Whenever the Prophet ﷺ heard something about a particular man, he would not say, "What is the matter with so-and-so that he says such-and-such?" Rather, he would say, "What is the matter with people who say such-and-such?"
حدثنا عثمان بن أبي شيبة حدثنا عبد الحميد يعني الحماني حدثنا الأعمش عن مسلم عن مسروق
كان النبي ﷺ إذا بلغه عن الرجل الشيء لم يقل ما بال فلان يقول ولكن يقول ما بال أقوام يقولون كذا وكذا
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Bukhari narrated it in "Etiquette," chapter "One who does not confront people directly with rebuke," no. 6101, and Muslim narrated it in "Virtues," chapter "His knowledge of Allah, Exalted is He, and the intensity of his fear of Him," no. 2356, from the hadith of Amash, in a longer form, no. [