3 hadiths on humility and arrogance
Accepting the truth, respecting others and serving your family: three hadiths for understanding humility without putting yourself down.
You can love beautiful clothes without despising anyone. You can also speak modestly while refusing to admit a mistake. To understand humility in Islam, appearances are therefore not enough: we need to look at how a person receives the truth and treats others.
Three hadiths clarify this difference. The first answers a concern about beautiful clothes; the second promises that a person who humbles themselves for Allah will be raised; the third describes the Prophet ﷺ serving his family. Humility can thus be recognised in a correction accepted, a person respected or a task completed without considering it beneath you.
Article contents
Arrogance is rejecting the truth and despising people
The context of the narration
‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud reports that the Prophet ﷺ warned of the seriousness of even a tiny weight of arrogance in the heart. A man then asked about someone who likes to have beautiful clothes and shoes. The Prophet replied:“Allah is Beautiful and He loves beauty. Arrogance is rejecting the truth and despising people.”
Read the Arabic text
إِنَّ اللَّهَ جَمِيلٌ يُحِبُّ الْجَمَالَ الْكِبْرُ بَطَرُ الْحَقِّ وَغَمْطُ النَّاسِ
Understanding this hadith
Liking fine clothes or shoes is not the definition of pride given here. The Prophet ﷺ defines it through two behaviours: rejecting the truth and looking down on people.
A correction can be difficult to accept because it comes from a younger colleague, a child or someone you do not like much. Then you need to examine what was said: is it accurate? The person’s rank does not change the fact. Acknowledging “you are right about this” avoids defending an error solely to keep the upper hand in the conversation.
Contempt can appear in ordinary actions: constantly interrupting, mocking an accent or ignoring the person who cleans a place. Conversely, listening and greeting do not require denying your own abilities. You can know more about a subject and explain what you know without humiliating the learner.
The beginning of the hadith contains a severe warning about arrogance and Paradise. It calls us to watch our own hearts; it does not give us knowledge of the final fate of someone we judge to be arrogant.
Being humble for Allah does not take away your dignity
The context of the narration
Abu Hurayrah reports a saying of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ combining three teachings: charity does not diminish wealth, forgiveness increases honour, and humility for Allah leads to being raised. Here is the last:“No one humbles himself for Allah without Allah raising him.”
Read the Arabic text
وَمَا تَوَاضَعَ أَحَدٌ لِلَّهِ إِلاَّ رَفَعَهُ اللَّهُ
Understanding this hadith
The text specifies “for Allah”. Humility is therefore not a role played to receive compliments about your modesty. It may require quietly acknowledging a mistake or letting someone else receive the credit for their work, without then demanding that this restraint be noticed.
Nor does it require repeating that you are worthless. Refusing to claim superiority over others differs from denying what you can do. If a task matches your skill, you can accept it and take responsibility for it. You can also state what you do not know and ask for help.
The promise of being raised is not a guarantee of promotion or immediate recognition. Someone may remain unjust despite a humble response. Setting a boundary, explaining a disagreement or claiming a right does not require putting the other person down and does not in itself become an expression of arrogance.
In shared work, crediting the person who proposed a good idea is a simple application: “This solution came from that person.” You restore a fact without artificially erasing yourself or claiming what belongs to someone else.
The Prophet ﷺ served his family
The context of the narration
Al-Aswad asked ‘Aishah what the Prophet ﷺ did at home. She answered by describing his activity in the house and his departure when prayer came:“He would serve his family; when prayer came, he would go out to pray.”
Read the Arabic text
كَانَ يَكُونُ فِي مِهْنَةِ أَهْلِهِ ـ تَعْنِي خِدْمَةَ أَهْلِهِ ـ فَإِذَا حَضَرَتِ الصَّلاَةُ خَرَجَ إِلَى الصَّلاَةِ
Understanding this hadith
Aisha describes the Prophet ﷺ serving his family, then going out to pray when the time for prayer came.
At home, a person may think they are available for every great cause while leaving repetitive tasks to one person. Setting the table, putting away what you have just used or doing your share of a necessary errand are present-day examples of this service. Their simplicity does not make them beneath an educated person or someone with responsibilities.
Helping without waiting to be asked also avoids leaving all the organising to someone else. Ask once how the task is done, then genuinely take responsibility for it. A gesture accompanied by lengthy reminders of its merit can make the service burdensome to receive.
Also read: giving your parents good companionship.
In practice
- A correction hurts youCheck the fact before responding and explicitly acknowledge what is correct.Reread the definition of arrogance
- You minimise all your abilitiesName a real skill and a real limitation, without boasting or belittling yourself.Distinguish humility from self-deprecation
- Household tasks fall on someone elseTake responsibility for a recurring task through to completion, without waiting for reminders.Read ‘Aishah’s answer
Sources
- Sahih Muslim · 91aArrogance is rejecting the truth and despising people
- Sahih Muslim · 2588Being humble for Allah does not take away your dignity
- Sahih al-Bukhari · 676The Prophet ﷺ served his family