Bulugh al-Maram

Takhrij:
[مسلم الزهد7432]

Benefits:
➊ Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas radi Allahu anhu is among the ten who were given glad tidings of Paradise (asharah mubasharah), he is a Badri companion, the commander in the Battle of Qadisiyyah, and the conqueror of Persia. When internal conflicts began among the Muslims, he withdrew from public affairs. It is mentioned in Sahih Muslim that during those days, his son ‘Umar ibn Sa’d came to him. As soon as Sa’d radi Allahu anhu saw him, he said: «اعوذ بالله من شر هذا الراكب» “I seek Allah’s protection from the evil of this rider.” He dismounted and said, “You have confined yourself among your camels and sheep, leaving people to fight among themselves for rulership.” So Sa’d radi Allahu anhu struck his chest and said, “Be quiet! I heard the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam say: ‘Indeed, Allah loves the servant who is pious, self-sufficient, and hidden.’” [مسلم الزهد/11]
➋ From this hadith, it is understood that love is one of Allah’s attributes. Some people interpret this to mean that Allah’s love refers to His intending good for the servant, guiding him, and having mercy upon him, and that Allah’s hatred and enmity mean the opposite of these things. According to these people, Allah neither loves nor hates. That is why they made this interpretation. However, their view is not correct. In the Qur’an, Allah’s attribute of love and attribute of enmity are mentioned in numerous places:
«إِنَّ اللَّـهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ» [2-البقرة:195]
«فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّـهُ» [3-آل عمران:31]
«فَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ عَدُوٌّ لِّلْكَافِرِينَ» [2-البقرة:98]
Everyone knows what love and enmity are. The meaning of love is never simply intending good, guidance, or mercy; rather, these are independent attributes in their own right. These people felt the need to interpret because they understood Allah’s love to be like human love, which at times is a human weakness. Similarly, these people said that Allah is not Hearing (Samī‘) or Seeing (Basīr), but that Samī‘ and Basīr mean that He has knowledge, whereas everyone knows that knowledge is one thing and seeing and hearing are separate things. The reality is that this attribute of Allah and all His other attributes are not similar to the attributes of any created being, but are as befits His majesty. If these people kept this in mind, they would never deny the attributes or interpret them away. Allah Ta’ala said:
«لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ» [42-الشورى:11]
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.”
The meaning is: do not, thinking that humans are also hearing and seeing, deny Allah’s attribute of hearing and seeing, fearing that if you affirm these for Allah, He would become similar to the creation. Allah said: “There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.” That is, Allah’s hearing and seeing are not like those of the creation. Similarly, He loves and has enmity, but in a manner not resembling the love and enmity of the creation. Reflect: what use is a Lord who neither hears nor sees, nor loves His friends, nor has enmity towards His enemies?
➋ «اَلتَّقِي» Pious: one who acts upon the commands of Allah and His Messenger and refrains from what they have prohibited.
➌ «الغَنيّ» Wealthy, self-sufficient: that is, he has such trust in Allah that he is independent of the creation. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
«ليس الغني بكثرة العرض ولكن الغني عني النفس» [صحيح بخاري 6446]
“Wealth is not in having much worldly goods, but true wealth is the richness of the soul (being independent of creation).”
«اَلْغِنَي» This also includes that he provides for his needs through the work of his own hands, so that he does not have to depend on the creation. Just as Sa’d radi Allahu anhu in those days was occupied with raising camels and sheep.
➍ «اَلْخَفِيَّ» Hidden: one who, avoiding fame and notoriety, is engaged in the worship of Allah, because fame brings with it many calamities, such as showing off, involvement in tribulations, and not having time left for the worship of Allah. Whereas in anonymity, a person finds ample time for worship, his heart becomes familiar with the remembrance of Allah, he remains safe from tribulations and showing off, and all his actions are solely for Allah.