Characteristics of Prophet Muhammad

Dress
His dress generally consisted of a shirt, tamad (trousers), a sheet
thrown round the sholders and a turban. On rare occasions, he would
put on costly robes presented to him by foreign emissaries in the
later part of his life (Ahmed, Musnad, Hafiz Bin Qaiyyam).
His blanket had several patches (Tirmizi). He had very few spare
clothes, but he kept them spotlessy clean (Bukhari). He wanted others
also to put on simple but clean clothes. Once he saw a person putting
on dirty clothes and remarked,
"Why can't this man wash them." (Abu Dawud, Chapter "Dress").
On another occasion he enquired of a person in dirty clothes whether
he had any income. Upon getting a reply in the affirmative, he
observed,
"When Allah has blessed you with His bounty, your appearence should
reflect it." (Abu Dawud)
He used to observe: "Cleanliness is piety".
Mode of living
His house was but a hut with walls of unbaked clay and a thatched roof
of palm leaves covered by camel skin. He had separate apartments for
his wives, a small room for each made of similar materials. His own
apartment contained a rope cot, a pillow stuffed with palm leaves ,
the skin of some animal spread on the floor and a water bag of leather
and some weapons. These were all his earthly belongings, besides a
camel, a horse, and an ass and some land which he had aquired in the
later part of his life (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud). Once a few of his
disciples, noticing the imprint of his mattress on his body, wished to
give him a softer bed but he politely declined the offer saying,
"What have I to do with worldly things. My connection with the world
is like that of a traveler resting for a while underneath the shade of
a tree and then moving on."
Amr Ibn Al-Harith, a brother in law of the prophet (pbuh), says that
when the prophet died, he did not leave a cent, a slave man or woman,
or any property except his white mule, his weapons and a piece of land
which he had dedicated for the good of the community (Bukhari, Sahih
Bukhari).
He advised the people to live simple lives and himself practised great
austerities. Even when he had become the virtual king of arabia, he
lived an austere life bordering on privation. His wife Aiysha (ra)
says that there was hardly a day in his life when he had two square
meals (Muslim, Sahih Muslim, Vol.2, pg 198). When he died there was
nothing in his house except a few seeds of barley left from a mound of
the grain obtained from a Jew by pawning his armour (Bukhari, Sahih
Bukhari, Chapter "Aljihad").
He had declared unlawful for himself and his family anything given by
the people by way of zakat or sadaqa (types of charity). He was so
particular about this that he would not appoint any member of his
family as a zakat collector (Sahah-Kitab Sadqat).
His manners and disposition
"By the grace of Allah, you are gentle towards the people; if you had
been stern and ill-tempered, they would have dispersed from round
about you" (translation of Qur'an, Chapter 3: Verse 159)
About himself the prophet (pbuh) said
"Allah has sent me as an apostle so that I may demonstrate perfection
of character, refinement of manners and loftiness of deportment."
(Malik, Mawatta; Ahmed, Musnad; Mishkat)
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 could be resolute and severe but more often
than not, his severity was tempered with generosity. He had charming
manners which won him the affection of his followers and secured their
devotion. Though virtual king of Arabia and an apostle of Allah, he
never assumed an air of superiority. Not that he had to conceal any
such vein by practice and artifice: with fear of Allah, sincere
humility was ingrained in his heart.
He used to say,
"I am a Prophet of Allah but I do not know what will be my end."
(Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari, Chapter "Al-Janaiz")
In one of his sermons calculated to instill the fear of Allah and the
day of reckoning in the hearts of men, he said,
"O people of Quraish be prepared for the hereafter, I cannot save you
from the punishment of Allah; O Bani Abd Manaf, I cannot save you from
Allah; O Abbas, son of Abdul Mutalib, I cannot protect you either; O
Fatima, daughter of Muhammad, even you I cannot save." (Sahahin)
He used to pray,
"O Allah! I am but a man. If I hurt any one in any manner, then
forgive me and do not punish me." (Ahmed, Musnad, Vol. 6 pg. 103)
He always received people with courtesy and showed respect to older
people and stated:
"To honor an old man is to show respect to Allah."
He would notdeny courtesy even to wicked persons. It is stated that a
person came to his house and asked permission for admission. The
Prophet (pbuh) remarked that he was not a good person but might be
admitted. When he came in and while he remained in the house, he was
shown full courtesy.
When he left Aiysha (ra) said, "You did not think well of this man,
but you treated him so well."
The Prophet (pbuh) replied, "He is a bad person in the sight of Allah
who does not behave courteously and people shun his company bacause of
his bad manners." (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari)
He was always thefirst to greet anotherand would not withdraw his hand
from a handshake till the other man withdrew his. If one wanted to say
something in his ears, he would not turn away till one had finished
(Abu Dawud, Tirmizi). He did not like people to get up for him and
used to say,
"Let him who likes people to stand up in his honour, he should seek a
place in hell." (Abu Dawud, Kitabul Adab, Muhammadi Press, Delhi).
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. His foster brother was given
similar treatment. Heavoided sitting at a prominent placein a
gathering, so much so that people coming in had difficulty in spotting
him and had to ask which was the Prophet (pbuh). Quite frequently
uncouth bedouins accosted him in their own gruff and impolite manner
but he never took offence. (Abu Dawud Kitabul Atama).
He used to visit the poorest ofailing persons and exhortedall muslims
to do likewise (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari, Chapter "Attendance on ailing
persons"). He would sit with the humblest of persons saying that
righteousness alone 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 (Tirmizi,
Sunan Tirmizi).
Whenever he visited a person he would first greet him and then take
hispermission 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 (Ibid).
There was no type of household work too low or too undignified for
him. Aiysha (ra) 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." (Qazi Iyaz:
Shifa; Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari, Chapter: Kitabul Adab)
He would nothesitate to do the menial work of others, particularly of
orphans and widows (Nasi, Darmi). Once when there was no male member
in the house of the companion Kabab Bin Arat who had gone to the
battlefield, he used to go to his house daily and milk his cattle for
the inhabitants (Ibn Saad Vol. 6, p 213).
Children
He was especiallyfond of childrenand used to get into thespirit of
childish games in their company. He would have fun with the children
who had come back from Abyssinia and tried to speak in Abyssinian with
them. It was his practice to give lifts on his camel to children when
he returned from journeys (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 2 pg.886). He
would pick up children in his arms, play with them, and kiss them. A
companion, recalling his childhood, said,
"In my childhood I used to fell dates by throwing stones at palm
trees. Somebody took me to the Prophet (pbuh) who advised me to pick
up the dates lying on the ground but not to fell them with stones. He
then patted me and blessed me." (Abu Dawud)
Daily routine
On the authority of Ali, Tirmizi has recorded that the Prophet (pbuh)
had carefully apportioned his time according to the demands on him for
offering worship to Allah public affairs, and personal matters.
After theearly morning prayershe would remain sitting in the mosque
reciting praises of Allah till the sun rose and more people collected.
He would then preach to them. After the sermons were over, he would
talk genially with the people, enquire about their welfare and even
exchange jokes with them. Taxes and revenues were also disrtibuted at
this time (Muslim, Sahih Muslim Tirmizi, Sunan Tirmizi). He would then
offer chaste prayers and go home and get busy with household work
(Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmizi).
He would again return to the mosque for themid-day and afternoon
prayers, listen to the problems of the people and give solace and
guidance to them.
After theafternoon prayers, he would visit each of his wives and,
after the evening prayers, his wives would collect at one place and he
would have his dinner (Muslim, Sahih Muslim). After thenight prayers,
he would recite some suras of the Quran and before going to bed would
pray: "O Allah, I die and live with thy name on my lips."
On getting up he would say,
"All praise to Allah Who has given me life after death and towards
Whom is the return."
He used tobrush his teeth five times a day, before each of the daily
prayers. After midnight, he used to get up for the Tahajjud
prayerswhich he never missed even once in his life (Bukhari, Sahih
Bukhari). He was not fastidious about his bed: sometimes he slept on
his cot, sometimes on a skin or ordinary matress, and sometimes on the
ground (Zarqani).
On friday he used togive sermonsafter the weekly "Jumma" prayers. He
was not annoyed if anyone interrupted him during the sermons for
anything. It is stated that once, while he was delivering his sermon,
a bedouin approached him and said, "O messenger of Allah, I am a
traveler and am ignorant of my religion." The prophet (pbuh) got down
from the pulpit, explained the salient features of Islam to him and
then resumed the sermon (Tirmizi, Sunan Tirmizi).
On another occasion his grandson Husain, still a child, came tumbling
to him while he was delivering a sermon. He descended and took him in
his lap and then continued the sermon (Ibid).
Trust in Allah (swt)
Muhammad (pbuh) preached to the people to trust in Allah (swt). His
whole life was asublime example of the precept. In the loneliness of
Makkah, in the midst of persecution and danger, in adversity and
tribulations, and in the thick of enemies in the battles of Uhud and
Hunain,complete faith and trust in Allah (swt)appears as the dominant
feature in his life. However great the danger that confronted him, he
never lost hope and never allowed himself to be unduly agitated. Abu
Talib knew the feelings of the Quraish when the Prophet (pbuh) started
his mission. He also knew the lengths to which the Quraish could go,
and requested the Prophet (pbuh) to abandon his mission, but the
latter calmly replied,
"Dear uncle, do not go by my loneliness. Truth will not go unsupported
for long. The whole of Arabia and beyond will one day espouse its
cause." (Ibn Hisham, Sirat-ur-Rasul.)
When the attitude of the Quraish became more threatening, Abu Talib
again begged his nephew to renounce his mission but the Prophet's
(pbuh) reply was:
"O my uncle, if they placed the sun in my right hand and the moon in
my left, to force me to renounce my work, verily I would not desist
thereform until Allah made manifest His cause, or I perished in the
attempt." (Ibid)
To another well-wisher, he said, "Allah will not leave me forelorn."
A dejected and oppressed disciple was comforted with the words:
"By Allah, the day is near when this faith will reach its pinnacle and
none will have to fear anyone except Allah." (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari)
It was the same trust in Allah (swt) which emboldened the Prophet
(pbuh) to say hisprayers openly in the haramin the teeth of
opposition. The Quraish were once collected there and were conspiring
to put an end to his life when he next entered the haram. His young
daughter Fatima, who happened to overhear their talk rushed weeping to
her father and told him of the designs of the Quraish. He consoled
her, did his ablutions and went to the Kaaba to say prayers. There was
only consternation among the Quraish when they saw him (Ahmed, Musnad,
Vol. 1, pg. 368).
Then leaving his house for Madinah he asked Ali (ra) to sleep on his
bed and told him,
"Do not worry, no one will be able to do you any harm" (Tabari, Ibn Hisham)
Even though the enemies had surrounded the house, he left the house
reciting the Quranic verse:
"We have set a barricade before them and a barricade behind them and
(thus) have covered them so that they see not" (translation of Qur'an
36:9 )
Abu Bakr was frightened when pursuers came close to the cavern in
which he and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) were hiding during their flight,
but the Prophet (pbuh) heartened him, "Grieve not. Allah is with us."
A guard was kept at the Prophet's house in Madinah because of the
danger that surrounded him but he had it withdrawn when the Quranic
verse was revealed:
"Allah will protect you from the people" (translation of Qur'an 5:67).
A man was caught waiting in ambush to assault the Prophet (pbuh) but
he was directed to be released with the words,
"Even if this man wanted to kill me, he could not." (Ahmed, Musnad,
Vol.3 pg. 471)
A Jewess from Khaibar had put poison in the Prophet's (pbuh) food. He
spat it out after taking a morsel but a disciple who had his fill died
the next day. The Jewess was brought before the prophet (pbuh) who
questioned her:
"Why did you do this?" "To kill you," was her defiant reply. She was
told, "Allah would not have allowed you to do it." (Muslim, Sahih
Muslim.)
In the battle of Uhud when the rear guard action of the Makkan army
had disorganized the Muslim army and had turned the tables, the
Prophet (pbuh) stood as firm as a rock even though he had suffered
personal injuries. When Abu Sufiyan taunted the Muslims and shouted
"Victory to hubal!" (hubal was one of their idols), the Prophet (pbuh)
asked Umar (ra) to shout back, "Allah is our protector and friend. You
have no protector and friend. Allah is Great, Magnificent." (Ibn
Hisham, Sirat-Ur-Rasul).
Again in the battle of Hunain, when the unexpected assault of the army
had swept the Muslim force off its feet and a defeat seemed imminent,
the Prophet (pbuh) did not yield ground. With trust in Allah (swt) he
showed such courage that the Muslim army rallied behind him to win a
signal victory.
Justice
The Prophet (pbuh) asked people to bejust and kind. As the supreme
judge and arbiter, as the leader of men, as generalissimo of a rising
power, as a reformer and apostle, he had always to deal with men and
their affairs. He had often to deal with mutually inimical and warring
tribes when showing justice to one carried the danger of antagonizing
the other, and yet he never deviated from the path of justice. In
administering justice, he made no distinction between believers and
nonbelievers, friends and foes, high and low.
From numerous instances reported in the traditions, a few are given below.
*.Sakhar, a chief of a tribe, had helped Muhammad (pbuh) greatly in
the seige of Taif, for which he was naturally obliged to him. Soon
after, two charges were brought against Sakhar: one by Mughira of
illegal confinement of his (Mughira's) aunt and the other by Banu
Salim of forcible occupation of his spring by Sakhar. In both cases,
he decided against Sakhar and made him undo the wrong. (Abu Dawud,
Sunan Dawud, pg.80)
*.Abdullah Bin Sahal, a companion, was deputed to collect rent from
Jews of Khaibar. His cousin Mahisa accompanied him but, on reaching
Khaibar, they had separated. Abdullah was waylaid and done to death.
Mahisa reported this tragedy to the Prophet (pbuh) but as there were
no eye-witnesses to identify the guilty, he did not say anything to
the Jews and paid the blood-money out of the state revenues (Bukhari,
Sahih Bukhari Nasai).
*.A woman of the Makhzoom family with good connections was found
guilty of theft. For the prestige of the Quraish, some prominent
people including Asama Bin Zaid interceded to save her from
punishment. The Prophet (pbuh)refused to condone the crimeand
expressed displeasure saying,
"Many a community ruined itself in the past as they only punished the
poor and ignored the offences of the exalted. By Allah, if Muhammad's
(My) daughter Fatima would have committed theft, her hand would have
been severed." (Bukhari, Sahh Bukhari, Chapter "Alhadood")
*.The Jews, in spite of their hostility to the Prophet (pbuh), were so
impressed by hisimpartiallityandsense of justicethat they used to
bring their cases to him, and he decided them according to Jewish law.
(Abu Dawud, Sunan Dawud)
Once, while he was distributing the spoils of war, people flocked
around him and one man almost fell upon him. He pushed the men with a
stick causing a slight abrasion. He was so sorry about this that he
told the man that he could have his revenge, but the man said, "O
messenger of Allah, I forgive you." (Abu Dawud, Kitablu Diyat).
*.In his fatal illness, the Prophet (pbuh) proclaimed in a concourse
assembled at his house that if he owed anything to anyone the person
concerned could claim it; if he had ever hurt anyone's person, honor
or property, he could have his price while he was yet in this world. A
hush fell on the crowd. One man came forward to claim a few dirhams
which were paid at once. (Ibn Hisham, Sirat-ur-Rasul)
Equality
Muhammad (pbuh) asked people to shun notions of racial, family or any
other form of superiority based on mundane things and said that
righteousness alone was the criterion of one's superiority over
another. It has already been shown how he mixed with everyone on equal
terms, how he ate with slaves, servants and the poorest on the same
sheet (a practice that is still followed in Arabia), how herefused all
privilegesandworked like any ordinary laborer.
Two instances may, however, be quoted here:
1.Once the Prophet (pbuh) visited Saad Bin Abadah. While returning
Saad sent his son Quais with him. The Prophet (pbuh) asked Quais to
mount his camel with him. Quais hesitated out of respect but the
Prophet (pbuh) insisted: "Either mount the camel or go back." Quais
decided to go back. (Abu Dawud, Kitabul Adab)
2.On another occasion he was traveling on his camel over hilly terrain
with a disciple, Uqba Bin Aamir. After going some distance, he asked
Uqba to ride the camel, but Uqba thought this would be showing
disrespect to the Prophet (pbuh). But the Prophet (pbuh) insisted and
he had to comply. The Prophet (pbuh) himself walked on foot as he did
not want to put too much load on the animal. (Nasai pg. 803)
The prisioners of war of Badr included Abbas, the uncle of the Prophet
(pbuh). Some people were prepared to forgo their shares and remit the
Prophet's (pbuh) ransom but he declined saying that he could make no
distinctions. (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari, Chapter "Ransoms")
During a halt on a journey, the companions apportioned work among
themselves for preparing food. The Prophet (pbuh) took upon himself
the task of collecting firewood. His companions pleaded that they
would do it and that he need not take the trouble, but he replied,
"It is true, but I do not like to attribute any distinction to myself.
Allah does not like the man who considers himself superior to his
companions." (Zarqani, Vol 4 pg. 306)
Kindness to animals
The Prophet (pbuh) not only preached to the people to show kindness to
each other but also to all living souls. He forbade the practice of
cutting tails and manes of horses, of branding animals at any soft
spot, and of keeping horses saddled unnecessarily (Muslim, Sahih
Muslim). If he saw any animal over-loaded or ill-fed he would pull up
the owner and say,
"Fear Allah in your treatment of animals." (Abu Dawud, Kitab Jihad).
A companion came to him with the young ones of a bird in his sheet and
said that the mother bird had hovered over them all along. He was
directed to replace her offspring in the same bush (Mishkat, Abu
Dawud)
During a journey, somebody picked up some birds eggs. The bird's
painful note and fluttering attracted the attention of the Prophet
(pbuh), who asked the man to replace the eggs (Bukhari, Sahih
Bukhari).
As his army marched towards Makkah to conquer it, they passed a female
dog with puppies. The Prophet (pbuh) not only gave orders that they
should not be disturbed, but posted a man to see that this was done.
He stated,
"Verily, there is heavenly reward for every act of kindness done to a
living animal."
Love for the poor
The Prophet (pbuh) enjoined upon Muslims to treat the poor kindly and
to help them with alms, zakat, and in other ways. He said:
"He is not a perfect muslim who eats his fill and lets his neighbor go hungry."
He asked, "Do you love your Creator? Then love your fellow beings first."
*.Monopoly is unlawful in Islam and he preached that "It is diffucult
for a man laden with riches to climb the steep path that leads to
bliss."
*.He did not prohibit or discourage the aquisition of wealth but
insisted that it be lawfully aquired by honest means and that a
portion of it would go to the poor. He advised his followers "To give
the laborer his wages before his perspiration dried up."
*.He did not encourage beggary either and stated that "Allah is
gracious to him who earns his living by his own labor, and that if a
man begs to increase his property, Allah will diminish it and whoever
has food for the day, it is prohibited for him to beg."
*.To his wife he said, "O Aysha, love the poor and let them come to
you and Allah will draw you near to Himself." (Bukhari, Sahih Bukhari)
One or two instances of the Prophet's (pbuh) concern for the poor may
be given here. A Madinan, Ibad Bin Sharjil, was once starving. He
entered an orchard and picked some fruit. The owner of the orchard
gave him a sound beating and stripped off his clothes. The poor man
appealed to the Prophet (pbuh) who remonstrated the owner thus: "This
man was ignorant, you should have dispelled his ignorance; he was
hungry, you should have fed him." His clothes were restored to the
Madinan and, in addition, some grain was given to him (Abu Dawud,
Kitabul Jihad).
A debtor, Jabir Bin Abdullah, was being harassed by his creditor as he
could not clear his debt owing to the failure of his date crop. The
Prophet (pbuh) went with Jabir to the house of the creditor and
pleaded with him to give Jabir some more time but the creditor was not
prepared to oblige. The Prophet (pbuh) then went to the oasis and
having seen for himself that the crop was really poor, he again
approached the creditor with no better result. He then rested for some
time and approached the creditor for a third time but the latter was
adamant. The Prophet (pbuh) went again to the orchard and asked Jabir
to pluck the dates. As Allah would have it, the collection not only
sufficed to clear the dues but left something to spare (Bukhari, Sahih
Bukhari).
His love for the poor was so deep that he used to pray:
"O Allah, keep me poor in my life and at my death and raise me at
resurrection among those who are poor." (Nasai, Chapter: Pardon)