Some of those who seek nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say, “We call upon You, O Allah, by Your Prophet Muhammad,” claiming that the preposition “by” here means: by the blessing of what

Question:
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: Those who seek nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) by saying, “We call upon You, O Allah, by Your Prophet Muhammad,” say: Our intention with the preposition “by” here is by the blessing of what You bestowed upon him, and we did not intend his person or calling upon him, because he is dead. How is this statement answered?

Answer:
The preposition “by” is not what you make it; you manipulate it according to your desire. The preposition “by” is one of the letters of oath. So if you say, “I ask You by Your Prophet,” it means I swear upon You by Your Prophet. Or if you say it is for causality, “I ask You by the cause of Your Prophet,” that is an arbitrary distortion. How do you ask Him by the cause of Your Prophet? Ask Him without a cause. Ask Him directly between you and Him. Ask Allah directly without twisting the words and saying “by the cause of Your Prophet.” Yes.