The one who loves him, the one who hates him, or the one who reviles him

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: This verse was revealed about Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him): "Indeed, those who believe and do righteous deeds, the Most Merciful will create love for them." Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says: What is meant is that He will create love in the hearts of the believers.
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains Bishr bin Umarah, who has been declared trustworthy, while a group declared him da'if (weak); the remaining narrators of this report have been declared trustworthy, but it has been said about the narrator al-Dahhak that he did not hear from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both).

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: I used to serve the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Some roasted bird meat was brought to him, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed: "O Allah, bring me the person who is the most beloved of Your creation to You and to me, so that he may eat this bird with me." The narrator says: Meanwhile Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came and knocked on the door. Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) asked: "Who is it?" He replied: "Ali." I said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is busy." So he went away. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) withdrew and began to eat, and he said: "O Allah, bring me the most beloved servant of Your creation to You and to me, so that he may eat this bird with me." Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came and knocked hard on the door. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) heard the sound and asked: "O Anas, who is it?" I said: "It is Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Tell him to come in." He came in, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I prayed to Allah Almighty three times that He bring me the most beloved servant of His creation to Him and to me, so that he may eat this bird with me." Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah, the same is true of me: I came three times, and each time Anas sent me back." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Anas, why did you do what you did?" He said: "I wished that this supplication of yours would reach some man from my own people." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man is not to be blamed for loving his own people."

In one narration the wording is: I was with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in a garden when a bird was brought.

In one narration the wording is: Sayyidah Umm Ayman (may Allah be pleased with her) gave the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) a bird as a gift, between two loaves of bread. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came and said: "Do you have anything?" So the bird was presented to him. (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: al-Tirmidhi recorded part of this narration.
Al-Tabarani recorded this narration in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat and in al-Mu'jam al-Kabir in abridged form, and Abu Ya'la also recorded it in a much abridged form, except that his wording is: Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) came and was sent back, then Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) came and was sent back, then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came and he gave him permission. The chain of al-Kabir contains a narrator, Hammad bin al-Mukhtar, whom I do not know; the rest of its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih. One of the chains of al-Awsat contains a narrator, Ahmad bin Iyad bin Abi Taybah, whom I do not know; the rest of its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih. The narrators of Abu Ya'la are thiqat (trustworthy), though there is weakness in some of them.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Some birds were presented to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as a gift. He distributed them among his wives, and each wife received three birds. In the morning the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was with one of his wives, perhaps Sayyidah Safiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) or someone else, and she brought those birds to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed: "O Allah, bring me the most beloved servant of Your creation to You, so that he may eat this with me." (The narrator says:) I thought: O Allah, make him a man from the Ansar. Meanwhile Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Anas, see who is at the door." I looked, and it was Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). I said: "The Messenger of Allah is busy." Then I came and stood before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "See who is at the door." It was Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). This happened three times; then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came in, and I was behind him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "May Allah Almighty have mercy on you, what held you back?" He said: "This is the third time; Anas kept sending me back, saying that you were busy." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "(O Anas,) why did you do that?" I said: "O Messenger of Allah, I heard your supplication and wished that the person would be someone from my own people." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A man does love his own people, a man does love his own people." He said this three times.
Al-Bazzar recorded this narration. Its chain contains a narrator, Isma'il bin Salman, who is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Safinah (may Allah be pleased with him), who was the servant of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), narrates: Some birds were presented to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as a gift. I prepared some of them for him, and in the morning I brought them to him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Where did these come from?" I said: "These are the ones that were brought to you yesterday evening." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Did I not tell you that you must not store any food for tomorrow? Every day has its own provision." Then he prayed: "O Allah, bring to me the most beloved person of Your creation to You, so that he may eat this bird with me." Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came in, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Allah, (he is the most beloved) to me as well (meaning Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him))."
Al-Bazzar recorded this narration, and al-Tabarani recorded it in abridged form. The narrators of al-Tabarani are the narrators of the Sahih, except Fitr bin Khalifah, and he is thiqah (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates: A bird was brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: "O Allah, bring me the most beloved person of Your creation to You." Then Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) came, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Allah, (he is the most beloved) to me as well (meaning Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him))."
Al-Tabarani recorded this narration. Its chain contains a narrator, Muhammad bin Sa'id, a shaykh from whom Sulayman bin Qarm narrates, and I do not know him. The rest of its narrators have been declared trustworthy, and there is weakness in them.

Sayyiduna al-Dahhak al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) set out for Khaybar, he appointed Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) over the vanguard. He said: "Whoever enters the palm grove will be safe." When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) spoke these words, Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) proclaimed them aloud. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) looked at Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) and saw that he was laughing. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "What makes you laugh?" He replied: "I love him (meaning Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him))." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): "Jibril is saying: 'I love you.'" Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Have I reached such a standing that Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) loves me?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Yes, and so does One who is better than Jibril, namely Allah Almighty (meaning He too loves you)."
Al-Tabarani recorded this narration. Its chain contains a narrator, Nasr bin Muzahim, who is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna al-Nu'man bin Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for permission to enter. He heard the voice of Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) saying: "I know that Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) is more beloved to you than my father." She said this two or three times. The narrator says: Then Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked permission and came in, and he moved towards Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) and said: "O daughter of so-and-so, let me never again hear you raising your voice before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)." (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say:
Abu Dawud recorded this narration, but without the mention of the love for Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him).
Al-Bazzar recorded this narration, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih; al-Tabarani recorded it with a da'if (weak) chain.