Hadith

 

Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: “Allah says, ‘I am in accordance with the thoughts of My slave about Me; and I am with him, when he remembers Me. If he remembers Me in his heart, I also remember him in My heart. If he remembers Me in a group, I remember him in a better group (i.e. angels). If he draws near Me by the span of a palm, I draw near him by a cubit. If he draws near Me by a cubit, I draw near him by the space covered by outstretched arms. If he walks towards Me, I go to him running.’” [Sahih Bukhari]

Commentary: This hadith shows how willing and eager Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) is to befriend us and draw close to us! Anybody who sincerely wants Allah in his/her life will find Him. It cannot be that a person is sincere in their search but are not guided to Allah (subhana wa ta’ala). The case of Salman Farsi is a perfect example of how the search for truth brought him to Allah (subhana wa ta’ala). It is said about him that even if Islam were to be found on the moon, he would have made his way to it. Allah has His own ways of bringing people to that which they seek. Nobody is left helpless in their search. If they are confused, it is only because they wish to remain so.

In our everyday dhikr we should rejoice in the fact that when we remember Allah Mighty and Majestic, He takes special note of it. When we talk about Him in any gathering, He mentions us in a much superior gathering. Imagine! The most important entity that exists, discusses you with the angels...

In a related hadith, 413. Abu Dharr (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said, "Allah, the Almighty, says: `Whosoever does a good deed, will have (reward) ten times like it and I add more; and whosoever does an evil, will have the punishment like it or I will forgive (him); and whosoever approaches Me by one span, I will approach him by one cubit; and whosoever approaches Me by one cubit, I approach him by one fathom, and whosoever comes to Me walking, I go to him running; and whosoever meets Me with an earth-load of sins without associating anything with Me, I meet him with forgiveness like that". [Muslim]