The importance of speech in Islam

Author: Mohammed Said Raslan - translation: Habib Rahmani, Language: Bilingual (French/Arabic fully vocalized), Éditions Les Pieux Prédécesseurs

Word from the editor

Allah has distinguished man through eloquence and granted him the blessing of expressing himself clearly. By the grace of his Lord he can speak intelligibly and eloquently. Through eloquence, man passed from the stage of the mute animal to that of the eloquent being, in accordance with His Word: "The Most Merciful taught the Quran to the man whom He created and to whom He learned to express himself.”

And since words (al-kalima) constitute the cornerstone of this eloquence, their use wisely is a matter of virtue and vice versa. According to Abu Hurayrah, the Prophet (saws) informed: “Man sometimes pronounces a word to which he does not pay attention which Allah loves and by which He will raise in degrees. Conversely, a man sometimes says a word to which he gives no importance, which provokes the wrath of Allah and will throw him into Hell. Speech (Kalima) can designate, in the Arabic language, a term used in a specific context; likewise, it can refer to a sentence, like the attestation of faith “lâ ilâh Aillâ Allah”, the word of pure faith. This sums up the importance of speech.