The Prophet Muhammad’s (s) sayings (Hadith) are in thousands. Here I quote a selected few.
On Human Equality
“All mankind is from Adam and Eve; an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab or a non-Arab over an Arab; similarly, a white person has no superiority over a black person or a black person over a white person, except by piety and good action.” 1
On Forgiveness
“When Allah created His creation, He wrote in a Book which is with Him, above the Throne: ‘My Mercy prevails over My wrath.’” 2
The Prophet quoted Allah as saying: “O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me, and put your hope in Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds in the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I shall forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with an earthful of sins and were you then to face Me, without having worshiped anyone other than Me, I shall forgive you.” 3
When someone asked him to invoke God’s curse on his enemies who were persecuting him, the Prophet: “God did not send me to curse people; I have been sent as mercy.” 4
God said about the Prophet in the Qur’an: “And We have not sent you except as a mercy to the worlds.” 5
On Reliance on God
The Prophet said to Companion Abdullah bin Abbaas: “O young man, let me teach you some words. Be mindful of Allah and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask of Allah. If you seek help, seek help from Allah. Know that if the nations were to gather to benefit you with something, they would not be able to benefit you except with what Allah has already decreed for you. And if they were to gather to harm you with something, they would not be able to harm you except with what Allah has already decreed for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried.” 6
“Know Allah during times of prosperity, He will know you in times of adversity. Know that what has passed you by was never to befall you. And know that what has befallen you was never to have passed you by. And know that victory accompanies perseverance, relief accompanies affliction, and ease accompanies hardship.” 7
On Love and Kindness
“None of you truly believes (in Allah and in His religion) until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” 8
“Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day either speak good or be silent. Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day honor his neighbor. Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day honor his guest.” 9
On Avoiding Doubtful Things
“Truly, what is lawful is clear, and what is unlawful is clear, and between them are doubtful matters which many people do not know about. He who guards against doubtful things keeps his religion and honor blameless, and he who indulges in doubtful things indulges in fact in unlawful things, just as a shepherd who pastures his flock round a preserve will soon pasture them in it. Beware! every king has a preserve, and the things Allah has declared unlawful are His preserves. Beware! in the body there is a flesh; if it is sound, the whole body is sound, and if it is corrupt, the whole body is corrupt, and behold! It is the heart.” 10
On Worship
The Prophet quoted Allah as saying: “Nothing endears My servant to Me than doing what I have made obligatory upon him to do. And My servant continues to draw nearer to Me with extra prayers so that I shall love him. When I love him, I shall become his hearing with which he shall hear, his sight with which he shall see, his hands with which he shall hold, and his feet with which he shall walk. And if he asks Me for something, I shall surely give it to him, and if he takes refuge in Me, I shall certainly grant him it.” 11
“Everyone who dies will regret. The one who did well will regret for not having done more, and the one who did evil, he will regret for not having restrained himself.” 12
On Charitable Deeds
“Charity is due upon every joint of the body for every day upon which the sun rises. Being just between two people is charity. Helping a man with his animal and lifting his luggage upon it is charity. A kind word is charity. Every step that you take towards the mosque is charity, and removing harmful things from the road is charity.” 13
A man asked: “O Messenger of Allah, who is most deserving of kind treatment and good companionship?” The Prophet answered, “Your mother.” The man asked: “And then?” He said, “Your mother”. The man asked again: “And then?” The Prophet repeated, “Your mother.” When asked the fourth time, the Prophet said, “Your father.” 14
On Moderation
“Be moderate in your religious practices and do deeds that are within your ability.” Bukhari
“Ruined are those who insist on hardship in matters of religion.” The Prophet repeated this three times.15
“The religion (of Islam) is easy, and whoever makes the religion a hardship it will overpower him. So follow a middle course (in worship).” 16
On Accountability
“A servant of Allah will remain standing on the Day of Judgment till he is questioned about four things: his life on earth and how he spent it, his knowledge and how he used it, his wealth and how he acquired and spent it, and his body and how he wore it out.”17
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1 Tirmidhi
2 Bukhari and Muslim
3 Tirmidhi
4 Muslim
5 Ambiyaa 21:107
6 Tirmidhi
7 ibid
8 Bukhari and Muslim
9 ibid
10 ibid
11 Bukhari
12 Tirmidhi
13 Bukhari and Muslim
14 ibid
15 Muslim
16 Bukhari
17 Tirmidhi
Posted By: Ekram Haque
Ustadh Ekram Haque is a writer, journalist, author, and khateeb. He has a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He has written hundreds of articles in large and small publications, including a number of Op-Ed and features articles in the Dallas Morning News, News & Observer, Denver Post, Newsday and Asbury Park Press. He has taught the Seerah of the Prophet Muhammad Sallallaahu Alaiyhi WaSallam to different age groups and delivered weekly lectures on the Seerah at the East Plano Islamic Center in Plano, TX. Those lectures served as the nucleus for his recently published book, “Muhammad: Son of Abraham, Brother of Moses, Successor of Jesus.” He received much of his informal education about Islam from Sheikh Abul Yosr Mohamed Baianonie, then imam of the Islamic Center of Raleigh in North Carolina. Ustadh Ekram teaches the Seerah in a contemporary context and helps draw lessons that are relevant to our current challenges. “Only by following the Seerah of the Prophet Muhammad (s) can we successfully navigate through these turbulent times,” he said.