Anas narrates that there was a Bedouin man whose name was Zaahir. He would visit the Prophet ﷺ every so often and whenever he did, he would bring with him gifts from the lands in which he lived. Then whenever he was leaving Madinah, the Prophet ﷺ would give him whatever provisions he needed from the city. The Prophet loved him very much and would say: “Zaahir is our man in the desert and we are his people in the city.” Zaahir was an unattractive-looking man.
One day Zaahir was selling his produce in the marketplace. The Prophet ﷺ came up behind him and put his arms around him, holding him tightly. Not knowing who it was, Zaahir said: “Who is this? Let go of me!” Then he turned and saw who it was. He pushed his back against the Prophet’s chest, enjoying the moment.
“Who will buy this slave from me?” the Prophet called out.
“No one will buy me – I am worthless,” Zaahir said.
“But in Allah’s sight you are truly precious,” the Prophet replied.
(Narrated by Ahmad and al-Haythami with an authentic chain of transmission)
Anyone who reads about this encounter cannot help being struck by the beauty of the Prophet’s character. City dwellers would generally look down on the Bedouin for their coarseness and lack of manners. But the Prophet ﷺ honoured Zaahir by remembering his name (among the many names of his Companions) and calling him “our man in the desert.” Think how special Zaahir would feel being called “our man” by the Prophet ﷺ. Then there is an exchange. Zaahir would bring gifts for the Prophet from the arid lands of the Arabian Peninsula. We wonder what kind of things he would bring: perhaps some herbs or berries. Maybe some wild honey. Whatever it was, it probably wasn’t very impressive. But nonetheless, the Prophet graciously accepted and then reciprocated. That was his way: if someone gifted him something, he would always try to give something in return or at least pray for that person. This is despite the fact that for the Prophet even to meet Zaahir and accept his gift was enough of a gift in and of itself. On top of that, the supplies that the Prophet provided him with were no doubt greater in quantity and quality than the gifts that Zaahir brought.
Then we have this amazing event that takes place in the marketplace as Zaahir is standing selling his wares. We see the Prophet’s playfulness and humour as he comes up behind Zaahir and wraps his arms around him, taking him completely by surprise. Zaahir’s shock quickly turns into pleasure, however, when he realises who this person is. Let us imagine the Prophet’s embrace and the beauty of his scent. It was a rare opportunity for Zaahir to feel the Prophet’s body against his and he relished it, pushing his back against the blessed chest of the one he loved so much.
Then the Prophet ﷺ calls out: “Who will buy this slave from me?” There may have been a moment of surprise until everyone realised that the Prophet was joking. We can imagine the smile on the Prophet’s face as he said this. He was teaching us that we need to have moments of lightheartedness. Life is not all deadly serious. We can laugh and joke in moderation without being untruthful and insulting and belittling others. The Prophet calling Zaahir his “slave” can also be understood as a term of endearment. He loved him so much that he almost treated him as his property. Zaahir played along with the game but he could not resist expressing feelings of his own worthlessness. He thought of his physical appearance, his humble origins, his Bedouin status. He looked at outward factors, whereas the Prophet looked at inward factors: his faith, his generosity, his humility and his love for Allah and His Messenger. This led him to reveal Zaahir’s true status, not the status accorded him by society: “But in Allah’s sight you are truly precious.” This was not merely a throw-away statement in order to make him feel better, this was God’s Messenger speaking with knowledge given to him by God. This is a reminder to many of us who are quick to judge others based on superficial criteria when we have no idea of their true state. In fact, the scholars mention that Zaahir was one of the elite Companions who were present at the Battle of Badr, which is sufficient proof of his status.
This episode also reminds us of the Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him) who was sold as a slave in the market for a paltry sum, when in fact he was a prophet of Allah whose amazing qualities would only later become known to all. The reality is that every believer and in fact every human is valuable to Allah, if only they knew it. Perhaps we should follow the Prophet’s example and remind people of that fact. And perhaps we could even have a laugh and a joke in the process..
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