The Meaning of al-Wasilah in the Saying of Allah the Exalted: “And seek the means of nearness to Him”
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. This questioner says: In the saying of the Exalted,[Al-Ma'idah 5:35], and in the saying of the Exalted, [Al-Ma'idah 5:35], what is meant by al-wasilah?
Answer:
Proximity. Al-wasilah is proximity,[Al-Ma'idah 5:35] through obedience to Him, Glorified and Exalted is He. So obedience is a means, because it brings one closer to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. What is not meant by al-wasilah is what the superstitious say, that you take an intermediary between you and Allah who brings you closer to Allah and intercedes for you with Allah. This is a lie, a fabrication, and ignorance. Yes.
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. This questioner says: In the saying of the Exalted,
O you who have believed, fear Allah and seek the means [of nearness] to Him and strive in His cause that you may succeed.
اللَّهَand seek the means [of nearness] to Him
وَابْتَغُوا إِلَيْهِ الْوَسِيلَةَAnswer:
Proximity. Al-wasilah is proximity,
and seek the means [of nearness] to Him
وَابْتَغُوا إِلَيْهِ الْوَسِيلَةَ
Source
شرح إغاثة اللهفان من مصائد الشيطان لابن القيم، فصل وتمام الكلام في هذا المقام العظيم يتبين بأصول نافعة جامعة — islamhouse.com (44:39)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.