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#18 – The Friends of Allah (SWT)
Dec 6 – 12, 2021
Jumaadal Ula 2 – 8, 1443

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The Friends of Allah (SWT)

What have Allah and His Messenger said about

The Friends of Allah (SWT)

أَلا إِنَّ أَولِياءَ اللَّهِ لا خَوفٌ عَلَيهِم وَلا هُم يَحزَنونَ
Listen, the friends of Allah shall have no fear, nor shall they grieve

[Surah Yunus, Verse 62]
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ قَالَ مَنْ عَادَى لِي وَلِيًّا فَقَدْ آذَنْتُهُ بِالْحَرْبِ وَمَا تَقَرَّبَ إِلَيَّ عَبْدِي بِشَيْءٍ أَحَبَّ إِلَيَّ مِمَّا افْتَرَضْتُ عَلَيْهِ وَمَا يَزَالُ عَبْدِي يَتَقَرَّبُ إِلَيَّ بِالنَّوَافِلِ حَتَّى أُحِبَّهُ فَإِذَا أَحْبَبْتُهُ كُنْتُ سَمْعَهُ الَّذِي يَسْمَعُ بِهِ وَبَصَرَهُ الَّذِي يُبْصِرُ بِهِ وَيَدَهُ الَّتِي يَبْطِشُ بِهَا وَرِجْلَهُ الَّتِي يَمْشِي بِهَا وَإِنْ سَأَلَنِي لَأُعْطِيَنَّهُ وَلَئِنْ اسْتَعَاذَنِي لَأُعِيذَنَّهُ وَمَا تَرَدَّدْتُ عَنْ شَيْءٍ أَنَا فَاعِلُهُ تَرَدُّدِي عَنْ نَفْسِ الْمُؤْمِنِ يَكْرَهُ الْمَوْتَ وَأَنَا أَكْرَهُ مَسَاءَتَهُ
Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Allah said: Whoever shows hostility to a friend of Mine, I have declared war upon him. My servant does not grow closer to Me with anything more beloved to me than the duties I have imposed upon him. My servant continues to grow closer to Me with extra good works until I love him. 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. Were he to ask something from Me, I would surely give it to him. Were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant it to him. 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 displease him.”

[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6502]
The Meaning of Wilayah

Al-Wilayah (الولاية), or loyalty, is the opposite of al-‘Adawah (العداوة), or enmity. The essential meaning of al-Wilayah is love and closeness whereas the essential meaning of al-‘Adawah is hatred and distance. It is also postulated that the Wali is called so because of his muwalah, or persistence and regularity in performing actions of obedience, meaning by this his following up [good actions] with more [good actions]. Since the Wali of Allah is the one who conforms to and follows Allah in all that He Loves and is Pleased with, Hates and is Displeased with, orders, and prohibits, [it is not then surprising that] the enemy of the Wali becomes His enemy. Allah (SWT) mentions,

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ عَدُوِّى وَعَدُوَّكُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ تُلْقُونَ
O believers! Do not take My enemies and yours as trusted allies…
[Surah Al-Mumtahinah 60:1]

Therefore the one who shows enmity to the Awliya’ of Allah has shown enmity to Him and has declared war on Him.
A Condition of Walayah

The noble qualities of the Prophet (SAW) and his nation are many and from the point that Allah commissioned him [as a Prophet], He appointed him as the determining factor between His Awliya, and His enemies. Therefor no one can be a Wali of Allah until he believes in him, all that he came with and follows him both inwardly and outwardly. Whosoever claims to have love for Allah, closeness and loyalty to Him, yet does not follow the Prophet (SAW) is in reality not from the Awliya of Allah. Indeed whosoever opposes him (SAW) is from the enemies of Allah and the awliya of Shaytan. Allah (SWT) says,

قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ ٱللَّهَ فَٱتَّبِعُونِى يُحْبِبْكُمُ ٱللَّهُ
Say (O Prophet): “If you really love Allah, then follow me, and Allah shall love you
[Surah Ali ‘Imran 3:31]

In this verse Allah (SWT) has made it clear that whosoever follows the Messenger, then Allah will Love him but whosoever claims to love Allah, yet does not follow the Messenger (SAW), is not from the Awliya’ of Allah. This is despite the fact that many people deceive themselves into thinking, about themselves or others, that they are the Awliya’ of Allah, even though they are not in reality. For example the Jews and the Christians, they claim that they are the Awliya of Allah and that none shall enter Paradise except those who are with them, indeed they even go as far as claiming to be the children of Allah and His beloved! In reality the Awliya are only the pious and God-fearing.

[Above Sections adapted from Al-Furqan Bayna Awliya Al-Rehman Wa Awliya Al-Shaytan, Ibn Taymiyyah 728H, Tanslated from the original Arabic by Abu Rumaysah, Daar Us-Sunnah Publishers, Birmingham 2005, Page 53 – 59]

Spiritual Reminders

The Categories of The Awliya’ of Allah
So the Awliya’ of Allah, the Exalted are of two categories:

Those brought close and the Companions of the Right. The Prophet (SAW) mentioned the actions of both categories in the hadith concerning the Awliya. So the righteous (abrar) refers to the Companions of the Right, those who seek to draw close to Allah by performing the obligations. They di what Allah has ordered and leave what He has prohibited. They do not exert themselves by performing the recommended actions of worship and neither do they refrain from unnecessary permissible actions.
As for the Forerunners who are brought close then they seek to draw closer to Allah by performing optional actions if wirship after having performed the obligations. They perform the obligations and the recommendations, they leave the unlawful and the disliked. These people, since they seek to draw close to Him by doing all that is within their capability, become beloved to the Lord who Loves them with complete, unrestricted, and unqualified Love, as we learn from the Hadith,

وما يزال عبدي يتقرب إلي بالنوافل حتى أحبه، فإذا أحببته
“My servant continues to draw near to Me by performing optional deeds such that I love him”

With regards to the people who have been brought close, the permissible actions become actions of obedience by which they further seek to draw close to Alllah, Mighty and Magnificent. Hence, every single one of their actions is for Allah, therefore [as a fitting reward], they will drink [from tasnim] directly because they acted only for His sake. As for those who take a medium course then some of their actions are performed purely for their own sake and they are neither punished nor rewarded for these actions. Therefore, they do not drink the pure [tasnim], rather a mixture is prepared for them containing the drink of those brought near, and the extent of this mixture is determined by the extent they mixed the deeds performed for themselves and the deeds performed for Allah in this life.
It is not a pre-requisite for a Waliy of Allāh that he be free of sin or error, instead it is possible that some knowledge of the Shari’ah be unknown to him or some aspects of the religion confuse him to the extent that he think that some matters commanded by Allāh are actually prohibited by Him. It is possible that he think that some extraordinary occurrences are from the miracles of the Awliya’ of Allāh, the Exalted, when in reality they are from Shayțān who has disguised them and [hence succeeded in fooling him] so that he is unaware that they are from him due to his lesser ranking. None of this ejects a person from being included amongst the ranks of the Awliya’ of Allāh, the Exalted. This is because Allāh, the Glorious and Exalted, has overlooked this nation’s genuine errors, acts of forgetfulness and those things they were coerced into doing.

So whosoever knows what the Messenger came with, and be lieves in him in the specific, detailed sense and acts in accordance to what he knows, such a person is more complete with respect to his faith, love and closeness to Allāh than the one who does not know this with all of its details and hence does not act by it. Both these categories of people are the Awliya’ of Allāh, the Exalted, but Paradise has varying levels, varying greatly with respect to their superiority, and the pious, God-fearing Awliya’ of Allāh will reside in these levels as per their degree of faith and taqwa.

[Above Sections adapted from Al-Furqan Bayna Awliya Al-Rehman Wa Awliya Al-Shaytan, Ibn Taymiyyah 728H, Tanslated from the original Arabic by Abu Rumaysah, Daar Us-Sunnah Publishers, Birmingham 2005, Page 100 – 121 & 155]

YOUR WEEKLY DOSE OF

Sirah

Hardships of The Friends of Allah
The Year of Mourning

Abu Talib was very much attached to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW). From the time of the childhood on the Prophet (SAW), till later on in his life, Abu Talib was the very tower of defense for the Prophet(SAW). He would expose himself to sacrifices for the sake of his nephew, but yet he disbelieved in the message of the Prophet (SAW). Abu Talib fell ill in Rajab, during the tenth year of the Prophethood [Tareekh Al-Islam 1/120].
Only two months after the death of his uncle, did the Messenger of Allâh [pbuh] experience another great personal loss viz., the Mother of believers, his wife Khadijah passed away in Ramadan of the tenth year of his Prophethood, when she was sixty-five years old, and he was fifty [Talqeeh Fuhoom Ahl-al-Athar p.7; Rahmat-ul-lil’alameen 2/164].
The death of Abu Talib rendered the Prophet [pbuh] vulnerable, and the polytheists availed them of that opportunity to give free rein to their hatred and highhandedness and to translate them in terms of oppression and physical tortures. Once an insolent Quraishite intercepted him and sprinkled sand on his head. When he arrived home, a daughter of his washed the sand away and wept. “Do not weep, my daughter. Allâh will verily protect your father.” The Prophet [pbuh] said. [Ibn Hisham 1/416]
Rapid succession of misfortunes, led the Prophet [pbuh] to call that period, ‘the year of grief and mourning’. Thenceforth, that year bore that appellation.

[Above sections taken from Al-Raheeq Al-Makhtum, page 79 – 80, Issam Diab’s English Translation]

Read Next Blog: Being Kind Towards One’s Parents

Sunnah Acts

Deception of Thinking Another Path is Better
It was narrated from Anas that:

There was a group of the Companions of the Prophet, one of whom said: “I will not marry women.” Another said: “I will not eat meat.” Another said: “I will not sleep on a bed.” Another said: “I will fast and not break my fast.” News of that reached the Messenger of Allah and he praised Allah then said: “What is the matter with people who say such and such? But I pray and I sleep, I fast and I break my fast, and I marry women. Whoever turns away from my Sunnah is not of me.”

[Sunan an-Nasa’i 3217]

Adhkar/Dua

Purification of The Soul
وَعَنْ زَيْدِ بنِ أَرْقَم ، قَالَ: كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّه ﷺ يقَولُ: اللهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ العَجْزِ وَالكَسَلِ، والبُخْلِ وَالهَرم، وعَذَاب الْقَبْر، اللَّهُمَّ آتِ نَفْسِي تَقْوَاهَا، وَزَكِّهَا أَنْتَ خَيرُ مَنْ زَكَّاهَا، أَنْتَ ولِيُّهَا وَموْلاَهَا، اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ عِلمٍ لا يَنْفَعُ، ومِنْ قَلْبٍ لاَ يخْشَعُ، وَمِنْ نَفْسٍ لاَ تَشبَعُ، ومِنْ دَعْوةٍ لا يُسْتجابُ لهَا رواهُ مُسْلِمٌ.
Allahumma inni a’udhu bika minal-‘ajzi wal-kasali, wal-bukhli wal-harami, wa ‘adhabil-qabri. Allahumma ati nafsi taqwaha, wa zakkiha Anta khairu man zakkaha, Anta waliyyuha wa maulaha. Allahumma inni a’udhu bika min ‘ilmin la yanfau’, wa min qalbin la yakhsha’u, wa min nafsin la tashba’u, wa min da’watin la yustajabu laha’

Zaid b. Arqam (rad) narrates that the Prophet (saw) would often make the following supplication: “O Allah! I seek refuge in You from the inability (to do good), indolence, cowardice, miserliness, decrepitude and torment of the grave. O Allah! Grant me the sense of piety and purify my soul as You are the Best to purify it. You are its Guardian and its Protecting Friend. O Allah! I seek refuge in You from the knowledge which is not beneficial, and from a heart which does not fear (You), and from desire which is not satisfied, and from prayer which is not answered.”

[Sahih Muslim #1479]
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