Understanding The Prophet's Life
From Issue: 837 [Read full issue]
Poorest and Weakest
Anas ibn Malik reports that a woman known to be mentally unstable said to the Prophet (peace be upon him): “Messenger of God. I need your help in a certain matter.” He said: “Choose any road and I will come to you and sort out what you need.” He stopped with her at some road and discussed her need until she had finished her business. [Muslim, Ahmad, Abu Dawud]
The Prophet was seated with his Companions when this woman, who was known to be mentally unstable, told him that she needed his help. His immediate reaction was to keep her happy. He told her that he was ready to listen to her. At the same time he respected her privacy, and did not ask her to discuss her problem in front of other people. Needless to say, there were no cafes or restaurants in Madinah at the time. Hence, anywhere in the street would do.
This was typical of the Prophet, as he always attended to the weakest and most vulnerable in society. Anas reports: "Any young maid in Madinah would come the Prophet and take him by the hand. He would not remove his hand from hers. She would take him anywhere she wanted." [Ahmad, Ibn Majah] A maid may have been told by her people to do or fetch something and might not have known where to get it or how to fulfil her duty. The best person to seek help from was the Prophet, and so she would take him by the hand. To reassure her, he would allow her to lead him wherever she wanted until he had given her the help she needed.
These are two among the numerous examples of how the Prophet treated the weakest elements in society. He wanted them to feel that he was always available to them and that he would help even the poorest or the weakest in anything they wanted. To him, everyone was important. If a girl needed his help, then that help was forthcoming. The second hadith does not mention a particular maid. Rather, it suggests that this was the normal behaviour of the Prophet, and it appears from the wording of this hadith that it was customary for maids to come to him for such help.
Compiled From:
"Muhammad: His Characters and Conduct" - Adil Salahi, pp. 137, 138