O Allah! Love him
It is narrated from Anas ibn Malik: ‘A roasted bird was brought and gifted to the Messenger of Allah (ص) who said:
﴿ اَللَّهُمَّ ائْتِنِي بِرَجُلٍ يُـحِبُّهُ اللهُ وَيُـحِبُّهُ رَسُولُهُ». «قَالَ أَنَس: فَأَتَی عَلِيٌّ فَقَرَعَ الْبَابَ، فَقُلْتُ: إِنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ ـ صَلَّی الله عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ ـ مَشْغُولٌ وَكُنْتُ اُحِبُّ أَنْ يَكُونَ رَجُلاً مِنَ الْأَنْصَارِ، ثُمَّ، إِنَّ عَلِيّاً فَعَلَ مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ أَتَی الثَّالِثَةَ، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ـ صَلَّی الله عَلَيْهِ وَ آلِهِ ـ «يَا أَنَسُ! أَدْخِلْهُ فَقَدْ عَنَيْتُهُ»، فَلَمَّا أَقْبَلَ قَالَ: «اَللَّهُمَّ وَالِ، اَللَّهُمَّ وَالِ ﴾
"O Lord, send me a man whom Allah loves and His Messenger loves (so that he may share with me in eating this roasted chicken). Anas says: "All of a sudden, Ali knocked on the door to meet the Prophet. I responded: ‘The Messenger of Allah (ص) is busy’ and I wished that the man to come would be from the Ansar (people of Medina). It was not long before Ali knocked the door again, and the third time Ali knocked on the door. At this time, the Prophet (ص) said, "Open the door for I had him in mind in my prayers." When Ali came near the Prophet (ص), the latter said: "O Lord! Love him, O Lord! Love him. "
Ibn Athir Jazari, Asad al-Ghabah, V.4, page 30, therein states that this hadith has been narrated from Anas by more than one narrator; Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidaya wa'l-Nihaya, V.7, page 387-388; Jawzi, Elal al-Mutenahiya, V.1, page 229-236 (361-377); Ibn Asaker, Tarikh Madinah-Damishq, V.42, page 249 and in many other instances of this book, this hadith has been narrated.
Khwarizmi in Maqtal al-Husain (a.s.), [V.1, page 46] writes: Hafiz ibn Marduyeh narrated this hadith with one hundred and twenty chain of transmission.
And Abu-Abdullah Hafiz says, Although Muslim and Bukhari have not narrated this hadith-e-Tair in their books, yet this hadith is genuine. If you wish to have a more detailed information in this regard, you may refer to the book Abaqat al-Anwar (Lucknow-India, V.13, page 324, 380, 405 & 419).
