Is it permissible to ask Allah the Exalted by the right of one of His servants or by the status of one?

Question:
I say, Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success: Does asking Allah the Exalted by the right of one of His servants or by the status of one fall under the rule that taking what is not a cause as a cause constitutes minor shirk (associating partners with Allah)?

Answer:
Yes, it is a means to shirk. If you ask Allah by His right and by His goodness, this may lead you to asking Him directly, as happens at shrines and graves. They call for aid from the dead and seek help from the dead, and there is no mention of Allah in their supplications; rather, it is all directed to the dead. The cause is tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) through them initially, and then this led to shirk with them. So asking by them is bid'ah (religious innovation); asking by them is bid'ah. But if you ask them, it becomes shirk. Yes.