Is a person considered an infidel and outside the fold of Islam if he believes in the pillars of Islam and faith, deems lawful what is lawful and unlawful what is unlawful, but loves himself more than God and His Messenger? And will he be tormented in the grave and the afterlife, or will he simply be a Muslim?

Love for the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, is an obligation upon every believer, and it is part of bearing witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. This love has an origin and a perfection: - Its origin: This is the love without which one's Islam is not valid. - Its perfection: This is when one's love for him, peace and blessings be upon him, surpasses one's love for oneself, one's children, one's parents, and all people. This relates to the level of faith.

Allah Almighty says: (Say, [O Muhammad], "If your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your spouses, your kindred, the wealth you have gained, the commerce in which you fear decline, and dwellings with which you are pleased are dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger and striving in His cause, then wait until Allah executes His command. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.") At-Tawbah/24. And the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: (None of you truly believes until I am dearer to him than his father, his child, and all people.)

Not attaining the perfection of love does not expel a person from Islam; rather, it diminishes their degree of faith. The story of 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, with the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, showed that faith is not negated by this; rather, its possessor moves from the level of faith to the level of Islam if they prioritize their love for themselves over their love for the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him.

The love intended in the hadith is the inclination of the heart and its attachment to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, not merely veneration. Nevertheless, everyone who truly believed in the Prophet and had sound faith does not lack some degree of this superior love, even if they vary in its intensity.

Whoever prioritizes their love for themselves over their love for the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, has neglected an obligation and has incomplete faith.