Chapter: His Awe, Majesty, Love, Bravery, Strength, and Eloquence

Jarīr ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd narrated—from al-Aʿmash, from Ibrāhīm al-Taymī, from his father, from Abū Masʿūd—who said: “I was beating a slave of mine when I heard a voice behind me saying, ‘Take note, Abū Masʿūd!’ In my anger I did not turn around, but he drew so near that he overtook me, and behold—it was the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The moment I saw him, the whip fell from my hand out of sheer awe. He said, ‘By Allah, Allah has more power over you than you have over this boy.’ I replied, ‘By Allah, O Messenger of Allah, I shall never strike a servant of mine again.’” This is an authentic hadith.

Shuʿbah narrated—from Qatādah, from Anas—that the Prophet ﷺ said, “None of you truly believes until I am dearer to him than his child, his parent, and all people.” Reported by Muslim.

Allah Most High says: “O you who believe, do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor speak loudly to him as you do to one another” (Al-Ḥujurāt 49:2). In response, Abū Bakr and others declared, “We will address you, O Messenger of Allah, only in the hushed tone one uses for confidences.”

And He says: “Do not regard the summons of the Messenger among yourselves as you regard one another’s summons. Allah knows those of you who slip away under cover; so let those who oppose his command beware, lest a trial befall them or a painful punishment overtake them” (Al-Nūr 24:63).