عن جندب بن عبد الله رضي الله عنه قال: سمعت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قبل أن يموت بخمس، وهو يقول: «إني أبرأ إلى الله أن يكون لي منكم خليل، فإن الله قد اتخذني خليلا كما اتخذ إبراهيم خليلا، ولو كنت متخذا من أمتي خليلا لاتخذت أبا بكر خليلا، ألا وإن من كان قبلكم كانوا يتخذون قبور أنبيائهم مساجد، ألا فلا تتخذوا القبور مساجد، فإني أنهاكم عن ذلك».
[صحيح] - [رواه مسلم]
المزيــد ...

Jundub ibn ‘Abdullāh (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) five (nights) before he died, saying: "I stand acquitted before Allah that I took anyone of you as an intimate friend, for Allah has taken me as an intimate friend just as he took Ibrahīm as an intimate friend. Had I taken anyone from my nation as an intimate friend, I would have taken Abu Bakr as an intimate friend. Beware! Those who were before you used to take the graves of their prophets as places for prayer. Beware! Do not take tombs as places for prayer, for I forbid you to do so."
Sahih/Authentic. - [Muslim]

Explanation

Shortly before his death, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said an important Hadīth to his Ummah. He informed them about his status in Allah's sight; that he attained the highest levels of love, just as Prophet Ibrahīm (peace be upon him) did. For this reason, he negated that he had an intimate friend other than Allah, because his heart was replete with loving, glorifying, and knowing Allah, thereby having no room for anyone else. Intimate friendship is confined in man's heart to one person. Had the Prophet had an intimate friend from among people, it would have been Abu Bakr As-Siddīq. This is an indication of the merit of Abu Bakr, and of appointing him to lead Muslims after the Prophet's death. Then the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned the immoderation of Jews and Christians in relation to the graves of their prophets, which they turned into polytheistic places of worship (where they associate partners with Allah in worship). So he forbade his followers to act like that. Christians have only one prophet, which is Jesus. They believe that there is a tomb on earth where he is buried, but the truth is that Jesus was raised to heavens, and he was neither crucified nor buried.

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Benefits from the Hadith

  1. It establishes the attribute of love for Allah Almighty in a way that befits His majesty.
  2. It points out the merit of Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Ibrāhīm (Abraham) (peace be upon them).
  3. It shows the merit of Abu Bake al-Siddīq and that he is the noblest person ever in the Ummah.
  4. This is evidence for Abu Bakr’s caliphate.
  5. It establishes the Prophet’s close friendship with Allah Almighty.
  6. It indicates that building over the graves is one of the traditions of the past nations.
  7. It is prohibited to take graves as places of worship in which or towards which prayer is offered and upon which mosques or domes are constructed. The prohibition is meant to prevent falling into polytheism because of that.
  8. Blocking the means leading to polytheism.