Mu'jam Kabir Tabarani 18634 — I asked my maternal uncle, Sayyiduna

Hasan bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated: I asked my maternal uncle, Sayyiduna Hind bin Abi Halah al-Tamimi (may Allah be pleased with him), who was skilled in describing the qualities of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), about the appearance of him (peace and blessings be upon him), and I wished that he would describe to me something of it to which I could become attached. He said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was dignified and majestic; his face (peace and blessings be upon him) shone like the moon on the fourteenth night. He (peace and blessings be upon him) was somewhat taller than medium height and somewhat shorter than the very tall. His blessed head was large, his hair was slightly wavy, neither very curly nor completely straight. If a parting formed in it he would part it; otherwise his hair would not go beyond his earlobes, and when it grew long it became thick. His complexion was white tinged with red, his forehead was broad, his eyebrows were fine, arched and long, not joined together, and between them was a vein which would swell at the time of anger. His nose was high and fine, and there was such a light upon it that the one who looked at it closely would think it fine without being raised. His beard was thick, his cheeks smooth, his mouth wide, his teeth fine and gleaming, with a slight gap between the teeth. From the chest to the navel there was a fine line of hair, as though a line had been drawn. His neck was as though it were the neck of a statue in the purity of silver. His body was well proportioned, full and firm, his belly and chest level, his chest broad, the distance between his two shoulders wide, his joints large, and light shone on the uncovered parts of his body. From the chest to the navel there was a fine line of hair; apart from that his chest and belly were without hair. His forearms, shoulders and upper chest had hair. His forearms were long, his palms broad, the bones of his arms and shins long, his palms and feet thick, his fingers and toes straight and long, the soles of his feet hollowed, his feet smooth so that water would slip off them. When walking he lifted his feet firmly, walked with a graceful gait and gently, yet walked quickly, as though he were descending a slope. When he turned towards someone, he turned with his whole body. He kept his gaze lowered; his looking towards the ground was more than his looking towards the sky, and most of his looking was with a glance from the corner of the eye. He would have his Companions walk ahead of him, and he would be the first to greet whomever he met with salam." I said: Tell me about his (peace and blessings be upon him) speech. He said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was constantly in grief and reflection; he (peace and blessings be upon him) never found rest. He did not speak without need and kept long silences. He began and ended his speech with his whole mouth, and spoke in comprehensive words, neither too much nor too little. He was gentle-natured, neither harsh nor belittling. He regarded a blessing as great, however small it was, and criticised nothing of it. He neither criticised food nor praised it. The world and its matters did not anger him (peace and blessings be upon him), but when the truth was transgressed no one could recognise him (peace and blessings be upon him), until he had avenged it. He did not become angry for his own sake, nor did he take revenge for himself. When he pointed, he pointed with his whole hand; when he was amazed, he turned his hand over; when he spoke, he would strike the palm of his right hand against the inner part of his left thumb. When angry, he turned his face away and averted himself; when happy, he lowered his gaze. Most of his laughter was in the form of a smile, and when he smiled his teeth gleamed like hailstones." I kept this hidden from Sayyiduna Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) for a time, then I told him, and I learned that he had already asked this question before me. He had asked his father, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), about his (peace and blessings be upon him) entering the house, his sitting, his going out and his manner, and he had not left anything out. Sayyiduna Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I asked my father about the entering of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) into his house, and he said: His (peace and blessings be upon him) entering was by his own choice; he had permission for that. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) came to his house, he divided his time into three parts: one part for Allah, one part for his family, and one part for himself. Then he divided his own part between himself and the people, conveying it to the common people through the select people, and withholding nothing from them. His (peace and blessings be upon him) practice in the part for the Ummah was to give preference in his attention to the people of virtue, and to divide the time according to their rank in the religion. Among them was one with one need, one with two needs, and one with many needs. He (peace and blessings be upon him) would occupy himself with them in what would bring about the betterment of them and of the Ummah, and would tell them what was appropriate for them, and he would say: Let the one present convey to the one absent, and convey to me the need of the one who cannot convey it himself, for whoever conveys to a ruler the need of one who cannot convey it himself, Allah will make his feet firm on the Day of Resurrection. Nothing other than this would be mentioned in his (peace and blessings be upon him) presence, and he would accept nothing else. People would come to him (peace and blessings be upon him) as seekers, and would not depart except after having their need fulfilled, and they would leave his (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering with humility. I asked him about his (peace and blessings be upon him) going out, how he used to conduct himself in it. He said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would restrain his tongue except for what was beneficial to the Companions and what would make them familiar with one another and would not divide them. He would honour the honourable person of every people and appoint him in charge over them. He would warn people and be cautious of them, without hiding his cheerfulness or good character from anyone. He would look after his Companions and ask people about the affairs of people. He would call the good good and strengthen it, and call the bad bad and weaken it. He was balanced and consistent in his affairs. He was not heedless, lest the people become heedless and deviate from the right path. He was prepared for every situation; he neither fell short of the truth nor went beyond it. The best of the people close to him (peace and blessings be upon him) was the one who was most sincere in good counsel, and the one of the greatest rank in his (peace and blessings be upon him) sight was the one who showed the most sympathy and support to others. I asked him about his (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering, and he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not sit or stand except with the remembrance of Allah. He did not reserve any particular place for himself and also forbade doing so. When he came to a people, he would sit wherever the gathering ended, and he commanded the same. He gave each of those sitting with him his share, so that none of those sitting with him thought that anyone else was more honoured in his (peace and blessings be upon him) sight than he was. Whoever sat with him (peace and blessings be upon him) or stood with him for some need, he (peace and blessings be upon him) would wait patiently for him until he was the one who left first. Whoever came with a need, he would not send him back except with that need fulfilled, or with gentle words. His (peace and blessings be upon him) open-heartedness and character had embraced the people, so he (peace and blessings be upon him) became (like) a father to them, and they all became equal in his (peace and blessings be upon him) sight with regard to the truth. His (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering was a gathering of forbearance, modesty, patience and trustworthiness; voices were not raised in it, honour was not violated, and its slips were not spread. All were equal; superiority among them was only on the basis of piety (taqwa). They were humble, they respected the elder, showed mercy to the young, gave preference to the needy, and protected the stranger. I asked: How was his (peace and blessings be upon him) conduct with those who sat with him? He said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was always cheerful, easy-natured and gentle; he was neither harsh-tempered nor hard-hearted, neither loud nor foul-mouthed, neither a fault-finder nor one who praised excessively. He overlooked what he disliked, without making anyone despair of him or letting anyone be disappointed in it. He kept himself away from three things: argumentation, talking excessively, and what did not concern him. And he spared others three things: he did not criticise anyone, did not shame anyone, and did not seek out anyone's faults, and he spoke only about that in which he hoped for reward. When he (peace and blessings be upon him) spoke, those sitting with him would lower their heads as though birds were sitting on their heads, and when he (peace and blessings be upon him) fell silent they would speak. They did not dispute with one another in his (peace and blessings be upon him) presence. Whoever spoke, they all remained silent until he finished his speech. Their speech in his (peace and blessings be upon him) presence was like that of the first of them to speak. He (peace and blessings be upon him) laughed at what they laughed at and was amazed at what they were amazed at. He was patient with the harshness of a stranger's speech and questioning, to the extent that his (peace and blessings be upon him) Companions would themselves draw such people towards them. And he would say: When you see a person in need seeking his need, guide him. He would accept praise from someone only if he deserved it, and he would not interrupt anyone's speech unless he exceeded the limit, in which case he would end it by forbidding him or by standing up. I asked: How was the silence of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)? He said: The silence of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was based on four things: forbearance, caution, measured judgement and reflection. His (peace and blessings be upon him) measured judgement lay in maintaining equality among people in looking and listening, and his (peace and blessings be upon him) remembrance, or reflection, was about that which endures and on which a ruling is given. Forbearance was combined for him (peace and blessings be upon him) with patience, so nothing would grieve or anger him (peace and blessings be upon him), nor would anything make him lose his composure. Caution was combined for him (peace and blessings be upon him) in four things: adopting the good so that it would be followed, abandoning the bad so that it would be refrained from, striving with his judgement for the betterment of his Ummah, and carrying out the affairs of this world and the Hereafter that had been gathered for them."
Abu Ubayd said: Abu Halah was the husband of Sayyidah Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her) before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); his name was al-Nabbash, and his son was Hind bin al-Nabbash, of Banu Usayd bin Amr bin Tamim. Ali bin Abd al-Aziz said: Al-Zubayr bin Bakkar told me; he said: Umar bin Abi Bakr al-Mawsili told me: Abu Halah's name was Malik bin Zurarah, of Banu Nabbash bin Zurarah.
Explanation of the hadith of Hind bin Abi Halah: Ali bin Abd al-Aziz said: I heard Abu Ubayd say: "Fakhman mufakhkhaman": the fakhamah of the face means its nobility and fullness, together with beauty and awe. "Marbu'" is one who is between tall and short. "Mushadhdhab" is one who is excessively tall in stature, and the word carries this meaning in everything. There is a verse of Jarir: "A tall one with long veins carried her off, as though he were upon a lofty tower." "Rajil al-sha'r" is hair that is neither completely straight with no bend in it, nor "qatat", meaning tightly curled; that is, his (peace and blessings be upon him) hair was wavy, between the two. "Aqisah" is braided hair, which is like a plait; from this is the saying of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): Whoever mats his hair, ties it in a knot or plaits it must shave his head. "Azajj al-hajibayn sawabigh": "zajaj" in the eyebrows is that there is an arch in them along with length at their ends, and this is their "subugh". Jamil bin Ma'mar said: "Whenever the beautiful women come out one day, having adorned their eyebrows and eyes." "Fi ghayri qaran": "qaran" is the joining of the two eyebrows together; that is, he (peace and blessings be upon him) was not like that, rather there was a gap between them. Such a man is called "ablaj", and al-Asma'i mentioned that the Arabs find this attractive. "Baynahuma irqun yudirruhu al-ghadab": that is, when he (peace and blessings be upon him) was angry, the vein between the two eyebrows would swell; its swelling means its becoming thick, protruding and full. "Aqna al-irnin": "irnin" means the nose, and "qana" is that the nose has fineness along with height in its bridge; from this a man is called "aqna" and a woman "qanwa'". "Ashamm" is that the nose is fine without "qana" in it. "Kathth al-lihyah": "kuthuthah" is that the beard is neither thin nor long, but has thickness without being large or long. "Dali' al-fam": I think it means wideness of the lips. "Ashnab" is one whose teeth have fineness and sharpness; from this a man is called "ashnab" and a woman "shanba'", and from it is the verse of Dhu al-Rummah: "Dark-lipped, in whose lips is a reddish darkness, and in whose gums and canine teeth is lustre." "Mufallaj" is one whose teeth have gaps. "Masrubah" is the hair from the hollow at the top of the chest down to the navel, running like a line. Al-A'sha said: "Now that the line of hair on my chest has turned white, and I have begun to bite with the worn-down stump of my canine tooth." "Jid dumyah": "jid" means the neck, and "dumyah" means an image (statue). "Dakhm al-karadis": people differed about "karadis". Some said it means the bones, and the meaning is that his (peace and blessings be upon him) bones were large and broad; others take "karadis" to mean the ends of the bones; and elsewhere "karadis" means the battalions of an army. "Zandan" are the two bones of the forearms that connect to the palms; that is, it describes the length of his (peace and blessings be upon him) forearm. "Sabt al-qasab": "qasab" is every bone that contains marrow, such as the shins, upper arms and forearms, and their "subut" means their being long; that is, it describes the length of the bones. Dhu al-Rummah said: "Who place full forearms and shins in bracelets and anklets"; by "bura" he meant bracelets and anklets. "Shathn al-kaffayn wa al-qadamayn" means that there was some thickness in them. "Akhmas" is the part of the sole of the foot between its front and the heel, and it is the part that does not touch the ground when walking. Al-A'sha, describing a woman's slowness in walking, said: "As though the sole of her foot were shod upon thorns." "Khumsan": that is, this part of his (peace and blessings be upon him) feet was raised and lifted away from the ground; it is taken from "khumusah" of the belly, meaning its being drawn in; from this a man is called "khumsan" and a woman "khumsanah". "Masih al-qadamayn" means that both feet were smooth, with no creases on their upper surface, and that is why he said: "Yanbu anhuma al-ma'", meaning that water does not settle on them. "Idha khata takaffiyan" means walking with a forward inclination; it is taken from the rocking of ships. "Dhari' al-mishyah" means taking wide steps. "Ka'annama yanhattu fi sabab": I think it means that he (peace and blessings be upon him) was focused on what was in front of him, keeping his gaze lowered, not raising it towards the sky, and one descending a slope is like that. Then he himself explained it and said: He kept his gaze lowered; his looking towards the ground was more than his looking towards the sky. "Idha iltafata iltafata jami'an": that is, he (peace and blessings be upon him) did not turn his neck without his body, for in that there is a kind of lightness and lack of dignity. "Damith" means soft and easy; from this a gentle-natured man is called "damith", and from it is the hadith that when he (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to urinate, he would incline towards soft ground. "Idha ghadiba a'rada wa ashaha": "ishahah" means sharpness, and sometimes it comes with the meaning of caution. "Wa yaftarru an mithli habb al-ghamam": "iftirar" is that the teeth are revealed while laughing, without loud laughter, and "habb al-ghamam" means hail; the whiteness of his (peace and blessings be upon him) teeth was likened to it. Jarir said: "The tooth-stick runs over gleaming teeth, as though they were hailstones falling from the layers of clouds." "Yadkhuluna ruwwadan": "ruwwad" are seekers, its singular is "ra'id", and from it is the people's saying: The ra'id does not lie to his people. "Li kulli halin indahu atad" means that he (peace and blessings be upon him) had preparation for every situation; he (peace and blessings be upon him) had made provision ready for it. "La yuwattinu al-amakin": that is, he did not fix for himself any place by which he (peace and blessings be upon him) would be recognised, but sat wherever it was possible; then he explained it and said: He would sit wherever the gathering ended. From this is his (peace and blessings be upon him) hadith that he (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade a man to reserve a place in the mosque for himself as a camel reserves its place. And concerning his (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering, "la tu'banu fihi al-hurum": that is, women were not spoken of in it; from this is the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade poetry in which women are spoken of. Abu Ubayd said: Abu Isma'il al-Mu'addib narrated to us from Mujalid, from al-Sha'bi, who said: Some men were reciting poetry to one another in the mosque when Sayyiduna Ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them both) came and said: Is poetry being recited in the sanctuary of Allah and beside the House of Allah? Then a man from among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: O Ibn al-Zubayr! There is no harm on you if you do not corrupt yourself; the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) only forbade poetry in which women are spoken of, or by means of which people's wealth is extorted. "La tuntha falatatuhu": "falatat" means slips, that is, they were not related. From this it is said: "nathawtu anthu" (I spread talk), and its noun is "natha". The pronoun in "falatatuhu" refers back to the gathering; do you not see that at the beginning of the speech he asked him about his (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering? It is also said that there were no such slips in his (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering that anyone would need to relate them. "Falatatuhu" means the slips of the gathering, which they did not relate from one another.