First the hadith in sahih muslim 1602 Basically, someone embrace Islam and pledged to emigrate with the Prophet. Nothing in the hadith point out to his race or color. What makes him "valuable" is his rejection of idol worship and submission to Allah. He was found to be a slave when his owner came to get his slave back. The owner would not have agreed to any price other than two slaves and the Prophet (ﷺ) had to agree. Imam Nawawi said: وفيه ما كان عليه النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم من مكارم الأخلاق والاحسان العام فإنه كره أن يرد ذلك العبد خائبا بما قصده من الهجرة وملازمة الصحبة فاشتراه ليتم له ما أراد "This event points out how the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had the highest morals and general beneficence/kindness. He hated to return that person, who intended to emigrate and to stay as a companion/Sahabi, so he bought him to let him do what he wanted." http://www.hadithportal.com/index.php?show=hadith&h_id=3107&uid=51016&sharh=10000&book=31 ------ Explanation by brother Michael Nassar - محمد نصار : Background: Islam was sent to shut down slavery as much as possible which was one of the main business of many tribes during that time. Many wealthy Muslims used to buy slaves from non-Muslims and free them. In the Noble Qur’an, there are numerous Ayat that state that the punishment for a Muslim who commits a sin is to free a slave ( used to b known as neck). Sometimes in our modern world when we count people for example for eating out, a restaurant owner would say that the price per head is such and such. But back in the old days they used to call it ‘neck’. For starter, let us understand some Islamic terminology. Terminology: Hadith = Statement of the Prophet and can varies from authentic to concocted=fabricated statement in our case this hadith=statement is correct. Lessons learnt from this hadith: - 1) Prophet Muhammad's, peace be upon him, fairness and immediate action to help the slave= someone weak=refugee who sought help. That slave=weak person=refugee wanted to be Muslim,was not forced to be Muslim. That slave was more like a refugee who fled his Master. Prophet Muhammad initially was not aware of the fact that this slave who fled Mecca did not get his Master=employer=owner’s permission. So once his Master came down to the Prophet seeking to get his slave back,Prophet Muhammed did not reject his request. To the contrary, he refused to grant automatic help to the slave without getting his Master=employer=owner’s consent and permission in the form of buying / swapping this slave with two slaves who either were not Muslims or Muslims and The Master=employer=owner was Muslim. 2) We learn also from this Hadith that to stand beside the weak and support their choice to be Muslim (Freedom in Religion) 3) Not to force the slave=weak person= refugee to go to where came from. 4) Offer the Master=employer=owner compensation in the form of swapping with two black slaves who the prophet had them and they were working like employees as they were treated well. But also, they were given the choice to go or stay. 5) We have learnt from this Hadith as well that the brotherhood of Islam is much higher that the brotherhood of a non-Muslim. 6) We have learnt that the two slaves=employees also were let go and were not forced to stay if they did not want to. 7) Islam did not immediately and instantaneously shock the non-believers but gradually worked on draining out slavery as a problem. To ensure the whole community is not going to completely reject Islam. Similarly, when Islam forbidden Alcohol, it is start gradually as well since it is hard for the human nature to sharply stop something the perceive that it is of a great benefit to them. For him having slave Prophet muhammed came in a time where people buried there daughters killed their slaves He can’t just tell them stop slavery He must develop a method to help them and at the same time Lets see how he treated them Did they want to leave him lets take the example of zaid Narrated Jabalah bin Harithah, the brother of Zaid: "I came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, send my brother Zaid with me.' He said: 'Here he is.' He said: "'If he goes with you, I will not prevent him.' Zaid said: 'O Messenger of Allah, by Allah, I will not choose anyone over you.'" He said: "So I considered the view of my brother to be better than my own view." -Source: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3815 Grade: Hassan (Good) (Darussalam) Did he beat them ? Anas b. Malik reported: I served the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) for ten years, and, by Allah, he never said to me any harsh word, and he never said to me about a thing as to why I had done that and as to why I had not done that. Abu Rabi' has made this addition (in this narration):" The work which a servant should do." There is no mention of his words" By Allah". -Source: Sahih Muslim 2309 a Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim A'isha reported that: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) never beat anyone with his hand, neither a woman nor a servant, -Source: Sahih Muslim 2328a Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim Narrated 'Amir bin Al-Harith: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) did not leave a Dinar or a Dirham or a male or a female slave. He left only his white mule on which he used to ride, and his weapons, and a piece of land which he gave in charity for the needy travelers. -Source: Sahih al-Bukhari 4461 Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim And that is why we call him the best human ever Because while in context he freed all of them at the end and treated them with fairness Now what did he tell his followers to do with them ? Ma'rur b. Suwaid reported: I saw Abu Dharr wearing clothes, and his slave wearing similar ones. I asked him about it, and he narrated that he had abused a person during the lifetime of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upoe. him) and he reproached him for his mother. That person came to Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) and made mention of that to him. Thereupon Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) said: You are a person who has (remnants of) Ignorance in him. Your slaves are brothers of yours. Allah has placed them in your hand, and he who has his brother under him, he should feed him with what he eats, and dress him with what he dresses himself, and do not burden them beyond their capacities, and if you burden them, (beyond their capacities), then help them. -Source: Sahih Muslim 1661 a Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim Zadhan Abl Umar reported: I came to Ibn 'Umar as he had granted freedom to a stave. He (the narrator further) said: He took hold of a wood or something like it from the earth and said: It (freedom of a slave) has not the reward evert equal to it, but the fact that I heard Allah's Messenger (way peace be upon him) say: He who slaps his slave or beats him, the expiation for it is that he should set him free. -Source: Sahih Muslim 1657 a Grade: Sahih (authentic) under the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) so many ahadith and one of them is this that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: None of you should say: Supply drink to your lord, feed your lord, help your lord in performing ablution, and none of you should say: My Lord. He should say: My chief, my patron; and none of you should say: My bondman, my slave-girl, but simply say: My boy, my girl, my servant. -Source: Sahih Muslim 2249 d Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to the conditions of Bukhari and Muslim And that is why we call him the best man because he delt with the context and turned bad to good