 of love for Him to the poor and the orphan and the captive. [They tell them:]we only feed you for God's sake: we desire from you neither reward nor thanks."(76:8 & 9)
There is a well‑known hadith narrated in different sources that the Prophet said: "People are all God's family, so the dearest people to Him are those who benefit His family the most." 19
According to a hadith and similar to what is mentioned in the New Testament (Matt. 25:31‑46), on the Day of Judgement God will ask some people why they would not have visited Him when He was sick, why they would not have fed Him when He was hungry and why they would not have given water to Him when He was thirsty. Those people will ask: How could these have happened, while you are the Lord of all the world? Then God will. reply: So and so was sick and you did not visit him, so and so was hungry and you did not feed him and so and so was thirsty and you did not give water to him. Did not you know that if you did so you would find Me with him?20
Thus, in Islam love plays an essential role in ethics, mysticism, theology and even philosophy. To draw an Islamic picture of the world, including the story of the creation of the universe and mankind and then god's treatment of humanity one always needs to invoke the notion of love. God Himself is love and has created the world out of love.
He treats human beings with love. Faith also starts with love, an overwhelming love for certain truths and is required to flourish by the nourishment of this love to the extent that one's love for God fills all parts of one's heart and directs all aspects of one's life. One's love for God can increase only when one reduces one's selfishness and if one can ultimately get rid of selfishness and I‑ness one will be a perfect man whose will and pleasure would be the will and pleasure of God.
Love for God and freedom from selfishness can be secured at first by sacrifice and losing one's desires for the sake of God, and His people and then by having no desire other than what He desires and no will other than His. Then, of course, there will be no sacrifice and no pain. Ethical rules are guidelines of this path of love, enlightened and oriented by teachings of the intellect and prophets.
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