that any of his companions was shown greater favour than himself. Whoever sat with him, or stood by him to request something, he would remain patiently with him until that person himself withdrew. Whoever asked him for a need was never turned away except with the fulfilment of it, or with a kindly word. His open-handedness and noble character embraced all people; he became to them as a father, and they were before him equal in matters of truth.

His gathering was one of forbearance, modesty, patience, and trustworthiness: voices were not raised, sacred limits were not violated, and slips of the tongue were not broadcast. Those present were equals, distinguished only by their piety—humble, honouring the elder, showing mercy to the young, giving preference to the needy, and safeguarding the stranger.

Al-Ḥusayn said: I asked him about the Prophet’s conduct with those who sat in his company. He replied:

‘The Messenger of Allah, ﷺ, was ever cheerful, easy-mannered, and gentle. He was neither harsh nor hard-hearted, neither loud nor foul-mouthed, neither fault-finding nor given to frivolous jest. He would overlook what he disliked, never extinguished the hope of one who sought from him, and never disappointed anyone.

He restrained himself from three things: argumentative disputation, excessive speech, and involvement in what did not concern him. And he spared people from three: he never disparaged anyone, never reproached him, and never sought out his faults. He spoke only about that for which he hoped for reward.

When he spoke, his companions sat with down-cast eyes as though birds were perched upon their heads; when he fell silent, they spoke. They did not quarrel in his presence. He laughed at what they laughed at and marvelled at what amazed them. He was patient with a stranger’s rough speech and questioning, to the extent that his own companions would draw the stranger close so that he might express himself. He would say, “When you see a seeker of need, support him.”

He accepted praise only from one able to reciprocate, and he never interrupted anyone’s speech until the speaker exceeded the limits, whereupon he would bring it to an end—either by asking him to stop or by rising himself.

I asked him, “How was his silence?” He said:

‘His silence was for four reasons: forbearance, caution, appraisal, and reflection. As for his appraisal, it lay in giving equal attention—both sight and hearing—to all who sat before him. As for his reflection, it was upon what endures and what perishes. In him, ﷺ, forbearance and patience were combined: nothing angered him, nothing provoked him. Caution, likewise, was gathered in him by four means: taking whatever he accepted in the best manner; [that he might be emulated], abandoning what was ugly [that it might be shunned]; exerting his judgement in what would set his community aright; and attending to them in such a way as to secure for them the good of this world and the Hereafter, ﷺ.’

Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū ʿĪsā al-Tirmidhī—may Allah have mercy on him—has transmitted this ḥadīth in full in his work “The Shamāʾil of the Messenger of Allah, ﷺ,” from Sufyān b. Wakiʿ b. al-Jarāḥ, from Jumayʿ b. ʿUmar b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-ʿAjlī, who said: “A man from the descendants of Abū Hālah—the husband of Khadījah—whose kunya was Abū ʿAbd Allāh (others named him Yazīd b. ʿUmar) related to me, from a son of Abū Hālah, from al-Ḥasan b. ʿAlī, who said: ‘I asked my maternal uncle…’,” and so forth. It also contains his narration from his brother al-Ḥusayn, from their father ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib.