you are indeed dearer to me than everything except myself.

The Prophet replied, ‘No, O ʿUmar—not until I am dearer to you than yourself.’

ʿUmar said, ‘By Allah, O Messenger of Allah, you are indeed dearer to me than myself.’

He replied, ‘Now, O ʿUmar.’”

If this is the love required for the Messenger, which follows from love for Allah, what then of love for Allah Himself? It is only because of love for Him that loving the Messenger is obligatory, and it is impermissible to love any created being as one loves Him. Indeed, that constitutes associating partners with Him.

Allah Most High says:

“And among the people are those who take others besides Allah as equals, loving them as they love Allah. But those who believe are stronger in their love for Allah.” [al-Baqarah: 165]

This is the religion of Islam with which Allah sent His messengers and which He revealed in His scriptures: to worship Allah alone, without any partner.

Worship combines perfect love with perfect humility. No one is a believer unless Allah is dearer to him than everything else and he worships Allah with sincere devotion to Him alone.

Thus, what he mentioned in The Stations of Those Who Know Allah is the very first step a believer takes into faith. Whoever lacks this is not a believer.

The early generations of the Muslim community, its imams, and its scholars have agreed that Allah is loved for His own sake. None disputed this except a group of speculative theologians and proponents of rational opinion who followed the Jahmiyyah in some of their views, saying that He neither loves nor is loved.