Loving Allaah and His Messenger

[Arsalan]

Loving Allaah and His Messenger
Shaykh Husayn Aal Shaykh
18, Rajab 1425


All praise is due to Allaah Lord of all the worlds. Peace and blessings be upon the Messenger, his household and companions.

Fellow Muslims! There is no happy life without having a complete love for Allaah. Allaah says,
"But those who believe love Allaah more (than anything else)." (Al-Baqarah 2:165)

Loving Allaah brings glory, happiness and success in this world and in the Hereafter.

If one truly loves Allaah, he has to love the Prophet as well. Ibn Taymiyyah said, "The Messenger of Allaah is loved because of Allaah and obeyed and followed because of Allaah. Allaah says,
"Say (O Muhammad (peace be upon him) to mankind): "If you (really) love Allaah then follow me (i.e. accept Islaamic Monotheism, follow the Qur'ân and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you." (Aal 'Imraan 3:31)

Loving Allaah cannot be separated from loving the Messenger, blessings and peace be upon him. The Messenger of Allaah said, "He who has three things will taste the sweetness of faith: -and of them is that one should love Allaah and His Messenger more than anything or anyone else." (Al-Bukhaaree)

Therefore, loving the Prophet, who is the leader of mankind and the chief of the Messengers is one of the greatest foundations of this religion and an important pillar of faith. Allaah says,
"The Prophet is closer to the believers than their own selves." (Al-Ahzaab 33:6)

The scholars said, "This implies that one should love the Prophet more than oneself and that one should take no decision regading oneself but leave that for Allaah and His Messenger." The Messenger of Allaah said, "None of you believes until he loves me more than his children, his parents and all people." (Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim)

Loving Allaah's Messenger has excellent results and it leads to eternal bliss. He who loves the Messenger of Allaah, and believes in the oneness of Allaah will be in the company of Allaah's Messenger in Paradise, by Allaah's grace. Al-Bukhaaree reported that a man asked the Prophet as to when is the Hour. The Messenger of Allaah asked him, "What have you prepared for it?" The man said, "I have not prepared for it much prayer or fasting or charity –meaning I did not perform more than obligatory prayers, fasting and charity – but I love Allaah and His Messenger." Thereupon the Prophet said, "You will be in the company of the one you love." Anas said, "I love the Prophet and I love Aboo Bakr and 'Umar and I wish to be with them because of my love for them, even though I have not done the like of their deeds."


(http://www.gawaher.com/index.php?act=Msg&CODE=04&MID=3818)
Al-Hasan Al-Basree said, "He who loves a people follows their paths. You cannot be in the company of the righteous ones until you follow their guidance all the time."

Fellow Muslims! Though love is one the deeds of the hearts. It needs to manifest physically through sayings and practical deeds, for sincere love has signs.

A Muslim's love for Allaah spurs him to do all that Allaah and His Messenger love. It prompts a Muslim to keep away from all that Allaah and His Messenger dislike. True love for Allaah and His Messenger incites the Muslim to follow the Sunnah in all that he likes and dislikes and in the public and private.

The highest degree of a Muslim's love for the Messenger demands that he overcomes his desires. It demands that he give the Prophet's command a priority over his own wishes. This is because love of the Prophet demands that one accepts all that the Prophet brought from Allaah, it demands that one follows his ordainments honorably and contentedly. Al-Hasan and some of the righteous predecessors said, "Some people claimed that they love Allaah so Allaah put them to test with His saying,
"Say (O Muhammad (peace be upon him) to mankind): "If you (really) love Allaah then follow me (i.e. accept Islaamic Monotheism, follow the Qur'aan and the Sunnah), Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins." (Aal 'Imraan 3:31)

Dear brethren! Loving the Messenger of Allaah necessitates that we emulate him in all his conducts; in his obligatory and supererogatory acts of worship, in his manners of eating, drinking and dressing and in all his noble traits.

Brethren in faith! Loving the Messenger, demands that we honor him and be extremely respectful to him, according to the teachings of the Qur'aan and the Sunnah.

The recommended way of honoring him with the heart is to believe that he is the chosen Messenger of Allaah without exaggerating or being negligent in that belief. The recommended way of honoring him with the tongue is to praise him as it is due. We should beware of being disrespectful to him or deriding his Sunnah or neglecting the study of his life history.

Muhammad ibn Al-Munkadir, a famous Taabi'ee, whenever he was asked of one of the sayings of Allaah's Messenger, would cry, as a sign of his respect for the hadeeth of Allaah's Messenger, so much so that his companions would feel sorry for him.

And 'Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Mahdee, a famous scholar of hadeeth would command his students to keep silent whenever a hadeeth was read and he would recite the saying of Allaah,
"O you who believe! Raise not your voices above the voice of the Prophet (peace be upon him)." (Al-Hujuraat 49:2)

Ibn Al-'Arabee said, "The Prophet should be honoured after his death as he was honoured while alive. His sayings after his death should be elevated after his death as it was elevated while he was alive. If his sayings are read, it is compulsory for all those who are present not to raise their voice above it or turn away from it. His sayings are as sacred as the Qur'aan except in some cases explained in the books of fiqh."

[Arsalan]

It is therefore incumbent upon the Muslim to select the best and most beautiful words while reciting the Prophet's hadeeths, and all kinds of negligence and ill-manners should be shunned while dealing with his hadeeth.

Brethren in Islaam! Another manifestation of a Muslim's love for the Messenger is to suitably praise him in a way by which his Lord has praised him, without any exaggeration or disrespect. The Muslim should invoke blessings and peace upon him whenever his name is mentioned in sayings and writings.

Aboo Daawood narrated that Allaah's Messenger said, "Friday is one of your best days. It is on Friday that Adam was created and made to die. It is on Friday that Trumpet will be blown and that there will be the Lightening. Make much invocation for me on Friday."

In the Sunan Abee Daawood, he said, "Do not turn your homes into graveyards and do not turn my grave into a place of anniversary. Invoke blessings on me, for your invocation of blessings shall reach me from wherever you may be."

Brethren in faith! Among the signs of loving the Messenger is to always remember him, to wish for meeting him and to pray that Allaah make you join him in the Paradise. The Prophet said, "Among the ones who love me most of my Ummah are those who will come after me and would wish that they had met me with their families and wealths." (Muslim)

When Bilaal ibn Rabaah, was dying and his wife was lamenting, he said, "Hoorah! Tomorrow we are going to meet the beloved, Muhammad and his company." Compare this to the contemporary Muslims' love for the Messenger. Are they truthful in their love for the Messenger of Allaah as were Aboo Bakr, 'Umar and the rest of the companions?

Fellow Muslims! Another manifestation of the love for the Messenger is to love members of his household and all his companions, and to respect them, preserve their honour and recognize their position. The Prophet said, "Be mindful of Allaah regarding members of my household."

As regard his companions, the Messenger of Allaah said, "Do not insult my companions. For if anyone of you spends what is as big as the mountain of Uhud in charity, never will he attain the measure of a mudd of anyone of them or even its half."

Dear Muslims! The message that Prophet called to in every hour of his life is to worship Allaah alone and not to worship anything besides Him. That is why those who love the Prophet the most respect this aspect of his mission and keep away from all that could have any negative impact on their belief in Islaamic monotheism.

Hence, one of the fundamentals of this religion is prohibition of exaggeration in praising him. Muslim reported that a man addressed Allaah's Messenger, "O Muhammad, our master and the son of our master; O the best of us, the son of the best of us." The Prophet replied him, "Say what you have to say and do not allow Satan to lead you to destruction. I am Muhammad, the son of 'Abdullaah. I am Allaah's slave and Messenger. I do not like that you raise me above the position that Allaah put me."

In another hadeeth, he said, "Do not exaggerate in your praise for me as the Christian had done in respect to Jesus son of Mary. I am only a slave [of Allaah]. So say: Allaah's slave and Messenger."

Ahmad reported that a man told the Messenger of Allaah, "Whatever Allaah wills and you will." Upon this the Prophet said, "Are you making me a rival to Allaah? Say: 'Whatever Allaah alone wills."

Brethren in faith! One of the most dangerous things is to ascribe partners to Allaah in worship. This is what the Prophet came to fight and warn against. It is a great act of injustice to the soul to allow Satan to make you believe that you love the Messenger of Allaah by making you act against the teachings of the Qur'aan and the Sunnah and attribute to the Messenger things that are exclusive rights of Allaah. An example of this is to believe that the Prophet knows what Allaah has did revealed to him, or to ask him, instead of Allaah, for a benefit or for removal of a calamity. All these are act of ascribing partners to Allaah which are forbidden. Allaah commands His Messenger to say,
"Say (O Muhammad (peace be upon him)) "I possess no power of benefit or hurt to myself except as Allaah wills. If I had the knowledge of the Ghaib (Unseen), I should have secured for myself an abundance of wealth, and no evil should have touched me." (Al-A'raaf 7:188)

He also commands him to say,
"Say: "It is not in my power to cause you harm, or to bring you to the Right Path." Say (O Muhammad (peace be upon him)) "None can protect me from Allaah's punishment (if I were to disobey Him), nor should I find refuge except in Him." (Al-Jinn 72:21-22)


One of the greatest lies against the teachings of the Qur'aan and the Sunnah is a belief that the Messenger of Allaah, Muhammad preexists this universe or that the universe was created from his light. Allaah commands him to say,
"Say (O Muhammad (peace be upon him)) "I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me that your Ilâh (God) is One Ilâh (God - i.e. Allaah). So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord." (Al-Kahf 18:110)

Fellow Muslims! One of the greatest causes of the Muslims' weakness in this age and the causes of calamities that befall them is their failure to love the Messenger of Allaah in the proper manner and their contravention of his teachings.

Dear Muslims! It is also a sign of a great danger that satellite channels that broadcast indecent pictures and immodest words are now very rampant in Muslim societies. These channels promote moral decadence and attack excellent Islaamic values. This contradicts the love we claim to have for Allaah and His Messenger.

It is therefore the obligation of members of this Ummah to give one another mutual admonition, to explain the truth and to stand against these corrupting and destructive means of communication.