Naming the One Whom One Loves for the Sake of Allah as a Close Friend
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, he says: Is it permissible for me to name the one I love for the sake of Allah as my close friend (khalil)?
The Shaykh:
Yes, there is nothing wrong with it. You may say, "My close friend is so-and-so." However, the title "Close Friend of Allah" is not taken from among the creation as a close friend. The status of being a close friend (khalilah) was only attained by two people: Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and Ibrahim (peace be upon him). For this reason, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih Muslim 2383d Sahih Muslim 2383e because the status of being a close friend does not accept sharing.
The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh:
They say that when Ibrahim, the Close Friend of Allah, was blessed with Isma'il in old age, he came to love Isma'il. When he loved Isma'il intensely, Allah wanted to test him, so He commanded him to slaughter him. Ibrahim hastened to obey, and thus he became sincere to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. Allah ransomed Isma'il from being slaughtered, and the truth of the dream was realized for Ibrahim. Allah said to him:[As-Saffat 37:105].
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, he says: Is it permissible for me to name the one I love for the sake of Allah as my close friend (khalil)?
The Shaykh:
Yes, there is nothing wrong with it. You may say, "My close friend is so-and-so." However, the title "Close Friend of Allah" is not taken from among the creation as a close friend. The status of being a close friend (khalilah) was only attained by two people: Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and Ibrahim (peace be upon him). For this reason, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
If I were to choose amongst the people of earth someone as my bosom friend
لو كنت متخذا من أهل الأرض خليلاI would have taken Abu Bakr as my bosom friend
لاتخذت أبا بكر خليلاThe questioner:
Honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh:
They say that when Ibrahim, the Close Friend of Allah, was blessed with Isma'il in old age, he came to love Isma'il. When he loved Isma'il intensely, Allah wanted to test him, so He commanded him to slaughter him. Ibrahim hastened to obey, and thus he became sincere to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. Allah ransomed Isma'il from being slaughtered, and the truth of the dream was realized for Ibrahim. Allah said to him:
You have fulfilled the vision
قَدْ صَدَّقْتَ الرُّؤْيَا
Source
شرح إغاثة اللهفان من مصائد الشيطان لابن القيم، تتمة فصل فيما في الشرك والزنا واللواطة من الخبث — islamhouse.com (49:51)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.