We said: You are our master. He said: "The Master is Allah." We said: And the best of us in superiority and the greatest among us in bounty. He said: "Say what you have to say, or part of what you have to say, but do not let the devil deviate you (in praising me)

عَن عَبدِ الله بنِ الشِّخِّير رضي الله عنه قَالَ: انْطَلَقْتُ في وَفدِ بَنِي عَامِرٍ إِلى رَسُولِ الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فَقُلنا: أَنتَ سيّدُنَا، فقال: «السَّيدُ اللهُ»، قُلنا: وَأَفْضَلُنا فَضْلاً، وأعظَمُنا طَوْلاً، فقال: «قُولُوا بِقَولِكُم، أَو بَعضِ قولِكُم، وَلَا يَسْتَجْرِيَنَّكُم الشَّيطَانُ».

‘Abdullah ibn ash-Shikhkhīr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I set out with the delegation of Banu ‘Āmir to meet the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). We said: You are our master. He said: "The Master is Allah." We said: And the best of us in superiority and the greatest among us in bounty. He said: "Say what you have to say, or part of what you have to say, but do not let the devil deviate you (in praising me)."

Narrated by Abu Dāwūd and Ahmad · hadeethenc:3389

Grading: Authentic (as published by the source; the grader is not named)

Explanation from the source

A group of people came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and on reaching him, they said - praising him - some words that he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) disliked. They said: "You are our master." But the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: "The Master is Allah," Who possesses full sovereignty over His creation and they are His slaves. They also said: You are "the best of us in superiority" and the highest among us in rank, honor, and in merit. And you are "the greatest among us in bounteousness" and the most giving, the loftiest, and the most prestigious among us. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) then advised them to say what they would typically say without affectation and not to be dragged by the devil to exaggeration and flattery that lead to committing what is prohibited of Shirk (polytheism) and its means.

This Hadīth shows how the Prophet's Companions held and revered him in high esteem.
Prohibiting affectation in words and encouraging the act of speaking moderately.
Protecting Tawhīd (monotheism) from words and deeds that could violate it.
Prohibition of exaggeration in praising, which is one of the devil's access points.
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) is the master of the children of Adam, and what is mentioned in the Hadīth is an expression of humility and fear for them lest they exaggerate in honoring him.

Topics: Belief in the Messengers

Source: HadeethEnc.com, published by HadeethEnc.com. Version API snapshot retrieved 2026-10-11 (the source publishes no version number) (retrieved 2026-10-11). Published by HadeethEnc.com. Shown unmodified; not reviewed by a scholar.