A weight lifting championship was in progress and muscularly strong young men were participating in it. It so happened that the Holy Prophet (s) was passing by. He stopped and saw some youths trying to lift a heavy rock, one by one. He walked towards them and asked, ‘What are you doing?’
‘We are having a weightlifting contest to decide who is the strongest amongst us,’ they responded. ‘Well,’ he said, if you wish, I can tell you which man is the strongest.’ ‘That would be perfect. It will give us great pleasure to accept the verdict of someone as wise as you.’
All the young men waited eagerly for the Holy Prophet (s) to hold the strongest man by the arm and take him to the centre of the arena, raise his hand and present him to the crowd as the victor of the tournament.
However, he (s) stood where he was, and defined ‘true strength’. ‘First, he, among you, is the strongest, who gets infatuated with something and is then enamoured by it, but he does not allow it to tempt him away from the path of truth and humanity, or contaminate him with vice. His love for goodness controls his love for all else.
Secondly, a person who is annoyed and enraged but controls his anger, speaks only the truth, and does not let a volley of abusive language defile his tongue; he, among you, is the strongest.
Such a person, in a position of power and authority, never buckles down before threats or obstacles blocking his path, but acts prudently by always observing the limits of truth and justice. He, among you, is the strongest.’
Reference : Anecdotes of The Ahlul Bayt (Daastaan e Raastaan ) by Ayatullah Murtadha Mutahhari