CHAPTER 1: EMULATING THE PROPHET – PART 2
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was the most perfect of people:
With regard to eating and drinking: He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, never rejected any type of food that was present, and never asked for any particular kinds of food that were not available.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, never rejected good food, and he never looked for faults in the food presented to him. If he liked the food he ate from it, otherwise he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would leave it.(Reported by Al-Bukhaari (3563) and Muslim (2064).) Months would pass and fire would not be seen lit in his house (i.e. no food was cooked).(Reported by Al-Bukhaari (2567) and Muslim (2972).) He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, ate very little, and if food was not available he would have patience. In fact, he used to tie a rock to his stomach to assuage hunger pangs.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Bismillah” before he began eating (which means, in the name of Allah), and would say afterwards: “O Allah! You have given us food, and drink. You have sufficed and provided. You have guided and gave life. So may praise be unto You for what you have given.” (Reported by Ahmad (16159).)
Whenever he ate at someone’s house, he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would pray for them before departing. (Reported by Muslim (2042) on the authority of ‘Abdullaah ibn Busr.) He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was not too proud to eat with those who were younger, older, free, slaves, Bedouins or residents of Madeenah. (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (147/1).)
As for sleeping and waking up: He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, slept on his right side, while mentioning Allah and without being full of food or drink.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would place his hand under his head and say: “O Allah! Protect me from Your torment on the day You resurrect Your servants.”(Reported by At-Tirmidhi (3398) on the authority of Huthayfah ibn Al-Yamaan.)
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, woke up upon hearing the caller for prayer. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would praise Allah, glorify Him, and supplicate to Him. Then he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to brush his teeth with a Siwaak (tooth stick used to clean the teeth), perform ablution and pray.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, constantly communicated with his Lord, praising Him and demonstrating fear and hope.
Sometimes he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would sleep on a mattress, and sometimes on the floor, on mats made from straw or on his bed. (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (246/4) and (155/1).)
His speech, laughter and tears: He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not speak very much. He used to speak slowly and clearly, not too fast for his speech to be memorised, and not too slow that there would be periods of silence. His guidance was the most perfect of guidance.
Often, he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, repeated his words three times so people would understand it and when he greeted others he would do so three times (Reported by Al-Bukhaari (94) on the authority of Anas.). He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would be silent for long periods of time, speaking of nothing unnecessarily. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to say a lot in a few words.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not speak on matters that did not pertain to him. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, only spoke of things that generated reward and whenever he disliked something his facial expression would show it.
Most of his laughter was in the form of smiling. The most that would appear from his smile were his front molars. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would laugh at things that were funny or things that were considered amazing. (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (1/182).)
As for his crying: It was similar to his laughter. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not breathe hard while crying. His eyes would tear up and there would be some sounds in his chest.
Sometimes he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would cry because someone had died, sometimes out of fear for his nation, sometimes out of fear from Allah, and sometimes when listening to the Quran. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, cried out of love as well as out of glorification to Allah.
When his son Ibraaheem died, the Prophet of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, cried out of mercy. And he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, cried when seeing one of his daughters on her deathbed. (Reported by Ahmad (21272) on the authority of Umamah (or Umayyah).)
And he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, cried while listening to ‘Abdullaah ibn Mas’ood (a companion) reciting Chapter An-Nisa’ of the Quran. (Reported by Al-Bukhaari (4582) and Muslim (800) on the authority of Ibn Mas’ood.)
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, also cried when ‘Uthmaan ibn Math’oon (a companion) passed away, and while praying the “eclipse prayer”.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, cried while sitting near the grave of one of his daughters and he used to cry while praying the night prayer. (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (1/183).)
His speeches: When he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, gave his sermons, his eyes would become red, his voice would become loud, and he would become angry as if he were warning an army. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, started all of his sermons with praising Allah.
The topics of his sermons revolved around praising Allah and glorifying His attributes. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, discussed the teachings of Islam, mentioning Heaven and Hell, and things that bring about Allah’s pleasure and wrath.
Ibn Al-Qayyim said, “He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to discuss matters relevant to the listeners. Sometimes he would lengthen his sermons, and other times he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would shorten them, according to the people’s needs.” (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (1/191).)
As for his dealings with people: He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was the best in dealing with people. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would buy, sell and enter into business partnerships. Once, when a previous partner in business came to visit him, he [the man] asked the Prophet of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: “Did you recognize me?” The Prophet of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, responded: “Weren’t you my partner? You were a good partner. Neither did you conceal nor did you use to argue excessively.” (Reported by Abu Dawood (4836) and Ibn Maajah (2287).)
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, also gave gifts and accepted them. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, borrowed money and property and purchased goods with deferred forms of payment.
Whenever he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, borrowed money he would pay back more than he borrowed and when someone would pay him back a loan that he had borrowed from him, he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would pray for him saying: “May Allah bless your family and wealth. The reward for giving someone a loan is praise and to pay him back.”(Reported by An-Nasa’i (4683) and Ibn Maajah (4242).)
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, dedicated a piece of land (Waqf; endowment) that he owned as a source of charity for the poor.
The Prophet of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, interceded for others (in worldly affairs), and asked others to intercede for him. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not get angry when Bareerah (a freed slave) rejected his request for her to return to her husband. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was indeed the best of examples.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would joke with others but he always spoke the truth.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, sometimes would race others and even wrestle with them.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, served his family members, carried materials for building the Masjid (mosque) and he used to host his guests, and sometimes would be a guest at the houses of others.
Ibn Al-Qayyim said: “He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, visited ill people, attended funerals, answered invitations, and looked after the needs of widows and poor people. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, enjoyed poetry and rewarded poets in return.” (Zaad Al-Ma’ad (165/1).)
As for Sunan Al-Fitrah (actions related to the natural disposition of man)
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would start with his right side while wearing his shoes, combing his hair, performing ablution and giving and taking. He used his right hand for eating, drinking and ablution, and his left hand was for answering the call of nature and removing harmful objects.
As for cutting his hair, he used to either shave it all off or let it all grow. He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not shave parts of it and leave other parts unshaven.
The Prophet of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to like using the Siwaak (tooth stick used to clean the teeth) during all times; after waking up from sleep, during Wudu’ (ablution), before prayer and when entering his house.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, applied perfume abundantly and never refused perfume when offered to him.
He, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, liked combing his hair. Sometimes he would comb his own hair, and sometimes he, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would let (his wife) ‘Aa’ishah comb his hair for him.
Conclusion:
The Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, taught us sound morals and behaviour by personal example, in the tradition of the Messengers and Prophets who preceded him.
We learn from his example to place our priorities correctly. The most important thing is to lead a righteous life, obeying Allah and seeking His pleasure and to do our best in every endeavour. Life is not about how much money, power or fame we amass, but how sincere and devoted we are to Allah and how much effort we spend in order to help others, improve their lives and guide them to Allah.
Allah Himself described Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, as the best role model for us to follow. Allah exalts his mention and His angels send praises upon him, and He commands us to do the same saying (what means): «Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet: O you who believe! Call for Divine blessings on him and salute him with a becoming salutation.» [Quran, 33:56]
The life experiences of Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and the Prophets and Messengers who preceded him are full of lessons on dealing with the many trials we face on a daily basis. People are still affected by the same weaknesses and problems that they were centuries ago. If we stick to the example of Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and follow his guidance in all matters, we will have the best chances for success in this life and, more importantly, in the life to
come in the Hereafter.
By Muhammad Saalih Al-Munajjid
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