on the authority of abu hurairah (radiallaahu anhu) who said : the messenger of allaah (sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam) said :

it was related by al-bukhaaree

explanation of hadeeth number 38 :

and i consider the meaning [of this hadeeth] as referring to the one who shows enmity to a walee due to the friendship and allegiance (wilaayah) shown to him by allaah. on the other hand, if the matter is such that it involves a dispute between two walees of allaah in the form of a legal dispute or a quarrel, which is due to one of them trying to attain a right of his that is hidden from the other, then this does not enter into this hadeeth. and such disputes have occurred between abu bakr and 'umar (radiallaahu anhumaa), and between al-'abbaas and 'alee (radiallaahu anhumaa), and similarly between many of the sahaabah, and all of them were awliyaa of allaah.

and his - subhaanahu wa ta'aalaa - statement "and my servant does not draw near to me with anything more loved to me than the religious duties i have obligated upon him" contains a reference to the fact that we do not place the voluntary deeds (nawaafil) before the obligatory (faraa'id). and the 'nawaafil' are named as such because they are performed after the obligatory deeds have been completed; and if not then they are not given the name 'nawaafil' and this is indicated by his statement "and my servant continues to draw near to me with nawaafil (supererogatory) deeds until i love him", since attaining nearness with the nawaafil occurs by what follows the completion of the faraa'id. so when the slave becomes persistent in seeking his nearness through the nawaafil, then this causes allaah 'azza wa jall to love him.

then he said "when i love him, i am his hearing with which he hears, and his sight with which he sees" until the end of the hadeeth. then this is a sign of the wilaayah of allaah, and its meaning is that he does not hear that which is not permitted for him to hear by the sharee'ah, nor does he see that which is not permitted by the sharee'ah, nor does he grasp with his hand that which is not permitted for him by the sharee'ah, nor does he hasten with his legs towards anything except that which the sharee'ah allows him to hasten towards. and all of this is the basis (asl) [of being loved by allaah]. but also, the worshipper of allaah may become so engrossed in the dhikr of allaah ta'aalaa that he becomes famous for that, and if another person, who is not from amongst those who remember allaah much, were to speak to him without mentioning the dhikr of allaah, then it would be as though he did not hear him; until the speaker approaches him with something from the dhikr of allaah. and similarly in the case of those things which are seen, and those things which are grasped, and those things towards which one walks. and this is a most noble characteristic, and we ask allaah that he makes us from amongst its possessors.

and his statement "and were he to seek refuge with me, i would surely grant him refuge" shows that even after the slave becomes from amongst the beloved of allaah, this does not prevent him from asking his lord to satisfy his needs or seeking refuge in him from those whom he fears. and allaah ta'aalaa is able to give him what he desires before his asking him for them, and to grant him refuge before he seeks it, but he subhaanahu becomes near to his slaves through his giving those who ask him, and his granting refuge to those who seek it from him.

and allaah knows best.

summary :

• that there are muslims who are the awliyaa (friends) of allaah
• that one who is close to allaah because of his piety and worship of him, has allaah as his protector
• that whoever makes a walee an enemy, actually earns the enmity of allaah for himself
• that one draws closer to allaah by following the sharee'ah, and by fulfilling the obligatory duties upon him
• that a muslim continues to draw closer to him by performing voluntary acts of worship (nawaafil)
• that ways and means not prescribed in the sunnah will not help us in drawing closer to allaah
• that when a servant draws closer to him, then allaah loves him, and then guides him in each moment of his life
• an-nawawi said that "i am his hearing ..." can mean "i safeguard his hearing from shaytaan"
• that when a servant is loved by allaah, he fulfills his du'aa, and protects him from evil when he asks him to do so