that is painful.” If someone were considered to have departed from the path merely for foregoing an act of kindness that was not obligatory upon him, most of those who follow it would fall outside it. “Allah’s allies” are of two kinds: the foremost, who are brought near to Him, and the people of the right, who follow a middle course. As al-Bukhārī narrated in his Sahīh from Abū Hurayrah, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Allah Most High says: ‘Whoever shows enmity towards an ally of Mine has openly challenged Me to war. Nothing by which My servant draws near to Me compares with fulfilling what I have made obligatory upon him. My servant continues to draw near to Me through voluntary deeds until I love him. When I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he grasps, and his foot with which he walks. Through Me he hears, through Me he sees, through Me he grasps, and through Me he walks. If he asks Me, I will surely give to him, and if he seeks My protection, I will surely protect him. I have never hesitated over anything I am going to do as I hesitate over taking the soul of My believing servant: he dislikes death, and I dislike causing him distress, yet he must undergo it.’”

Moreover, most of those who condemn someone for declining to pardon do so only out of their own desires, because the wrongdoer is their friend, heir, companion, or the like. Allah, Glorified is He, has required His servants to uphold justice in reconciliation just as He has required it in judgment. He Most High says:

“Reconcile them with justice and act equitably. Indeed, Allah loves those who act equitably.”

He has also made sincerity a condition of the reconciliation for which He grants a reward, saying: