What is incumbent upon someone who, out of mockery, said to his companion, "You stay in Riyadh al-Salihin," and then felt remorse and fear after saying it, knowing that he did not intend to mock the Sunnah?

This statement does not imply denigration of the Sunnah; rather, it criticizes its author for his limited knowledge of scholarly books. Scholars have stated that whoever utters words that might entail apostasy or other things does not become an unbeliever thereby, based on the saying of Ali al-Qari: "If ninety-nine interpretations suggest the apostasy of a Muslim, and one interpretation suggests maintaining his Islam, then the mufti and the judge should act upon that one interpretation." He supported this with the Hadith: "Avert the prescribed punishments from Muslims as much as you can, for if you find a way out for a Muslim, then let him go, for it is better for the Imam to err in forgiveness than to err in punishment."

A servant must guard his tongue and only speak what he is certain is good, based on the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said: "Indeed, a servant may utter a word without realizing its implications, and it will cause him to fall into the Hellfire further than the distance between the East and the West," and his saying to Mu'adh: "Are people thrown on their faces into the Hellfire for anything other than the harvests of their tongues?" and his saying: "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent." Al-Nawawi said: "This Hadith explicitly states that one should only speak if the speech is good, meaning its benefit is apparent. If there is doubt about its apparent benefit, then one should not speak."