❝You disobey God yet proclaim His love;
This is impossible in correlation, unprecedented!
Had your love been true, you would have surely obeyed Him.
Verily, the lover is obedient to the one he loves.❞

 

What is true love in Islam?
What is true love in Islam? Is it a declaration of the words “I love you” along with the expressions between two individuals or is there more to it?

 

Are we sincere in our deceleration of love or is there a deeper motive and selfishness with which we exploit others companionship, friendship and even religion.

 

During the month of Rabīʿ al-Awwal we witness spectacles and various declarations of ones love for the Prophet ﷺ.

 

Do we really love the prophet ﷺ how we should and how we declare to love him?

 

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said,
“None of you will have faith till he loves me more than his father, his children and all mankind.” – (Bukhari)

Lets contemplate over the above hadith. Allah the Almighty has given us the faith of Islam and belief, we daily strive to be a better believer, by performing all our obligations of Salah, Fasting, Zakah, Hajj, alongside all our obligatory prayers, we also become habitual in performing voluntary deeds, but despite all of that the Prophet ﷺ said you can not be a true believer until you love me more then anything else.

 

We constantly read and hear of incidents where the companions or the messenger of Allah ﷺ would be willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the messenger of Allah ﷺ and the religion. Despite their personal circumstances precedence was given to the needs and happiness of their beloved messenger of Allah ﷺ over their needs.

 

How did the companions declare their love for the messenger of Allah ﷺ?

The companions of the prophet made every effort to be like the messenger of Allah ﷺ, by aiming to walk like him, talk like him, eat like him, and adopt the lifestyle of the prophet ﷺ. The greatest declaration of their love was in their actions and deeds. Nothing pleased the Prophet ﷺ more then the obedience of Allah.

 

قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

Say (O Prophet): “If you really love Allah, then follow me, and Allah shall love you and forgive you your sins. Allah is Most-Forgiving, Very-Merciful.” 3:31

 

The backdrop of the above verse is a group of individuals came to the Prophet ﷺ and said “O Mohamed ﷺ we love Allah”. Allah reveled the above verse to state that if you are true in your love of Allah, follow the messenger ﷺ, and indeed Allah will love you. The above verse is a clear instruction to the believers that to love Allah (to obtian Allah’s love) you have to first follow the messenger ﷺ and acquire his love, by following his life style and sunnah. 1

 

Incidents from hadeeth:

Rabi’ah bin Ka’b Al-Aslami radiallaahu `anhu (a servant of the Messenger of Allah and also one of the people of As-Suffah) said:

I used to spend my night in the company of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and used to put up water for his ablutions. One day he said to me, “Ask something of me.”

I said: “I request for your companionship in Jannah”.
He inquired, “Is there anything else?” I said, “That is all.”
He said, “Then help me in your request by multiplying your prostrations”. [Muslim].

 

Sa’d bin Abi Waqas (radiallaahu anhu) On the day of the battle of Uhud when the Prophet ﷺ was injured Sa’d bin Abi Waqas (radiallaahuanhu) shielded the prophet by firing arrows to the enemy. The Prophet ﷺ in return said to Sa’d “Let my parents sacrifice their lives for you.” 2 

 

This is one of the very few places and incidents where the prophet ﷺ declared that may both my parents be your ransom. It’s because of the dedication, the love, and the sacrifice Sa’d bin Abi Waqas (radiallaahu `anhu) made for the religion. A true example of having love without any boundaries and consequences.

 

Sa’d bin Abi Waqas (radiallaahu `anhu) on this incident became a living shield, a human with all its emotions and features was willing to put himself in a situation where everything became secondary, and the well being of his beloved took precedence.

 

How should we declare our love for the prophet ﷺ?

Contemplating on the above incidents, the companions of the messenger ﷺ would be willing to endure any hardship and give up everything for the sake of their beloved messenger of Allah ﷺ. Indeed love is tested at times of difficulty, so why do we scoff over one’s love for the messenger of Allah ﷺ, when we can easily accept the limits one goes to, to express their obsession and love for a celebrity of our time.

 

As shown in the above hadith’s true love is deeper then just uttering the words, it means sacrifice, one should be willing to sacrifice everything for one another and our declaration of love should be sincere followed by our actions. True love is not temporary, that it washes away in the first storm, true love is to be and support your beloved through any obstacles and challenges that may come your way, just as the Shabah did for the prophet ﷺ.

 

I pray that Allah gives us all the ability to follow in the footsteps of the messenger of Allah ﷺ and to adopt examples from his life, and to love each other and the messenger of Allah ﷺ sincerely and genuinely.

 

It was Narrated by Abu Musa (radiallaahu `anhu) that It was said to the Prophet (ﷺ)“Man may love some people but he cannot catch up with their good deeds?” The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Everyone will be with those whom he loves.” Sahih al-Bukhari 6170

 

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1 دار عالم الكتبحدثني المثنى قال، حدثنا إسحاق قال، حدثنا عبد الرحمن بن عبد الله، عن بكر بن الأسود قال، سمعت الحسن يقول: قال قومٌ على عهد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: يا محمد، إنا نحبّ ربنا! فأنـزل الله عز وجل: ” قُل إن كنتم تحبون الله فاتبعوني يحببكم الله ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم “، فجعل اتباع نبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم عَلَمًا لحبه، وعذاب من خالفه
Page 325 vol 5 

2.Sahih al-Bukhari 2905