The love of the Prophet’s family (ahl al-bayt) is a central yet often overlooked tenet in Islamic spirituality. Far from being merely a historical or genealogical concern, this love serves as a pathway to divine proximity and a means to embody the transformative ethics of Islam. This meditation delves into the spiritual and metaphysical implications of this love, presenting it not as an optional piety but as an obligation with profound theological ramifications. By referencing Qur’anic verses, Prophetic sayings, and the lived reality of the Prophet’s descendants, this meditation positions mawadda (affection) for the progeny of the Prophet as a dynamic force that transcends personal loyalty, serving instead as a conduit for divine illumination and spiritual refinement. It invites the reader to perceive the ahl al-bayt as living embodiments of Prophetic mercy, guiding humanity and representing the rope of Allah that connects creation to the Creator.

This meditation also functions as a critique of the modern neglect of the ahl al-bayt, where the reverence owed to them has been eroded by ideological rigidity and sectarian polemics. This is not simply a lament for the past but a call to action for the present: a reawakening of love and commitment to the Prophet’s family as an antidote to the spiritual fragmentation of our time. It challenges both the reader and myself to confront our assumptions about piety and lineage, reminding us that true fidelity to the Prophet, peace be upon him, is inseparable from fidelity to his family. By anchoring devotion to the ahl al-bayt within the framework of divine command, love for the Prophet’s progeny emerges as a bridge between the temporal and the eternal, a path to salvation and self-realization. I invite myself and my fellow Karkaris among the readers to embrace a paradigm where love is not merely felt but actively lived through sacrifice and service for the elite of the Muhammadan progeny, our master and guide, Sidi Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari.

The Love of the Prophet’s Household: A Neglected Obligation Revived by the Truthful

Allah Most High says in Surah al-Shura, verse 23: “Say: I do not ask you for any reward except love for my near relatives (al-qurbā).” Islamic law (al-sharʿ al-ḥanīf) commands us to love the family of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Allah does not seek recompense for this love because it transcends all forms of reward. Love surpasses any worldly compensation or narrow calculation.

Whoever tastes the affection (mawadda) of the Prophet’s progeny, and embodies their qualities and closeness, and clings to it, is rewarded with a light and connection to the Chosen One, peace be upon him. Allah’s use of the term mawadda (affection), in the Holy Qur’an, is significant, as it derives from wudd, which itself derives from al-Wadūd (the All-Affectionate), one of Allah’s most beautiful names. Al-Wadūd is the unbreakable rope of Allah, and whoever is connected to this rope is truly connected to divine mercy and guidance.

This truth is affirmed by the authentic saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him, regarding his household. Pointing to his two beloved grandsons, the masters of the youth of Paradise, al-Hasan and al-Husayn, peace be upon them, he said: “Whoever loves them has loved me, and whoever loves me has loved Allah. Whoever despises them has despised me, and whoever despises me has despised Allah.” (al-Nasāʾī in al-Sunan al-Kubrā, Ibn Mājah, and Aḥmad)

In another narration, Saʿīd ibn Jubayr relates from Ibn ʿAbbās that when Allah revealed “Say: I do not ask you for any reward except love for my near relatives” (Qur'an, 42:23), the people asked: “O Messenger of Allah, who are these near relatives whom we must love?” He replied: “ʿAlī, Fāṭima, and their two sons.” (al-Ṭabarānī in al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr)

Thus, love for Allah flows through love for His Prophet, peace be upon him, and love for the Prophet is inseparable from love for his progeny. If a person feels anger when harm is done to their own grandchildren, how much greater should their outrage be when harm is directed toward the purified descendants of the Purifier? The true lover of the Messenger of Allah rejoices in their joy, grieves in their sorrow, and sees in them nothing but the reflection of their grandfather, peace be upon him, even if apparent flaws or shortcomings are observed in them.

Their noble lineage cannot be equated with that of others. They are the people of unparalleled nobility, lineage, and distinction—without the need for boasting. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said while pointing to al-Hasan: “This son of mine is a master (sayyid).” His masterhood stems from the supreme masterhood of his grandfather, the Master of the Children of Adam, who said: “I am the master of the children of Adam, without boasting.”

The Prophet, peace be upon him, also said: “Love Allah for the blessings He bestows upon you. Love me for the sake of Allah, and love my family for my sake.” (Tirmidhi)

How can those who claim to follow the religion of the Chosen One, peace be upon him, neglect to honor his family? Instead, nowadays we see many muslims attack the noble descendants, tarnish their reputations, spread lies about them, and incite hatred against them—without any shame before their grandfather, peace be upon him. Such actions degrade these individuals to the lowest depths of distance from the Prophet, peace be upon him.

The Prophet, peace be upon him, granted his household a special distinction, elevating their rank above all others. He singled them out for a unique station that no one else attained. They are his noble progeny, through whom the lights of divine manifestations and the mercies of blessings flow. They inherited the heart of their grandfather, peace be upon him, and were granted his sainthood (wilāya) and spiritual seal (khatmiyya). They unveiled the truths of the Qur'an, lifted the veil from the sciences of elucidation (bayān), and guided the believers to the Lord of all creation. The final link in this blessed chain is our master and guide, Sidi Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari, whom we witnessed manifesting miracles within ourselves and in the horizons.

The Chosen One, peace be upon him, collected in the purity of his household a sealed untouched nectar. Whoever strives to drink from the spring of this water, flowing from al-Muntaḥā (the ultimate endpoint), will have their heart directed toward the locus of divine selection and the cap of the righteous.

Clinging to their guidance ensures no misguidance thereafter—it is the firmest handhold, the ultimate guidance, and the uprightness of the purified ones.

 Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh, may Allah be pleased with him, reported: “I saw the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, during his pilgrimage on the Day of ʿArafah, standing on his camel al-Qaṣwā, giving a sermon. I heard him say: ‘O people, I leave among you something which, if you hold onto it, you will never go astray: the Book of Allah and the elite of my progeny (ʿitrah), my household.’” (Tirmidhi)

The honor of the Prophet’s household (ahl al-bayt) lies in the nobility of their origin. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “Every lineage and connection will be severed on the Day of Resurrection except my lineage and connection.” (Ibn ʿAsākir, Tārīkh Dimashq)

Yet, some of those whose lineage is severed, who have partnered with Satan, audaciously attempt to teach the descendants of the Prophet their own grandfather’s religion! Shamelessly, they accuse us of associating partners with Allah and spreading immorality. By doing so, they only expose their own ignoble origins, confirming the truth of the Prophet’s words, peace be upon him, regarding those who despise the family of our master, ʿAlī, peace be upon him. 

Ibn ʿAdī, al-Bayhaqī, Abū Shaykh, and al-Daylamī narrated that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “Whoever does not recognize my family (ʿitrah) from among the the Helpers (Anṣār) and the Arabs is one of three: either a hypocrite, a child of adultery, or someone conceived during their mother’s impurity.” (Yanābīʿ al-Mawadda li-Dhawī al-Qurbā by al-Qundūzī, Abū al-Shaykh, and al-Daylamī)

Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī said: “We, the Anṣār, used to test our children’s love for ʿAlī. If a child among us was born and did not love him, we knew they were not from us.” (Asnā al-Maṭālib, Ḥāfiẓ al-Jazarī)

ʿUbādah ibn al-Ṣāmit said: “We used to test our children with their love for ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib. If we saw one who did not love him, we knew they were illegitimate.” (Asnā al-Maṭālib)

Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Jazarī commented in Manāqib al-Asad al-Ghālib: “this has been widely known in the past and remains so to this day. It is a well-established understanding that no one harbors hatred for ʿAlī, may Allah be pleased with him, except for one born out of wedlock.”

The ḥadīth collections of al-Ṭabarī, al-Dārquṭnī, and others narrate Imam ʿAlī as saying: “Three will not love me: a hypocrite, a child of adultery, and one conceived during their mother’s impurity.”

Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī al-ʿAdawī narrates: Ahmad ibn ʿAbda al-Ḍabbī reported from Abū ʿAyniyya, from Ibn al-Zubayr, from Jābir, who said: "The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, commanded us to test our children by their love for ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib." 

Al-Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Mardawayh narrates from Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Naysābūrī, from ʿAbdullāh ibn Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, who said: "I heard al-Shāfiʿī say: I heard Mālik ibn Anas say: Anas ibn Mālik said, 'We did not know a man to be illegitimate except by his hatred for ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib.’"

Ibn Mardawayh narrated from Anas in a report: "After the day of Khaybar, a man would carry his child on his shoulder and stand in the path of ʿAlī. When he saw him, he would point with his finger and say: 'My son, do you love this man?' If the child said, 'Yes,' he would kiss him. If the child said, 'No,' he would send him to the ground and say, 'Go back to your mother.'"

Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Ṭabarī narrates in his Kitāb al-Wilāya that ʿAlī said: "Three will not love me: the child of adultery, a hypocrite, and a man conceived during his mother’s menstruation."

Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Dārquṭnī and Shaykh al-Islām al-Ḥamawī narrate in Farāʾid from Anas Ibn Malik: "On the Day of Judgment, a pulpit will be erected for me, and a caller will call out from beneath the Throne: 'Where is Muḥammad?' I will respond, and it will be said to me, 'Ascend.' I will ascend until I reach the top. Then the caller will call out a second time: 'Where is ʿAlī?' He will stand below me by one step, and all of creation will know that Muḥammad is the Master of the Messengers and ʿAlī is the Master of the Believers." Anas said: "A man stood up and said, 'O Messenger of Allah, who will hate ʿAlī after this?' The Prophet replied, 'O brother of the Helpers, no one from Quraysh will hate him except a disgraceful person, no one from the Helpers will hate him except a Jew, no one from the Arabs will hate him except an illegitimate person, and no one from the rest of humanity will hate him except a wretched soul.'"

al-Ṭabarī reported that Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “I saw the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, in a tent, reclining on an Arabian bow, with ʿAlī, Fāṭima, al-Ḥasan, and al-Ḥusayn. He said: ‘O Muslims! I am at peace with those at peace with the people of this tent. I am at war with those at war with them. I am a friend to whoever befriends them. No one loves them except one of pure lineage, and no one hates them except one of impure lineage.’” (Al-Riyāḍ al-Naḍra fī Manāqib al-ʿAshara)

Ibn Abī al-Ḥadīd narrates in his commentary, Sharḥ Nahj al-Balāgha, on the authority of Abū Maryam al-Anṣārī, who reported that ʿAlī said: "No disbeliever or child of adultery will love me."

Al-Masʿūdī narrates in Murūj al-Dhahab from Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Muḥammad ibn Sulaymān al-Nawfalī, the uncle of the Prophet, peace be upon him, al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib saying: "I was with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, when ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib approached. When the Prophet saw him, his face lit up with joy. I said, 'O Messenger of Allah! You brighten your face whenever you see this young man.' He replied, 'O uncle of the Messenger of Allah! By Allah, Allah loves him more than I do. There was no prophet whose remaining lineage was not from his own loins, but my progeny after me will be from his loins. On the Day of Judgment, people will be called by their names and their mothers’ names, except for him and his followers—they will be called by their names and their fathers’ names due to the purity of their lineage.'"

Al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī reported in Tārīkh Baghdād Ibn ʿAbbās saying: “While we were in the courtyard of the Kaʿba, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was speaking to us when something enormous, as large as the biggest of elephants, suddenly emerged from the direction of the Yemeni Corner. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, spat in its direction and said, ‘Cursed,’ or ‘Disgraced.’ ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib asked, ‘What is this, O Messenger of Allah?’ The Prophet replied, ‘Do you not recognize it, O ʿAlī?’ ʿAlī said, ‘Allah and His Messenger know best.’ The Prophet said, ‘This is Iblīs.’ ʿAlī leaped toward him, grabbed him by the forelock, and dragged him away from his place. Then he asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, should I kill him?’ The Prophet replied, ‘Do you not know that he has been granted respite until the appointed time?’ ʿAlī then released him. Iblīs stood to the side and said, ‘What do I have to do with you, O son of Abī Ṭālib? By Allah, no one has ever hated you except that I shared with his father in conceiving him. Recite Allah's words: “And share with them in wealth and children” (Qur'an 17:64).’”

Al-Zamakhsharī reports in al-Kashshāf: Ḥudhayfa said: "I saw the Messenger of Allah holding the hand of al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī, saying, 'O people! The grandfather of al-Ḥusayn is more honored before Allah than the grandfather of Yūsuf ibn Yaʿqūb. Al-Ḥusayn is in Paradise, his father is in Paradise, his mother is in Paradise, his brother is in Paradise, his lover is in Paradise, and the one who loves his lover is also in Paradise.'"

These ḥadīths highlight an eternal truth: love for ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib and his family is more than a personal sentiment—it is a divine marker of purity, sincerity, and true faith. Those who harbor animosity toward the family of the Prophet do not diminish their luminous legacy; instead, they unveil their own moral and spiritual failings, fulfilling the prophetic words that only the impure and hypocritical despise ʿAlī. Can anyone claiming to follow the Prophet turn away from the very household he elevated as a source of guidance and light? Love for ʿAlī is not just a virtue; it is a testament to one’s place among those chosen by the Most Merciful.

Al-Ḥākim al-Ḥaskānī reports in Shawāhid al-Tanzīl that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "The one with the most light on the Day of Judgment will be the one with the most love for the family of Muḥammad." He also reported: "By Allah, no servant loves my family except that Allah grants them light until they meet me at the Pond, and no servant hates my family except that Allah veils them from His presence on the Day of Judgment."

Al-Munāwī reports in Fayḍ al-Qadīr Sharḥ al-Jāmiʿ al-Ṣaghīr The Prophet, peace be upon him, further saying: "My intercession for my community is for the one who loves my family." Indeed, there is no intercession without their love, and no protection without their connection.

Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī, in al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr, cites the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, as reported in al-Zamakhsharī’s al-Kashshāf: “Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad dies as a martyr. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad dies forgiven. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad dies in a state of repentance. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad dies a believer, perfected in faith. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad is given glad tidings of Paradise by the Angel of Death, followed by Munkar and Nakīr. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad will be adorned and escorted to Paradise as a bride is escorted to her husband. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad will have two doors to Paradise opened in their grave. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad will have their grave made a place visited by the angels of mercy. Whoever dies with love for the family of Muhammad dies upon the Sunnah and the community. But whoever dies with hatred for the family of Muhammad will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment with ‘Hopeless of Allah’s Mercy’ inscribed upon their forehead. Whoever dies with hatred for the family of Muhammad dies a disbeliever.”

The Prophet, peace be upon him, teaches the world that whoever dies with hatred for his progeny will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise. How, then, can one doubt the rank and stature of the family of the Master of all of Existence, peace be upon him? Thus, the pen has dried (jaffa al-qalam) …

These traditions demonstrate that the love of the Prophet’s family (ahl al-bayt) transcends mere formalities. They invite us to recalibrate our understanding of love. Devotion to the ahl al-bayt is not a peripheral aspect of faith but its luminous core. This love is an ethical and metaphysical imperative upon all believers, one that bridges the temporal realm with the eternal. It serves as a reminder that the path to divine proximity is not paved by abstract rituals but by active alignment with the Prophet’s mercy as manifest in his lineage.

I understand that these hadiths might seem challenging for readers unfamiliar with this dimension of our faith, particularly Muslims in the West or those from urban areas influenced by modernist or Salafi interpretations. Yet, these are not my words but the words of the Prophet and his blessed companions. We should not shy away from sharing them. This is our religion, and we take pride in every word spoken by our Prophet. In a world fragmented by sectarianism and often detached from the sanctity of Prophetic tradition, these reports indeed challenge contemporary believers to reassess their priorities. Loving the ahl al-bayt is not about passive admiration but about embodying the values they represent: mercy, purity, humility, and an unwavering commitment to truth. This love is a connection to the rope of Allah, uniting the heart with its luminous origin.