Good appearance

The true Muslim takes good care of his clothes, so you will see him presenting a pleasant appearance, without being extravagant. He is pleasant to look at and meet and does not annoy people with his careless, disheveled appearance. He always checks himself before he goes out to meet people, and he makes himself look good, in moderation, for the Prophet (SAW) used to make himself look good in front of his companions, as well as in front of his family.

In his commentary on the verse: “Say, who has forbidden the beautiful (gift) of Allah, which He has produced for His servants, and the thing, clean and pure, for sustenance?” Al-Qurtubi said: “Makhool reported from Aishah (RA): ‘A group of the companions of the Prophet was waiting at the door for him, so he prepared to go out to meet them. There was a water vessel in the house, and he peered into it, smoothing his beard and hair. Aishah said: I asked him, ‘O’ Messenger of Allah, even you do this?’ He (SAW) said, ‘Yes, when a man goes out to meet his brothers, let him prepare himself properly, for Allah is beautiful and loves beauty.’”

The Muslim does all of this by the Islamic ideal of moderation, avoiding the extremes of either exaggeration or negligence. Allah (SWT) said: “Those who, when they spend, are not extravagant and not niggardly, but hold a just (balance) between those extremes.” (Qur’an 25: 67)

Islam wants its followers, and especially its advocates (da’is) to stand out in gatherings in an attractive fashion, not to appear unsightly or unbearable. Neglecting one’s appearance to the extent of being offensive to one’s companions in the name of asceticism and humility is not part of Islam. The Prophet (SAW), who was the epitome of asceticism and humility, used to dress in decent clothes and present a pleasant appearance to his family and his companions. He regarded dressing well and looking good as a demonstration of the blessings of Allah. The Prophet (SAW) said: “Allah loves to see the signs of His gifts on His servant.” (Tirmidhi and Al-Hakim)

Ibn Sa’d reports in Tabaqqat that Jundab ibn Makeeth (RA) said: “Whenever a delegation came to meet the Messenger of Allah, he would wear his best clothes and order his leading companions to do likewise. I saw the Prophet (SAW) on the Day that the delegation of Kindah came to meet him; he was wearing a Yemeni garment and Abu Bakr and Umar were dressed similarly.”

Ibn al-Mubarak, At-Tabrani, Al-Hakim, Al-Bayhaqi, and others report that Umar (RA) said: “I saw the Messenger of Allah ask for a new garment. He put it on, and when it reached his knees he said, ‘Praise be to Allah, who has given me clothes with which to cover myself and make myself look beautiful in this life.’”

Abdul-Rahman ibn Auf (RA) used to dress in a cloak or garment that was worth four or five hundred (Tabaqaat Ibn Sa’d, 3’131), and Ibn Abbas bought a garment worth one thousand dirhams and wore (Tabaqaat Ibn Sa’d, 3/131).

As long as this taking care of one’s outward appearance does not go to extremes, then it is part of the beauty that Allah has allowed for His servants and encouraged them to adopt: “O’ children of Adam! Wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer: eat and drink: but waste not by excess, for Allah loves not the wasters. Say, who has forbidden the beautiful (gifts) of Allah, which He has produced for His servants, and the things, clean and pure, for sustenance? Say: They are, in the life of this world, for those who believe, and purely for them on the Day of Judgement. Thus do We explain the signs in details for those who understand.” (Qur’an 7: 31-32)

Muslim reports from Ibn Mas’ud (RA) that the Prophet (SAW) said: “No one who has even an atom’s-weight of pride in his heart will enter Paradise.” A man asked him, “What if he likes his clothes and shoes to look good?” (Meaning, is this counted as pride?) The Prophet said: “Allah is beautiful and loves beauty. Pride means denying the truth and looking down on other people.”

(To be continued)

by Muhammad Ali Al-Hashimi