Physical Characteristics of Prophet Muhammad -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- [1]
Author: Ustadz Said Yai, Lc.
Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- is the ultimate role model. He possessed excellent physical features. Here are some historical notes regarding his physical characteristics.
Umm Ma’bad may Allah be pleased with her -once depicted his physical qualities – peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- as follows:
The Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- looked radiant, his face was illuminating, his build was good -not fat or thin- , his head was uplifted, his eyes were large, with long, curly eyelashes, his voice was a little hoarse, his neck was long, his eyes were black with a sharp gaze, his eyebrows were like crescent moon and were connected one another, his hair was dark black.
When he was silent, his authority shone through. When he talked, his friendliness was shown. When he was seen from afar, he was the most handsome and good-looking man. And if he was seen closely, he was the most beautiful and the sweetest being.
He was very soft-spoken, his sayings were not long nor short. It was like neatly arranged pearls.
He was of modest height, Thus people would not mock him because he was too short or too tall. When he was with two people, he stood out, and he has the highest position among them.
He had some friends that were always surrounding him. When he spoke, they would listen intently to him. When he ordered a thing, they would do it at once. He was a very respected and obeyed figure, never had sour face, never disgrace anyone.
‘Ali Ibn Abi Thalib -may Allah be pleased with him- explained about the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- as follows,
“He had fair stature, he was not too tall or too short. His body was wide, his hair was wavy, not curly or straight. He was not thin or fat. His face was round, with white clear skin. His eyes were wide, sharp, and black. His eyelashes were long and curly, his joint bones were large, his back was strong, his chest hair were soft and delicate, and his palms and soles were hard.
When he walked, it was as if he walked on a steep road. When he turned, he turned with his whole body.
On his back was a sign of prophethood, and he was the last of the prophets.
He was a man with the best palms, the strongest chest, the most honest sayings, one who always kept his promise, the most delicate of soul. And the most noble in his social interactions.
Whoever inadvertently looked at him, would admire him, and whoever interacted along well with him would certainly love him.
Then Ali said, “I’ve never seen anyone like him at all, not before or after him.”
In one of narrations from Ali, he said, “His wrists were large. His chest hair was long. When he walked he was shaking, as if he descended from a high place.”
Jabir Ibn Samurah -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “His mouth was wide, his eyelids were long, his legs weren’t fat.”
Abu Ath-Thufail -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “His skin was fair, his face was beautiful and his stature was modest.”
Anas Ibn Malik -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “His palms were large. His skin was reddish-white, unlike the whiteness of chalk, nor brown. He had some grey hair on his head and beard of twenty strands. His whisker were a little bit grayish.”
Abu Juhaifah -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “I saw grey hair on a pinch of hair under his lips.”
‘Abdullah Ibn Busr -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “There were several grayish hair under his lips.”
Al Bara’ -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “He had a wide chest. His hair length reached his ears. I’ve seen him wore a scarlet robe, and I’ve never seen something that is more beautiful than him. In the past, the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- liked to let his hair loose, and because he disliked to follow the people of scriptures, he parted his hair.”
Al Bara’ -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “He was the most beautiful person and the greatest in physique.”
Then he was asked, “Was the Prophet’s face as white as a sword?” He replied, “No, but his face resembled the moon.”
Ar Rubayyi’ bint Mu’awwidz -may Allah be pleased with her- said, “When I saw him, it is as if I saw a rising sun.”
jabir Ibn Samurah -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “I saw the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- in one bright night. I looked at him, then at the moon, he was wearing a scarlet robe, in fact, he was more good to look at than the moon.”
Abu Huraira -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “I’ve never seen anything that is more beautiful than the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-. It was as if the sun revolved on his face. I’ve never seen anyone that walks faster than the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-, as though the earth was folded for him. We’ve tried so hard to catch on to him, but he still preceded us.”
Ka’b Ibn Malik -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “When he was happy, his face shining, thus it looked like a piece of the moon.”
One day, the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- was sweating, while he was with ‘Aisha -may Allah be pleased with her- thus his face was shining. Then ‘Aisha recited a poem of Abu Kabir Al Hudzali,
When I see the sweat that is on his face
It shines as a passing lightning
When ‘Abu Bakr -may Allah be pleased with him-saw the Prophet, he recited a poem,
An honest, chosen man, that enjoin to goodness
As the light of the full moon that is followed by darkness of the night
‘Umar -may Allah be pleased with him- once sang the poem of Zuhair Ibn Abi Salma, about Haram Ibn Sinan:
If you are not a human
You’ll certainly shine on the night of the full moon
Then he said, “That’s how the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- was.”
Jabir Ibn samura-may Allah be pleased with him- said, “His calves were good. He never laugh out loud, but smiled.. His eyes looked like wearing kohl, while he actually didn’t wear it.”
Ibn Abbas – may Allah be pleased with him- said, “His front teeth were not tight, when he talked, it is as if a light shone from him. His neck was like a doll’s neck, white as silver. His eyelashes were long, his beard was thick, his forehead was wide,
His eyebrows were think and jointed, his nose was pointed, his cheeks were soft. From the upper part of his chest to his navel, some smooth hairs grew, looked like a shaft, and there were no hairs grew in his stomach and chest except those hairs. His arms and shoulders were hairy. His belly and chest were flat. His chest were wide and nice. His arms were long, and his palms were wide. His calves and arms were straight. The curve inside his soles were deep and his toes were long. When he walked, he walked firmly, his steps were lengthy, and he walked humbly.”
Anas -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “I’ve never touched a silk that was as soft as the Prophet’s palms, and I’ve never smelled perfume or fragrance…that was as fragrant as the scent of the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-.”
Abu Juhaifa -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “I’ve ever held his hand and put it on my face, and I found that his hand was cooler than dew and his scent was sweeter than the scent of musk.”
Jabir Ibn Samurah -may Allah be pleased with him- said, when he was a small kid, “The Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- once rubbed my face, and I really could feel Allah’s messenger’s hand -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- was very cool and sweet scented, as if he just took it out from a jar of perfume.”
Anas -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “(The drops of) his sweat were the best scented perfume, and Umm Sulaim said, “His sweat was more fragrant than perfume.”
Jabir -may Allah be pleased with him- said, “He never walked on a street and then followed by a person, except the person knew that he had walked the street because of the sweet scent of his sweat.,
Between his shoulders blade there was a sign of prophethood, which resembled an egg of a dove, and it was of similar color with his skin. On his left shoulder, just like a fistful of hand, and above it there was a mole as big as a wart.”
Subhanallaah (Glorified be He), how there was a person like that! and he is the Messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him, who was born as a man with plenty good sides of his physique. He had been prepared as the leader of the prophets and mankind , in this world and in the hereafter.
What we mentioned above were just some parts of his physical features -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him-. In fact, there are still a lot of features that we haven’t mentioned in this article. You could find it in books of history, of hadith, etc.
By looking at some of his physical characteristics, we could infer that he -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- is truly deserved to be appointed as a prophet. It is not the case of people who falsely claimed to be prophet in these times; their faces aren’t even good to look at, their bodies were weak, and many other physical weaknesses that they have; oddly enough, they still proclaimed themselves as prophet. Indeed, it is a clear misguide.
[1]. Summarized from the book “Ar-Rahiq Al-Makhtum” by Sheikh Shafiyur-Rahman Al-Mubarakfuri –may Allah have mercy on him-.