_Waláyat_ means, etymologically, “power to dispose” (_taṣarruf_), and _wiláyat_ means “possession of command” (_imárat_). _Waláyat_ also means “lordship” (_rubúbiyyat_); hence God hath said: “_In this case the lordship_ (al-waláyat) _belongs to God who is the_ _Truth_” (Kor. xviii, 42), because the unbelievers seek His protection and turn unto Him and renounce their idols. And _wiláyat_ also means “love” (_maḥabbat_). _Walí_ may be the form _fa`íl_ with the meaning of _maf`úl_, as God hath said: “_And He takes charge of_ (yatawallá) _the righteous_” (Kor. vii, 195), for God does not leave His servant to his own actions and attributes, but keeps him under His protection. And _walí_ may be the form _fa`íl_, equivalent to _fá`il_, with an intensive force, because a man takes care (_tawallí kunad_) to obey God and constantly to fulfil the obligations that he owes to Him. Thus _walí_ in the active meaning is “one who desires” (_muríd_), while in the passive meaning it denotes “one who is the object of God’s desire” (_murád_). All these meanings, whether they signify the relation of God to Man or that of Man to God, are allowable, for God may be the protector of His friends, inasmuch as He promised His protection to the Companions of the Apostle, and declared that the unbelievers had no protector (_mawlá_).[117] And, moreover, He may distinguish them in an exclusive way by His friendship, as He hath said, “_He loves them and they love Him_” (Kor. v, 59), so that they turn away from the favour of mankind: He is their friend (_walí_) and they are His friends (_awliyá_). And He may confer on one a “friendship” (_wiláyat_) that enables him to persevere in obedience to Him, and keeps him free from sin, and on another a “friendship” that empowers him to loose and bind, and makes his prayers answered and his aspirations effectual, as the Apostle said: “There is many a one with dirty hair, dust-stained, clad in two old garments, whom men never heed; but if he were to swear by God, God would verify his oath.” It is well known that in the Caliphate of `Umar b. al-Khaṭṭáb, the Nile, in accordance with its usual habit, ceased to flow; for in the time of Paganism they used annually to adorn a maiden and throw her into the river to make it flow again. `Umar therefore wrote on a piece of paper: “O river, if thou hast stopped of thy own will, thou doest wrong, and if by command of God, `Umar bids thee flow.“ When this paper was thrown in, the Nile resumed its course. Footnote 117: Kor. xlvii, 12.