A sin

Brother Maherban finds out that he has again caused controversy with his e-mail. He is writing yet another e-mail to apologize for his shortcoming...

Dear Family,

It has come to my attention by the former Ameer of the Family that I may have insulted one of the nominees to the position of the Ameer…. I want to publicly declare that I in no way intended to insult anyone. In case I did offend the person… I would deeply apologize for this un-intended offense…

This event has caused me so much distress that I sought out Shaik Abu Th-insk-in for some advice:

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Peace be upon you brother, what is wrong?
Maherban: Peace be upon you ya Shaikh, how did you know something was wrong?

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, I only see you when your heart is troubled… Tell me about it…
Maherbaan: Shaikh, I may have sinned…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, how did you sin?
Maherbaan: I wrote this e-mail describing the notes from a Shura conference call to elect the family Ameer…. And in the process, I may have insulted some people…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, how did you do that?
Maherbaan: Shaikh, I took some liberties with the facts, and used satire to describe the outcome of the meeting. My satire may have offended some individuals who were the subject of this satire…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, you are confusing me… did you insult or offend the concerned individual?
Maherbaan: Shaikh, I am told I may have done both…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Clearly it is not hard to offend the person you insult, however, it is harder to insult the person you offend. Which one do you think you did first?
Maherbaan: Huh? Shaikh, I don't understand…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, I can offend you by paying more attention to someone else, but I don't necessarily have to insult you in the process. However, if I insult you by making fun of you, I have necessarily offended you.
Maherbaan: Shaikh, so you are saying, that I may offend someone without insulting them, but I cannot insult them and NOT offend them.

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Precisely!
Maherbaan: Now that you mention it… I am not sure which I did first… I think I may have insulted first, which necessarily means I offended them.

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: And how did you insult them…
Maherbaan: That's just it Shaikh, I am not sure how I did it… I am told that I was making fun of the person concerned… an opinion which I don't agree with…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, It does not matter what you think… you have to take special care not to offend anyone… How would you feel if someone picked on someone you really like and made fun of them… you would be offended… while the person who was picked on may be insulted…
Maherbaan: Why would I be offended? Just because I like someone does not mean that others cannot make fun of them… besides it depends on the kind of fun they were having… If it was harmless… then I would probably laugh along…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Subhan-Allah, brother, it is a sin to laugh at others… Allah will never forgive you unless the person you made fun of forgives you first… and you should never laugh at someone… you might hurt their feelings…
Maherbaan: Shaikh, what kind of person has their feelings hurt when someone is making fun of them… We are not talking about physically hurting someone… we are talking of a joke which may ridicule, parody, or use satire to logically prove the absurd about the person. For instance, if someone says to me "Maherban, you are so fat, you show up on the radar! You are so fat, when you step on a scale, It says TO BE CONTINUED… You are so fat, when you step on a digital scale, it says, NO LIVE STOCK PLEASE… You are so fat, you caused a tsunami the last time you jump in the water on the beach… You are so fat, they would have to baptize you in the great lakes…"

I think all of the above fat jokes are funny… and I would laugh at them…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, you would not be offended?
Maherbaan: Shaikh, comedy is comedy… you cannot take offense about good humor… clearly, the above jokes are meant to be funny… Now if they said, "You are fat pig" that would not be funny… I mean to call a Muslim a PIG is not halal! That is like calling a person haram! That would be just mean!

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, As-tugh-fir-la! Don't use that word… you have just broken my Wudu…
Maherbaan: I am sorry Shaikh, anyways… I don't see how comedy can hurt a person's feelings. Aren't hurt feelings an indicator of guilt about the subject of the joke… For instance, if I felt guilty about being FAT, my feelings would be hurt… since there is no reason for me to feel guilty… I can laugh at the jokes… On the other hand… If I started to feel hurt by what someone was saying in fun… then they must be hitting something close to the truth about what I really don't like in myself…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother, you are correct in your analysis… however, the average person is not so introspective… they generally like to blame others for their own insecurities… that is why you have to be careful… otherwise, you may recklessly force them to confront their own flaws… Truth is the ultimate way to hurt someone's delusions…

Maherbaan: So you are saying that I should only make fun of people who are comfortable with themselves… and they would recognize the joke for what it is…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Yes Brother! That is exactly what I am saying…
Maherbaan: Well I guess Shaikh, then I did not commit a sin… The person I may have offended definitely understands their own short comings… And this person likes satire…

Shaikh Abu Th-insk-in: Brother! Just remember, it is a great honor to be made fun of by a person of knowledge… It is a sign that you have discovered yourself…
Maherbaan: Thanks Shaikh… you have made my day…

Well there you have it family… I did not commit a sin after all…

Till next time….