What is the Ruling of Laughing at an Old Age Person?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
What is the ruling on laughing at a joke where someone made fun of someone’s age in front of him, not on his back, called him an uncle, and said that he dyed his beard? Is it haram to laugh at that joke?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.
It is sinful of a person to mock someone in this way. However, we make mistakes, and Allah forgives wrongdoings and sins as long as we have regret and remorse. It would be good to go to the uncle and ask for his forgiveness.
The Enormity of Sin to Mock a Believer
‘Aisha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: I said to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), “Such is enough for Safiyya,” making fun of her short stature. The Prophet said, “You have said a word that would pollute the sea’s water if mixed with it.” [Abu Dawud]
I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.
Related
- 111 – Mocking, Cursing, and Other Sins of the Tongue – Birgivi’s Tariqa Muhammadiyya – Shaykh Faraz (youtube.com)
- A Reader on Tawba (Repentance) – SeekersGuidance
- Prayer of Repentance: Salat al-Tawba – SeekersGuidance
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersAcademy (seekersguidance.org), like from the Islamic Studies Curriculum (seekersguidance.org) or Youth Islamic Studies Curriculum (seekersguidance.org), building your way up doing each course?
I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
