Description of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and his possessions

22-4-2004 | IslamWeb

Question:

Please describe our beloved Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and give details of what he owned in this life.

Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Allaah The Almighty allotted to our beloved Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, the best and the most complete qualities, not only in his outer behavior but also in his inner self.  He combined the sublime moral and physical qualities within him.

So, he was a well-disciplined, modest, patient, forgiving, magnanimous, and courageous man.  He was also good-looking, with a pleasant voice, and he was very eloquent when speaking.  When his wife ‘Aa’ishah  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  her was asked about his behavior, she replied, "It was the Quran." This means that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, applied in his life all the sublime ethics enjoined by the Quran and that he avoided and remained aloof of any behavior that the Quran forbids or criticizes. Allaah The Almighty Says about the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, (what means): {And verily, you (O Muhammad ) are on an exalted standard of character.}[Quran, 68:4]

As for his physical appearance, the following Hadeeth (narration) describes him. Al-Bukhari  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him reported from Rabee’ah ibn Abi Abdur-Rahmaan,

“I heard Anas ibn Maalik describing the Prophet, saying, ‘He was of medium height amongst the people, neither tall nor short; he had a rosy color, neither absolutely white nor deep brown; his hair was neither completely curly nor quite lank. Divine Inspiration was revealed to him when he was forty-years old. He stayed ten years in Makkah, receiving the Divine Inspiration, and stayed in Medina for ten more years. When he expired, he had scarcely twenty white hairs in his head and beard.’" Rabee'ah said, “I saw some of his hair and it was red. When I asked about that, I was told that it turned red because of scent.” 

Anas  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him also reported, “I have never touched silk or Deebaaj (thick silk) softer than the palm of the Prophet nor have I smelt a perfume nicer than the sweat of the Prophet.”

Ka'b  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him said, "When I greeted the Messenger of Allaah, his face was glittering with happiness – for whenever the Messenger of Allaah was happy, his face used to glitter, as if it was a piece of the moon, and we used to recognize it (i.e. his happiness) from his face." [Al-Bukhari]

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As for his belongings, he was like everyone else.  He owned some weapons, horses, camels and sheep.  He also had some mules and donkeys. Ibn Al-Qayyim  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him said,

The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to have nine swords, including the sword he inherited from his father, seven pieces of armor including the one he mortgaged for some barley before his death. He used to have seven horses and four mules including the one gifted to him by Al-Muqawqis, king of the Copts.  He used to have a riding she-camel called Al-Qaswaa. It is said that he rode Al-Qaswaa while migrating from Makkah to Madeenah.  He also had a she-camel called Al-A’adba.  This was the one that used to win all camel races.  Once a Bedouin’s she-camel beat it in the race. This saddened the Companions of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.  But the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, modestly said to them: “Allaah prescribes that everything in this world, He raises up, He will humiliate it (later on).” [Al-Bukhari]

The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, also had forty-five she-camels and one hundred and fifty sheep.  Besides he also owned land in Khaybar from which he used to spend on his family.  When he died it was given as Sadaqah (alms) because the belongings of the prophets should not be inherited by their heirs.

Allaah Knows best.

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