towards the people; if you had been stern and ill-tempered, they would
have dispersed from round about you" [Quran, 3: 159]
About himself the prophet said: "Allaah has sent me as an apostle so
that I may demonstrate perfection of character, refinement of
mannersand loftiness of deportment." [Maalik and Ahmad]
By nature he was gentle and kind hearted, always inclined to be
gracious and to overlook the faults of others. Politeness and
courtesy, compassion and tenderness, simplicity and humility, sympathy
and sincerity were some of the keynotes of his character. In the cause
of right and justice he couldbe resolute and severe but more often
than not, his severity was tempered with generosity. He had charming
manners whichwon him the affection of his followers and securedtheir
devotion. Though virtual king of Arabia and an apostle of Allaah, he
never assumed an air of superiority. Not that he had to conceal any
such vein by practice andartifice: with fear of Allaah, sincere
humility was ingrained in his heart. He used to say: "Iam a Prophet of
Allaah but I do not know what will be my end." [Al-Bukhaari]
In one of his sermons calculated to instill the fear of Allaah and the
dayof reckoning in the hearts of men, he said: "O people of Quraysh be
prepared for the hereafter, I cannot save you from the punishment of
Allaah; O Bani Abd Manaaf, I cannot save you from Allaah; O Abbaas,
son of Abdul-Mutalib, I cannot protect you either; O Faatimah,
daughter of Muhammad, even you I cannot save." [Al-Bukhaari & Muslim]
He used to pray: "O Allaah! I am but a man. If I hurt any one in any
manner, then forgive me and do not punish me." [Ahmad]
He always received people with courtesy andshowed respect to older
people and stated:
"To honor an old man is to show glorification to Allaah."
He would not deny courtesy even to wicked persons. It is stated that
aperson came to his houseand asked permission foradmission. The
prophet remarked that he was not a good person but might be admitted.
Whenhe came in and while he remained in the house, he was shown full
courtesy. When he left 'Aa'ishah said: "You did not think well of this
man, but you treated himso well."
The prophet replied: "He is a bad person in the sight ofAllaah who
does not behave courteously and people shun his company because of his
bad manners." [Al-Bukhaari]
He was always the firstto greet another and would not withdraw his
hand from a handshake till the other man withdrew his. If one wanted
to say somethingin his ears, he would not turn away till one had
finished as reported in the books of Abu Daawood and At-Tirmithi . He
did not like people to get up for him and used to say: "Let him, who
likes people to stand up in his honor, he should seek a place in
hell." [Abu Daawood].
He would himself, however, stand up when any dignitary came to him. He
had stood up to receive the wet nurse who had reared him in infancy
and had spread his own sheet for her. Hisfoster brother was given
similar treatment. He avoided sitting at a prominent place in a
gathering, so much so that people coming in had difficulty in spotting
him and had to ask which one was the Prophet . Quite frequently
uncouth bedouins accosted him in their own gruff andimpolite manner
but he never took offence. [Abu Daawood]
He used to visit the poorest of ailing persons and exhorted all
Muslims to do likewise [Al-Bukhaari]. He would sit with the humblest
of persons saying that righteousnessalone was the criterion of one's
superiority over another. He invariably invited people be they slaves,
servants or the poorest believers, to partake with him of his scanty
meals. [At-Tirmithi]
Whenever he visited a person he would first greet him and then take
his permission to enter the house. He advised the people to follow
this etiquette and not to get annoyed if anyone declined to give
permission, for it was quite likely the person concerned was busy
otherwise and did not mean any disrespect.
There was no type of household work too low or too undignified for him
. 'Aa'ishah has stated: "He always joined in household work and would
at times mend his clothes, repair his shoes and sweep the floor. He
would milk, tether, and feed his animals and do the household
shopping." [Al-Bukhaari]
He would not hesitate to do the menial work of others, particularly of
orphans and widows [An-Nasaa'ee, Ad-Daarami]. Once when there was no
male member in the house of the companion Khabaab Ibn Al-Arat who had
gone to the battlefield, he used to go to his house daily and milk his
cattle for the inhabitants
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