Ibn al-Qayyim said in ‘Madarij as-Salikin’ (1/222-223):
“…the firmer he is when calling to Allah and fulfilling His commands, the more the enemy becomes intent upon tempting him through foolish people. So, he has essentially put on his body armor when facing this obstacle, and has taken it upon himself to confront the enemy for Allah’s sake and in His Name, and his worship in doing so is the worship of the best of those who know Allah, and it is known as the act of muraghamah, and none are aware of this except those with complete and perfect insight.
And there is nothing more beloved to Allah than one of His awliya’ engaging in the muraghamah and angering of His enemy, and He has alluded to this type of worship in various places in the Qur’an.
For example: {“He who migrates for the sake of Allah will find many dwelling places (muraghama) on Earth and plenty to live by…”} [an-Nisa’; 100] So, He referred to the one who migrated to worship Allah as a muraghim who angers Allah’s and his enemies, and Allah Loves from His awliya’ that they engage in this muraghamah and angering of His enemy, as Allah Said: {“That is because they suffer neither thirst nor fatigue nor hunger for the sake of Allah, nor do they take any step to anger the disbelievers nor inflict any injury upon an enemy, except that it is written to their credit as a deed of righteousness. Surely, Allah does not waste the reward of the righteous. “} [at-Tawbah; 120]
And He described the example of the Messenger and his followers: {“But, their description in the Gospel is like a sown seed that sends forth its shoot, makes it strong, and it then becomes thick and stands straight on its stem, delighting the sowers, so that He may anger the disbelievers with them.”} [al-Fath; 29]
So, angering the kuffar is a beloved and required goal with the Lord, and implementing this is from the completeness in servitude to Allah. And the Prophet legislated for the one who becomes confused and loses track in his prayer to perform two prostrations of forgetfulness, and he said: “If his prayer was correct in the first place, they will anger Satan,” and he called them ‘al-murghimatayn.’
So, whoever worships Allah by angering His enemy has taken a sufficient share of truthfulness, and the more this person loves his Lord, allies with Him, and opposes His enemies, the more he will manifest this muraghamah, and it is because of this muraghamah that it is praiseworthy to swagger and show off when standing in the ranks before battle and when secretly giving charity when none sees him except Allah, due to how this angers the enemy and is a sacrifice from himself and his wealth for the sake of Allah.
And this is a type of worship that is known only to a few people, and whoever tastes it and its sweetness will weep over the days that have passed him by…”
And ‘Abdullah ‘Azzam said in ‘Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah’ (p. 22):
“When will they accept you? Either you abandon your faith or they abandon their sin, and this won’t happen. If they abandon their sin, this means they become Muslims, and the conflict cools down. And if you abandon your Islam, you have committed shirk. So, the conflict continues: {“…Do you criticize us for no other reason than that we believe in Allah and in what has been sent down to us and to those before us, and that most of you are rebellious sinners?”} [al-Ma’idah; 59] So, their sin and our faith is the reason.
So, if you see America or Russia or Britain or the criminals and tyrants in the Islamic world – if you see them pleased with someone, you should doubt this person’s Islam and his faith. Understood? This is because Allah has set down a rule that does not change, and this rule says: {“And the Jews and Christians will never be pleased with you until you follow their way…”} [al-Baqarah; 120]
