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The question

What is the ruling on phrases and proverbs such as: "My hand is on the throat of him who has no ears," "O you who hasten, may God delay you," "God's bull in its alfalfa," "We have done our part, and the rest is up to God," "The sustenance of idiots is on the madmen," "He neither shows mercy nor lets God's mercy descend," "I am an obedient servant," "Fate willed it" or "Nature willed it," "Knock on wood"; and does the ruling change if the speaker's intention is good and they do not intend to be presumptuous towards God?

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Source: FtawySummarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

A Muslim must safeguard his tongue from what displeases Allah Almighty, for the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Whoever guarantees me what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I will guarantee him Paradise," and he said: "Indeed, a man may utter a word that he considers harmless, yet he falls with it for seventy autumns in the Hellfire," and he said: "Are people thrown into the Hellfire on their faces or on their nostrils except for the harvests of their tongues?" The aforementioned sayings must be avoided, except for "We have done what is upon us, and the rest is up to Allah," because they either touch upon creed or contain mockery and derision.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

Read the full answer on Ftawy