anything about his brother, then he exaggerates it, and this is a graver sin than to remove his clothes.

Have you seen! If it is necessary to reveal someone’s evil act, it should not be exaggerated. If it is exaggerated, it will be a graver sin. Of course, the amount of addition you have done is a lie and to speak a lie is a major sin. Anyway, someone’s hidden fault can be mentioned to others in that case when that fault is harmful to others. If this is not the case then an effort should be made to gently reform him in private instead of revealing it to others and disgracing a Muslim in front of everyone. If you make an effort to reform him in front of everyone, then it is likely that he may become stubborn and instead of admitting his own mistake he may disgrace you, therefore, your pieces of advice should be made in private as much as possible as this proves to be extremely effective.

Advice in private is indeed a beauty

Sayyiduna Imam Shaafi’i عَـلَيْهِ رَحْـمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ الۡـقَـوِی has said: Whoever has made his Muslim brother understand in private has advised him and has graced him and whoever has made him understand in front of everyone has indeed disgraced him.

Sayyiduna Mis’ar Bin Kiddam رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه was asked: Do you like the person who cautions you of your faults? He replied: If he advises me in private, I will like it and if he makes me understand in front of everyone, then I won’t.

(Ihya-ul-‘Uloom, vol. 2, pp. 660)

Keep your heart clean towards Muslims

Dear Islamic brothers! Some people have this habit that they continue to make efforts to discover a secret of others and find faults and evils with their own Muslim brothers. When such people achieve their intentions, they wait for the opportunity, and disclose that Muslim brother’s weaknesses so he may lose his respect and become despised before others in such a gathering or before such a person that he can’t meet anyone any more, indeed he dies of shame.