On the authority of Abu Huraira who said: The Messenger of Allah (upon whom be Allah’s blessings and peace) said, “Allah the Almighty has said, ‘Whoever has mutual animosity with a friend (wali) of Mine, I declare war upon him. My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more beloved to Me than the religious duties that I have imposed upon him; and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works such that I love him. And when I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his leg with which he walks. Were he to ask of Me, I would surely give him; and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it.”‘
Recorded by al-Bukhari.

1. “Whoever has mutual animosity with a friend of Mine (Wali).”
   • 1.1 The Concept of Wali According to the Quran and Sunnah
   • 1.2 Incorrect and Heretical Concepts of Who is a Wali
   • 1.3 The Statement is in the Reciprocal Form
   • 1.4 What is Not Meant by This Threat from Allah
2. “I declare war upon him.”
   • 2.1 The Importance of Having Love for Allah’s Auliyaa
   • 2.2 A Societal Law or Sunnah of Allah
3. “My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more loved by Me
   • 3.1 The Importance of Obligatory Deeds
4. “My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory
   • 4.1 The Importance of Voluntary Deeds
   • 4.2 Allah’s Mercy as Exhibited in the Voluntary Deeds
   • 4.3 A Possible Source of Confusion
5. “When I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears
   1. 5.1 The Path of Purification According to the Sunnah of the Prophet
   2. 5.2 The Goal of Purification According to the Quran and Sunnah
   3. 5.3 The Path and Goal of Purification of the Sufis vis-a-vis the Way of the Sunnah.
   4. 5.4 This Hadith Does not Lend Support to the Sufi Concepts of Huloolor Ittihaad
6. “Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him
   • 6.1 What is the Benefit of Asking Allah
7. “And I do not hesitate to do anything as I hesitate to take the soul of the believer
   • 7.1 What is the Meaning of Allah Hesitating?
8. Other Points Related to This Hadith

General Comments About the Hadith: The importance of this hadith lies in its describing how one can become one of Allah’s auliyaa (devoted servants and beloved). It describes the steps that need be followed and also describes the magnificent results that accrue to one who follows those steps. Many important points can be derived from this hadith. It is, therefore, deserving of a very extensive commentary. Al-Shaukaani once noted, The commentators on this hadith, may Allah have mercy on them, did not give this hadith the full treatment that it deserves. lbn Hajr, may Allah have mercy on him, only commented on this hadith in Fath al-Baari for about three pages, although his commentary is the most comprehensive commentary of alBukhari, with the most detail and benefit to it. Therefore, al-Shaukaani himself wrote a book explaining this hadith, covering some three hundred pages. This hadith is one of many hadith that demonstrate the importance of interpreting the Prophet’s words in the light of the entire teachings of the Quran and sunnah. This hadith has been misinterpreted by many over the years. Furthermore, it has been misinterpreted in very dangerous ways; such misinterpretations can actually lead one to blasphemous acts or beliefs.

1. “Whoever has mutual animosity with a friend of Mine (Wali).”

This qudsi hadith begins with a very stem warning: Allah declares war upon the one who opposes His devoted servants or His auliyaa. To understand this statement properly, the correct understanding of who is a wali of Allah must be established.

1.1 The Concept of Wali According to the Quran and Sunnah

Here the word wali (from the root wala) has been used. It has been translated as “friend” for lack of a better term. Wali or walaaya means, according to its Islamic understanding, support, love, honor, respect and being with one’s beloved in both a spiritual and material sense. In Allah’s description of the auliyaa, He points out two essential or necessary characteristics for anyone to be among the auliyaa of Allah. The first condition is imaan (“faith”) while the second is taqwa (“God-consciousness”). Allah says in the Quran, “Lo, verily the friends of Allah are those on whom fear comes not, nor do they grieve. Those who believe and keep their duty (Ar., yattaqoon) to Allah” (Yoonus 62-63).

Al-Raazi points out that imaan and taqwa imply that they have a strong theoretical belief as well as correct practice and deeds. Hence, both theory and practice is exhibited by the auliyaa of Allah. They are the ones who sincerely and continually obey Allah. The first and foremost of the auliyaa of Allah are those who are of the highest level of imaan and taqwa. They are most deserving of that honorific title. But Allah’s auliyaa are not all of the same rank. Instead, as many Quranic commentators have pointed out, they fall into one of three categories. Allah has said, “Then those who We chose of Our servants inherited the Book. But of them are some who wrong themselves and of them are some who are intermediate, and of them are some who outstrip others through good deeds, by Allah’s leave (Faatir 32).

The exact characteristics of these three groups have been explained in the books of Quranic commentary. Concerning those “who wrong themselves”, ibn Katheer says that they are the believers who are negligent in the performance of some of the obligatory duties and who perform some forbidden acts. Those “who are intermediate” are those who perform the
obligatory duties and abstain from the forbidden acts yet at the same time do not perform all of the recommended acts and may perform some of the reprehensible (makrooh) acts. Those “who outstrip others through good deeds” are those who perform both the obligatory and recommended deeds and abstain from both the forbidden and reprehensible deeds.

What this means is that, by the grace of Allah, perfection is not a requirement for being one of the auliyaa of Allah. Those who have imaan and taqwa and who may commit some sins are still fortunate enough to be among the auliyaa of Allah. At the same time, anyone who does not have imaan or taqwa and does not follow the guidance of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and yet claims to be one of the beloved of Allah is nothing but a liar.

Furthermore, since faith and taqwa in the heart cannot be seen by others, it is not possible to know who exactly is a wali of Allah (unless, of course, such is stated in revelation from Allah). Unless Allah or the Prophet (peace be upon him) has stated that a particular person is one of His devoted servants, no one can claim for certainty that “so and so”, no matter how pious he might outwardly seem, is definitely one of the auliyaa of Allah. The greatest of the auliyaa of Allah are the angels and messengers and then the prophets. After them come the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him). They believed in Allah and obeyed Him. They sacrificed for the sake of Allah under the most difficult of times and they supported Allah’s messenger. Allah has declared His approval of them.

After the Companions would come the true and sincere scholars of Islam. These are the “heirs of the Prophet” (peace be upon him). They act upon their knowledge. They also pass that knowledge on to others. They order what is right and eradicate what is evil. One of the early pious people said about the scholars, “If they are not the auliyaa of Allah, then there are no auliyaa of Allah.” Allah has said about them, “Allah will exalt in degree those of you who believe and those who have been granted knowledge” (al-Mujaadilah 11).

Allah Defends, Protects and Supports His Auliyaa: If a person is a wali (“close friend”) of Allah, that, in turn, means that Allah is also his wali. This is because wali implies closeness and something cannot be close to something else without that other object also being close. Hence, both Allah and His wali become close to each other. Hence, Allah is the protector and wali of anyone who is His devoted servant and wali. This fact is explicitly stated by Allah in the Quran. Allah says, “Allah is the Protecting Friend (wali) of those who believe. He brings them out of darkness into light. As for those who disbelieve, their patrons (auliyaa) are false deities. They bring them out of light into darkness. Such are rightful owners of the Fire. They will abide therein” (al-Baqara 257). Allah will protect His auliyaa in return for their observance of His laws, commands and prohibitions.

1.2 Incorrect and Heretical Concepts of Who is a Wali

According to Laub, the above concept of wali was well-known and accepted among Muslims before the appearance of some heretical groups, in particular the Sufis. This fact is admitted by some modem Sufi writers. However, the Sufis did not confine their beliefs to the above aspects that are confirmed in the Quran and sunnah. One of the mistakes of many of the Sufis is that they have confined this wide Quranic concept of wali of Allah and have claimed that the auliyaa of Allah are but a few special people. According to the correct Islamic beliefs, the most superior of the auliyaa of Allah are the prophets and messengers of Allah and, after them, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). But many Sufis have come up with the strange idea that wali of Allah is a special rank. One poet stated, “The position of the wali in barzakh is below the messengers and above the prophets.”

Al-Qushairi, in his well-known Risaalah, a standard work for many Sufis, states that the wali worships Allah in such a way that there is no slip or gap for any act of disobedience whatsoever. Lauh’ s extensive research in this area has made him conclude that their goal is to raise the wali to the position of some kind of demi-god. People then serve him and worship him. Among some Sufis is the belief that, besides being superior to the prophets, the auliyaa also have all of the attributes of Allah and the Sufis pray to the auliyaa for aid in this world. This is, of course, a type of shirk or associating partners with Allah.

These misconceptions, which are unfortunately not rare among some Muslims today, concerning the auliyaa of Allah must be corrected or eradicated. The auliyaa of Allah are the people of imaan and taqwa as clearly mentioned in the Quran. Among the masses, even those who are not openly influenced by Sufism, the concept of wali has taken on a strange new meaning. As al-Meeli points out, the masses in many parts of the Muslim world consider the fortunetellers, charmers, magicians and others as auliyaa- even if they are known to be completely ignorant of the religion, do not pray or fast and are known to commit all sorts of sins. The standard is no longer the adherence to the Quran and sunnah but the standard is whether or not the person can perform some kind of act that will amaze and astound the masses. If he can do that, he is considered a wali.

1.3 The Statement is in the Reciprocal Form

The words (“whoever opposes”) are in the reciprocal form. In other words, they mean whoever has an enmity with a wali, wherein the enmity is from both sides. This has brought up the following question: How is it that a wali is having mutual animosity toward others when a wali should be forgiving and patient with those who do him wrong? lbn Hajr replies by saying that animosity is not merely of a worldly nature. The animosity described here is related to the kind of animosity that stems from the fact that one of the two persons is a wali of Allah, following the Quran and sunnah and free of innovations and evil.

It is an obligation upon the believer to love and hate for the sake of Allah. This is why the pious person has enmity for these others; on the part of the wali, the enmity is solely for the sake of Allah. In this matter, they are following the example of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who used to get very upset whenever the laws of Allah were violated. Al-Shaukaani states that this kind of religious enmity only exists between: one who is following the Prophet (peace be upon him) vis-a-vis an innovator, one who is a complete believer vis-a-vis an evildoer, one who is a pious person vis-a-vis an impious person, one who is a scholar vis-a-vis an ignorant person or one who is from the devoted servants of Allah vis-a-vis an enemy of Allah.

For example, the people of innovations, in general, hate those people who strictly follow the sunnah. Their hatred is solely based on the fact that those auliyaa are refusing to follow their innovations and heresies. Their hatred is intensified by the fact that many times the innovators know that the people who are truly following the Prophet (peace be upon him) have the knowledge and information that it takes to refute the people of innovations. Hence, the innovators’ hatred for the people of the sunnah can be so great that they hate them even more than they hate the disbelieving Jews and Christians.

Similarly, the evildoers hate the auliyaa because the auliyaa are against what they are doing. The auliyaa try to convince them to stop their practices and they also try to convince others not to join in with their evil. Furthermore, the auliyaa are reminders to the evildoers of the evil that they are doing and how they are supposed to behave with respect to Allah. Hence, the evildoers’ hatred for the auliyaa is directly related to the fact that the auliyaa are obeying Allah and having taqwa.

According to al-Shaukaani, the enmity that exists between a scholar and ignorant person is obvious. The scholar stays away from the ignorant person and has enmity toward him due to the latter’s ignorance of the religion, his failure to learn the religion and his lacking in applying the religion. The closer one gets to Allah, the greater he will be envied and hated by those who want such blessings but are not willing to strive for them. They possess a strong hatred in their hearts for those who sacrifice and earn the love of Allah. Ibn Hubairah also states that the meaning of this phrase is that the person opposes the other only because he is from the auliyaa of Allah. When a person does that, then he is deserving of the punishment stated in this hadith. This is because he is opposing the auliyaa of Allah simply because they are obeying Allah. Hence, in reality, they are not just opposing the auliyaa of Allah but they are truly opposing Allah.

1.4 What is Not Meant by This Threat from Allah

The hadith being explained here is a warning to those who dislike the auliyaa of Allah or oppose them simply because they do their best to implement and follow the law of Allah. The enmity referred to in this hadith does not apply to worldly disputes that may occur between two people who still have a love for each other in their hearts. For example, Abu Bakr and Umar once disputed with each other, as did al-Abbaas and Ali. At the same time, they still loved each other for the sake of Allah and, furthermore, it is clear from the Quran and the sunnah that all four of them are from the auliyaa of Allah.

If two believers- two auliyaa or a wali and another person-have a dispute wherein each believes that the other has done some wrong, there is no harm if they take their dispute to the proper authorities to have their case decided. In fact, this is part of the goal of the judicial system in Islam. The dispute can be decided in a fair and just matter according to what is evident, the issue can be put behind them and there is no need for any hard feelings between the two disputants. Neither party should feel any hard feelings for the one who decided the matter, as long as the one did so justly based on the information placed in front of him.

However, if a person brings up a case against a wali that is definitely a false case and it is just meant to harm the wali, then the warning found in this hadith applies to such a person. He is wrongfully harming one of the auliyaa of Allah and, hence, Allah will protect His wali. Al-Haitami points out that the enmity referred to in this hadith does, however, include cursing or reviling the believers or not having the proper respect for them (such as for the Companions). These types of acts are not excused by the shareeah.

2. “I declare war upon him.”

This is the result of opposing the auliyaa of Allah simply because they are obeying Allah. Once again, this expression is in the reciprocal form; in other words, the two are going to war against each other. Hence, it implies that the person himself is also going to war against Allah. However, how can a human go to war against Allah when he is nothing more than Allah’s slave? Ibn Hajr states that this was stated in this manner in order for the listener to understand exactly what is taking place. War is the result of enmity. Enmity is the result of differing with another. The goal of war is to destroy the enemy. Hence, in other words, this means that the person has exposed himself to being destroyed by Allah as a wartime enemy is destroyed by a much greater force. Obviously, there is no force greater than Allah and there can be no destruction like that which Allah can mete out.

Al-Shaukaani adds that although a human is an insignificant creature and should not dare go to war against Allah, his own soul can deceive himself and think that he is capable of such a war. Therefore, he goes ahead and opposes Allah’s auliyaa although he knows that such is hated by Allah.

2.1 The Importance of Having Love for Allah’s Auliyaa and Its Contrary of Having Dislike for Allah’s Enemies

One of the most important characteristic of a believer is his support and love for his fellow believers. In another hadith, the Messenger of Allah described the attributes possessed by the one who has tasted the sweetness of imaan. One of those characteristics is that he loves others solely for the sake of Allah. In the hadith under discussion here, Allah has given a warning to anyone who opposes His auliyaa; conversely, this may also be taken as a warning to those who support and love the enemies of Allah. Whoever dislikes something that Allah likes (such as the believers), opposes Allah. And whoever opposes Allah takes Him as his enemy. And whoever takes Allah as his enemy, Allah will destroy him. That is established for the one who opposes Allah’s auliyaa and the opposite is the case for the one who supports believers and auliyaa.

This point is often forgotten by unjust rulers as well as by many common Muslims. Many Muslims today prefer or give preference to the unbelievers over the believers. Such people should consider that if anyone opposes the believers and auliyaa of Allah, then Allah has declared war against him. This, of course, means that Allah will destroy him (unless he repents) as no one can possibly be victorious when Allah declares war against him. And
his destruction may occur both in this life and in the Hereafter, not necessarily just in the Hereafter. As ibn Hajr pointed out, whoever opposes a wali of Allah by either his speech or action or both has left himself open to being destroyed by Allah. And Allah will treat him in the same way that a wartime enemy is treated.

Allah has promised to defend all of the believers and He protects their honor. That is, He does not wish to see them harmed by anyone. Allah says, “Lo, Allah defends those who believe” (al-Hajj 38). Many people support and love the unbelievers, as opposed to the believers, in order to get honor, prestige, worldly benefits and so on. But it is

Allah has promised to defend all of the believers and He protects their honor. That is, He does not wish to see them harmed by anyone. Allah says, “Lo, Allah defends those who believe” (al-Hajj 38). Many people support and love the unbelievers, as opposed to the believers, in order to get honor, prestige, worldly benefits and so on. But it is the law of Allah that these dreams are never fulfilled if pursued in that manner. In fact, Allah makes it clear that such people are simply hypocrites who lose both this life and the Hereafter. Note the following verses from the Quran: “Let not the believers take the disbelievers for their friends in preference to the believers. Whoever does so has no connection with Allah, unless you indeed fear a danger from them. And Allah warns you concerning Himself. And to Allah is the final return.” (ali-Imraan 28).

“Bear unto the hypocrites the tidings that for them there is a painful doom, those who choose disbelievers for their friends instead of believers! Do they look for power at their hands? Lo, all power appertains to Allah” (al-Nisaa 138-9). “Might and honor belongs to Allah and to His messenger and the believers; but the hypocrites know not” (al-Munaafiqoon 8) . “O you who believe! Do not take My enemy and your enemy as a friend, showing affection toward them” (al-Mumtahina l ).

Allah also says, “O you who believe, take not the Jews and Christians for friends (auliyaa). They are friends one to another. He among you who takes them for friends is one of them. Lo, Allah guides not wrongdoing folk. And you see those in whose heart is a disease race toward them, saying, ‘We fear lest a change of fortune befall us. ‘ And it may happen that Allah will vouchsafe unto you the victory or a commandment from His presence. Then they will feel remorse for their secret thoughts” (al-Maaidah 51-52).

Commenting on this verse, Maudoodi has written, This refers to the condition of the hypocrites during the period when the conflict between Islam and kufr had not come to any decisive conclusion. Although Islam had become a power by dint of the sacrifices of its followers, the opposing forces were also very powerful and there were equal chances of the victory of either side. The hypocrites, while living among the Muslims, wanted to keep good relations with the Jews and Christians so that if the conflict ended in the defeat of the Muslims, they might safely take refuge with their enemies. Then there was also the economic factor; at that time, the Jews and the Christians were economically the most powerful people in Arabia. The money-lending business was almost entirely in their hands and they had a strong economic hold upon the people. Moreover, the most fertile regions of Arabia were in their possession. This also led the hypocrites to preserve their old relations with them. In short, they considered it very dangerous to break relations with these people because of the conflict between Islam and kujr, for they feared that it might ruin them economically and politically.’

A cursory look at history will demonstrate that the enemies of the believers have time and again met the same fate. There is a sunnah of Allah or a “law of nature” at work here. For example, after the Muslims had ruled Spain for centuries, the Muslim rulers began to conspire and work with the Christians against their fellow Muslims. Abu Abdullah conspired with Ferdinand against his father Muhammad ibn Saad and against his uncle. Abu Abdullah and Ferdinand were victorious. Then Ferdinand turned against Abu Abdullah and also drove him out of Spain. It was Abu Abdullah who turned over the keys of the last Muslim city in Spain to the Christians. Abu Abdullah spent the last years of his life in poverty and begging in the streets of North Africa.

Another more recent example is the fate of the Russian allies in Afghanistan. Leaders such as Dawood Khan, Nur Turaqi and Hafeedhullah Ameen were killed by the Russians whenever they were finished using them. Some of these Afghani leaders had been members of the Communist Party and close associates with the Russians for over twenty years but when their usefulness to the Russians came to an end, the Russians killed them. The Shah of Iran, the close ally of the West, could hardly find a country to accept him to live out the last days of his life in misery.

The punishment from Allah is not just for the leaders who fall in line with the unbelievers but, instead, it applies to anyone who supports the unbelievers and shows enmity to the believers. A case in point is ibn Abu Dawood who pleaded with the caliph to have Ahmad ibn Hanbal killed. The result, though, was that ibn Abu Dawood was the one who met a terrible death in this world while to this day Ahmad is still held in high esteem by the Muslims. Similarly, many of the people who tortured the Muslims in the prisons of Egypt during the 1950’s and 1960’s have, to this day, psychological problems and have troubles coping in this world that they are living in. But the greatest punishment that those who show enmity to the auliyaa of Allah will have to face will occur in the Hereafter.

Allah says, “On the day when the wrong-doer gnaws his hands, he will say, ‘Ah, would that I had chosen a way together with the messenger of Allah. Alas for me. Ah, would that I had never taken such a one for friend. He verily led me astray from the Revelation of Allah after it had reached me.’ Satan was ever man’s deserter in the hour of need” (al-Furqaan 27-29).

“On the Day when their faces are turned over in the fire, they say, ‘Oh would that we had obeyed Allah and had obeyed His messenger. ‘ And they say, ‘Our Lord, we obeyed our leaders and great men, and they misled us from the Way Our Lord, give them double torment and curse them with a mighty curse“‘ (al-Ahzaab 66-68).

“(On the Day) when those who were followed disown those who followed them, and they behold the doom, and all their aims collapse with them. And those who were but followers will say, ‘If a return were possible for us, we would disown them even as they have disowned us.’ Thus will Allah show them their own deeds as anguish for them, and they will not emerge from the Fire” (al-Baqara 166-167).

Supporting or having love for the enemies of Allah will not aid the person at all in the Hereafter. He will be like the one who worshipped idols; the idols will not benefit him in the Hereafter. Such “Muslims” have practically taken the disbelieving people as their idols; they have preferred them to Allah, His messenger and the believers. Allah says, “He said, ‘You have chosen idols instead of Allah. The love between you is only in the life of the world. Then on the Day of Resurrection you will deny each other and curse each other, and your abode will be the Fire and you will have no helpers“‘ (al-Ankaboot 25). Instead, one’s love must be for the believers. Allah says, “Your friend (wali) can only be Allah and His messenger and those who believe, who establish worship and pay the poor-due, and bow down (in prayer). And whoever takes Allah and His messenger and those who believe for friends (will know that), lo, the party of Allah, they are the victorious” (al-Maaidah 55-56).

2.2 A Societal Law or Sunnah of Allah

The importance of attaining Allah’s love and giving one’s love to Allah from the point of view of the society as a whole should also be noted. In the Quran, Allah sets down many “laws” which apply to the workings of entire communities and societies. One famous law that is quoted by many Muslims is from the verse, “Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves” (al-Rad 11). Another law that Allah shows in the Quran is that any community of Muslims who in fact do not love Allah does not deserve to exist on this earth. Furthermore, this love of Allah that they must possess is one that is demonstrated by their deeds, including their willingness to sacrifice for the sake of Allah.

The relevant verse concerning this law is, “O you who believe, whoever of you becomes a renegade from his religion, know that in his stead Allah will bring a people whom He loves and who love Him, humble toward the believers, stem toward the disbelievers, striving in the way of Allah and not the reproach of any one who reproaches” (al-Maaidah 54). This verse shows that if the Muslim community turns away from the religion of Allah, does not love Allah, is not soft to the believers nor stem against the unbelievers, nor does it strive in the way of Allah without any fear of any harm, then it does not deserve to be left to exist and Allah will change that community and bring another people who do fit that description.

Actually all of the deeds mentioned in this verse are simply an extension of having a love for Allah and, if a community is without those characteristics, it is a clear sign that they do not truly love Allah. Loving Allah also implies loving those things that Allah loves and disliking those things that Allah dislikes. Put into practice, this would include being soft and loving toward His believers and stem toward those who do not believe in Him. Similarly, when this love is put into action, it implies the willingness to stand up or sacrifice for the sake of the Beloved.

This verse from surah al-Maaidah is, in fact, closely related to the hadith under discussion here. The beginning of this hadith qudsi states, “Whoever shows enmity to a friend (Ar., wali) of Mine, I shall be at war with him.” The verse in question states the law for the community as a whole but this hadith states the same law for the individual. In the former case, the community will be removed by a new community and, in the latter case, the individual will have Allah declare war upon him which means that he will be ruined. So in this case, the destruction of those who oppose the true believers while giving wala or love and loyalty to the unbelievers (as opposed to the believers) is not just a societal sunnah (“law of creation”) but it applies to the individual also.

3. “My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have imposed upon him.”

After mentioning that no one should oppose the devoted servants of Allah, Allah then gives a description of those devoted servants or auliyaa. The root of the word al-mawaala (from which the word auliyaa is derived) is “to come closer”. Therefore, the real “devoted servants” or auliyaa of Allah are those who work to get closer to Allah by performing the deeds that take them closer to Him; and the true enemies of Allah are those who go farther away from Allah by performing those deeds that take them farther away from Him.

It is clear from this hadith that those who claim to love Allah and claim to get closer to Allah but at the same time do not follow the commands of Allah as stated by His messenger are actually lying– either to themselves out of ignorance or knowingly to everyone. This was the case with the polytheists who claimed to be getting closer to Allah by worshipping the intercessors that they invented. Allah says, “Surely pure religion is for Allah only. And those who choose protecting friends beside Him (say): We worship them only that they may bring us near unto Allah. Lo, Allah will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Lo, Allah guides not him who is a liar, an ingrate” (al-Zumar 3).

The same is true for the Jews and Christians who claim to be the beloved “children” of God while at they same time they deny the messengers of God and the clear teachings of those messengers as found in their own scriptures. Allah says about them, “The Jews and Christians say: We are sons of Allah and His loved ones. Say: Why then does He chastise you for your sins? No, you are but mortals of His creating. He forgives whom He wills and chastises whom He wills. Allah’s is the Sovereignty of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them. And unto Him is the journeying. O people of the scripture, now has Our messenger come to you to make things plain after an interval (of cessation) of the messengers, lest you should say: There came not unto us a messenger of cheer nor one who warned. Now has a messenger of cheer and one who warns come unto you. Allah is able to do all things” (al-Maaidah 18-19).

Al-Shaukaani points out that the term, “getting closer” to Allah implies that the action is being done with pure sincerity. This is because if a person does not worship Allah purely and sincerely, he cannot be considered getting closer to Allah. He then says that a person who performs the obligatory deeds only to avoid the punishment from Allah has not performed the deed in the best manner that will take him closest to Allah.

3.1 The Importance of Obligatory Deeds

This hadith makes it clear that the most important deeds that a person can perform to take himself closer to Allah are the deeds that Allah Himself has made obligatory upon His servants. Allah is the One who determined that His slaves must perform these deeds and, as is made clear here, He is most pleased by those deeds. Previously, based on a verse from the Quran, there was a discussion of three categories of Allah’s auliyaa. However, another way of categorizing the auliyaa can be found in this particular hadith. In this manner, the auliyaa are divided into two groups: those who perform the obligatory deeds and those who perform both the obligatory deeds as well as the voluntary deeds ..

As just mentioned, the first group gets closer to Allah by fulfilling the obligatory duties. This includes avoiding the forbidden deeds as that is a type of obligation from Allah. These are known as the “companions of the right hand” (see al-Waaqiah 38). The performance of the obligatory duties is important and beloved to Allah. Umar ibn al-Khattaab said, “The most virtuous deed is to perform the deeds Allah has made obligatory and remain away from what Allah has forbidden accompanied with a pure intention in Allah’s sight.’.. Umar ibn Abdul Azeez also said, “The best acts of worship is the fulfilling of what is obligatory and the abstaining from what is forbidden.” In fact, Allah has made those deeds obligatory upon the believer in order for the believer to get closer to Allah and to earn Allah’s pleasure and mercy.

The obligatory deeds are like the foundation or roots while the voluntary deeds are like the branches. If a person first fulfills those foundations, he is demonstrating his foundation of being willing to submit to Allah. Hence, that is the best way that he earns his Lord’s approval. However, if one does not first fulfill those deeds that Allah has made obligatory, one does not demonstrate his willingness to submit and obey whatever Allah has ordered. Therefore, the first step must be the fulfillment of the obligatory duties.

Some people do not seem to understand that Allah obligated specific deeds as a mercy to the believers. By performing the obligatory deeds the person actually comes closer to Allah and becomes a better person. Allah says, for example, about the prayers, “Verily the prayers restrain one from evil and lewdity” (al-Ankaboot 45). And about the fast “O you who believe, fasting has been prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you in order for you to attain God-consciousness (taqwa)” (alBaqara 183). About the zakat, Allah has said, “Take alms from their wealth in order to purify them and sanctify them by that” (al-Tauba 103). One of the deeds that brings the person closest to Allah is the prayer. Allah says in the Quran, “But prostrate yourself and draw near (unto Allah)” (al-Alaq 19). The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, “The closest a servant is to his Lord is when he is prostrating.” (Recorded by Muslim.)

The obligatory deeds first and foremost include the obligatory deeds of the heart. These include having a pure intention, being honest and sincere, having patience, being repentant, being free of envy and hatred toward the believers, being free of pride and arrogance, being free of superstitions and so forth.

4. “My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him.”

4.1 The Importance of Voluntary Deeds

As alluded to earlier, the second group moves even closer to Allah by not only fulfilling the obligatory duties but by also additionally performing the voluntary deeds (and these are numerous). When a person performs the obligatory deeds, he demonstrates his willingness to submit to Allah. In addition, he is doing what he needs to do to protect himself from Allah’s punishment. However, if on top of those deeds he also performs voluntary deeds, this demonstrates his sincerity to Allah and his true willingness to please Allah. This is no longer a matter of fulfilling a command from Allah or rescuing oneself from punishment. Now one is doing the acts to get even closer and become more beloved to Allah.

lbn Hajr points out that, in general, a person becomes beloved to another by doing more than the minimum or doing more than what is simply required. If a person, for example, returns money to another person and he also gives him some presents in addition, he is usually more beloved to the other person than the one who simply returned the money. The same aspect is true with respect to Allah, in a manner, of course, that is befitting of Allah and free of any imperfections.

The performance of voluntary deeds also includes staying away from the disliked acts. These people exert themselves to come even closer to their beloved Lord by performing more deeds of obedience for His sake and staying away from the acts that are simply disapproved of. There is ample evidence showing that the trUly pious person must stay away from those things that are simply disliked (that is, not strictly forbidden) as well as those matters that are simply doubtful. The Prophet (peace be upon
him) said, “Place between you and the forbidden acts a covering [or barrier] of permissible acts.” In another hadith found in this collection of al-Nawawi, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stated, “Leave what makes you doubt for what does not make you doubt.“(Ahmed)

Also the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, in yet another hadith in this collection by al-Nawawi, “That which is lawful is plain and that which is unlawful is plain and between the two of them are doubtful [or ambiguous] matters about which not many people are knowledgeable. Thus, he who avoids these doubtful matters clears himself in regard to his religion and his honor. But he who falls into the doubtful matters falls into that which is unlawful like the shepherd who pastures around a sanctuary, all but grazing therein. Verily every king has a sanctuary and Allah’s sanctuary is His prohibitions.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari, Muslim and others.)

Unfortunately, too many people consider the “legal” definition of makrooh (a disliked act), which states that it is an act that the person will be rewarded for avoiding and will not be punished for committing, and consider it permissible to engage in such actions. But the pious Muslim must look beyond such a legal definition and consider the act from another point of view: what is the value of that act in Allah’s sight. When looked at from this angle, the nature of the disliked acts, although they are not forbidden, radically changes. The person who is seeking the love of Allah can place no value in such acts and can receive no joy or benefit from performing them. Therefore, he does his best to remain away from them although, according to the jurists, they are not strictly forbidden.

Furthermore, when a person involves himself in the disliked deeds, he may very easily fall into committing the forbidden acts. The case is different with those people who avoid even the disliked deeds. If these people should slip, as all humans are apt to do, then, most likely, they will simply slip into the disliked deeds and not fall all the way to those deeds that are greatly hated by Allah.

Another important aspect of the voluntary deeds that, unfortunately, some people tend to forget or neglect is that they make up for the shortcomings of the obligatory deeds that the person performs. It can be argued that very few Muslims, if any, perform the prayer in the manner that they are supposed to perform it. Many Muslims move about while praying, fidgeting with their clothing, looking here and there.

And, more importantly, for many of them, their hearts are not attuned to the prayers. Satan comes to them and makes them think about almost everything except what they should be concentrating on in their prayers. Again, this is the case with many Muslims, even with some who are righteous. But the difference between the righteous and the lackadaisical Muslims is that the righteous make up for such shortcomings by performing voluntary prayers (or deeds in general) that take them closer to Allah. In another hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him), it is clear that this principle is true for all of the actions that a person performs.

Abu Huraira reported that the Messenger of Allah said, “The first deeds for which the slave of Allah will be held accountable on the Day of Judgment will be his prayers. If they are in order, he will have prospered and been successful. But if they are wanting, he will have failed and been a loser. If there is some shortcoming in his obligatory prayers, the Lord will say, ‘See if My slave has any voluntary prayers with which may be completed that which was wanting in his obligatory prayers.’ Then the rest of his deeds will be judged in like fashion.

Therefore, it is no wonder that such people, who perform the voluntary deeds (which includes staying away from the disliked deeds), receive the love of Allah in both this life and in the Hereafter. Allah says about such a servant, “My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him.”

In this haditb, Allah describes those persons who have earned His love. This makes this a most important badith. This is the goal of the true believers: to gain the love, mercy, pleasure and forgiveness of Allah. In other words, the goal is to become a wali of Allah. Unfortunately, some Muslims do not seem to realize what a great blessing this achievement is. No one can take the person’s religion or Allah’s love from him. It is, indeed, the greatest blessing. Anyone, by Allah’s leave, may destroy whatever another person possesses and prizes of this world. But no one can ever touch his religion and his relationship to Allah. This love of Allah leads to all the good in the heavens and the earth.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “If Allah loves a slave, He announces to Gabriel, ‘Verily Allah loves so and so, so love him.’ Then Gabriel loves him and he announces to the inhabitants of the heavens, ‘Verily Allah loves so and so, so love him. ‘ Then the inhabitants of the heavens love him. And then be is granted the acceptance of the people on earth.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

Allah Himself will never take this special relationship and love away from the person as long as that person is sincere to Allah. Indeed, in His ever abundant mercy to His creatures, He turns to them whenever they turn to Him. This is made clear in another hadith qudsi in which Allah says, “I am as My servant expects Me to be. I am with him when he makes mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself. And if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembly better than it. And if he draws near to Me a hand’s span, I draw near to him a forearm’s length. And if he draws near to Me a forearm’s length, I draw near to him an arm’s length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

When a believer gets to that state, then all the minor things of this life become irrelevant. Any harm that should come to him, any worldly disaster or the like thereof, will not mean anything to him as long as he knows that by his actions he is pleasing Allah. Many unbelievers of today are fond of saying, “As long as I have my health I cannot complain,” but to the true believer even his health is not of everlasting importance. Indeed, to him, his health is simply an important resource and blessing from Allah to be used for the sake of Allah. But if his health and everything else of this world is taken from him and he is left in a most miserable condition, he will still have happiness as long as he knows that the deeds that he is performing are those that Allah wants him to perform.

This puts the believer on a completely different level from the rest of humanity who are not blessed with the knowledge of their Lord and Creator. This level comes when the person tastes the sweetness of faith, when he comes to realize and experience the real meaning of “There is no one worthy of worship except Allah.” This sweetness of faith is a type of paradise in this world, as ibn Taimiya once said, “There is a paradise in this world and the one who does not enter it will not enter the paradise in the next world.” This paradise is that which is achieved by performing the obligatory deeds followed by the voluntary deeds, all done for the sake of Allah and according to the revelation from Allah.

4.2 Allah’s Mercy as Exhibited in the Voluntary Deeds

Allah, the Creator and Fashioner of humans, has obligated certain deeds. Th’ose are deeds that are needed by all humans for the purification of their souls. Beyond those deeds, though, Allah has left the door wide open for individuals to concentrate on those deeds that they are most inclined to. For example, some people are dedicated to the voluntary prayers. They receive great increases in their faith and benefit from them. They feel sorrow whenever they miss those prayers. Hence, they tend to them to the best of their ability. Those voluntary prayers- in addition to the general obligatory deeds- may be the way that they get closer to Allah. It may be the key to them entering Paradise. Others may be attracted to fasting, charity or the pilgrimage.

There are others who are more inclined to doing good toward others. They perform the obligatory deeds and then beyond that they spend their time tending to others’ needs. Those good voluntary deeds bring them closer to Allah and more beloved to Him. Yet others are attracted to voluntary jihad, teaching the religion, calling non-Muslims to Islam and so forth. When these people tend to those matters, they become the key by which they come closer to Allah and enter Paradise. Someone else might do a little of all of the different types of voluntary deeds and that is what makes him beloved to Allah.

This reality is all by the mercy of Allah. Beyond the obligatory deeds, people are free to pursue those good voluntary deeds that they are most attracted to. There are so many areas of voluntary deeds that it seems inconceivable that a person could not find some voluntary deed or deeds that he would like to perform in order to get closer to Allah. Allah’s path to paradise is wide enough to accommodate all of those different leanings. However, this is all dependent on the individual first fulfilling, in general, the obligatory deeds. If the person does not do that, then he may not be on the straight path at all.

4.3 A Possible Source of Confusion

It seems that this hadith is saying that the most beloved deeds to Allah are the obligatory deeds but a person does not become beloved to Allah until he performs the voluntary deeds. It seems that a person should become beloved to Allah simply by the performance of the obligatory deeds without any need to also perform voluntary deeds. This point has been clarified by a number of commentators. Ibn Hajr, for example, responds by saying that what is meant by the voluntary deeds here are those deeds that complement and complete the obligatory deeds. In other words, as was noted earlier, it is by the voluntary deeds that one truly completes and fulfills the shortcomings in the obligatory deeds. Hence, the obligatory deeds are never really completed without the voluntary deeds. Therefore, it is through the two of them that one becomes beloved to Allah.

That response, though, does not seem satisfactory. Indeed, alShaukaani has gone to great lengths to show that it is not the correct explanation. He states that a person performs the obligatory deeds because he knows that they are obligatory and if he does not perform them, he may be punished. That, in itself, is sufficient to drive him to perform those deeds. As for the voluntary deeds, he knows that there is not going to be any punishment awaiting him if he does not perform them. When he performs the voluntary deeds, he is doing so simply to get closer to Allah and not because they are a must upon him. Hence, he is doing them out of his love to get closer to Allah. The reward for that deed is a special love from Allah, even though the obligatory deeds receive a greater reward.

Like ibn Hajr before him, al-Shaukaani also states that such a phenomenon can be witnessed among humans. Suppose a person has two slaves or servants. The first of them fulfills what the master requires of him. Therefore, the master is pleased with him because he has no shortcoming in his performance. However, the second one does what his master asks of him and, beyond that, he does other things that he knows that his master would like. The only reason he does those deeds is because he knows that they are pleasing to his master. The master then will be pleased with the second slave and he will also have a special love for him due to those extra actions that he is performing.

This is the love, al-Shaukaani argues, that this hadith is referring to. It is the additional love that Allah bestows upon a person for doing deeds that Allah has not obligated of him. The slave is doing more than what is required of him simply to please Allah more. Therefore, this is a different type of love. The one who performs the obligatory deeds is beloved to Allah. There is no question about that. But the one who goes beyond that is even more beloved to Allah and gets the special love from Allah that is described herein. Hence, there are two types of love that come about due to two different cause. But, it should not be forgotten, that the first cause is a prerequisite for the second type of love. In other words, if a person does not perform the obligatory deeds, he will not receive the first or second type of love, even if he performs numerous voluntary deeds. The result of this second type of love is what is described in the following portion of the hadith: Allah becomes the person’s hearing by which he hears and so forth.

5. “When I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his foot with which he walks.”

The most obvious question that arises from these words of the hadith is: How does Allah become a person’s hearing, seeing and so forth? This question has been answered in a number of ways. lbn Hajr presents seven different interpretations for this passage. There are yet others that ibn Hajr did not mention. These include the following (note that some of them may be overlapping:

(1) It is a kind of metaphor. Its meaning is, “I become like his seeing and hearing with respect to his being influenced by My command. He loves to obey Me in a way as strong as his love for the limbs of his body.” AlShaukaani states that this interpretation is far-fetched. It requires a severe twisting of the meaning of the words and it also contradicts another narration which states, “And by Me he hears and by Me he sees.”

(2) The person’s whole being becomes busy with what is related to Allah. Hence, he never listens to anything except what is pleasing to Allah. He never looks at anything except what is pleasing to Allah and so forth. This is the understanding of al-Khattaabi and al-Daawoodi. Al-Shaukaani states that this is better than the first interpretation.

(3) The person makes Allah his goal and purpose and, therefore, it is as if Allah has become the person’s hearing, seeing and so forth. Al-Shaukaani argues that this interpretation makes no sense. It virtually robs the phrases of the hadith from any significance whatsoever. For example, there would be no significance in mentioning leg and hand if this were the correct interpretation.

(4) Allah supports His wali in the same way that a person uses his hands and legs to fight his enemy. According to al-Toofi, there is agreement among the scholars who are respected that this hadith is allegorical and it is in reference to Allah’s helping and supporting His wali. Al-Shaukaani, though, argues that Allah is much greater than being compared to the weak arms and legs that a human possesses to fight off his enemy. Allah’s help is much greater than what an individual could ever possibly muster by those limbs.

(5) Allah protects the person’s hearing to the point that he only hears what is good and pleasing to Allah. This interpretation requires taqdeer (assuming some missing words) and is, in essence, similar to the second interpretation stated above.

(6) A sixth meaning is a little more detailed than the fifth. In this interpretation, Allah becomes what the person listens to or hears, sees and so forth. In other words, the person only listens to “My remembrance”; he only finds pleasure in reciting “My book”; he only sees the splendor of “My creation” and so forth. Al-Shaukaani finds this interpretation even more farfetched than the previous interpretation. He argues that if this is the understanding, what is one going to say about Allah becoming the person’s leg and hand? Furthermore, he argues, this interpretation is not compatible with other authentic narrations of this hadith.

(7) A seventh interpretation, that ibn Hajr ascribes to al-Khattaabi, is that these words refer to how quickly Allah responds to such a person’s supplications which he makes by means of the limbs mentioned in this hadith. Al-Shaukaani quickly brushes this interpretation aside by saying that it has no relevance to the wording of the hadith itself.

(8) An eighth interpretation is given by Muhammad Rasheed Ridha. According to him, this hadith implies that Allah turns evil and lewdness away from His wali. He guides His wali to what pleases Him. It is by this guidance and blessing that a person now hears, sees, grasps, walks and ponders. He no longer follows his desires and lusts but he follows that guidance coming from Allah.

(9) In this author’s view, ibn Rajab’s explanation seems to be one of the best. According to him, Whenever anyone strives to get close to Allah by performing the obligatory deeds and then the voluntary deeds, he will come closer to Him and it will raise him from the degree of faith to the degree of ihsaan and he will begin to worship Allah with an aura of [His] presence and watching as if he is seeing Him and his heart is filled with the recognition of Allah, His love, His grandeur, fear of Him, reverence for Him and His greatness. He will become delighted by His presence and crave turning to Him until his heart is so filled with the clear recognition of Him that it will be as if he is seeing Him with his eyes.

When the heart is filled with the greatness of Allah, there is no room in the heart for anything else. The slave gets to a point where he abandons his own desires and cravings and only desires those things that Allah is pleased with. At that time, when he looks, he looks for the sake of Allah; when he speaks, he speaks for the sake of Allah; when he listens, he listens for the sake of Allah. This seems to be a plausible meaning for Allah’s words in this hadith, “I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes … ” Allah describes the pious people for whom He becomes their eyes, ears and so on, in the Quran. They are the type of people who do not even turn to the evil that they see. They are completely numb to the effects of others’ sins. This does not mean that they do not fulfill their duty of ordering good and eradicating evil but it means that they cannot even be tempted by the evil around them. Allah says about them in the Quran, “And when they hear vanity, they withdraw from it and say: Unto us our works and unto you your works. Peace be unto you. We desire not the ignorant” (al-Qasas 55). And, “The faithful slaves of the Beneficent are those who walk on the earth modestly and when the foolish ones address them answer: Peace” (al-Furqaan 63)

This refers to the real essence of pure tauheed. The complete meaning of “la ilaaha illa-llaah” means that the person devotes all of his love, hope, fear and obedience to Allah only. If the person’s heart is completely filled with this tauheed, then there is no love or hatred left in his heart save the love for that which Allah loves and the hatred for that which Allah hates. When a person reaches that state, all of his actions will be in the service and obedience of Allah. In fact, sins only arise when the person loves something Allah hates or dislikes something Allah loves– even if just for a fleeting moment. At moments like that, the person will commit a sin; that is, he will perform an act which is not pleasing to Allah. He will, at that moment, prefer the desires of his own soul over the love and fear of Allah. This is actually a type of deficiency with respect to the complete and obligatory tauheed.

(10) Al-Shaukaani offers his own interpretation and supports it with a great deal of evidence. He says that the meaning is that Allah supports those limbs mentioned in this hadith by His Light. By this Light, Allah makes bright the path of guidance for the person. The Quran states that Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. Furthermore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to make the following supplication in his prayers, “O Allah, place light in my heart, light in my sight, light in my hearing, light on my right side, light on my left side, light above me, light below me, light in front of me and light behind me. And make for me a light.” (Recorded by alBukhari and Muslim.)

There is nothing to prevent Allah from supporting His servant by His light such that the person becomes clean of the impurities of this animal life and walks on a plane that is more akin with the spiritual world. He hears by Allah’s light. He sees by Allah’s light. He grasps by Allah’s light. He walks by Allah’s light. Such an occurrence is not inconceivable with respect to Allah. This means that the true wali hears with the help of light from Allah. Hence, he does not hear like others hear. With respect to sensory matters, for example, he senses aspects that the others simply do not sense. With respect to the limbs, for example, they now have strength or ability that goes beyond what most people have. This interpretation, al-Shaukaani also argues, is most consistent with the other authentic narrations of this hadith that state, “By Me he hears, by Me he sees, by Me he grasps and by Me he walks.”

5.1 The Path of Purification According to the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him)

This hadith describes how the person becomes beloved to Allah. In reality, this hadith, therefore, is describing how a person can purify himself. It is by purification of one’s soul and heart that one becomes close to Allah and becomes truly successful. As Allah says, “The Day [of Judgment] whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except him who comes to Allah with a clean, sound heart” (al-Shuaraa 88-89). Elsewhere, after stating ten different oaths, Allah says, “Certainly, one who purifies himself has succeeded. And certainly one who corrupts himself has failed” (al-Shams 9-1 0).

The purification of the soul is one of the main reasons for which the Prophet (peace be upon him) was sent. Allah says in the Quran, “He it is who sent among the unlettered ones a messenger from among themselves, reciting to them His verses, purifying them, and teaching them the Book and the Sunnah. And, verily, they had been in manifest error” (al-Jumuah 2)

This purification of the soul is, obviously, for the benefit of the human himself. It does not help or benefit Allah in the least. Since the Prophet (peace be upon him) was sent to purify the souls of the people, there can be no question that his method of purification of the soul is the method that is approved by Allah and that is pleasing to Allah. The path espoused by the Quran and sunnah is very clear and open for every human to follow. It basically is comprised of three components:

(1) The first step on the road to purification of the soul is to purify one’s beliefs and heart from any form of shirk or associating partners with Allah. One’s heart must possess the minimum of tauheed as described and discussed in the commentary to Hadith Number. Allah has said in the Quran, “O believers! Verily, the polytheists are impure” (al-Tauba 28). This is a spiritual impurity- which is the opposite of purification of the soul-and not a physical impurity. A hadith qudsi states, “I am the most self-sufficient and am in no need of having a partner. Whoever does a deed for My sake as well as for someone [or something] else will have that action rejected by Me with the one he associates [with Allah].” (Recorded by Muslim.)

This was the first step that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) took in purifying the souls of his Companions. Indeed, be was in Makkab for thirteen years virtually giving nothing but the message of tauheed. The heart must be purified first with tauheed before one can truly move on to anything else. If that is not done first, then all of the following steps will be in vain.

(2) The second obligatory step in purifying the soul and becoming beloved to Allah is the performance of the deeds that Allah has made obligatory upon the believers. (This goes band in band with the increase in imaan and tauheed.) This point is made very clearly in this hadith. Allah has said, “My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have imposed upon him.” As has already been stated, these obligatory acts help purify the person and rectify his behavior. The five daily prayers, the fasting of the month of Ramadhaan and the giving of zakat, for example, all help in purifying the person. Remaining away from adultery, alcohol and interest- to remain away from such acts is obligatory-all are necessary steps to keep a person pure and reformed.

Al-Toofi stated, The order to perform the obligatory duties is a strict one. The one who does not perform them falls into punishment. On both of these matters, the case of the voluntary deeds is different. They are similar to the obligatory deeds in that in both of them one earns a reward. However, the obligatory deeds are more complete. For that reason, they are more beloved to Allah and take one closer to Him. The obligatory deeds are like the foundation while the voluntary deeds are like the branches and the building. If a person fulfills the obligatory deeds in the way that they are commanded to be fulfilled, with proper respect and esteem by submitting to Him and demonstrating the greatness of His Lordship and submission of His worship, one gets closer to Him in the greatest way.

(3) The third step in the purification of one’s soul is the performance of the voluntary deeds after one has attended to the deeds that are obligatory upon him. These deeds include all of the deeds that are not strictly obligated and which have some sign that they are praiseworthy acts. These deeds are also at different levels of virtue. Some virtuous deeds were greatly emphasized by the Prophet (peace be upon him) while others were not so emphasized. In other words, some voluntary deeds are much more virtuous than others. The more virtuous a voluntary deed, the closer it takes a person to Allah.

Fareed states that one can understand from this hadith that if a person is lacking in his performance of the obligatory deeds– in the sense that he does not perform them and is lackadaisical with respect to them – but he performs many voluntary deeds, that will not lead him to becoming a beloved of Allah. One only comes closer to Allah by performing voluntary deeds after the person fulfills the obligatory deeds. This is the path of purification according to the ahl al-Sunnah. In fact, as ibn Hubairah pointed out, something can only be “extra” if the necessary or obligatory portions are fulfilled.

The above is the correct path of purification and getting closer to Allah. If anyone follows a path other than that path– of obeying and submitting to Allah by performing the obligatory and voluntary deeds- he is simply deceiving himself. If he claims that he is getting closer to Allah by another path, his claim is no different from that of the polytheists who claimed
that they were getting closer to Allah by worshipping their idols. Allah states their claim in the Quran, “Surely, the religion (worship and obedience) is to Allah alone. And those who take protectors and helpers besides him [say,] ‘We worship them only that they may bring us near to Allah. ‘ Verily, Allah will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Truly, Allah guides not him who is a liar, and a disbeliever” (al-Zumar 3)

It is very important to note that this path is not a path that necessarily takes a long amount of time or requires that the person passes through certain stages. A person can become one of the auliyaa of Allah very quickly by sincerity and devotion to Allah. This true sincerity and devotion may come after he performs only a few deeds. Indeed, from the outset, he may perform those deeds that are obligatory upon him and he becomes beloved to Allah. Then he continues on that path, with Allah guiding him to what is good and proper. This will be a sign that he is continuing as one of Allah’s auliyaa. This is part of the great mercy and blessings of Allah.

5.2 The Goal of Purification According to the Quran and Sunnah

When a person is seeking a path of purification, it is important that he recognize what is the goal of his purification. An incorrect goal can be very dangerous to his process of purification. The goal of Islamic purification is clear: the goal is to become as complete and truthful a servant of Allah that one can be. The goal of life is to worship and please Allah– and receive His pleasure in return. This is accomplished by strengthening one’s faith and humbly submitting to Allah through the obligatory and voluntary deeds. This submission includes the outward submission as well as a submission of the acts of the heart.

Allah has described the most noble of creation as His slaves and servants. This is the foremost praise that Allah has bestowed on any of the creation. Allah has said about the angels, for example, “To Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and on earth. And those who are near Him (the angels) are not too proud to worship Him, nor are they weary (of His worship)” (al-Anbiyaa 19). Allah also says, “The Messiah [Jesus] will never be so proud to rej ect being a slave to Allah, nor the angels who are near (to Allah). And whosoever rejects worshipping Him and is proud, then He will gather them all together unto Himself‘ (alNisaa 172).

Allah has described the Messenger of Allah Muhammad (peace be upon him) as His slave and servant in numernus places in the Quran. For example, Allah said, “Exalted be He who took His slave [Muhammad (peace be upon him)] for a journey by night from al-Masjid al-Haraam (in Makkah) to the farthest mosque (in Jerusalem), the area of which We have blessed, in order that We might show him some of Our signs. Verily, He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer” (al-Israa 1 )

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was the most purified of mankind. He was the most complete servant and slave of Allah. Through his teachings, he also purified his noble Companions. In his teachings, the Creator and the creation always remained distinct. There was never any merging of the two of them. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was always the slave and Allah was always the Lord. The two never became united into one. Such “unification” is not the purpose or goal of mankind. The purpose or goal, again, is to recognize Allah as the Lord and to worship Him alone. The goal is not to try to become Allah or try to become united with Allah.

5.3 The Path and Goal of Purification of the Sufis vis-a-vis the Way of the Sunnah.

Before beginning this discourse an important point needs to be made. Like all heretical groups, not all Sufis are the same. Indeed, not everyone who has a leaning toward Sufism is the same. Some are much more steeped in heretical beliefs and practices than others. The important point, though, is that once a person starts following a heresy or innovation, it becomes easier for him to start following a greater and worse heresy. This is a very dangerous path that can lead one to pure kufr and falling out of the fold of lslam. The only real way to save oneself from such a danger is to avoid all heresies and innovations, no matter how “small” they seem to be.

Historically and contemporarily speaking, it bas been the Sufis who claim to follow the path of purification.3 Non-Sufis may have studied law, hadith and so forth, but they, they claim, have concentrated on purifying the hearts and bringing people closer to Allah. This claim of theirs, though, needs to be studied. This hadith, in particular, is one of the main sources by which their claim may be evaluated in that this hadith is showing the path that one must follow in order to become beloved to Allah.

The next obvious question then is: What is the path of purification that is prescribed by the Sufis and how does that differ, if at all, from the way taught by the Quran and the sunnah? The path to become a wali of Allah is a lengthy and arduous journey for the Sufis. A person must pass from state to state. He must exert himself and go through specific spiritual exercises and routines before he can get to the exalted state of being a Sufi wali. That path starts with fulfilling obligatory deeds. However, in the second level, when the “student” moves on, al-Ghazzaali recommends that he only perform the obligatory deeds and not perform the voluntary deeds as there are more important matters to tend to.

Their path also entails many aspects that are not to be found in the Quran and sunnah. These include a type of zuhd (renunciation of the world) that is not found in the Quran or sunnah. One is also expected to practice a kind of monasticism where one retires from the relations of this world, even if one has a wife and children. Then they also have their own special forms of dhikr and rhythmic chanting, listening to songs and music as well as dancing. After all of these, one finally “witnesses” Allah. This, for them, is the essence of being a wali.

This is the path that al-Ghazzaali claimed no one could ever improve upon. In reality, it is a heretical path that is not related to the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Therefore, it will not lead to one becoming a beloved of Allah or a true wali as has been expressed in this hadith. As mentioned earlier, the goal of tazkiyyah (purification) according to the Quran and sunnah is to become as complete a servant of Allah as one can be. The goal of tazkiyyah among the Sufis is completely different. It is not the worship of Allah that is their goal. Instead, it is either the witnessing of Allah in this life, getting knowledge directly from Allah (which makes them no longer in need of the Quran and sunnah), the supposed temporary unification with Allah or the complete loss of one’s humanity in the realization that
everything is Allah.

For example, the widely accepted Abu Haamid al-Ghazzaali wrote that al-mukaashifah (“unveiling” of Allah) refers to “a light that appears in the heart when it is purified and cleansed of all base qualities.” Hence, it is a result and goal of the process of tazkiyyah according to the Sufi al-Ghazzaali. He then says that this light opens to the person many realities, including all of Allah’s attributes and qualities. This light gives the person the knowledge of prophecy and how the angel brought the revelation to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). All of the dominions of the heavens and the earth will become clear and exposed to the person who has experienced this unveiling.

If a person’s goal is simply to witness the reality of Allah or to realize that everything is actually only Allah, once he has achieved that goal, what is the purpose of continuing to perform deeds or acts of worship of Allah? Many Sufis themselves answered this question. They claimed that they were no longer obliged to pray or perform any of the acts of worship because they had already reached their goal. Furthermore, all the forbidden becomes permissible because the purpose of the forbidden is to help the person reach his goal.

For the pantheistic Sufis, the question then becomes: When a person comes to the realization that everything is Allah, what is the purpose of good deeds or acts of worship? Everything is Allah and Allah is entirely perfect and good. There is then no such thing as evil or sin. Hence, ibn Arabi, one of the
most extreme of the pantheists and monists, once said in well-known lines of poetry,
“The Lord is reality and the slave is [the same] reality
Woe to me, then who is the one who is
responsible for doing deeds?
If you say, ‘The slave,’ but he is the Lord
And if you say, ‘The Lord,’ then who can burden
him with responsibility?”

Ibn Taimiya wrote, The knowledgeable shaikh Kamaal al-Deen al-Maraaghi, the shaikh of his time, narrated to me, when he came and it reached him what [the Sufis] say about tauheed: I read some of what they say of al-Afeef al-Tilimisaani [the leading Sufi of his time] and I found him in contradiction with the Quran and sunnah. When I mentioned that to him, he said, “The Quran does not contain tauheed. In fact, all of it is shirk. Whoever follows the Quran will not achieve tauheed.” I said to him, “In your people’s opinion, what is the difference between [having sexual intercourse with] a wife, a non-related woman and a sister. Or are they all the same?” He said, “The people who are veiled [from the truth] believe that they are forbidden [that is, to have sexual intercourse with a non-related woman or one’s sister]. The( are forbidden for them. But for us, they are not forbidden.”

These errant results are all the by product of an errant path and an errant goal of purification. After making some of the above points, Fareed concluded, We have presented this clear kufr- and quoting kufr is not in itself kufr- so that it may be made clear to our brethren how innovated methodologies take their followers away and where the path of misguidance leads its adherents. [We also presented it] to demonstrate the purity of the way of the salaf and how their path is the path of safety and success in this life as it is also the path to Paradise, for it is the path of the prophets and those who followed in their footsteps.

5.4 This Hadith Does not Lend Support to the Sufi Concepts of Huloolor Ittihaad.

Unfortunately, this hadith is sometimes used to prove a belief that is clear kufr (blasphemy) or heresy. Some Sufis try to use this hadith as evidence for their concepts of fanaa (“annihilation and loss of oneself in God”), hulool (“incarnation in God”) and ittihaad (“union with Allah”). They argue that this hadith states that Allah is becoming one’s vision, hearing and so forth. Hence, the person must be becoming one with Allah. Through “spiritual exercises” and grace from Allah, a wali becomes one with Allah.

Although this thought is quite common among Sufis, it clearly goes against the teachings of the Quran and sunnah. In reality, this hadith is an argument against them. The hadith makes a clear distinction between the Creator Allah and the created wali. At the beginning, Allah makes it clear that there are people who may oppose His auliyaa. Those auliyaa are different from Allah. Hence, there is the existence of the Protector and those He protects.

The remainder of the hadith states, “Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him; and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. ..” If the person becomes one with Allah or Allah transforms Himself into the person, how is that the human is still asking of Allah and seeking refuge in Him? Furthermore, who is it that Allah does not want to harm by taking his soul at death? It is not Allah but it is the human who is separate and distinct from the Creator. This demonstrates that no matter how pious a wali becomes, he will always be dependent upon Allah. He will still have to turn to Allah for help and will still have to seek refuge in Allah. He will not have some superhuman powers that, by his own will and power, he can do what he wishes. Instead, still, nothing good or bad can occur to him except by the will of Allah. However, he will be blessed by the fact that he is close to Allah and, hence, Allah will protect him and help him when he needs Allah’s help and protection.

6. “Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him; and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it.”

Obviously Allah is able to give the slave whatever he desires without any need for the slave to ask for it. But by being asked and granting, Allah becomes even more beloved to the slave and this moves the slave that much closer to Allah. This hadith proves that the person who performs the obligatory and voluntary deeds and remains away from the forbidden and disliked deeds will be honored with a special place with respect to Allah. Allah’s love will cover him so much that if he asks anything, Allah will surely grant it to His beloved slave. Similarly, if the slave seeks refuge in Allah, Allah will give him refuge and respite. The Prophet (peace be upon him) emphasized this point when he said, “There are from the slaves of Allah people who, if they were to make an oathupon Allah, He would certainly fulfill it.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari.)

In many cases, the pious prefer to bear patiently the afflictions of this world and hope that by doing so they will receive their rewards from Allah. Such was the case with the Companion Saad ibn Abu Waqqaas who had lost his sight and was told by his friends that he should ask Allah to return his sight. His reply to them was, “The decree of Allah is more beloved to me than my eyesight.”

Some of the early scholars stated that Allah knows what is in the best interest of His slaves. Sometimes a believer will ask for something while Allah knows that what he asks for is not the best for him. Therefore, Allah does not answer that supplication but instead gives him something that is better than that in both this life and the Hereafter. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated, “There is no Muslim who supplicates Allah with a supplication that does not contain anything sinful or asks for the ties of kinship to be broken save that Allah gives him one of three things: either He will give him what he asks for soon, or He will delay it for him for the Hereafter or He will keep a similar evil away from him.” (Recorded by Ahmad)

Furthermore, one should not be confused by the fact that many pious people might supplicate to Allah and their prayers are not answered. According to al-Shaukaani, this hadith is talking about the auliyaa of Allah and this is one the highest level one can achieve. There are many levels of piety and goodness. Those of lower levels may not be granted the same blessings as the auliyaa mentioned in this hadith.

6.1 What is the Benefit of Asking Allah

Al-Shaukaani poses the following question: What is the point of actually asking Allah for something or seeking refuge in Him when He already knows what is in the soul of the person and He can fulfill those needs without the person resorting to such asking, especially those who are His auliyaa and who have a special relationship with Him? Al-Shaukaani offers the following points in response to this question:
First, when Allah gives after the person has asked, the person realizes that it is Allah who has responded to his supplication. This realization and lofty
experience– that Allah has responded to his prayers— brings him a greater
joy than the joy that came from what Allah gave him. This encourages him to do even more good deeds as he now realizes how Allah responds to him when he gets closer to Allah.

Second, supplication is one of the greatest forms of worship, as was discussed earlier in this work. Hence, all the benefits of such prayers would be lost to the person if Allah would give him before he even supplicates to Allah.
Third, the wali will be freeing himself from the arrogance of not praying to Allah. Allah has said in the Quran, “Verily, those who scorn My worship will surely enter Hell in humiliation” ( Ghaafir 60). According to the scholars of Quranic interpretation, “My worship” here is in reference to supplicating to Allah.
Fourth, supplications are one of the “causes” that lead to certain effects in this world. If the person does not follow such a cause, he will not be granted
the desired result.

7. “And I do not hesitate to do anything as I hesitate to take the soul of the believer, for he hates death and I hate to harm him.”

Allah has decreed death for every individual. Allah says in the Quran, “Every soul shall taste death” (ali-Imraan 185). Death is when the soul actually leaves the body. According to ibn Raj ab, “This only occurs with greatly intense pain. It is the greatest pain that afflicts the slave in this world.” This hadith demonstrates that a person may be one of Allah’s auliyaa yet, at the same time, he still hates and fears death. This hatred of death, in itself, does not remove him from being a wali.

Note that this is the real death of a human, where the soul is taken by the angels from the physical body of the person. This is not to be confused with the near-death experiences that many people talk about today. Such people who supposedly have “come back from the dead” were not dead at all. And, most likely, the visions that they saw in their “death” states- that of the white light at the end of a tunnel, the feeling of tranquillity- are nothing but tricks from Satan to convince the person that he is living a good life and that he has nothing to fear when death actually comes to him.

Some members of the early generations of Muslims preferred to strive their best at the time of death. Umar ibn Abdul Aziz said, “I do not wish for the harshness of death to be made easy for me. It is the last act for the believer by which [sins] may be obliterated.” Others feared that final test and they prayed to Allah to make it easy for them. And if Allah wills for death to be easy for a slave, He makes it so.

Al-Shaukaani points out that the hatred for death could be for a number of reasons and none of the reasons must necessarily be excluded from the implication of this hadith. One may hate death due to the hardships that usually precede death. One may also hate death because it implies parting from one’s beloved, family, wealth and friends whom one loves for the sake of Allah.

The hatred for death alluded to in this hadith may also refer to the fear that every believer should have toward Allah. He should fear that he did not please Allah in this world and that Allah will hold him accountable for even the smallest sins that he committed in this world. He may fear because he is not satisfied with the deeds he performed or with the repentance he made from some deeds. These kinds of fear are in the heart of every believer. But when the actual time of death comes, the believer will be given the glad tidings of whaf is to come and his situation will change. He will then look forward to what is to come to him and his fear will be turned into tranquillity by the descending angels.

In the two Sahibs, it is recorded that the Prophet (peace be upon him) Said, “When the believer reaches the time of death, he is given the glad tidings of pleasure and honor from Allah. Then there is nothing more beloved to him that what is in front of him. He loves [then] to meet Allah and Allah loves to meet him.” Muhammad ibn Kaab said, “The angel of death says to the one who is to die, ‘Peace be upon you, O devoted slave of Allah. Allah sends you greetings of peace.”‘ Then he read the following verse of the Quran, “Those [believers] whom the angels cause to die. They say: Peace be unto you. Enter the Garden because of what you used to do” (al-Nahl 32).

7.1 What is the Meaning of Allah Hesitating?

Hesitation, in general, implies that one is not sure about the deed that he is about to perform. This uncertainty gives rise to hesitance. Allah, though, has knowledge of all things and there seems to be no need for Allah ever to hesitate in any act that He does. Therefore, what is meant by Allah hesitating in this hadith? Once again, this question has been responded to in a number of ways. Ibn Hajr presents four explanations. This author knows of at least eight explanations. These include:

(1) A person may be about to die due to an illness that he has. However, he supplicates to Allah and Allah removes that disease and hardship from him. This action is like a “hesitation” in that the deed was about to take place but then Allah decreed not to have that deed take place. However, when the person’s time is due, he will then pass away without any delay.

(2) A second interpretation is that Allah is saying, “I never send My messenger over and over like I do when I send him to one of My believing servants.” Some say that the hesitation is on the part of the angel while Allah ascribes it to Himself. Some argue that the angel has mercy upon the slave and his attachment to this world. However, when he remembers Allah’s command, he fulfills the command. This hesitation out of mercy for the human is what is being referred to in this hadith. This interpretation, though, distorts the meaning of the words itself and implies a completely different meaning. Furthermore, there is no hesitation on the part of the angel because he does actually take the soul at its destined time.

(3) Since death comes with such harshness and since it is a must for every human, Allah hates to harm and hurt the believer and therefore He calls his act “hesitation” on His part with respect to the believers.

(4) This hadith is addressed to humans and put in a fashion that they would understand. Ibn Hajr states, for example, when a father wants to hit his son to keep him from some wrongdoing, his compassion for his son makes him hesitate just a little. However, when he remembers the overall need of what he is going to do, he goes ahead and hits his child. Allah has expressed taking his wali’ s soul in this fashion so that its meaning could be clear to everyone: Although Allah does not wish to harm His wali, the overall good of taking His wali’s soul must take precedence. Therefore, He causes His wali to die.

(5) lbn Hajr quotes al-Karamaani as stating that this hadith implies that Allah takes the soul of the wali slowly, softly and in stages, as opposed to how the soul of other humans are taken. This is what is meant by the “hesitation” on the part of Allah and the act is referred as “hesitation” in order to stress this aspect of it.

(6) lbn al-Salaah .stated that the meaning is not that Allah hesitates at all. Instead, Allah takes the soul of the believer in a way that is similar to one who is hesitating when he is doing something that he dislikes. Because Allah loves the slave, He does not want to do anything to harm him but Allah knows that this matter must be fulfilled. However, this hadith makes it clear that Allah does not take the soul of a wali in order to disgrace the wali. Instead, He takes his soul in order to elevate the person and move him to a life which will be much greater and more pleasing to him.

(7) lbn Taimiya has offered the following explanation: When the servant becomes beloved to Allah, Allah fulfills his wants and needs, since he loves what Allah loves and hates what Allah hates. Therefore, Allah hates to harm this beloved of His. However, Allah has decreed that all souls must face death. This decree is also what Allah wants and it is something good. So Allah wants him to die, according to what He has decreed, yet He does not want to harm His servant through death. In one sense, then, death is desirable and, in another sense, it is undesirable. This is the reality of this “hesitation”. When something is wanted due to one reason and, at the same time, not wanted due to another, it is something about which one would hesitate.

(8) Al-Shaukaani takes a very different approach in interpreting this portion of the hadith. He begins by stating some important premises. He says that the “hesitation” must be of some benefit to the wali. This is because the hadith is a type of encouragement for people to reach the status of being a wali of Allah. If the wali’s death is no different from any other servant, then there would be nothing special concerning the wali.

He also states that all scholars recognize that nothing occurs but by the will of Allah. However, he argues, that they neglect the fact that Allah is able to do everything that He wills and there is nothing constraining Him. He may even change what He has decreed from one thing to another– although all of that was within His knowledge and His preordainment. He knew that certain causes would occur. This is why one’s supplications and prayers have some effect. Allah changes the decree because of one’s supplications. If there were no effect to prayers, and a person only received what is decreed, this would imply that Allah does not actually respond to the supplication. That conclusion contradicts what is stated in this hadith, “Were he to ask of Me, I would surely give it to him.” Indeed, there is a hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) that states, “Nothing repels the Decree except supplications and nothing increases one’s lifetime except righteousness.” The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to seek refuge in Allah from an evil decree. (Recorded by alBukhari.)

Allah says in the Quran, “Allah blots out what He wills and confirms [what He wills]. And with Him is the preserved tablet” (al-Rad 39). This means that Allah erases or confirms whatever He wills of what has been decreed– although all of that is according to His pre-knowledge and what He has already recorded in the Preserved Tablet. Thus, Allah may confirm or change a person’s life-span, sustenance and so forth. Allah also says, “And no aged man is granted a length of life, nor is a part cut off from his life, but it is in a Book. Surely, that is easy for Allah” (Faatir 11). This means there can be a change in a person’s life-span but that change has already been recorded in the Preserved Tablet. Allah also says, “He it is who created you from clay, and then has decreed a stated term. And there is with Him another determined term” (al-Anaam 2). This means that a person has two life-spans and Allah decrees and fulfills whichever He wills.

Then al-Shaukaani states that when “a person’s time comes,” there will be no advance or delay with respect to that time. However, before that time actually comes, it is permissible for Allah to delay or change that time due to a person’s prayer or righteous deeds. Similarly, He may advance that time due to some evil the person did, such as cutting off relations with relatives and so forth. The hadith that mention the fulfillment of a decree should be understood to imply that the person did not do anything special to delay that decree. The hadith that imply a change in a decree refer to cases where the person has done some act to change that decree. This is the only way to reconcile such apparently conflicting hadith.

After these premises, al-Shaukaani returns to the hadith. He states that the “hesitation” is expressing Allah’s love for His servant doing some deed that will delay his death. Allah is giving him a chance to supplicate or do some other deed that will prolong his life. If the slave does not do any such act and his time comes, Allah will then take his soul without any delay. So the “hesitation” is Allah waiting for the person to do some deed that will be a cause for Allah changing the decree and prolonging his life. (However, Allah did know beforehand whether the person would do such an act or not.) AlShaukaani states that this interpretation does not imply anything unacceptable of Allah nor does it contradict any other text.

Although al-Shaukaani took some twenty pages to completely present his argument, for his argument to be truly convincing, he would need stronger evidence to tie it directly to what is stated in this hadith. In conclusion, it is difficult to determine what is meant by Allah’s hesitation in this hadith. It is clear that Allah “hesitates” but none of the explanations offered by the scholars seems convincing enough to consider it definitely the correct and proper interpretation. Allah knows best.

8. Other Points Related to This Hadith

• Whoever opposes the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is actually opposing the auliyaa of Allah. This is a point that many heretical groups, including but not restricted to the Shiah, have neglected. It is clear from the Quran and hadith that the Companions were people of imaan and taqwa. If a person opposes them, then Allah is declaring war upon him.

• It was stated earlier that it is not possible to identify one of Allah’s auliyaa with certainty. If that is the case, how is that one must avoid having mutual animosity toward them when a wali cannot truly be identified in the first place? The key here is that the animosity is based on the person’s obedience to Allah and following the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Hence, the solution is that a Muslim should never oppose any other Muslim for something that he is doing in application of the Quran and sunnah. If he dislikes him for anything of that nature, then he is disliking him for his obedience to Allah and then the threat of this hadith may apply to him.

• This hadith shows the great status of one of Allah’s auliyaa. The wali moves from his own planning and management to the guidance of Allah, from his helping himself to Allah’s help and from his ability to Allah’s power and ability.

• lbn Taimiya wrote the following important points concerning Allah’s auliyaa, The auliyaa of Allah have no visible signs that distinguish them from others. It is not necessary that they wear a particular dress or shun some clothing that is permissible. They do not necessarily have to shave their heads, cut their hair short or clip it, as long as it is within the permissible limits. There is a saying that states that there are many pious men in plain clothing and many heretics in religious garb. The auliyaa of Allah may come from any sector of the ummah of Muhammad. What is required to be from them is that one stays away from every doctrine which is unjustified and eschew any practice which is immoral.

They may be scholars of the Quran, masters of knowledge, men of the sword and jihad, traders, craftsmen, industrialists, farmers and so forth. Allah has mentioned different groups of them in the verse, “Verily, your Lord knows that you do stand [to pray at night] a little less than twothirds of the night, or half the night, or a third of the night, and so do a party of those with you. And Allah measures the night and the day. He knows that you are unable to pray the whole night, so He has turned to you [in mercy]. So, recite of the Quran as much as may be easy for you. He knows that there will be some among you sick, others traveling through the land, seeking Allah’s bounty, and yet others fighting in Allah’s cause. So recite as much of the Quran as may be easy [for you], and perform the salaat, give the zakat, and lend to Allah and goodly loan. And whatever good you send before you for yourselves, you will certainly find it with Allah, better and greater in reward. And seek forgiveness of Allah. Verily, Allah is oft-forgiving, most merciful” (al-Muzzammil 20)

• It is very important to realize that the obligatory deeds which are beloved to Allah are not only the outward deeds but they also include the deeds of the heart. The obligatory deeds of the heart are indeed of greatest importance and it is those deeds that a person might find the hardest to fulfill. Al-Shaukaani quotes an ex-Hindu who converted to Islam as saying, “One night, my soul told me to go and destroy the idol that I was worshipping and I was able to destroy it. However, I have spent about twenty years trying to destroy the idol that is inside of me and I have not been able to do it. My struggle against it has not helped me at all.” AlShaukaani further adds that the most dangerous portions of a person’s faults and sins are respect to internal matters. One may be stopped from doing the visible sins by cowardice, shyness or the authorities. However, there are no such restraints on the internal sins which no one of mankind witnesses. When a person purifies the internal aspects, then he is truly ready to join the ranks of the foremost auliyaa of Allah.

• If there is some kind of conflict between performing an obligatory act and a recommended act- wherein they cannot both cannot be performed– the obligatory act takes precedence over the recommended act.

• It has been said, “Whoever occupies himself with the obligatory deeds instead of the voluntary deeds is excused. And whoever occupies himself with the voluntary deeds instead of the obligatory deeds is deceived.” In fact, it is one of the goals and deceptions of Satan that he gets the person occupied with some specific deeds while other deeds are much more important or much more virtuous. Unfortunately, many people do not realize that this is one of the traps of Satan. Such people have no idea, when they fall into it, that they are being tricked by Satan. They may think that since they are doing good deeds, there is no way that they are falling for one of the traps of Satan.

• Al-Shaukaani notes that there is nothing in this hadith that indicates that a person must continually perform voluntary deeds in order to get closer to Allah. Instead, he may perform them from time to time. Whenever he performs them, he is getting closer to Allah, even if he does not perform them on a continual basis. However, the more he performs them and the more continual he is, the closer he continues to get to Allah.

• Ibn Rajah points out that one of the greatest deeds by which one comes closer to Allah is the recitation and study of the Quran. Khabaab ibn alArat said, “Get as close to Allah as you can. And realize that you do not get closer to Him by anything that is more beloved to Him than His own speech.” In general, the one who loves another loves to hear the other’s speech. Uthmaan ibn Affaan said, “If your hearts become pure, you will never have enough of the words of your Lord.” Ibn Masood said, “Whoever loves the Quran loves Allah and His messenger.”

• Al-Bukhari recorded this hadith in the “Book of Riqaaq (those hadith which make the heart tender by affecting the emotions and feelings),” “Chapter on Humility”. He put it there because getting close to Allah by voluntary deeds is only done by those people who are completely humble and submissive to Allah. Similarly, having love for the beloved servants of Allah (His auliyaa) only comes about through humility and humbleness. Furthermore, some of Allah’s auliyaa are the poorest and most humble people of this world. One must love them and be kind to them and accept them as one’s brothers. This can only be accomplished by those who are humble and free of pride. Therefore, this hadith demonstrates the importance of having humility and humbleness. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stated, “Allah has revealed to me that you must be humble, so that no one boasts over another.” (Recorded by Muslim.)

• No matter what noble status a believer reaches, he will always be in need of Allah and in need of worshipping Him. As is shown in this hadith, he will still have to ask of Allah and he will still need to seek refuge in Allah. This was the way of the prophets and messengers. They always had hope in Allah. Yet, they also had a fear of Allah, even though they were from Allah’s most exclusive auliyaa. The Prophet (peace be upon him) himself said, “By Allah, although I am the Messenger of Allah, I do not know what He will do with me.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari.) If anyone believes that he has reached a level wherein he is no longer in need of Allah, beseeching Him and worshipping Him, he has become deluded. He will then be one of the enemies of Allah instead of one of His auliyaa. Indeed, as a person comes closer and closer to Allah, His reliance upon Allah, his understanding of his need for Allah and his worship of Him becomes even greater. Those are some of the signs that he is getting closer to Allah and is truly one of His Auliyaa’

• Everyone should realize that every act of disobedience is a type of fighting or war against Allah. Al-Hasan al-Basri once said, “O children of Adam, do you have the ability to fight against Allah. Whoever disobeys Allah is fighting against Him. But the greater the sin, the greater is the battle against Allah.” Allah describes the people who devour interest as fighting Allah and His messenger because of their great crimes and their great injustice to the slaves of Allah. Therefore, the people who commit these crimes are also opposing the servants of Allah and Allah has given support and love to His devoted servants. This hadith clearly states an important point that is misunderstood by many Muslims– as well as non-Muslims.

There are many people who claim, perhaps sincerely, to love Allah or God and be devoted to Him but at the same time they commit acts that are clearly sins or, in other words, deeds that Allah hates (such as not performing the obligatory prayers, not fasting the month of Ramadhaan, not avoiding the taking of interest, not avoiding adultery and so on). This hadith shows that, if such people are sincere in their claims, they have no understanding of God. Their religion or thinking is not based on the clear teachings of the His revelations but is simply based on ignorance or their own desires. By their performing of these deeds– and their lack of any conscience or ill feeling from performing these deeds– they are testifying against themselves. They are showing that their claim to love Allah is a lie because by their deeds they are proving that they are not working for the sake of Allah but they are fighting against Allah by committing sms; consequently, Allah also is fighting or opposing them.

Summary of the Hadith:
• To oppose one of Allah’s devotees is equivalent to opposing or fighting Allah.
• This hadith demonstrates the “power” of the beloved slaves of Allah. Such slaves are never left on their own but instead they have the full support and aid of Allah, the All-Powerful.
• There is nothing equal to the obligatory deeds.
• Obligatory acts are the most beloved to Allah and one should perform them first and then move on to the voluntary deeds, and not vice-versa.
• The one who performs the obligatory and voluntary deeds moves closest to Allah.
• Allah blesses His beloved servants with special guidance and mercy as well as answering their prayers.
• Whatever “level” a slave reaches, he must always keep his relationship with Allah in complete submission. When he is in need, he must tum to Allah. When he seeks refuge, he must seek refuge in Allah. Due to his close relationship with Allah, Allah will respond quickly to him under those circumstances.