Seeking Nearness to Allah Through the Selves, Status, or Rights of Created Beings
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The first question of Fatwa No. ( 4217 ):
Q1: Seeking nearness to Allah through one of His creation, saying: This issue
is one in which the Ummah has been divided, and most scholars have said it is permissible, including Imam Ahmad , the Imam of the people of the Sunnah, Ibn Qudamah, al-Nawawi, al-Shawkani, and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani , and many other scholars, and also Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab . Did the Shaykh Muhammad say it is permissible or not? And where is the truth in this issue with sufficient evidence that refutes the one who says that only Ibn Taymiyyah and Al-Albani are the only two who forbade seeking nearness to Allah through one of His creation?
A1: Seeking nearness to Allah through the persons of the created, or their status, or their right, whether they are prophets or righteous people, is a matter of disagreement among scholars. The majority of scholars hold that it is not permissible, and this is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and the Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab . The Committee was asked a similar question and answered with the following: The wali: Everyone who believes in Allah and fears Him, and does what He has commanded and abstains from what He has forbidden, and at the head of them are the messengers and prophets (peace be upon them). Allah the Exalted said:[Yunus 10:62-63]. And seeking nearness to Allah through His awliya (close friends of Allah) is of types: The first: That a person asks a living wali to supplicate to Allah for him for abundance
of provision, or healing from illness, or guidance and success, and the like. This is permissible. From this is the request of some of the Companions from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when the rain was delayed from them, asking him to seek rain for them. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked his Lord to send down rain, and He accepted his supplication and sent down rain upon them. And from this is the seeking of rain by the Companions through al-'Abbas during the caliphate of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), and their request of him to supplicate to Allah for the sending down of rain. So al-'Abbas supplicated to his Lord and the Companions said "Ameen" to his supplication... and so on, from what occurred in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and after him, of a Muslim asking his Muslim brother to supplicate to his Lord for him to bring benefit or remove harm. The second: That he calls upon Allah, seeking nearness to Him through his love for His Prophet and his following of him, and through his love for the awliya of Allah, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You by my love for Your Prophet and my following of him, and by my love for Your awliya, to give me such and such." This is permissible, because it is seeking nearness from the servant to his Lord through his righteous deed. From this is what is established of the seeking nearness of the three men of the cave by their righteous deeds. The third: That he asks Allah by the status of His prophets or a wali from among His awliya, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You by the status of Your Prophet, or by the status of al-Husayn ," for example. This is not permissible, because the status of the awliya of Allah, even though it is great with Allah, and especially the status of our beloved Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), is not a Shari'ah cause or a natural cause for the acceptance of supplication. For this reason, the Companions, when they were afflicted with drought, turned away from seeking nearness by his status (peace and blessings be upon him) in the supplication for rain to seeking nearness by the supplication of his uncle al-'Abbas , even though his status (peace and blessings be upon him)
is above every status, and it is not known from the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) that they sought nearness by him (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death, and they are the best of the generations and the people who know his right best and love him most. The fourth: That the servant asks his Lord for his need, swearing by his wali or his prophet, or by the right of his prophet or awliya, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You for such and such by Your wali so-and-so, or by the right of Your prophet so-and-so." This is not permissible, for swearing by a created being to a created being is forbidden, and it is more strictly forbidden to do so to Allah the Creator. Then, no created being has a right over the Creator merely by his obedience to Him, such that he swears by him to Allah or seeks nearness by him. This is what the evidence testifies to, and by this the Islamic creed is preserved and the means to shirk (associating partners with Allah) are blocked. And success is from Allah. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and his family and his Companions.
Q1: Seeking nearness to Allah through one of His creation, saying: This issue
is one in which the Ummah has been divided, and most scholars have said it is permissible, including Imam Ahmad , the Imam of the people of the Sunnah, Ibn Qudamah, al-Nawawi, al-Shawkani, and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani , and many other scholars, and also Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab . Did the Shaykh Muhammad say it is permissible or not? And where is the truth in this issue with sufficient evidence that refutes the one who says that only Ibn Taymiyyah and Al-Albani are the only two who forbade seeking nearness to Allah through one of His creation?
A1: Seeking nearness to Allah through the persons of the created, or their status, or their right, whether they are prophets or righteous people, is a matter of disagreement among scholars. The majority of scholars hold that it is not permissible, and this is the choice of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and the Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab . The Committee was asked a similar question and answered with the following: The wali: Everyone who believes in Allah and fears Him, and does what He has commanded and abstains from what He has forbidden, and at the head of them are the messengers and prophets (peace be upon them). Allah the Exalted said:
(62) Unquestionably, [for] the allies of Allah there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve (63) Those who believed and were fearing Allah
أَلا إِنَّ أَوْلِيَاءَ اللَّهِ لاَ خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ (62) الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَكَانُوا يَتَّقُونَof provision, or healing from illness, or guidance and success, and the like. This is permissible. From this is the request of some of the Companions from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when the rain was delayed from them, asking him to seek rain for them. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked his Lord to send down rain, and He accepted his supplication and sent down rain upon them. And from this is the seeking of rain by the Companions through al-'Abbas during the caliphate of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), and their request of him to supplicate to Allah for the sending down of rain. So al-'Abbas supplicated to his Lord and the Companions said "Ameen" to his supplication... and so on, from what occurred in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and after him, of a Muslim asking his Muslim brother to supplicate to his Lord for him to bring benefit or remove harm. The second: That he calls upon Allah, seeking nearness to Him through his love for His Prophet and his following of him, and through his love for the awliya of Allah, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You by my love for Your Prophet and my following of him, and by my love for Your awliya, to give me such and such." This is permissible, because it is seeking nearness from the servant to his Lord through his righteous deed. From this is what is established of the seeking nearness of the three men of the cave by their righteous deeds. The third: That he asks Allah by the status of His prophets or a wali from among His awliya, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You by the status of Your Prophet, or by the status of al-Husayn ," for example. This is not permissible, because the status of the awliya of Allah, even though it is great with Allah, and especially the status of our beloved Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), is not a Shari'ah cause or a natural cause for the acceptance of supplication. For this reason, the Companions, when they were afflicted with drought, turned away from seeking nearness by his status (peace and blessings be upon him) in the supplication for rain to seeking nearness by the supplication of his uncle al-'Abbas , even though his status (peace and blessings be upon him)
is above every status, and it is not known from the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) that they sought nearness by him (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death, and they are the best of the generations and the people who know his right best and love him most. The fourth: That the servant asks his Lord for his need, swearing by his wali or his prophet, or by the right of his prophet or awliya, by saying: "O Allah, I ask You for such and such by Your wali so-and-so, or by the right of Your prophet so-and-so." This is not permissible, for swearing by a created being to a created being is forbidden, and it is more strictly forbidden to do so to Allah the Creator. Then, no created being has a right over the Creator merely by his obedience to Him, such that he swears by him to Allah or seeks nearness by him. This is what the evidence testifies to, and by this the Islamic creed is preserved and the means to shirk (associating partners with Allah) are blocked. And success is from Allah. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and his family and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.