Allah says: whoever loves to meet Me, I love to meet him; and whoever dislikes to meet Me, I dislike to meet him. When 'A'ishah worried this meant we are doomed because we all dislike death, the Prophet ﷺ explained: it is not the fear of death itself; it is that when the believer is given the glad tidings of Allah's mercy at the end, he loves to meet Allah, and Allah loves to meet him.
Where this hadith comes from
This is a hadith qudsi: the Prophet (peace be upon him) conveys the very words of Allah, words that are not part of the Qur'an. Allah says: if My servant likes to meet Me, I like to meet him; and if he dislikes to meet Me, I dislike to meet him. It is narrated by Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) and recorded by al-Bukhari (also by Malik), graded sahih.
What makes this hadith precious is the conversation attached to it. 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) worried aloud that we are all doomed, since everyone dislikes death. The Prophet (peace be upon him) corrected her gently: it is not the natural shrinking from death that is meant, but the heart's turning at the final moment, toward Allah in hope, or away from Him in dread.
The key words
What it means, line by line
If My servant likes to meet Me, I like to meet him: the longing is answered with longing. The believer who leans toward his Lord finds his Lord leaning toward him in return, a mutual love that is the heart of the whole hadith.
And if he dislikes to meet Me, I dislike to meet him: aversion too is met in kind. The Prophet (peace be upon him) made clear this is not about fearing the pain of dying, which everyone feels, but about the soul's final disposition. When the believer is shown the glad tidings of Allah's mercy, His pleasure, and His Paradise, his heart turns toward the meeting with hope.
The Qur'an frames the same truth as a quiet certainty: the One we are turning toward is the Hearing, the Knowing, and the appointed meeting is surely coming. Whoever lives in hope of that meeting is living toward a day that is already on its way.
It is about hope, not the fear of dying
The Prophet ﷺ removed a misunderstanding we might share: this hadith is not condemning the natural human dislike of death. Everyone flinches from dying. What it speaks of is the final disposition of the heart, at the moment of truth, does a person turn toward Allah with hope and longing, or away from Him in dread and aversion? The believer, shown the mercy awaiting him, finds his heart leaning toward the meeting.
Build a love for the meeting now
How a person feels about meeting Allah at the end is shaped by how he lived toward Allah throughout. A life of nearness, of prayer, repentance, and good, grows a quiet longing for the One it has been turned toward. A life of turning away grows the opposite. So this hadith is really about today: cultivate the relationship now, and the meeting becomes something you lean toward rather than flee, and a meeting you long for is a meeting Allah longs for too.
Carry this with you
How you live toward Allah shapes how you will feel about meeting Him.
Love the meeting, be loved.
Whoever loves to meet Allah, Allah loves to meet him. The longing is mutual.
It is not the fear of dying.
Everyone dislikes death. This is about the heart's final turn, toward Allah in hope, or away in dread.
Mercy at the end tips the heart.
Shown the glad tidings of Allah's mercy, the believer's heart leans toward the meeting.
Cultivate it now.
A life of nearness grows a longing for Allah. Build today the relationship you will meet Him with.
A du'a to carry
سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا ۖ غُفْرَانَكَ رَبَّنَا وَإِلَيْكَ ٱلْمَصِيرُ
Sami'na wa ata'na, ghufranaka Rabbana wa ilayka-l-masir
We hear and we obey. [We seek] Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the [final] destination. (Al-Baqarah 2:285)
A du'a for a hopeful return
One day each of us will meet Allah. This hadith asks the quiet question of how we will feel when we do, and answers that it depends on how we lived toward Him. Build a love for that meeting now, and He will meet you with love.
O Allah, make us of those who love to meet You, and who You love to meet. Let our final turn be toward You in hope, and let the glad tidings of Your mercy reach us at the end. To You is the destination. Ameen.
The hadith qudsi is from sunnah.com: 'If My servant likes to meet Me, I like to meet him...' narrated by Abu Hurayrah (and 'A'ishah) (ra), recorded by al-Bukhari (also Muslim and Malik), graded sahih. The supporting Qur'an (2:285) is in Uthmani script verified via quran.ai (ar-uthmani-minimal) with the Saheeh International translation. Per the editorial policy this stays with the spiritual meaning (longing for Allah). FOR SCHOLAR REVIEW before publication.