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Is my description of someone as a "dictator" in their work management considered backbiting, given my awareness of their merit and role in establishing the work, and my intention being to clarify the effect of this characteristic, not to diminish them?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Allah has forbidden backbiting and Ibn Hajar Al-Haytami considered it among the major sins, based on His (Allah's) saying: "And do not backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Accepting of repentance and Merciful." Your statement about your colleague being a "dictator" is considered forbidden backbiting, for backbiting is mentioning your brother with what he dislikes. If what you say is true about him, then you have backbitten him, and if it is not true, then you have slandered him. What is obligatory upon you is to repent, feel remorse, and resolve not to return to it, and to mention your colleague positively in the same gathering where you spoke ill of him. So, guard your tongue, for the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Will anything throw people into the Hellfire on their faces or on their noses except the harvests of their tongues?" and "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent."

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

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