Therefore...

Therefore, hatred of either Abu Bakr or ‘Umar would be an even bigger form of hypocrisy. What about events after the death of the Messenger? Was love or hatred of someone, by the Prophet during his lifetime , evidence of their permanent, immutable status? In simpler words, once an individual was able to earn the love of Allah and His Messenger, was it ever possible for him to forfeit it? This question stands at the centre of our research in this chapter.

The Qur’an states categorically several times that any individual who has become Allah’s beloved can also turn into His enemy any time!

For instance, Allah says to all His prophets: ولقد أوحي إليك وإلى الذين من قبلك لئن أشركت ليحبطن عملك ولتكونن من الخاسرين And indeed it has been revealed to you (O Muhammad), as it was revealed to those before you: if you commit idolatry, then surely all your deeds will be in vain , and you will certainly be among the losers.[^3] The Qur’an also states: قل إني أخاف إن عصيت ربي عذاب يوم عظيم Say: “I fear, if I disobey my Lord , the torment of a Mighty Day.”[^4] Therefore, the love of Allah for Muhammad and all His promises of Paradise to him were conditioned upon his continued obedience and servitude to his Lord Alone.

Should he have become otherwise during his lifetime, Allah would have hated him and thrown him into Hellfire. As such, Muhammad remained in constant fear of disobeying his Lord till his death. This was the case with the most beloved of all creation to Allah. Apparently, the same condition applied indiscriminately to all the Sahabah, and to all beings till the Hour. So, even if any of them had earned the love of Allah and His Prophet, the story did not end there.

If he ever did certain acts, before or after the Messenger’s death, he would forfeit such love. Before proceeding further, we must ask whether the Messenger of Allah, during his lifetime, loved ‘Ali or not. Imam Muslim (d.