I was just a boy when my mother led me by the hand through the crowded alleys of Medina. I didn’t know yet how much that day would change my life.
My name isn't in the books of famous companions, but I was there when my mother brought me to serve the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. My mother, like many in our city, had given her heart to Islam. She saw a light in him ﷺ — not just as a prophet, but as someone who lived his message with every breath.
She said to him, “O Messenger of Allah, this is Anas. Let him serve you.” I was only ten. I expected hard work, criticism when I made mistakes, maybe even punishment. That was the way most masters treated their servants.
But the Prophet ﷺ was different.
For ten years, I served him. Ten years! And not once did he say to me, “Why did you do that?” or “Why didn’t you do this?” Other people sometimes corrected me, but never him. Never in anger. Never in a harsh voice.
One morning, he asked me to fetch something for him. I said I would… but on the way, I saw some boys playing in the street. I forgot. I laughed and ran with them, kicking up dust and joy. Then, I felt a hand touch my shoulder.
I turned and there he was — the Prophet of Allah ﷺ — smiling.
He didn’t frown. He didn’t scold. He simply asked, “Anas, did you go where I sent you?”
I stammered, ashamed. “I'm going now, O Messenger of Allah…”
He just nodded and let me be. That moment stuck in my heart deeper than any punishment could. I wanted to do better—not out of fear, but out of love.
Over the years, he called me by kind names. He would joke with me, ask how I was doing, even consult me at times. Imagine! A prophet, asking his servant for advice. He treated me as a person of honor, not just someone to order around.
And Allah blessed me because of him. I ended up living a long life, saw more than a hundred of my grandchildren, and my children lived to know the same kindness I once knew.
To this day, I remember his gentleness more than anything.
Now when I hear stories of children treated harshly or spoken to with cruelty, I think: if the Prophet ﷺ, the most important man in the world, never scolded a ten-year-old servant — not even once — then what excuse do any of us have?
That’s what I learned by being close to him ﷺ. Kindness is not weakness. It's the mark of true leadership, of a heart that fears Allah and loves His creation.
And that memory still makes me grateful.
—
Inspired by the hadith of Anas ibn Malik in Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6039 — where Anas says he served the Prophet ﷺ for ten years and never heard a word of blame from him.
I was just a boy when my mother led me by the hand through the crowded alleys of Medina. I didn’t know yet how much that day would change my life.
My name isn't in the books of famous companions, but I was there when my mother brought me to serve the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. My mother, like many in our city, had given her heart to Islam. She saw a light in him ﷺ — not just as a prophet, but as someone who lived his message with every breath.
She said to him, “O Messenger of Allah, this is Anas. Let him serve you.” I was only ten. I expected hard work, criticism when I made mistakes, maybe even punishment. That was the way most masters treated their servants.
But the Prophet ﷺ was different.
For ten years, I served him. Ten years! And not once did he say to me, “Why did you do that?” or “Why didn’t you do this?” Other people sometimes corrected me, but never him. Never in anger. Never in a harsh voice.
One morning, he asked me to fetch something for him. I said I would… but on the way, I saw some boys playing in the street. I forgot. I laughed and ran with them, kicking up dust and joy. Then, I felt a hand touch my shoulder.
I turned and there he was — the Prophet of Allah ﷺ — smiling.
He didn’t frown. He didn’t scold. He simply asked, “Anas, did you go where I sent you?”
I stammered, ashamed. “I'm going now, O Messenger of Allah…”
He just nodded and let me be. That moment stuck in my heart deeper than any punishment could. I wanted to do better—not out of fear, but out of love.
Over the years, he called me by kind names. He would joke with me, ask how I was doing, even consult me at times. Imagine! A prophet, asking his servant for advice. He treated me as a person of honor, not just someone to order around.
And Allah blessed me because of him. I ended up living a long life, saw more than a hundred of my grandchildren, and my children lived to know the same kindness I once knew.
To this day, I remember his gentleness more than anything.
Now when I hear stories of children treated harshly or spoken to with cruelty, I think: if the Prophet ﷺ, the most important man in the world, never scolded a ten-year-old servant — not even once — then what excuse do any of us have?
That’s what I learned by being close to him ﷺ. Kindness is not weakness. It's the mark of true leadership, of a heart that fears Allah and loves His creation.
And that memory still makes me grateful.
—
Inspired by the hadith of Anas ibn Malik in Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6039 — where Anas says he served the Prophet ﷺ for ten years and never heard a word of blame from him.
