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*Riyad al-Salihin* (The Meadows of the Righteous) from the Words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

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Chapter on Good Character.

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Allah the Exalted said:

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"And indeed, you are of a great moral character."

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And the Exalted said:

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"...and who restrain anger and pardon people,"

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"...and Allah loves the doers of good."

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On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was the best of people in character.

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Agreed upon.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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Allah favored His servant and Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

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by granting him the grace to embody noble character traits;

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He then praised him,

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highlighting the beautiful manners he was adorned with,

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and emphasized this by saying:

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"And indeed, you are of a great moral character."

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This was simply because he possessed the finest character among all people,

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for there is no virtuous trait

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except that he embodied it in its most complete, exemplary, and sublime manner.

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On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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I never touched brocade or silk

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that was softer than the palm of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

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nor did I ever smell a fragrance sweeter than the fragrance of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

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I served the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for ten years,

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and he never once said "Uff" to me,

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nor did he ever say regarding something I did, "Why did you do that?"

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nor regarding something I did not do,

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"Why did you not do such-and-such?"

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Agreed upon.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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The humility a Muslim should show to his fellow Muslim when shaking hands,

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such that one is cheerful-faced, smiling, and gentle in demeanor.

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Encouragement toward maintaining personal cleanliness and wearing pleasant fragrance,

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as this was the practice of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

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The exhortation to treat servants with gentleness

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and not to express annoyance at what they do.

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Anas's, may Allah be pleased with him, keenness to conform to what the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, desired;

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for he served the Messenger of Allah for ten years,

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and the Prophet never objected to him, owing to the perfection of his service,

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or its near perfection;

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for had Anas done anything requiring disciplinary rebuke,

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the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, would not have delayed it.

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On the authority of al-Sa'b ibn Jaththamah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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I presented the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, with a gift of

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an onager (wild ass),

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but he returned it to me.

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When he saw the expression on my face, he said:

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"We did not return it to you

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except because we are in the state of ihram."

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Agreed upon.

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*Hurum* means in the state of ihram for Hajj or 'Umrah.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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The prohibition for a person in ihram to eat game meat

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if it was hunted specifically for his sake;

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and it is to this scenario that the hadith of al-Sa'b ibn Jaththamah is applied.

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But if someone not in ihram hunted it for himself

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and gifted it to the person in ihram, it is permissible for the latter to eat it.

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The recommendation to accept gifts and partake of them.

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It is impermissible to accept unlawful gifts.

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The noble character of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

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in that he comforted the feelings of the gift-giver

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by explaining the reason and justification for his refusal.

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The hadith indicates the permissibility of judging by circumstantial indicators

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in the absence of explicit verbal statements, based on al-Sa'b's words:

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"When he saw the expression on my face."

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On the authority of al-Nawwas ibn Sam'an, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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I asked the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

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about righteousness and sin,

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and he replied:

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"Righteousness is good character,

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and sin is that which wavers in your heart

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and you would hate for people to find out about."

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Reported by Muslim.

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On the authority of 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was never

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obscene by nature (*fahish*), nor did he deliberately use obscenity (*mutafahhish*),

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and he used to say:

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"Indeed, among the best of you are those who are best in character."

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Agreed upon.

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*Fahish*:

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meaning one who speaks obscenities,

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which is exceeding the proper bounds in foul speech.

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*Mutafahhish*:

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meaning one who artificially adopts and exaggerates foul speech.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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A believing servant must stay away from foul speech and vile actions,

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must not pursue them,

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and must steer clear of their causes.

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, possessed the finest moral discipline,

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so nothing ever emanated from him except righteous deeds

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and wholesome speech.

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Good character is an arena of virtuous competition among the believers;

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whoever excels in it

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is among the best of believers and the most complete in faith.

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On the authority of Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him,

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that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

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"Nothing is heavier on the scale of the believer on the Day of Resurrection than good character,

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and indeed, Allah detests the obscene and foul-mouthed person."

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Reported by al-Tirmidhi.

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*Al-Badhi'* is the one who utters obscenities and vulgar words.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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Affirmation of the Scale that weighs good and bad deeds on the Day of Resurrection,

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and that it has two pans.

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Good character is among the greatest righteous deeds a servant will find in his record on the Day of Resurrection,

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and will see on the scale of his good deeds.

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The obscene, foul-mouthed person who indulges in bad speech is not loved by Allah.

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On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was asked about that which most frequently admits people into Paradise,

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and he said: "Taqwa (fear and consciousness of Allah) and good character."

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And he was asked about that which most frequently admits people into the Fire,

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and he replied: "The mouth and the private parts."

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Reported by al-Tirmidhi.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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Encouragement toward taqwa and good character.

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Warning against the harvest of the tongue,

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such as disbelief, backbiting, talebearing,

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false testimony, slandering chaste women, and the like,

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for these cast people headlong on their faces into the Hellfire on the Day of Resurrection.

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Warning against fornication and adultery,

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which is an abomination that leads to evil consequences in this world and the Hereafter.

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On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

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"The most complete of believers in faith

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are those who are best in character,

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and the best of you are those who are best to their women."

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Reported by al-Tirmidhi.

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On the authority of 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:

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I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say:

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"Indeed, by his good character, the believer surely attains the rank of the one who constantly fasts and stands in night prayer."

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Reported by Abu Dawud.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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The loftiest ranks belong to

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the one who fasts by day

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and stands in prayer through the night.

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Good character multiplies reward and recompense,

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to the point that a servant attains thereby the rank of the fasting person who never breaks his fast

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and the night-worshiper who never grows weary.

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On the authority of Abu Umamah al-Bahili, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:

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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

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"I guarantee a house in the outskirts of Paradise

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for whoever leaves off arguing, even if he is in the right;

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and a house in the middle of Paradise

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for whoever leaves off lying, even if he is joking;

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and a house in the highest part of Paradise

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for whoever refines his character."

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Reported by Abu Dawud.

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*Al-Za'im* means the guarantor.

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*Rabad al-Jannah* refers to its outskirts,

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just as the *rabad* of a city refers to its surrounding environs.

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*Al-Mira'* means disputing and contending in word or deed for a vain purpose.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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The permissibility of giving a guarantee to encourage good deeds,

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and whoever gives a guarantee is obligated to fulfill it,

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based on the principle of the obligation to honor promises and covenants.

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Encouragement to abandon argumentative disputation,

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because it leads to discord and division.

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The hadith contains proof for the legal principle of blocking the means to harm and warding off evils:

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if a perceived benefit will lead to a greater evil,

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that benefit is relinquished for that reason.

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Paradise has degrees,

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and the stations of people in Paradise correspond to their deeds.

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The prohibition of lying in all its forms and varieties,

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even in jest and amusement,

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except for what has been explicitly exempted.

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In this lies a refutation of those who claim there is a "white lie"

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meant as lying during jest and play.

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The highest levels of reward with Allah

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are for the one who perfects his character,

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because good character encompasses all virtues.

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On the authority of Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him,

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that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

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"Indeed, among the most beloved of you to me,

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and the nearest of you to me in gathering on the Day of Resurrection,

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are those of you who have the best character;

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and indeed, the most detested of you to me and the farthest from me on the Day of Resurrection

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are the chatterboxes (*thartharun*), the pompous babblers (*mutashaddiqun*), and the pretentious blowhards (*mutafayhiqun*)."

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They said, "O Messenger of Allah,

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we know the chatterboxes and the pompous babblers,

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but who are the pretentious blowhards?"

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He said: "The arrogant."

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Reported by al-Tirmidhi.

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*Al-Tharthar* is one who talks excessively and affectatiously.

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*Al-Mutashaddiq*

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is one who talks down to people,

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opening his mouth wide with affected eloquence to aggrandize his speech.

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*Al-Mutafayhiq*

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is derived from *al-fahaq*,

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which means fullness;

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it refers to one who fills his mouth with speech,

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expands excessively in it,

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and uses obscure words out of arrogance, self-importance,

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and a display of superiority over others.

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Key lessons of the hadith:

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Good character is among the means to gain the love of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

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and proximity to him on the Day of Resurrection.

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The highest ranks of Paradise are for whoever perfects his character,

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because it encompasses all traits of righteousness.

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warning against pretentiousness in speech through making grandiose claims,

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boasting, self-praise,

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and speaking pompously merely to display eloquence and rhetoric,

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for these traits are the characteristics of the arrogant and the ostentatious.

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At-Tirmidhi reported

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from 'Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, may Allah have mercy on him, regarding the explanation of good character,

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that he said:

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"It is having a cheerful countenance,

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extending kindness,

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and refraining from harm."

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Among the benefits of this narration

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is that 'Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, may Allah have mercy on him, pointed out

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the signs and fruits of good character;

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for good character

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requires that a Muslim meet his brother with a joyful and smiling face,

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because he earns a reward for doing so.

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Whoever possesses this quality

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extends his hand in goodness,

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prefers others over himself with what he has,

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and does not withhold his aid and generosity.

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*Riyad as-Salihin* (The Meadows of the Righteous).