Seeking Nearness to Allah Through the Prophets and the Awliya
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The first question of Fatwa No. ( 2961 ):
Q1: What is the ruling in Islam regarding seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophets and the Awliya?
A1: Seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophets and the Awliya is a general term that encompasses different types, and the ruling varies according to them. Here is the explanation. First: Asking a Prophet or a wali (close friend of Allah) while he is alive and within hearing distance to make du'a (supplication) for you. This is permissible. An example of this is when a Bedouin asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who was on the minbar delivering the Friday sermon, to ask Allah the Exalted to send down rain. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then supplicated to his Lord, Glorified is He, and He sent down rain. Then, the following Friday, he asked him to ask Allah the Exalted to remove the rain from them because of the harm it had caused the people. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) supplicated to his Lord, Glorified is He, to make the rain fall on the hills and the high places... and so on. This is based on what is established from Anas ibn Malik that he said: , narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim . It is also established from Anas as well, (may Allah be pleased with him), that 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), when they faced drought, would seek rain through al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib and say: Sahih al-Bukhari 1010 narrated by al-Bukhari . This is not seeking nearness through status, sanctity, right, or the like, but rather it is seeking nearness through the du'a of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to his Lord during his lifetime to send down rain or avert harm. Likewise, seeking nearness through the du'a of al-'Abbas to his Lord. Thus, this type of seeking nearness falls under the first category. This is indicated by the fact that 'Umar and the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) turned away from
seeking nearness through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death to seeking nearness through his uncle al-'Abbas . For the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is respected whether alive or dead, and his status with his Lord and with the believers is great whether alive or dead. Second: Seeking nearness to Allah in one's du'a through the status of a Prophet, his sanctity, his blessing, or the status of other righteous people, their sanctity, their right, or their blessing, saying for example: "O Allah, by the status of Your Prophet, or his sanctity, or his blessing, give me wealth and children, or admit me to Paradise and protect me from the punishment of the Fire." This is not shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of Islam, but it is prohibited; to block the means to shirk, and to keep the Muslim away from doing anything that leads to shirk. There is no doubt that seeking nearness through the status of the Prophets and the righteous is one of the means of shirk that leads to it over time, as experience has shown and reality has witnessed. Many proofs have come in the Book and the Sunnah that clearly indicate that blocking the means to shirk and prohibited matters is among the objectives of the Shari'ah. Among these is the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-An'am 6:108] Thus, the Exalted prohibited Muslims from insulting the idols of the polytheists which they worship besides Allah, even though they are false; lest that become a means for the polytheists to insult the true God, the Exalted,
in defense of their false idols, out of ignorance and transgression. Among these is also his (peace and blessings be upon him) prohibition of taking graves as mosques; fearing that they would be worshipped. And the prohibition of a man being alone with a woman who is not a mahram (a relative one may not marry), and the prohibition of a woman displaying her adornment to foreign men, and the prohibition of her leaving her house perfumed, and the command for men to lower their gaze from the adornment of women, and the command for women to lower their gaze; because all of this is a means to being tempted by them and a way to falling into immorality. Allah the Exalted said:[An-Nur 24:30-31] the verse. It is established in the hadith that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 529 . And because seeking nearness through status, sanctity, and the like in du'a has not been transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and worship is based on textual evidence (taqwiyyah), and there is nothing in the Book of Allah, nor in the Sunnah of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), nor from his Companions that indicates this type of seeking nearness, it is known to be a bid'ah (religious innovation). And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 1718b . Third: Calling upon the Prophets or the Awliya and seeking their aid in fulfilling their needs, such as one of them saying: "O Messenger of Allah, relieve my distress or heal me," or saying: "Help, help, O Messenger of Allah," or "O Husayn." This and the like is shirk
akbar (major shirk) that takes its speaker out of Islam. And Allah sent down His Books and sent His Messengers to abolish this and warn against it. And success is from Allah. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q1: What is the ruling in Islam regarding seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophets and the Awliya?
A1: Seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophets and the Awliya is a general term that encompasses different types, and the ruling varies according to them. Here is the explanation. First: Asking a Prophet or a wali (close friend of Allah) while he is alive and within hearing distance to make du'a (supplication) for you. This is permissible. An example of this is when a Bedouin asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who was on the minbar delivering the Friday sermon, to ask Allah the Exalted to send down rain. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then supplicated to his Lord, Glorified is He, and He sent down rain. Then, the following Friday, he asked him to ask Allah the Exalted to remove the rain from them because of the harm it had caused the people. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) supplicated to his Lord, Glorified is He, to make the rain fall on the hills and the high places... and so on. This is based on what is established from Anas ibn Malik that he said:
A year of hardship struck the people during the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). While the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon on a Friday, a Bedouin stood up and said: "O Messenger of Allah, the wealth has perished and the children are hungry, so ask Allah for us." He raised his hands, and we did not see a wisp of cloud in the sky. By Him in whose hand is my soul, he did not lower them until clouds rose like mountains. Then, before he descended from the minbar, I saw the rain pouring down on his beard (peace and blessings be upon him). We rained that day, the next day, the day after that, and the day following that, until the next Friday. That Bedouin, or someone else, stood up and said: "O Messenger of Allah, the buildings have collapsed and the wealth has been drowned, so ask Allah for us." He raised his hands and said: "O Allah, around us, not upon us." He would point with his hands to a side of the clouds, and they would part. The city became like a hollow, and the valley flowed like a channel for a month. No one came from any direction but reported the abundance.
أصابت الناس سنة على عهد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فبينما النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يخطب في يوم الجمعة قام أعرابي، فقال: يا رسول الله، هلك المال وجاع العيال فادع الله لنا، فرفع يديه وما نرى في السماء قزعة، فوالذي نفسي بيده ما وضعها حتى ثار السحاب مثل الجبال ثم لم ينزل عن منبره حتى رأيت المطر يتحادر على لحيته صلى الله عليه وسلم، فمطرنا يومنا ذلك ومن الغد وبعد الغد والذي يليه حتى الجمعة الأخرى، وقام ذلك الأعرابي، أو قال غيره، فقال: يا رسول الله، تهدّم البناء وغرق المال فادع الله لنا، فرفع يديه فقال: اللهم حوالينا لا علينا، فما يشير بيديه إلى ناحية من السحاب إلاَّ انفرجت، وصارت المدينة مثل الجوبة وسال الوادي قناة شهرًا ولم يجئ أحد من ناحية إلاَّ حدث بالجود"O Allah! We used to ask our Prophet to invoke You for rain, and You would bless us with rain, and now we ask his uncle to invoke You for rain. O Allah ! Bless us with rain."(1) And so it would rain.
اللهم إنا كنا نتوسل إليك بنبينا فتسقينا، وإنا نتوسل إليك بعم نبينا فاسقنا، قال: فيسقونseeking nearness through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death to seeking nearness through his uncle al-'Abbas . For the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is respected whether alive or dead, and his status with his Lord and with the believers is great whether alive or dead. Second: Seeking nearness to Allah in one's du'a through the status of a Prophet, his sanctity, his blessing, or the status of other righteous people, their sanctity, their right, or their blessing, saying for example: "O Allah, by the status of Your Prophet, or his sanctity, or his blessing, give me wealth and children, or admit me to Paradise and protect me from the punishment of the Fire." This is not shirk (associating partners with Allah) that takes one out of Islam, but it is prohibited; to block the means to shirk, and to keep the Muslim away from doing anything that leads to shirk. There is no doubt that seeking nearness through the status of the Prophets and the righteous is one of the means of shirk that leads to it over time, as experience has shown and reality has witnessed. Many proofs have come in the Book and the Sunnah that clearly indicate that blocking the means to shirk and prohibited matters is among the objectives of the Shari'ah. Among these is the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And do not insult those they invoke other than Allah, lest they insult Allah in enmity without knowledge. Thus We have made pleasing to every community their deeds. Then to their Lord is their return, and He will inform them about what they used to do.
وَلاَ تَسُبُّوا الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ فَيَسُبُّوا اللَّهَ عَدْوًا بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ كَذَلِكَ زَيَّنَّا لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ عَمَلَهُمْ ثُمَّ إِلَى رَبِّهِمْ مَرْجِعُهُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُهُمْ بِمَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَin defense of their false idols, out of ignorance and transgression. Among these is also his (peace and blessings be upon him) prohibition of taking graves as mosques; fearing that they would be worshipped. And the prohibition of a man being alone with a woman who is not a mahram (a relative one may not marry), and the prohibition of a woman displaying her adornment to foreign men, and the prohibition of her leaving her house perfumed, and the command for men to lower their gaze from the adornment of women, and the command for women to lower their gaze; because all of this is a means to being tempted by them and a way to falling into immorality. Allah the Exalted said:
(30) Tell the believing men to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts. That is purer for them. Indeed, Allah is Acquainted with what they do. (31) And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision
قُلْ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا فُرُوجَهُمْ ذَلِكَ أَزْكَى لَهُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ (30) وَقُلْ لِلْمُؤْمِنَاتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِنَّAllah cursed the Jews and the Christians that they took the graves of their prophets as mosques
لعن الله اليهود والنصارى اتخذوا قبور أنبيائهم مساجدHe who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.
من عمل عملاً ليس عليه أمرنا فهو ردakbar (major shirk) that takes its speaker out of Islam. And Allah sent down His Books and sent His Messengers to abolish this and warn against it. And success is from Allah. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.