إِنَّ خِيَارَكُمْ أَحَاسِنُكُمْ أَخْلَاقًا
“The best among you are those whose character is best.”
Benefits:
After faith, the matter on which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ placed the greatest emphasis is that a person adopts good character and abstains from bad character. In the above hadith, the standard for a person being good and excellent is stated to be that whoever has good character is a good person. The Holy Quran itself gave this testimony concerning the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Allah the Exalted says:
“Indeed, you are of a great moral character.”
Allah has declared the good character and gentleness of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to be a special mercy from Him, saying:
“It is by the mercy of Allah that you are gentle with them. Had you been harsh and hard-hearted, they would have dispersed from around you.”
It should be noted that without faith, character has no standing; if a person shows cheerfulness without faith, it is not true character. Along with faith, good character has great worth, and on the Day of Judgment such character will carry great weight.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“On the Day of Resurrection, the heaviest thing placed in the scale of a believer’s deeds will be his good character.”
Moreover, highlighting the importance of good character, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Among you, the most beloved to me are those whose character is best.”
