Indeed, the Prophet's character was the Qur’an
Narrator in the source: ‘Ā’ishah, Mother of the Believers, reported saying:
As he visited ‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), Sa‘d ibn Hishām ibn ‘Āmir said: "O mother of the believers, tell me about the character of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him)." She said: "Do you not recite the Qur’an?" He said: 'Yes.' She said: "Indeed, the Prophet's character was the Qur’an."- Grade in the source
- Authentic
- Reported by
- Narrated by Muslim as part of a long Hadīth
- Source entry
- HadeethEnc · 8265 ↗
Original Arabic wording
قال سعد بن هشام بن عامر -عندما دخل على عائشة رضي الله عنها-: يَا أُمَّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، أَنْبِئِينِي عَنْ خُلُقِ رَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، قَالَتْ: أَلَسْتَ تَقْرَأُ الْقُرْآنَ؟ قُلْتُ: بَلَى، قَالَتْ: فَإِنَّ خُلُقَ نَبِيِّ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَانَ الْقُرْآنَ.Understand this hadith
The mother of the believers' Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) was asked about the Prophet's character, and she replied with one comprehensive sentence, referring the questioner to the noble Qur'an, which comprises all attributes of perfection. She said that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) possessed the morals of the Qur'an. Whatever the Qur'an commanded him to do or prohibited him from doing, he would comply. So, his character was to act upon the Qur'an, observe its limits, assume its ethics, and take lessons from its parables and stories.
Lessons from the hadith
- The Hadīth urges us to follow the Prophet's example in adopting the morals of the Qur’an.
- It praises the Prophet's manners and describes them as emanating from divine revelation.
- The Qur’an is a source of all noble manners.
- Morals in Islam pertain to the entire religion, by observing its commands and prohibitions.
References (original Arabic)
صحيح مسلم (1/ 512) (746). بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين، لسليم الهلالي (3/ 308). شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين (6/ 660). نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمصطفى الخن وغيره (2/ 1253). كنوز رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين (21/ 556).