Censure of arrogance and praise of humility

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not teach you what Nuh (peace be upon him) taught his son?" The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) said: "Yes, O Messenger of Allah! Please do teach us." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "'O my dear son! I command you to do two things and I forbid you from two things. I forbid you from associating anyone with Allah, for whoever associates partners with Allah, Allah Almighty has forbidden Paradise to him; and I forbid you from arrogance, for whoever has arrogance in his heart equal to a mustard seed will not enter Paradise.
And I command you to recite this phrase: 'La ilaha illallah, wahdahu la sharika lahu, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-hamdu, wa huwa 'ala kulli shay'in qadir' (There is no god worthy of worship except Allah, alone, without partner; to Him belongs the dominion and to Him belongs all praise, and He has full power over all things), for if all the heavens were a closed ring, this phrase would shatter them. And I command you to recite 'Subhan Allahi wa bihamdihi' (Glory be to Allah and with His praise), for it is the worship of all creatures and their glorification, and by it creation is granted provision.'" At this a man asked: "O Messenger of Allah! Is it part of arrogance that a man has an animal to ride, or fine clothing that he wears, or food to which he invites his friends?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No; rather, arrogance is belittling the truth (rejecting it) and regarding people as lowly and contemptible. And I shall soon tell you of five things; whoever has them is not arrogant: holding a goat by its leg, wearing woollen clothing, riding a donkey, sitting in the company of the poor among the believers, and a man eating together with his family."
Imam Abd bin Humayd said: Ubaydullah bin Musa narrated it to us from Musa bin Ubaydah with this same chain.
Musa bin Ubaydah is a da'if (weak) narrator; al-Sa'qab bin Zuhayr contradicted him and narrated it through Zayd bin Aslam from Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that a Bedouin man came wearing a cloak made of green silk fabric whose buttons were made of gold. Then the narrator related the whole hadith, in which it is mentioned: "Indeed, Nuh (peace be upon him) said to his son," and then he mentioned the complete words.
The rest of this hadith will come, if Allah Almighty wills, in the section on the virtues and merits of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); and this hadith also has another chain from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both).
Imam al-Bazzar narrated with his chain from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), attributing it to the Prophet, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not inform you of the parting counsel of Nuh (peace be upon him)?" Then the narrator related the rest of the hadith.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will say on the Day of Resurrection: "Indeed, I set a lineage (a standard of honour and excellence), and you people devised a separate lineage of your own. I made the most honoured of you the one who is most God-fearing among you ('Indeed, the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you' [Surah al-Hujurat: 13]), whereas you used to say (in the world): 'O so-and-so, son of so-and-so!' and 'I am more honourable than you.' So today I will raise high the lineage I set, and I will bring down these (self-made) lineages of yours. Where are those who were God-fearing?"
Imam al-Harith bin Abi Usamah narrated this report in his Musnad. The narrator in its chain, Talhah bin Amr bin Uthman al-Hadrami, is matruk al-hadith (abandoned in hadith); however, its text agrees with the texts of the Qur'an.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed, a person, through his forbearance, patience and dignified composure, attains the high rank of one who fasts much (by day) and stands in prayer (by night); and at times a person's name is entered in the register of tyrants and oppressors, even though he holds no rule or authority over anyone except his own household."
Imam Ahmad bin Mani' recorded this hadith in his Musnad; in its chain, Isma'il bin Ayyash and Abd al-Aziz bin Ubaydullah are da'if (weak) narrators.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever on the face of the earth dies while there is arrogance in his heart equal to a mustard seed, Allah Almighty will put him in the Fire (of Hell)." At this a man from the Ansar said: O Messenger of Allah! I love beauty, even in the strap of my sword, in keeping my clothes clean of dirt, and in the fine quality of my sandal straps and sandals (so is this also arrogance?). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That is not what I mean; rather, arrogance is regarding the truth as worthless and regarding people as lowly and contemptible." The man then asked: O Prophet of Allah! What is meant by regarding the truth as worthless and regarding people as lowly? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Regarding the truth as worthless is that you have a financial right (a debt or the like) over a man, and he denies it and claims that he owes nothing; then, when someone urges him to fear Allah, he refuses (to acknowledge the right). As for regarding people as lowly, it is the person who comes to people with his nose raised (in arrogance), and when he sees the weak and poor people of society, he neither greets them nor sits with them, out of contempt for them; this is the one who regards people as lowly." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever patches his own garment, mends his own sandal, rides a donkey, visits a slave when he falls ill, and milks the goat himself, has become free of grandeur (the conceit of greatness and arrogance)."
If Allah Almighty wills, the rest of this hadith will come in the 'Book of Virtues', in the account of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Qays al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him).

It is narrated from Ka'b (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: "There is no human being but that there is a bridle (of honour and dignity) on his head, which has been placed in the hand of an angel. So if that servant adopts humility and modesty, the angel raises him high and elevates him; and if he displays arrogance and pride, the angel brings him low and abases him."
Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal recorded it in Kitab al-Zuhd.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), who reported it from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as a marfu' hadith, saying that he (peace and blessings be upon him), conveying the words of Allah Almighty, said: "Whoever humbles himself for My sake like this, I will raise him like this." Meanwhile he (peace and blessings be upon him) gestured (to humility and lowliness) by turning the inner side of his palm towards the ground; then he turned his palm to face the sky and raised it upwards, making clear (the station of greatness and elevation).
Imam al-Harith bin Abi Usamah narrated it in his Musnad (Bughyat al-Bahith: 2679); all its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy), and Allamah al-Haythami, in his takhrij of it in Majma' al-Zawa'id, declared it hasan (good).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Shaddad (may Allah be pleased with him) that in the blessed time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), a man sought permission (to enter) saying: "Give permission to the companion of al-Nu'man bin al-Mundhir (the one who rides behind him on his mount) to come in." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said (at his boasting and pride): "These (worldly) great men of yours are more insignificant and contemptible in the sight of Allah Almighty than the dung beetles that push filth along with their noses." Then another man sought permission and said (describing his own greatness): "Indeed, my praise is an adornment (for anyone) and my censure is a cause of shame and disgrace." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "You have lied; that (greatness and attribute) belongs exclusively to Allah, the Blessed and Exalted."
In the chain of this report, Abd al-Aziz bin Aban is a liar and a matruk (abandoned) narrator; however, its last part, "my praise is an adornment and my censure is a blemish," is also narrated in other hadiths, which are da'if (weak); nevertheless, its correct meaning makes clear the divine majesty of Allah Almighty.

It is narrated from Abu Mijlaz that severe cold struck the companions and students of Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), and they began to shy away and feel ashamed of attending the gathering in (tattered, worn) old clothes and thick blanket-like cloaks. So Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) found them absent from the gathering. When he asked the reason, he was told that such-and-such was their situation (that is, because of poverty they did not have better clothing). So the next day Sayyiduna Abu Abd al-Rahman (Ibn Mas'ud) (may Allah be pleased with him) himself came out wearing a thick cloak, and people said (to one another): "Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) is wearing a cloak." Then on the second and third day he also came in the same way. When his students saw him wearing the cloak, they all came together wearing their own (similar, simple) garments. Then Sayyiduna Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) recognised all those faces he had been finding absent before. At that time he said by way of advice: "Indeed, I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: 'No one will enter Paradise who has arrogance in his heart equal to a mustard seed,' or he (peace and blessings be upon him) said (with doubt): 'equal to an atom of arrogance.'"
Imam Abu Ya'la recorded it in his Musnad, and its last part, that "the one with arrogance equal to a mustard seed will not enter Paradise," is also narrated in Sahih Muslim [Hadith: 91] from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) himself. This report is sahih (authentic) in its chain.