Justice and Fairness

The most famous statement of his commitment to justice came when Usamah ibn Zayd attempted to intercede on behalf of a woman from a noble family who had been caught stealing. The Prophet's face changed with anger and he said: "Do you intercede regarding one of the prescribed punishments of Allah? By Allah, if Fatimah the daughter of Muhammad were to steal, I would cut her hand." With this declaration, he abolished any notion that social standing could exempt a person from the rule of law. The punishment was carried out, and the principle was established for all time. Before every battle, the Prophet would straighten the rows of his Companions using an arrow. At the Battle of Badr, he was aligning the rows and poked a Companion named Sawad ibn Ghaziyyah in the stomach with the arrow to push him back in line. Sawad said: "O Messenger of Allah, you have hurt me, and Allah has sent you with truth and justice — so let me retaliate." The Prophet uncovered his own stomach and said: "Then retaliate." Sawad embraced and kissed the Prophet's stomach, saying he only wanted to have this close contact with him before the battle in case he was martyred. This incident showed that the Prophet was willing to submit himself to the same standard he applied to others. In matters of trade and dispute, the Prophet judged by the evidence presented to him, even acknowledging the limits of his own judgement. He said: "You bring your disputes to me, and perhaps one of you is more eloquent in his argument than the other, so I judge in his favour based on what I hear. If I give anyone something that belongs to his brother, then I am giving him a piece of the Fire." This remarkable statement placed the moral responsibility on the litigants while affirming his commitment to procedural justice. He distributed the spoils of war according to the established rules without favouring his own clan or family. After the Battle of Hunayn, when the Ansar felt that the Quraysh converts had received more, the Prophet addressed them and asked: "Are you not content that the people go home with sheep and camels while you go home with the Messenger of Allah?" His distribution was not arbitrary — it served the strategic purpose of winning hearts — yet he ensured no one was wronged. The Prophet also established justice in personal relationships, commanding equal treatment between wives, between children, and between people of different tribes and races. He declared in his Farewell Sermon: "An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over a black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white — except by piety and good action."