I love him and love whoever loves him.

I love him and love whoever loves him.’[^9] Al-Bara’ bin Aazib narrated, ‘Once I saw the Prophet (S) carrying al-Hasan on his shoulder and saying, ‘O Allah, I love him, so love him!’[^10] Abdullah bin Abbas said, ‘One day, the Prophet (S) came carrying al-Hasan on his neck.

Some man met him and said, ‘O boy, it is the best back you have ridden on.’ The Prophet (S) said, ‘And the best rider he is.’[^11] The Prophet (S) said, ‘Let him, who likes to look at the sire of the youth of the Paradise, look at al-Hasan.’[^12] The Prophet (S) said, ‘Al-Hasan is my pleasure in this world.’[^13] Anas bin Malik narrated, ‘One day, al-Hasan came in to the Prophet (S). I wanted to take him away from him, but the Prophet (S) said, ‘Stop that!

Let alone my son and the fruit of my heart! Whoever harms this one will harm me, and whoever harms me will harm Allah.’[^14] Once the Prophet (S) offered the Maghrib (or Isha’) Prayer and prolonged the prostration. After finishing the prayer, People asked him why he did so and he said, ‘My son (al-Hasan) rode on me and I hated to send him down soon.’[^15] Abdullah bin Abdurrahman bin az-Zubayr said, ‘The most similar and most beloved one to the Prophet was al-Hasan.

I saw the Prophet prostrating (in prayer) and al-Hasan got up over his neck (or back). The Prophet did not send him down until he himself got down. Once I saw him, while bowing (in prayer), open his legs for him (al-Hasan) so that he could pass to the other side.’[^16] There are many other traditions that have been transmitted from the Prophet (S) about the preference of Imam al-Hasan (a.s.) besides many others that are common between Imam al-Hasan (a.s.) and Imam al-Husayn (a.s.).

We have mentioned those traditions in the first volume of our book “The Life of Imam al-Hasan bin Ali”. His Education The Prophet (S) brought up and educated his grandson Imam al-Hasan (a.s.) and fed him with his own ideals. The other educator of Imam al-Hasan (a.s.) was his father Imam Ali (a.s.) who was the best educator in the world of Islam after the Prophet (S). He also fed in his son his high ideals and morals.

His mother Fatimah (s.a.) too, educated him with the loyal faith and the deep love to Allah the Almighty. Therefore, he was a copy to these three great, infallible persons. Fatimah (s.a.) often sent al-Hasan and al-Husayn, peace be on them, to the meeting of their grandfather the messenger of Allah (S) to learn his traditions and moralities.