Understanding The Prophet's Life
From Issue: 745 [Read full issue]
Trust
The Prophet, peace be upon him, warned his people against lying, breaking their word, and breaching their trust. All of these were condemned as "signs of hypocrisy." [Abu Dawud] He was so meticulous in this matter that when he saw woman call her child, saying: "Come on, I'll give you something," he asked her if she was telling the truth. She replied that she would give him a date, to which God's Messenger responded: "If you were to give him nothing, you would have lied." [Abu Dawud]
His concern in this matter extended even to animals. Once, annoyed at seeing a Companion trying to deceive his horse, he said: "Stop deceiving animals. Instead, be trustworthy with them." [Bukhari] Another time, while returning from a military campaign, a few Companions took some baby birds from a nest to pet them. The mother bird returned after a short while and, finding her babies gone, began to fly around in distress. When God's Messenger was informed, he was so upset that he ordered the birds to be returned immediately. Such an order was meant to show that representatives of trustworthiness should harm no living creatures. [Abu Dawud]
Compiled From:
"The Messenger of God: Muhammad" - Fethullah Gulen, pp. 69, 70