His Modesty
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was not a normal man among His companions; unlike other people, He is the one who received the divine revelation and recites it to them. He was the leader among his people; if He commanded or forbade something, He must be obeyed. Moreover, He was born to a family of Quraysh, a clan of great position, honor, and influence. In fact, He was given the most degree of honorability, importance, and attention by all His companions. When He spoke. they all listened carefully to Him, and when He enjoined something, they all competed to carry out His command.
If a normal man was in such place of Muhammad (peace be upon him), he would feel a glow of pride and place himself on a higher pedestal. Expectedly, he would look down at the people around him for he has knowledge of what they do not have and owns what they do not. This would rather lead him to lead his life in a way commensurate with such a high position.
On the contrary, Muhammad (peace be upon him) was so modest and never felt such pride or haughtiness; He never sought to have special treatment or a particular position; He liked to lead a normal life among His people.
We can clearly see this modesty in Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) personal life, His house, His dressing, His furniture and His foods. He never tried to have luxurious furniture or king-like beds, like those who strive to grant themselves a special position or importance over other people.
His servant, Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), depicts this good manner of the Prophet; he reported that his grandmother, Mulaika, invited the Messenger of Allah to a dinner which she had prepared. He (the Noble Prophet) ate out of that and then said, ‘Stand up so that I should observe prayer (in order to bless) you.”
Anas bin Malik said, “I stood up on a mat (belonging to us) which had turned dark on account of its long use. I sprinkled water over it (in order to soften it), and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stood upon it. And I, and an orphan, formed a row behind Him (the Noble Prophet) and the old woman was behind us, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) led us in two rak’as of prayer and then went back.” (Al-Bukhari: 380 , Muslim: 658)
Umar bin El Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) reported a situation that affected him until he cried; he described when he entered Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) house and noticed the state of the furniture in it, “There was one simple bed, with one pillow filled with nut fiber. On one side of the room was some barley and in one corner near his feet was an animal skin. There were some water-bag skins hanging beside his bed. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said that on seeing this tears came into his eyes.” (Al-Bukhari: 4913 , Muslim: 1479)
When He visited any of his companions, He would accept everything in absolute modesty, no matter how little that thing was. Knowing this good character of the Prophet (peace be upon NO, the companions acted simply with Him and did not make things difficult.
Abdullah ibn Amr (may Allah be pleased with them) narrated, The Messenger of Allah was informed about my fasting and He came to me, and I placed a leather cushion filled with the fiber of date-palms for Him.
He sat down upon the ground and there was that cushion between me and Him, and He said to me, ‘Does three days of fasting in a month not suffice you?’
I said,’Messenger of Allah, (I am capable of observing more fasts):
He said,'(Would) five (not suffice for you)?’
I said,’Messenger of Allah, (I am capable of observing more fasts);
He said, ‘(Would) seven (fasts) not suffice you?’
I said, ‘Messenger of Allah, (I am capable of observing more fasts);
He (the Prophet) then said, ‘(Would) nine (fasts not suffice you)?’
I said, ‘Messenger of Allah, (I am capable of observing more fasts);
He said, ‘(Would) eleven (fasts not suffice you)?’
I said, ‘Messenger of Allah, (I am capable of observing more fasts than these):
Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, ‘There is no fasting (better than) the fasting of Dawood, which comprises half of the age, fasting a day and not fasting a day:” (Al-Bukhari: 1980 , Muslim: 1159)
Having known that this was the condition of his furniture, Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) clothing style was not far different.
What was the Clothing Style of The Prophet Muhammad?
Abu Burdah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported, “Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) showed us a patched sheet, and a thick coarse lungi, then said, “When the Messenger of Allah passed away, He was wearing these clothes.” (Al-Bukhari: 5818 , Muslim: 2080)
The Prophet ,,peace be upon ht.) was also simple in the way He rode animals. In fact, Arabs paid great attention to riding animals; people of higher class had their own way of riding, distinguished from ordinary people. However, Muhammad was not like that any way, He rather used to ride the same way and style of the public and the simple people.
Usama bin Zaid narrated, The Prophet rode a donkey having a saddle with a Fadakiyya velvet covering. He mounted me behind Him.” (Al-Bukhari: 5964 , Muslim: 1798)
Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) eating and drinking were so simple and modest too. He was far from all aspects of pride or haughtiness. He tells us about Himself, saying, “I eat like a slave eats and I sit like a slave sits.” (Reported by Abu Ya’la in his collection: 4920)
Biographies on the Prophet (peace be upon him) report a remarkable situation showing the absolute sense of Muhammad’s modesty to the extent that the surrounding people could not recognize Him. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported, “… they met the Messenger of Allah on the lava field. The Prophet turned with them to the right and alighted in the land of Bani Amr ibn ‘Awf. This was on Monday in the month of Rabee’ Al-Awwal. Abu Bakr stood up, receiving the people while the Messenger of Allah sat down and kept silent. Some of the Ansar who came and had not seen the Messenger of Allah before, began greeting Abu Bakr, but when the sunshine fell on the Messenger of Allah and Abu Bakr came forward and shaded Him with his cloak, only then did the people come to know the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)” (Al-Bukhari: 3960)
His Way of Dealing with People
Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) character of modesty was not only limited to the personal aspects of His life but rather something easily noticeable in His dealing with people around Him. He was always there by their side in good and bad times, consoling those in distress and making things easy and simple in their company. One of His close companions, and of the four caliphs, talked about this wonderful character of the Prophet; Uthman bin ‘Afaan (may Allah be pleased with him) reported, “By Allah! We have accompanied the
Messenger of Allah in both travel and residence and He used to visit the sick among us, to attend our funerals, to fight with us, and to console those in stress. However, there some people who think they know the Prophet more than me, though they might have not seen Him.” (Abu Dawud: 2594 , At-Tirmidhi: 1702)
In fact, Uthman criticizes those who drew a picture of the Prophet (peace be upon him) out of their imagination though they had not seen Him. He rather gives an account of real experiences that he had with the Prophet (peace be upon him) in times of travel and residence, and in different occasions, good and bad, of life.
Indeed, Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) modesty is characterized by taking care of the weak people in society, knowing that they are often marginalized, not cared for, nor respected. However, Muhammad paid them special attention and much concern; Abu Darda’ (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah’s Messenger said, “Take care of the weak, because the weak are the reason behind your being granted victory and wealth” (Al-Nasai:1414)
However, the modesty of Muhammad (peace be upon him) in His dealing with the weak people was not only in terms of being simple and easy with them, but was evident in His deep concern about fulfilling their needs and solving their problems. Narrated Abdullah ibn Abu ‘Awfa, “Allah’s Messenger used to make much remembrance of Allah, reduce unnecessary talks, and have a long prayer and a short Khutba (Friday’s speech). He never refused to go with a needy person or with a widow till they get their needs fulfilled”(Al-Bukhari: 6247)
One aspect of Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) modesty is His simple way of dealing with children and the young boys. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that he passed by some children and greeted them. Then lie said, “Messenger of Allah used to do the same.” (Muslim: 2168)
Muhammad’s Relationships with His Family and His Relatives
As it is clear from the way Muhammad (peace be upon him) dealt with His family and His relatives that He lived with his family in modesty and humility. His wife Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) depicted His way of living at home, saying, “He was in his profession and if the prayer time comes he go out to perform prayers.” (Al-Bukhari: 676)
In another narration, Aisha (may Allah be pleased be with her) described this aspect of Muhammad’s life in more detail, she reported, “He was a human being like any other human being. He would search his garment for fleas, milk his goat, and serve himself” (Ahmed: 25662)
