Those present rose up in respect and warmly welcomed him...

Those present rose up in respect and warmly welcomed him till he (peace be upon him) sat in his usual place - near the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny). Meanwhile, two individuals in the gathering who were being suspected of hypocrisy, began to whisper to each other. Observing them, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) realized why they were speaking amongst themselves. This enraged him so much that the signs of infuriation became manifest upon his face.

He then said: By The One in Whose power lies my soul! None shall enter Paradise except he who loves me. And do know that one who imagines that he loves me but regards this person as an enemy (Ali Ibn Abi Talib), is a liar. At this moment Ali’s hand was in the hand of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) and the following verse was revealed[^7]: O you who believe! when you…