concession (rukhṣah), and it is not mandatory for a person to raise his lower garment to mid-calf, nor should he deem it an absolute duty and condemn whoever does not do so. The Messenger ﷺ said, “But if you refuse, then (let it fall) to the ankles,” and he did not say, “If you refuse you will face such-and-such a threat.” This shows that the matter is spacious and accommodating.

We have already seen that Abu Bakr al-Ṣiddīq (Allah be pleased with him) said to the Prophet ﷺ, “One side of my izār slips unless I keep an eye on it,” which indicates that Abu Bakr’s garment hung below mid-calf and that this was unobjectionable. Therefore a person should not be strict with himself or with others by insisting that his trousers, robe, or mishlaḥ (cloak) must stop at mid-calf. While doing so is a sunnah, the Prophet’s own dispensation leaves the door wide open—praise be to Allah.

The Prophet ﷺ then warned Jābir ibn Sulaym against conceit—against strutting in one’s walk or displaying haughtiness through one’s clothes, turban, cloak, speech, or any other act. Allah does not love that: “Indeed, Allah does not love every self-deluded boaster” (Quran 31:18). A believer should therefore remain humble in his dress, gait, appearance, and in all his affairs, for whoever humbles himself for Allah, Allah will raise him. These etiquettes that the Prophet ﷺ taught his community should prompt a person to