The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is the most perfect model and example, who was a perfect compendium of every moral quality. This is why Allah the Exalted honours him by stating:
اِنَّکَ لَعَلٰی خُلُقٍ عَظِیۡمٍ
[Thou dost surely possess high moral excellences.]
At times, the Holy Prophetsa would confound the congregation with his immensely eloquent speech. At other times he would make a valiant display in the field of battle. When it came to generosity, he would give mountains of gold. When it came to demonstrating the greatness of his forbearance, he would forgive criminals worthy of death. In short, God Almighty has showcased the unparalleled and perfect model of His Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and it may be likened to a magnificent tree in whose shade a person can sit to fulfil their needs from its every part: its fruit and flowers; its bark and leaves; in summary, every aspect of the tree is beneficial. The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is like a magnificent tree that grants shade to tens of millions of creatures, who find comfort and refuge under it – just like under the wings of a hen. In battle, those who were with the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, were considered to be the bravest. For the Holy Prophetsa would be in the most dangerous place. Holy is Allah!
How impressive! In Uhud, he was showered with swords, and such carnage ensued that the companions found it difficult to bear, but this valiant warrior stood firm like a rock and went on fighting. No blame lies on the companions, for Allah the Exalted forgave them. The underlying secret in this incident was to exhibit the bravery of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. On one occasion, he was struck by swords repeatedly, but he would firmly proclaim that he was Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah. It is said that the Holy Prophetsa sustained seventy wounds to his forehead. They were light wounds nonetheless, but this displays his exalted character.
There was a time when the Holy Prophetsa owned even more sheep and goats than the Caesar and Chosroes. The Holy Prophetsa granted them all to a person who asked for them. If he had not come to own anything, how could he have demonstrated his immense generosity. If he had never been a ruler, how would it be established that despite having the power to seek revenge, he had it within him to forgive the disbelievers of Mecca, who were deserving of death – the very same disbelievers who inflicted the harshest of torments upon the companions, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the Muslim women. When they were presented before him, he announced:
لَا تَثۡرِیۡبَ عَلَیۡکُمُ الۡیَوۡمَ
meaning, “On this day I have forgiven you”. If such opportunities had not arisen, how would the lofty morals of the Holy Prophetsa have come to light? This greatness is unique to the Holy Prophetsa. Name a single moral quality that the Holy Prophetsa did not possess – and that too to the utmost level of perfection. When one studies the life of the Messiah, on whom be peace, it must be said that his morals remained hidden. The evil from among the Jews who were given seats of honour by the government, and the Roman government respected them due to their influence, continued to trouble the Messiah, but during his life, there was no time when he was in power so that one could judge the degree to which he would exhibit forgiveness, despite having the authority to exact revenge.
However, in contrast to this, the morals of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, were such that they were established to be perfect on the touchstone of observation and experience. His morals are not imaginary notions, rather, we possess evidence of their reality just as the principles of mathematics and numbers are a fact and known to be true. We can establish evidence of his morals just as one is able to prove that two and two equal four. However, the follower of no other Prophet can do so. This is why the Holy Prophetsa is like a tree whose every element, be it the roots, bark, fruit, flowers, or leaves, are all beneficial, and rather, prove to be beneficial to the highest degree; they bestow comfort and grant pleasure.
After the Honourable Chief of the Universe, on whom be salutations, discord eventually arose among the Muslims and so as a community, it no longer preserved its good morals collectively. Instead, their collective morals were divided and dispersed across various factions of the community. This is why certain individuals are able to adopt selective morals with greater ease.
(Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, Malfuzat, Vol. 1, pp. 130-131)