several types of opinion, three of which are: (1) Necessary, such as having a good opinion of Allah Almighty (2) Recommended, such as having a good opinion of a pious Muslim (3) Forbidden, for example, having a bad opinion of Allah Almighty or of a believer.^[1]

Slaves of Allah Almighty, become brothers!

Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah رَضِىَ اللّٰهُ عَـنْهُ narrates that the Messenger of Allah   صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم stated:

Protect yourself from having bad opinion, as having bad opinion is a most evil lie. Do not search for one another’s apparent and hidden faults, do not be greedy, do not be envious, do not have hatred, do not turn away from one another, and O slaves of Allah, become brothers!”^[2]

Harms of having a bad opinion of others

Dear Islamic brothers! To save yourself from having a bad opinion of others, ponder over its harms: (1) If the bad opinion you have of another was to be mentioned before him, it would hurt his feelings, and hurting the feelings of another Muslim is forbidden. (2) If you express your bad opinion about him in his absence, this is backbiting, and backbiting a Muslim is forbidden. (3) The one who engages in such behaviour does not stop at just this, rather he begins to search for the other person’s faults, and searching for the faults of a Muslims is impermissible and a sin. (4)    Having a bad opinion of others leads to the dangerous diseases of hatred and envy. (5) It leads to animosity between two brothers, opposition between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and destroys trust between husband and wife, causing them to argue over every small issue. It can even result in divorce, separation and the break-up of