The Moral Character of Prophet Muhammad

• The Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, had the most remarkable, magnanimous manners and sublime traits. He was the most generous and righteous of all people. His Lord The Almighty testified to this fact and this is more than sufficient as a reference. Allah The Almighty has honored andpraised the beauty of the morals of His Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, saying (what means):

“And indeed, you are of a great moral character.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Qalam: 4]

• His servant, Anas ibn Maalik, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “The Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, had the best moral character of all of the people.” [Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

• His wife, Safiyyah bint Huyayy, may Allah be pleased with her, said, “I have never seen one with better morals than the Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.” [Reported by Ibn Hajar and At-Tabaraani]

• His wife ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said when she was asked about the morals of the Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, “His character was the Qur’an.” [Reported by Ahmad and Muslim]

These precious words of ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, indicate that his character embodied everything that was contained in the Noble Qur’an and he adhered firmly to all that it enjoined and avoided all that it prohibited. Whatever the Qur’an regarded as good and praised was part of his character, and whatever it regarded as bad and prohibited, he would avoid.

In this connection, Ibn Katheer, may Allah have mercy upon him, said in his Tafseer (Qur’anic exegesis), “This means that he, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, would act according to the commands and prohibitions of the Qur’an. His nature and character were patterned according to the Qur’an. So, whatever the Qur’an commanded, he did, and whatever it forbade, he avoided; and this was along with what Allah endowed him with of the great qualities of bashfulness, generosity, bravery, forgiveness, forbearance, and every other beautiful quality.” [Tafseer Al-Qur’an Al-‘Atheem]

• In addition to this are the noble qualities and refined manners of the Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, which were mentioned in the books of the People of the Book before they were distorted. It was narrated on the authority of ‘Ataa’, may Allah have mercy upon him that he said, “I asked ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr about the attributes of the Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, that were stated in the Torah. He said, ‘Yes, by Allah, he is described in the Torah in some of the same terms as he is described in the Qur’an (what means): “Indeed, We have sent you as a witness and a bringer of good tidings and a warner” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Fath: 8] – and as a saviour to the unlettered; you are My slave and My messenger; your name is Al-Mutawakkil (one who places all his trust in Allah The Almighty); he is neither harsh nor aggressive, nor a noise maker in the market-places; he does not repay evil with evil; rather, he overlooks and forgives; Allah The Exalted will not take him (in death) until He has straightened a crooked nation through him so that they will say that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, and (until He) has opened blind eyes, deaf ears, and hard hearts.” [Reported by Al-Bukhari]

Allah The Almighty, the Most Truthful, Says (what means) describing him: “And indeed, you are of a great moral character.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Qalam: 4]

Let us, therefore, delve into the loftiest values of the attributes of the Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, so that we can benefit and learn from them.