A GLANCE AT THE PROPHET’S GENUINE ATTRIBUTES, HONORABLE MERITS, AND PURE MANNERS
Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim (in their Sahihs) and others narrated from the route of al-Bara’ Ibn ^Azib that he said, “The Messenger of Allah had the most beautiful face and the best manners. He was neither exceedingly tall nor short.” Al-Bayhaqiyy (in Ad-Dala’il), at-Tabaraniyy (in Al-Mu^jam Al-Kabir and Al-Awsat) narrated from the route of Abu ^Ubaydah Ibn Muhammad Ibn ^Ammar Ibn Yasir that he said, “I asked ar-Rubbayyi^ Bint Mu^awwidh to describe the Prophet for me. She said, ‘If you see him you would say the sun is shining. ’”
At-Tirmidhiyy (in his Sunan) and Ahmad (in his Musnad) narrated from the route of Abu Hurayrah that he said, “I have not seen anything more beautiful than the Prophet and anyone faster in his walk than the Prophet. It is as if the land folds up for him. We endeavored to walk as swiftly as the Prophet.”
Al-Bukhariyy, Muslim, and an-Nasa’iyy (in their Sahihs) and others narrated from the route of Anas Ibn Malik that he said, “The Prophet’s hair was shoulder-length.” Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim using different terminology said, “The Prophet’s hair reached to the middle of his ears.”
Muslim narrated in his Sahih from the route of Anas Ibn Malik that he said, “I have not smelled anything –whether musk, amber, or other than that– better smelling than the Prophet. I have not touched anything– whether silk, taftan, or other than that– smoother than the hand of the Prophet.”
Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim narrated in their Sahihs from the route of al-Bara’ Ibn ^Azib that he said, “The Prophet was medium in height and he had wide shoulders. He was the greatest of the people. His hair reached his ears. I have never seen anything more beautiful especially when he wore maroon-colored clothing.
Muslim narrated in his Sahih from the route of Anas Ibn Malik that he said, “The Prophet was neither exceedingly tall nor short. His complexion was neither whitish pale nor too dark. His hair was neither extremely curly nor straight. Allah revealed him as a prophet when he was forty (40) years old. He lived in Makkah for ten (10) years. When he died in his early sixties, he did not have more than twenty (20) white hairs in his beard and on his head.”
Al-Bayhaqiyy (in his Dala’il) narrated from the route of Ibn ^Umar that he used to recite in the mosque of the Prophet the piece of poetry that Abu Talib (the Prophet’s uncle) used to recite in describing the Prophet’s complexion:
White face, by it
One asks Allah for the rain,
He was the resort and feeder of the orphans
And the protector of widows.
Everyone who heard him recite this poetry used to say, “This is how the Prophet was.”
Al-Bazzar narrated in Kashf Al-Astar from the route of ^A’ishah that she said, “I said about my father (Abu Bakr), ‘White face, by it one asks Allah for the rain, the supporter of the orphans and protector of widows.’ My father said, ‘This is the attribute of the Prophet. ’”
Surah al-Qalam, Ayah 4 best elucidates the manners of the Prophet:
{وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلى خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ}.
This ayah means: [Indeed you have great manners.]
Muslim narrated in his Sahih from the route of ^A’ishah that when she was asked about the manners of the Prophet, she said, “His manners were the glorious Qur’an.”
Al-Bukhariyy (in his Sahih) and others narrated from the route of ^Abdullah Ibn az-Zubayr that he said in explaining Ayah 199 of Surah al-‘A^raf: {خُذِ الْعَفْوَ} “Allah ordered His Prophet to overlook and forgive the shortcomings of others.”
Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim (in their Sahihs), al-Bayhaqiyy (in Ad-Dala’il), and others narrated from the route of ^A’ishah that she said, “Every time the Prophet had a choice between two matters, he chose the easier one as long as it did not involve a sin. If it was sinful, he would be the farthest of the people from it. The Prophet never revenged for his own sake. He would revenge only when the religious boundaries were crossed.” Al-Qattan added, “He would revenge for the sake of Allah.”
Abu Dawud at-Tayalisiyy (in his Musnad) and al-Bayhaqiyy (in his Dala’il) narrated from the route of ^A’ishah that when asked about the manners of the Prophet, she replied, “He was neither abhorrent nor outrageous and he did not hawk in the marketplace. He did not reciprocate an ill-doing with an ill-doing; rather, he would forgive and overlook.
Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim (in their Sahihs) and al-Bayhaqiyy (in his Dala’il) narrated from the route of Abu Sa^id al-Khudriyy that he said, “The Messenger of Allah was more shy than a virgin in her quarters and if he hated something we could see it in his face.”
Al-Bukhariyy and Muslim (in their Sahihs) and at-Tirmidhiyy and Ibn Majah (in their Sunans) narrated from the route of al-Mughirah Ibn Shu^bah that he said, “The Prophet prayed night prayers until his feet swelled. Ought I to not be a thankful slave’?”
Also among his praiseworthy characteristics is that the Prophet was extremely courageous. He was strict in carrying out the matters ordered by Allah. Ahmad (in his Musnad) narrated from the route of ^Aliyy Ibn Abu Talib that he said, “On the day of the Battle of Badr we shielded ourselves from the blasphemers behind the Prophet. He was the most severe of the people on the blasphemers.”
Among Prophet Muhammad’s honorable merits is that he was extremely generous, and stories of his generosity are numerous. Muslim (in his Sahih) and Ahmad (in his Musnad) narrated from the route of Anas that he said, “The Prophet never denied the request of the one who just embraced Islam. Once a man who had just embraced Islam came to the Prophet and asked that he is given something. The Prophet gave him a flock of sheep filling the area between two mountains. This man rushed to his people and told them, ‘Embrace Islam, for Muhammad gives like what the one who does not fear poverty gives. ’”
The Prophet was well-known for being humble, detached from this world, and one who chooses the Hereafter over this world. Al-Bayhaqiyy (in Ad-Dala’il) and at-Tirmidhiyy and Ibn Majah (in their Sunans) narrated from the route of ^Abdullah that he said, “The Prophet was lying on a bamboo carpet which left a mark on his skin. I started rubbing it off, saying, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I favor you over my own mother and father. Will you not permit that we spread something underneath you to protect you from this carpet?’ The Prophet said, ‘What business do I have with this world? I am like a rider who stopped under a tree for some shade and then he went on and left it behind. ’”
The Prophet was attributed with all the good attributes. He was truthful, trustworthy, kind to his relatives, chaste, generous, and brave. He was obedient to Allah all the time, in every circumstance and situation, and with every breath. He was profoundly articulate and advised others perfectly. He was full of mercy and sympathy for others. He was charitable and full of pity for others. He was the caretaker of the poor, the needy, the orphans, the widows, and the weak. He was humble. He loved the needy and attended their funerals and visited the sick among them. He was all this and he was a beautiful person with an honorable lineage.
Allah said in Surah al-An^am, Ayah 124:
{اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهُ}
This means: [Allah knows best who to entrust for conveying His message.]