Virtues and Manners

Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) commanded licking the fingers and the dish (after eating), and he said: "You do not know in which portion the blessing lies." In another narration, he said: "When a morsel falls from any of you, he should pick it up and remove any dirt that is on it then eat it and not leave it to the devil. He should not wipe his hand with the napkin until he has licked his fingers, for he does not know in which portion of his food the blessing lies." In a third narration, he said: "Verily, the devil is present with you in all of your affairs. He is present when your meal is brought to you. So, if a morsel fell from any of you, then he should remove any dirt that is on it then eat it and not leave it to the devil.”

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) came to visit Sa‘d ibn ‘Ubādah (may Allah be pleased with him) so he brought some bread and oil. The Prophet ate then said: "May the fasting people break their fast in your house, and may the righteous eat your food, and may the angels ask forgiveness and mercy for you."

‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Ās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Verily, Allah does not take away knowledge by snatching it from the people; rather, He takes away knowledge with the death of the scholars until, when He leaves no scholar behind, the people turn to the ignorant as their leaders. They are asked, so they give religious judgments without knowledge; thus they are led astray and lead others astray.”

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, said: I have prepared for My righteous slaves what no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard, and no human heart has ever imagined," Abu Hurayrah said: Recite, if you wish: {No soul knows what delights are kept hidden for them.} [Surat as-Sajdah: 17]

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "While three persons were walking, rain began to fall and they had to enter a cave in a mountain. A (big) rock rolled over (and blocked the mouth of the cave). They said to one another: 'Invoke Allah with the best deed you have performed.' One of them said: 'O Allah, my parents were old, and I used to go out for grazing (my camels), and on my return, I would milk (the camels) and take the milk to my parents to drink. After that, I would give it to my children, family, and wife. One day, I got delayed, and as I returned home, I found my parents asleep, and I disliked to awaken them. The children were crying near my feet (out of hunger), and they continued like that till dawn. O Allah, if You know that I did this for Your sake, remove this rock a bit so that we may see the sky.' So the rock was moved a bit. The second man said: 'O Allah, You know that I loved a cousin of mine with the deepest love that a man might have for a woman, and she told me that I would not get my desire fulfilled unless I paid her one hundred dinars. I struggled until I could gather the required amount, and when I sat in between her legs, she said: 'Fear Allah, and do not deflower me except lawfully.' Thereupon, I got up and left her. O Allah, If You know that I did this for Your sake, remove this rock a bit.' So two thirds of the rock was moved. Then the third man said: 'O Allah, You know that I once hired a worker for one Faraq (a measure equal to 16 pounds) of maize, and when I wanted to pay him, he refused to take his wages; so I cultivated it and bought cows and a shepherd from its yield; and after a period of time, that man came and said: 'O slave of Allah, give me my right.' I said to him: ‘Go to those cows and the shepherd and take them, for they yours.’ He said: ‘Are you mocking me?’ I said to him: ‘I am not mocking you; but they belong to you.’ O Allah, If You know that I did this for Your sake, remove the rock.' So the rock was removed."

Zayd ibn Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Those privies are attended by the devils, so if anyone of you goes to a privy, let him say: I seek refuge with Allah from the male and female devils."

Zayd, the Prophet's servant, reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: ''If anyone says 'I ask forgiveness from Allah, there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of existence, and I turn to Him in repentance,' his sins will be forgiven even if he has fled from the battlefield."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man came to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "I saw, in a dream tonight, a cloud from which butter and honey were dribbling; and I saw people collecting from these with their hands, some getting much and some little. And there was a rope extending from the earth to the sky, and I saw that you (the Prophet) held it and went up, and then another man held it and went up, and then another held it and went up. Thereafter, another man held it, but it was cut and then got connected again. Abu Bakr said: "O Messenger of Allah, I ransom you with my father, I ask you by Allah to let me interpret this dream." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said to him, 'Interpret it.' Abu Bakr said: "The cloud is Islam. The butter and honey dribbling from it are the Qur’an. Its sweetness dribbles, and people take much or little from it. The rope which extends from the sky to the earth is the truth which you (the Prophet) are upon. You follow it and Allah raises you high, and then another man follows it and rises up because of it, and another person follows it, and then another man follows it but [the rope] is cut, and then it is connected for him and he rises up with it. O Messenger of Allah, I ransom you with my father, am I right or wrong?' The Prophet replied: "You are right about some of it and wrong about some." Abu Bakr said: "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah, tell me about what I was wrong." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do not swear."

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: There was no person more beloved to them (the ‎Companions) than the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him). ‎Nevertheless, they would not stand up when they saw him, knowing his dislike for that.

Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) visited me during my illness, riding neither a mule nor a horse.

Abu ‘Abdullah al-Jadali reported: I asked ‘Ā’ishah, Mother of the Believers, (may Allah be pleased with her) about the morals of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and she said: He was neither obscene nor indecent, nor was he loud-voiced in the markets. He did not repay evil with evil; rather, he would pardon and forgive.

‘Ā’ishah reported that Jibrīl brought her image in a piece of green silk to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "This is your wife in the world and the Hereafter."

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I have never seen anyone more merciful to children than the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). (His son) Ibrahīm was sent to a wet nurse on the outskirts of Madīnah. So he used to go there, and we would accompany him, and he would enter the house, which was filled with smoke for Ibrahīm's foster father was a blacksmith, and he would take Ibrahīm and kiss him then return." ‘Amr said: "When Ibrahīm died, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Ibrahīm is my son, and he died as a suckling infant, and, verily, he has two wet nurses in Paradise completing his suckling period.'"

Jābir (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said on the day of the battle of Ahzāb: "Who will bring me information about the enemy?" Az-Zubayr said: "I will." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said again: "Who will bring me information about the enemy?" Once again Az-Zubayr said: "I will." Thereupon, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Every prophet had a disciple and my disciple is Az-Zubayr."

Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Az-Zubayr is the son of my paternal aunt and a disciple among my followers."

Hāni’, the freed slave of ‘Uthmān (may Allah be pleased with him), reported: Whenever ‘Uthmān stood by a grave, he would cry until he would wet his beard. It was said to him: You remember Paradise and Hellfire and you do not cry, and yet you cry because of this? So he said: Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Verily, the grave is the first stage of the stages of the Hereafter. If one is saved from it, what comes after it is easier, but if one is not saved from it, then what comes after it is harder."

Al-Barā' ibn ‘Āzib (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: We went out with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in a funeral procession of a man from the Ansār. We came to the grave and the niche had not yet been dug out. So the Messenger sat and we sat around him, as if we had birds upon our heads (very alert), and he had a stick in his hand with which he was striking the ground. He raised his head and said: "Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave," two or three times. In another narration, this is added: “He hears the footfalls of their sandals when they go away, and it is said to him: ‘O you! Who is your Lord, what is your religion, and who is your prophet?’” Hanād said: “He said: ‘Then, two angels come to him and make him sit up. They will say to him: ‘Who is your Lord?’ He will say: ‘My Lord is Allah.’ They will say: ‘What is your religion?’ He will say: ‘My religion is Islam.’ They will say: ‘Who is this man who was sent amongst you?’ He will say: ‘He is the Messenger of Allah.’ They will say: ‘How did you come to know that?’ He will say: ‘I read the Book of Allah, believed in it, and attested to it.’” In another narration, Jarīr adds: "This is the statement of Allah, the Almighty: {Allah keeps firm those who believe.} [Sūrat Ibrahīm: 27]” “Then a caller will call from Heaven: ‘Indeed, my slave has spoken the truth, so spread a place for him in Paradise, open a door to Paradise for him, and dress him in the clothes of Paradise. Some of its fragrance and scent will come to him. A space as far as his eyes can see will be opened for him in it." Then, regarding the disbeliever, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) talked about his death and said: “And his soul will be restored to his body, and two angels will come and make him sit up. They will say: ‘Who is your Lord?’ He will say: ‘Ah, ah, I do not know!’ They will say: ‘What is your religion?’ He will say: ‘Ah, ah, I do not know!’ They will say: ‘Who is this man who was sent amongst you?’ He will say: ‘Ah, ah, I do not know!’ Then, a caller will call from the heaven: ‘He has lied, so spread a place for him in Hellfire, open a door to Hellfire for him, and dress him in the clothes of Hellfire.’ So some of its heat and scorching air will reach him, and his grave will be so compressed for him that his ribs will be crushed together.” It is added in the narration by Jarīr: “Then a blind and mute angel will come to him, holding an iron sledge hammer, which, if a mountain was struck with it, it would turn it into dust. He will give him such a strike with it that it will be heard by whatever lies between the east and west, except mankind and the Jinn, and he will turn into dust. His spirit will then be restored to him."

Al-‘Abbās ibn ‘Abdul-Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I said: "O Messenger of Allah, teach me something that I may ask Allah Almighty for." He said: "Ask Allah for safety." After some days, I went to him and said: "O Messenger of Allah, teach me something that I may ask Allah for." He said to me: "O ‘Abbās, O uncle of the Messenger of Allah, ask Allah for safety in this life and the Hereafter."

Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When anyone of you eats food, let him not wipe his hand until he licks it or has it licked."

Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I inform you of the gravest of the major sins?" He repeated this three times. They said: "Yes, O Messenger of Allah." He said: "Associating partners with Allah and undutifulness to parents." He was reclining and then sat up and said: "And indeed, the false statement." He repeated it so many times that we wished he would stop.