‘Awf bin Malik al-Jushami narrates from his father: I presented myself before the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The Prophet (peace be upon him) looked me over from top to bottom, then he said:“Do you own camels? Do you own goats?”(The narrator says) The owner of camels and goats could be recognized by his particular appearance. I replied: Allah Almighty has granted me everything, and in abundance. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“Does not the she-camel give birth to her young with sound eyes and ears? Then you cut someone’s ear and say, ‘This is Sarmā’ (ear-marked), another becomes weak and you say, ‘This is Bahīrah.’ But Allah’s command is firmer and His instruction is stronger. If He wished, He could have created it with a cut ear.”I said: O Messenger of Allah! What are you calling towards? The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“That there is no deity except Allah, and that one should maintain ties of kinship.”I said: O Messenger of Allah! With what commands have you been sent? The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“The message of prophethood has come to me from my Lord, and because of this I have faced difficulty. I feared that my people would belie me, so it was said to me: Either you (peace be upon him) do such and such, or else We will do such and such.”I said: O Messenger of Allah! My cousin comes to me and then I swear an oath that I will not give him anything and will not maintain ties of kinship with him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“You should offer expiation for your oath.”The narrator states: Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“What do you think, if you have two slaves, one of whom does not betray you, does not hide anything from you, and does not lie to you, while the other lies to you, hides things from you, and betrays you—then which of the two would be more beloved to you?”I replied: The one who does not lie to me, does not betray me, and does not hide anything from me. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:“You all are the same before your Lord.”