Chapter: The virtues of Zaid bin Haritha

The Prophet (ﷺ) sent an army under the command of Usama bin Zaid. When some people criticized his leadership, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If you are criticizing Usama's leadership, you used to criticize his father's leadership before. By Allah! He was worthy of leadership and was one of the dearest persons to me, and (now) this (i.e. Usama) is one of the dearest to me after him (i.e. Zaid).

Aisha said, "A Qaif (i.e. one skilled in recognizing the lineage of a person through Physiognomy and through examining the body parts of an infant) came to me while the Prophet (ﷺ) was present, and Usama bin Zaid and Zaid bin Haritha were Lying asleep. The Qa'if said. These feet (of Usama and his father) are of persons belonging to the same lineage.' " The Prophet (ﷺ) was pleased with that saying which won his admiration, and he told `Aisha of it.