Towards Children
He (sallallaahu
‘alaihi wa sallam) was especially fond of children and used to get into
the spirit of childish games in their company. He would have fun with
the children who had come back from Abyssinia and tried to speak in
Abyssinian with them. It was his practice to give lifts on his camel to
children when he returned from journeys. [Al-Bukhari]
He (sallallaahu
‘alaihi wa sallam) would pick up children in his arms, play with them,
and kiss them. A companion, recalling his childhood, said: “In my
childhood I used to fell dates by throwing stones at palm trees.
Somebody took me to the Prophet who advised me to pick up the dates
lying on the ground but not to fell them with stones. He then patted me
and blessed me.” [Abu Daawood]
Towards the Poor
The Prophet
(sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) enjoined upon Muslims to treat the poor
kindly and to help them with alms, zakat, and in other ways. He said:
“He is not a perfect Muslim who eats his fill and lets his neighbour go
hungry.”
He (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) asked: “Do you love your Creator? Then love your fellow beings first.”
Monopoly
is unlawful in Islam and he (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) preached
that: “It is difficult for a man laden with riches to climb the steep
path that leads to bliss.”
He (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did not
prohibit or discourage the acquisition of wealth but insisted that it
be lawfully acquired by honest means and that a portion of it would go
to the poor. He advised his followers: “To give the labourer his wages
before his perspiration dried up.”
He (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)
did not encourage beggary either and stated that: “Allah is gracious to
him who earns his living by his own labour, and that if a man begs to
increase his property, Allah will diminish it and whoever has food for
the day, it is prohibited for him to beg.”
To his wife he
(sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “O ‘Aa’ishah, love the poor and
let them come to you and Allah will draw you near to Himself.”
[Al-Bukhari]
One or two instances of the Prophet’s concern for the
poor may be given here. A man from Madinah, Ibaad Ibn Sharjil, was once
starving. He entered an orchard and picked some fruit. The owner of the
orchard gave him a sound beating and stripped off his clothes. The poor
man appealed to the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) who
remonstrated the owner thus: “This man was ignorant, you should have
dispelled his ignorance; he was hungry, you should have fed him.” The
poor man’s clothes were restored and, in addition, some grain was given
to him. [Abu Daawood]
A debtor, Jaabir Ibn Abdullaah (radhiallah
‘anhu) was being harassed by his creditor as he could not clear his debt
owing to the failure of his date crop. The Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi
wa sallam) went with Jaabir to the house of the creditor and pleaded
with him to give Jaabir some more time but the creditor was not prepared
to oblige. The Prophet then went to the oasis and having seen for
himself that the crop was really poor, he again approached the creditor
with no better result. He then rested for some time and approached the
creditor for a third time but the latter was adamant. The Prophet went
again to the orchard and asked Jaabir to pluck the dates. As Allah would
have it, the collection not only sufficed to clear the dues but left
something to spare. [Al-Bukhari]
His love for the poor was so deep
that he used to pray: “O Allah, keep me poor in my life and at my death
and raise me at resurrection among those who are poor.” [An-Nasaa’ee]
Towards Animals
The
Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) not only preached to the people
to show kindness to each other but also to all living souls. He forbade
the practice of cutting tails and manes of horses, of branding animals
at any soft spot, and of keeping horses saddled unnecessarily. [Muslim]
If
he saw any animal over-loaded or ill-fed he would pull up the owner and
say: “Fear Allah in your treatment of animals.” [Abu Daawood]
A
companion came to him with the young ones of a bird in his sheet and
said that the mother bird had hovered over them all along. He was
directed by the Prophet to replace her offspring in the same bush. [Abu
Daawood]
During a journey, somebody picked up some bird’s eggs. The
bird’s painful note and fluttering attracted the attention of the
Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) who asked the man to replace the
eggs. [Al-Bukhari]
As his army marched towards Makkah to conquer
it, they passed a female dog with puppies. The Prophet (sallallaahu
‘alaihi wa sallam) not only gave orders that they should not be
disturbed, but posted a man to see that this was done.
He stated: “Verily, there is heavenly reward for every act of kindness done to a living animal.”
Article source: http://www.islamweb.net/emainpage/