The Tongue in Islamic Ethics
Speak good or be silent: “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let them speak good or remain silent.” (Bukhari/Muslim) — The prophetic binary: speech that is good (truthful, beneficial, kind, just) or silence. There is no third option — neutral, casual, habitual speech that doesn’t serve goodness is already closer to harm than good.
The tongue’s accounts: The Prophet described the tongue as the most dangerous of all human faculties: “Most of the sins of the children of Adam are in their tongue.” (Tabarani) The tongue can commit what no hand can — backbiting (ghiba), slander (buhtan), lying (kadhib), breaking promises (nakth), and speaking without knowledge (qawl bi-ghayr ‘ilm) are all tongue-sins.
Al-bayan as divine gift: The Quran’s most compressed expression of the human being’s dignity: “The Most Merciful — He taught the Quran, created the human being, taught him al-bayan.” (55:1-4) — Al-bayan (eloquence, clear speech, the capacity for articulate expression) is listed with the same breath as the Quran and the creation of humanity. Language is not a utilitarian tool but a divine attribute shared with humanity.
See also: Akhlaq, Sidq, Sunnat Al Nabi
Ethics of Speech in Detail
Backbiting (ghiba): “Do not spy on one another, and do not backbite one another. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of their dead brother? You would detest it.” (49:12) — The Quran’s image of ghiba as cannibalism makes vivid what the tongue can do to the absent person’s reputation. The Prophet defined ghiba precisely: mentioning your brother in a way they would dislike, even if true.
The recording angels: “Not a word does one utter but there is a watcher by them, ready to record it.” (50:18) — Every word is inscribed in the Record of Deeds. This prophetic and Quranic awareness gives lisan ethics urgency: careless speech is not merely socially regrettable but spiritually consequential.
See also: Akhira And Afterlife, Al Hisab, Muhasaba
Lisan al-Dawat — The Sacred Language of the Bohra Community
The tongue of the mission: Lisan al-Dawat (the tongue/language of the da’wa) is the distinctive language of the Dawoodi Bohra community — a variety of Gujarati heavily influenced by Arabic, Persian, and other languages, written in a modified Perso-Arabic script. It developed over centuries as the medium through which the da’wa’s knowledge — its khutbas, texts, poetry, religious literature — was transmitted.
Sacred and communal functions: Lisan al-Dawat is the language of the khutba, of religious poetry (marsiya, qasida), of the community’s literary tradition. Learning to read and write Lisan al-Dawat connects Bohra children to centuries of accumulated wisdom. The Da’i’s khutbas in Lisan al-Dawat are understood as direct transmission of Ismaili knowledge in the da’wa’s own tongue.
The theological significance: In Ismaili ta’wil, language itself is a zahir-batin system — every word has an outer referent and an inner meaning. Lisan al-Dawat, as the language shaped by the da’wa’s long history, is a language whose words have been charged with ta’wil meaning over centuries of use.
See also: Dai Al Mutlaq Institution, Tayyibi Dawat, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Understanding Walayah, Imamah
See also: Akhlaq, Sidq, Sunnat Al Nabi, Akhira And Afterlife, Al Hisab, Muhasaba, Dai Al Mutlaq Institution, Tayyibi Dawat, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Understanding Walayah, Imamah