Explore Verses Related to blaming another
At a Glance
📖 Quranic Context
A major sin that combines injustice (zulm), lying (kidhb), and slander. It represents a compound transgression of both one's own sin and the false imputation of that sin onto an innocent party.
An act that incurs a heavy burden and a 'manifest sin' (ithm mubin), indicating severe divine displeasure.
💭 Theological Perspective
Seen as a manifestation of a corrupted character, where an individual not only sins but actively seeks to evade responsibility by harming another.
Reflects a lack of self-accountability and fear of Allah, shifting personal guilt onto another and thereby magnifying the sin.
The Quran explicitly warns against this act to protect the innocent and uphold justice within the community.
Avoiding 'buhtan' is a critical step in spiritual purification (Tazkiyah), requiring honesty, courage, and taking responsibility for one's actions.
📜 Hadith Perspective
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) clearly distinguished between backbiting (ghibah) and slander (buhtan), defining buhtan as saying something false about a person.
- Buhtan as saying what is not true about someone.
- The severe punishment for those who falsely accuse others, especially the chaste.
- A person who falsely accuses another will be punished on the Day of Resurrection.
Universal agreement among scholars that 'buhtan' is a major sin (kabirah) with severe spiritual and, in some cases, legal consequences.
💎 Deeper Insights
Search grounding in the Tafsir of 4:112 reveals that the verse was revealed to exonerate a Jewish man who was falsely accused by a nominal Muslim. This establishes a profound Quranic principle: justice is absolute and must be applied even to defend non-Muslims against unjust accusations from within the Muslim community.
— Ibn Kathir, Al-Tabari
This sin is a spiritual 'double jeopardy'. The perpetrator 'burdens himself' (فَقَدِ احْتَمَلَ) with two distinct crimes mentioned in 4:112: 'Buhtan' (the slander against the innocent) and 'Ithm Mubin' (the manifest sin, which includes the original crime). The sinner does not transfer their sin, but rather adds a second, heavier one to their own account.
— Al-Qurtubi, Tafsir al-Jalalayn
