Hadith: Verily, a verse has been revealed to me that is more beloved to me than the entire world

عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ رَضيَ اللهُ عنهُ قَالَ:
لَمَّا نَزَلَتْ: {إِنَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًا مُبِينًا لِيَغْفِرَ لَكَ اللهُ} إِلَى قَوْلِهِ {فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا} [الفتح: ١-٥] مَرْجِعَهُ مِنَ الْحُدَيْبِيَةِ، وَهُمْ يُخَالِطُهُمُ الْحُزْنُ وَالْكَآبَةُ، وَقَدْ نَحَرَ الْهَدْيَ بِالْحُدَيْبِيَةِ، فَقَالَ: «لَقَدْ أُنْزِلَتْ عَلَيَّ آيَةٌ هِيَ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا جَمِيعًا».
[صحيح] - [رواه مسلم] - [صحيح مسلم: 1786]

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) reported:
When the following was revealed: {Indeed, We have given you [O Prophet] a clear conquest, so that Allah may forgive you} until His saying: {a supreme triumph} [Surat al-Fat'h: 1-5], as he was returning from Hudaybiyyah, while they were experiencing sadness and depression, and the sacrificial animals had been slaughtered at Hudaybiyyah, he said: "Verily, a verse has been revealed to me that is more beloved to me than the entire world."
[Authentic hadith] - [Narrated by Muslim] - [Sahih Muslim - 1786]

Explanation

Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him) informed that when the following verses were revealed to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him): {Indeed, We have given you [O Prophet] a clear conquest, so that Allah may forgive you your previous and future sins, complete His favor upon you, and guide you to a straight path, and so that Allah may help you with a mighty victory. It is He Who sent down tranquility into the hearts of the believers so that they may increase in faith along with their faith. To Allah belong the soldiers of the heavens and earth. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. So that He may admit the believing men and women to gardens under which rivers flow, abiding therein forever, and absolve them of their sins; that is a supreme triumph before Allah.} [Surat al-Fat'h: 1-5], as he was returning from Hudaybiyyah, and the Companions were overcome by sadness and depression as they were prevented from performing ‘Umrah due to the terms of the treaty, which they thought was not in favor of the Muslims, and they had slaughtered their sacrificial animals at Hudaybiyyah. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: Verily, a verse has been revealed to me that is more beloved to me than the entire world, then he recited it.

Benefits from the Hadith

1. Highlighting the greatness of Allah's blessing upon His Prophet Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) through the great conquest achieved in the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, as He said to him: {Indeed, We have given you [O Prophet] a clear conquest} the two verses.
2. Highlighting the favor that Allah Almighty bestowed upon the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) when they submitted to His command and obeyed, as Allah revealed for them His saying: {So that He may admit the believing men and women to gardens under which rivers flow...}.
3. Clarifying the favor of Allah upon His Prophet and the believers by promising them the conquest and victory.
4. As-Sa‘di said in his commentary on this verse: {Indeed, We have given you [O Prophet] a clear conquest} [Surat al-Fat'h 1]. This mentioned conquest refers to the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, when the polytheists prevented the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) from performing the ‘Umrah. After a lengthy process, the final agreement was that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) would enter into a treaty with them to stop the war between them for ten years and would perform ‘Umrah the following year. Additionally, anyone wishing to join the covenant of Quraysh and their alliance could do so, and anyone wishing to join the Prophet's covenant and contract could do so. As a result, when people were secure with one another, the scope of the call to the religion of Allah Almighty expanded. Every believer, regardless of his location in those regions, was able to practice his faith. Those who were eager to learn the truth of Islam were able to do so, and during this period, people embraced Islam in large numbers. Therefore, Allah referred to it as a "conquest" and described it as a "clear conquest," i.e., evident and apparent. This is because the goal of conquering the polytheists' countries was to honor the religion of Allah and secure the Muslims' victory, which was achieved through this conquest.