If the polytheists are warned against seeking aid from the dead, do they respond that there is no difference between seeking aid from the dead or the living?

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. He says: If the polytheists are warned against seeking aid from the dead, they respond that there is no difference between seeking aid from the dead or the living, and they say that it is merely one of the causes.

Answer:
Tell them: Is there a difference between the living and the dead, or not? Do they say there is no difference between the living and the dead? It is not possible that they would say this is a statement with such implications. Are the living and the dead the same? If he says yes, he is a stubborn denier. If he says they are not the same, it is said: Seeking aid from the living is different from seeking aid from the dead; because the living is able to help you, whereas the dead is not able to help you, nor can he help himself.