةِ لا يَرَى بِها بَأْسًا يهْوِى بِهَا في النَّارِ سَبْعِينَ خَرِيفًا
It means: [A person may utter a word he thinks harmless, which results in his falling the depth of 70 years into Hellfire.] This hadith clearly refers to the bottom of Hellfire, a place only the blasphemers will reach. Included among the sins of the tongue are gossip (ghibah) and tale-bearing (namimah). Ibnu Abi d-Dunya related that the Prophet peace be upon him ﷺ, said:
خَصْلَتَانِ ما إنْ تَجَمَّلَ الخَلائقُ بِمِثْلِهِمَا حُسْنُ الخُلُقِ وَطُولُ الصَّمْتِ
It means: [One can greatly beautify oneself with two traits: good manners and lengthy silence]. In this hadith, lengthy silence means to refrain from speaking, except for what is good, such as remembering and praising Allah, and teaching others what is good. Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim related from the route of Abu Hurayrah, that the Prophet peace be upon him said:
مَنْ كانَ يُؤْمِنُ باالله وَاليَوْمِ الآخِرِ فَلْيَقُلْ خَيْرًا أَوْ لِيَصْمُتْ
This hadith means: [Let the one who believes in Allah and the Hereafter utter good words or let him be silent.] We are responsible for our words. Allah said in Surat al-Isra’, Ayah 36:
إِنَ ٱلسَّمْعَ وٱلْبَصَرَ وٱلْفُؤَادَ كُلُّ أُوْلَئِكَ كَانَ عَنْهُ مَسْئُولًا
It means: [One is responsible for what he hears, sees, and believes.]
At-Tirmidhiyy narrated a saying of the Prophet peace be upon him to the Companion, Mu^adh Ibnu Jabal, in which he responded to Mu^adh by saying:
وَهَلْ يَكُبُّ النَّاسَ في النَّارِ على وُجُوهِهِم إلا حَصَائِدُ أَلْسِنَتهِم
In this hadith, the Prophet peace be upon him answered the question of Mu^adh Ibnu Jabal, confirming that what makes the people fall into Hellfire on their faces is what they reap from their tongues. Hence, wisdom entails that one uses one’s tongue in remembering Allah, performing obedience, ordering the lawful, and forbidding the unlawful. Let us remind ourselves of what Allah said in Surat Qaf, Ayah 18:
مَّا يَلْفِظُ مِنْ قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ
It means: [Raqib and ^Atid[2] write down every uttered word.] However, it is known that these sinful words will be erased if the person repents. On the Day of Judgement would not each one of us want to have all the good words in one’s record and not those disliked or sinful words? Thus, it is important to emphasize matters related to the tongue. The Prophet peace be upon him advised us in a hadith related by At-Tirmidhiyy:
مَنْ صَمَتَ نَجَا
It means: [The one who adheres to the lengthy silence (except from that which is good) will be saved on the Day of Judgement.] In this hadith related by al-Bayhaqiyy, the Prophet peace be upon him said:
إِنَّكَ لا تَزَالُ سَالمًا ما سَكَتَّ فَإذا تكَلَّمَتْ كُتِبَ لَكَ أَوْ عَلَيْكَ
It means: [You shall be saved as long as you are silent, for if you speak, it will either be in your favor or will stand against you.]
Due to the importance of this subject, the scholars of Islam were compelled to write extensively about it. Among the great scholars of Islam is Imam Al-Ghazaliyy, who said about the tongue:
اللِسَانُ نِعْمةٌ عَظِيمةٌ جِرْمُهُ صَغِيرٌ وَجُرْمُهُ كَبِيرٌ
It means: ‘The tongue is a great endowment from Allah; though small in size, its crime is enormous.’ A person may utter words of praise and thankfulness to Allah for which he earns reward. One may also utter a word that takes him out of Islam, thereby losing the reward of all his previous good deeds.
Reported in the texts of the scholars are narrations that highlight significant matters of the tongue. Among these is what Imam an-Nawawiyy reported:
Qiss Ibn Sa^idah and Aktham Ibn Sayfiyy met together. One of them asked the other, “Generally how many errors have you found the children of Adam [human beings] commit?” The other replied, “I have counted 8000 such errors, but let it be known that we cannot count them all. However, there is one good trait that would cover up for all of those errors and mistakes: To have control over one’s tongue.”
Imam ash-Shafi^iyy, in addressing his companion, ar-Rabi^, said:
لا تَتَكَلَّمْ فِيمَا يَعْنِيكَ فَإنَّكَ إذا تَكَلَّمْتَ بالكَلِمَةِ مَلَكَتْكَ وَلَمْ تَمْلِكْهَا
It means: ‘Do not haphazardly speak without a need. Once uttered, you no longer control the words, but they control you.’ That is, once you speak a word it will be to your benefit if it is good. However, if it is sinful, then it will be written against you and will require a valid repentance. ^Abdu l-Lah Ibn Mas^ud said:
ما شَىْءٌ أَحَقّ بالسجنِ مِن اللّسانِ
It means: “Nothing deserves imprisonment more than the tongue.” Other scholars said:
مَثَلُ اللّسَانِ مَثَلُ السَّبعِ إِنْ لَمْ تُوثِقْهُ عَدَا عَلَيْكَ
It means: ‘The tongue is like a beast. If you do not tie it up, it attacks you.” Various scholars talked at length about issues related to the tongue to highlight for Muslims the importance of keeping control of one’s tongue. When asked about the one who controls and protects one’s heart the most, Dhun-Nun al-Misriyy (Thawban Ibn Ibrahim), replied: “The one who controls one’s tongue the most.’ Allah made the tongue a witness to what is in the heart, as mentioned by the great scholars of Islam. Words of goodness reflect what is in the heart, as sinful or blasphemous words reflect what is in the heart.
