Al-Adab Al-Mufrad: Chapter 14

Abu Hurayra that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace, said, "By the One in whose hand my soul is, you will not enter the
Garden until you submit. You will not submit until you love one another.
Extend the greeting to one another and you will love one another. Beware
of hatred, for it is the razor. I do not tell you that it shaves the hair,
but it shaves away the deen."

'Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As reported that the Prophet, may Allah
bless him and grant him peace, said, "The souls of two believers should
meet in the course of a day even if they do not actually see each other."

'Umayr ibn Ishaq said, "We used to say that the first thing to
be removed from people would be friendship."

Anas ibn Malik said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, came upon a group of women which included Umm Sulayman.
He said, 'Anjasha!* Be gentle when you drive the glass vessels!"

Abu Hurayra reported that the people said, "Messenger of Allah,
you joke with us!" He replied, "But I only speak the truth."

Bakr ibn 'Abdullah reported that the Companions of the Prophet,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to throw melons at one another.
He said, "If these were real, they would be men."

Ibn Abi Mulayka said, "'A'isha was joking with the Messenger of
Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Her slavegirl said, 'Messenger
of Allah, some of the women who make jokers in this quarter are from Kinana!'
The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'Rather some
of our jokesters in this quarter.'"

Anas ibn Malik said, "A man came to the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, to ask him for a mount. He said, 'I will give
you a she-camel's foal to ride.' He exclaimed, 'Messenger of Allah, what
can I do with a she-camel's foal?' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, said, 'Are camels born from anything other than
she-camels?'"

Anas ibn Malik said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, used to mix with us to the extent of asking a younger brother
of mine, 'Abu 'Umayr! What has happened to the little sparrow?'"

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, took al-Hasan or al-Husayn by the hand and then
put his feet on top of his own feet and said, "Climb up."

'Abdullah ibn 'Amr said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, was neither coarse nor loud. He used to say, "The best
of you is the one who has the best character."

'Amr ibn Shu'ayb reported from his grandfather that the Prophet,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Shall I tell you about
who among you I love the most and the one who will be seated closest to
me on the Day of Rising?" The people were silent, so he repeated that two
or three times. Then the people said, "Yes, Messenger of Allah." He said,
"The one among you with the best character."

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, said, "I was sent to perfect good character."

'A'isha said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, was never given a choice between two things but that he
chose the easier of the two as long as it was not a wrong action. If it
was a wrong action. then he was the last person to do it. The Messenger
of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, never took revenge on
his own behalf. But when the respect of Allah Almighty was violated, he
would take revenge on behalf of Allah Almighty."

'Abdullah said, "Allah Almighty shared out your character between
you as He divided your provision between you. Allah Almighty bestows wealth
on those He loves and those He does not love. He only gives faith to those
He loves. Whoever is stingy about spending his wealth and fears to fight
the enemy and is in terror of enduring the night should repeat frequently.
'There is no god but Allah. Glory be to Allah. Praise be to Allah, and
Allah is greater."

Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, said, "Wealth does not mean having a lot of property.
Wealth means having self-contentment."

Anas said, "I served the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, for twenty years. He never said 'uff' to me and he never said
about anything I had not done, 'Why didn't you do it?' or about something
I had done. 'Why did you do that?'"

Anas ibn Malik said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, was merciful. No one came to him but that he promised himself
something and carried out that promise if he had anything to give. The
iqama for the prayer had been given when a bedouin came and took hold of
his garment and stated, 'I am still not satisfied.' The Bedouin alarmed
the Prophet's wives. The Prophet went with him until the man had received
what he wanted. Then he returned and prayed."

Jabir said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,
was never asked for anything to which he said, 'No.'"

'Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr said, "I have never seen two women more
generous than 'A'isha and Asma'. Their generosity was different. 'A'isha
used to gather things and after they had been collected together, she would
share them out. Asma' would not keep anything for the next day."

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, said, "The dust of the path of Allah and the smoke
of Hellfire are never joined together in the heart of a slave. Belief and
avarice are never joined together in the heart of a slave."

miserliness and ill-temper."

"We used to sit with 'Abdullah and they mentioned a man together with aspects of his character. 'Abdullah said,
'What would you think if you cut off his head? Would you be able to put
it back on again?' 'No,' they replied. He said, 'And his hand?' 'No,' they
said. 'And his foot?' they said. 'No,' he said. He said, 'You cannot change
his character until you change his physical form. The drop remains in the
womb for forty nights and then the blood congeals and then it becomes a
blood clot and then a lump of flesh and then Allah sends an angel and
he records his provision, his character, and whether or not he will be
happy or miserable (in the Next World).'"

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, said, "A man who is known for his good character
has the same degree as someone who stands at night in prayer."

Abu Hurayra said, "I heard Abu'l-Qasim say, 'The best of you in
Islam is the best of you in character when they possess understanding (of
the deen)."

Thabit ibn 'Ubayd said, "I have not seen anyone more serious when
he sits with the people nor more jocular in his house than Zayd ibn Thabit."

Ibn 'Abbas said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace, was asked, 'Which religion does Allah Almighty love the most?' He
replied, 'The simple Hanifiyya one.'"

good character, restraint in food,
truthful words, and upholding a trust."

the genitals and the mouth. Do you know what it is that
makes most people enter the Garden? Taqwa of Allah and good character."

Umm ad-Darda' said, "Abu'd-Darda' stood up in the night to pray.
He was weeping and said, 'O Allah! You made my physical form good, so make
my character good!' until morning. I said, 'Abu'd-Darda', your only supplication
for the entire night was for good character!' He replied, 'Umm ad-Darda',
the Muslim makes his character good with the result that his good character
takes him into the Garden. He makes his character bad with the result that
his bad character takes him into the Fire. The Muslim is forgiven while
he is asleep.' I asked, 'Abu'd-Darda', how can be forgiven while he is
asleep?' He said, 'His brother arises in the night and performs the night
prayers and makes supplication to Allah Almighty and is answered. He makes
supplication for Muslim brother and his request is answered.'"

Usama ibn Sharik said, "I was with the Prophet, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, when some bedouins came. There were many people
on all sides. The people were silent and no one spoke except them. They
said, 'Messenger of Allah! We experience difficulty in such-and-such and
such-and-such' and it was in things which are not harmful to people. He
said, 'Servants of Allah! Allah has removed difficulty except in a case
where a man slanders someone unjustly - that is the one who is in difficulty
and destroyed.' They said, 'Messenger of Allah, can we make use of medical
treatment?' 'Yes, servants of Allah,' he replied, 'you can make use of
medical treatment. Allah Almighty did not create an illness but that He
made a cure for it - except for one disease.' They asked, 'And what
is that, Messenger of Allah?' 'Old age,' he replied. They said, 'Messenger
of Allah, what is the best thing that a man can be given?' 'Good character,'
he replied.'"

Ibn 'Abbas said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, was the most generous of people in giving charity. He
was even more generous in Ramadan when Jibril, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, used to meet him. Every night of Ramadan Jibril used to
come to him and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace, would read the Qur'an to him. When Jibril came to him, the Messenger
of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was more generous in
giving charity than the blowing wind."

Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari reported that the Messenger of Allah, may
Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Before your time a man was
called to account and it was found that the only good thing he had done
was that he was easy in his business dealings with people. He used to order
his slaves to go easy with people who were in difficulty. Allah Almighty
said, 'We are more entitled to do that than he is, so forgive him.'"

the mouth and the genitals."

It is reported Nawwas ibn Sam'an asked the Messenger of Allah,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace, about dutifulness and wrong action.
He said, "Dutifulness is good character and wrong action is that which
works on yourself and which you dislike for other people to become aware
of."

Jabir reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, said, "Who is your master, Banu Salama?" Jabir said,
"We replied, 'Judd ibn Qays, although we think that he is a miser.' He
said, 'What illness is worse than miserliness? Your master is 'Amr ibn
al-Jamuh.'"

Warrad, the scribe of al-Mughira ibn Shu'ba, said, "Mu'awiya wrote
to al-Mughira ibn Shu'ba, saying, 'Write down for me something which you
heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.'
Al-Mughira wrote to him, ' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, used to forbid gossip, wasting money, asking too many
questions, refusing to give, disobedience to parents and burying daughters
alive."

Jabir said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,
was never asked for anything to which he said, 'No,'"

'Amr ibn al-'As said, "The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, sent for me. He commanded me to put on my clothes and arms and
come to him. I did that and came to him while he was doing wudu'. He looked
at me and then lowered his eyes. then he said, ''Amr, I want to put you
in charge of an army and Allah will give you booty. I will give you a correct
portion of the spoils.' I said, 'I did not become Muslim out of the desire
for property. I became Muslim out of the desire for Islam and so that I
would be with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace.' He said, ''Amr! Sound property is very excellent for a sound man!'"

Mihsan al-Ansari reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, said, "When someone is secure in his property, healthy
in his body and has his food for the day, it is as if he owned the entire
world."

Mu'adh ibn 'Abdullah ibn Khubayb al-Juhani related from his father
that his uncle said that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and
grant him peace, came out to them with the traces of ghusl on him. He was
cheerful. We thought that he was with his wives. We said, 'Messenger of
Allah, we see that you are cheerful.' He said, 'Yes, and praise be to Allah!'
Then wealth was mentioned that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless
him and grant him peace, said, 'There is no harm in wealth for someone
who has taqwa, but health for the person who has taqwa is even better than
wealth. Cheerfulness is a blessing.'"

An-Nawwas ibn Sam'an al-Ansari reported that he asked the Messenger
of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, about dutifulness and
wrong action. He said, "Dutifulness is good character and wrong action
is what works on yourself and which you dislike for other people to become
aware of."

Anas reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace, was the best of people, the most generous of people and most courageous
of people. One night the people of Madina were alarmed by a noise and the
people went towards its source. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, met them, having already reached the source of the noise before
them and he was saying, "Do not be alarmed. Do not be alarmed." He was
riding a horse belonging to Abu Talha without a saddle and a sword was
hung around his neck. He said, "I found it (the horse) like a great river"
or it was a great river (meaning its speed).

Jabir reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him
and grant him peace, said, "Every act of kindness is sadaqa. Part of kindness
is that you offer your brother a cheerful face and you pour some of your
bucket into his water vessel."

Abu Dharr reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, was asked, "Which is the best action?" He replied, "Belief in
Allah and jihad in His Way." He was asked, "Which slaves are best?" He
replied, "The highest in price and the most precious to their people."
He said, "What do you think I should do if I am unable to fight?" He said,
"Help someone in trouble or work for someone who does not work." He said,
"What do you think that I should do if I am too weak (to act accordingly)?"
He said, "Spare people your evil. That is a sadaqa which you bestow on
yourself."

Sa'id ibn Abi Burda related from his grandfather that the Prophet,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Every Muslim owes sadaqa."
He said, "What do you think he should do if he cannot find anything to
give?" He replied, "He should find work and thus benefit himself and be
able to give sadaqa." He said, "What do you think he should do if he cannot
or does not do that?" He said, "He should help someone with a great need."
He said, "What do you think he should do if he cannot or does not do that?"
He replied, "He should command the good." He asked, "What do you think
he should do if he cannot or does not do that?" He replied, "He should
refrain from evil. That is sadaqa for him."

'Abdullah ibn 'Amr reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah
bless him and grant him peace, used to supplicate, "Oh Allah, I ask You
for health, restraint, trustworthiness, good character and contentment
with the decree."

"It is
the believers who are successful: those who are humble in their prayer;
those who turn away from worthless talk; those who actively pay zakat;
those who guard their private parts." (23:1-5)' She said, 'That was the
character of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him
peace.'"