Qatr al-Wali ala Hadith al-Wali = Wilayat Allah wa al-Tariq Ilayha
- Author died
- 1250 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-Ḥadīthah
Qatr al-Wali ala Hadith al-Wali (The rain of divine friendship upon the hadith of the friend of God), also known as Wilayat Allah wa al-Tariq Ilayha (God’s Friendship and the Path to It), is an analytical treatise on the famous sacred tradition (hadith qudsi) of divine friendship ( من عادى لي وليًا فقد آذنته بالحرب , "Whoever shows enmity to a friend of Mine, I declare war upon him"), authored by the Yemeni scholar al-Shawkani (d. 1250 AH / 1834 CE) .
Background and Purpose
Al-Shawkani authored the book as an independent monograph because he observed that earlier hadith commentators had not fully satisfied what this multifaceted narration merited . He noted that even Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, despite composing what al-Shawkani considered the most comprehensive commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari, devoted only about three folios to this narration in Fath al-Bari . Explaining the title, al-Shawkani noted that al-wali in Arabic lexicography designates the rain that follows the early season rain (al-wasmi) .
Regarding the transmission of the hadith recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari from Abu Hurayrah, al-Shawkani considered an exhaustive critique of its chain unnecessary, maintaining that hadiths found in the two authentic collections of Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are received with collective acceptance and certainty by hadith scholars .
Method and Content
The treatise examines each phrase of the hadith in detail, incorporating linguistic, theological, and legal analysis, and drawing on earlier authorities such as al-Kirmani and Ibn Hubayra .
Central themes in the work include:
- Defining true sainthood (wilayah), establishing that the true friend of God (wali) is the pious believer who adheres to God's commands by fulfilling obligatory duties and drawing closer through supererogatory acts .
- The severe warning against antagonizing God's righteous servants, explaining God's defense and vindication of them .
- Critique of deviations concerning asceticism and wilayah, including mystical doctrines of union (ittihad), the antinomian claim that religious obligations are lifted from the spiritual elite (raf' al-takalif), and innovated practices associated with grave visitation .
Editions
The work has been published in a single volume, including an edition edited by Ibrahim Ibrahim Hilal . It has also appeared under the title Wilayat Allah wa al-Tariq Ilayha .
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