What is the prescribed tawassul, and what is your ruling on tawassul through the person of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)?
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The questioner : The honorable Shaykh, a questioner asks, saying: What is the prescribed tawassul, and what is your ruling on tawassul through the person of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and what is the authenticity of the hadiths that were transmitted regarding tawassul through the person of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), whether he was alive or dead?
The Shaykh : This is a long topic, and I do not think you will be patient with it, not because you dislike knowledge, but because you are eager to hear the answer to what can be answered from the remaining questions. Therefore, I will summarize the answer to this question as much as I can. If I am lengthy, there is no blame. And beforehand, I refer those who are keen on reading and perusal, if they have not yet looked into it, to a book of mine which I titled: *Tawassul: Its Types and Rulings*. It is a book that has been printed repeatedly.
Tawassul is of two types:
Prescribed and not prescribed, worship and not worship:
As for the prescribed tawassul, it is: the servant seeking nearness to Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) by one of His names or by one of His attributes (Blessed and Exalted is He), or by His righteous deeds, or by the supplication of his Muslim brother, as came in this last category: seeking rain through the righteous, as 'Umar ibn al-Khattab did when they were struck by famine in the Year of the Dust. He went out to seek rain and said: This is the prescribed tawassul by one of the names of Allah or by one of the attributes of Allah or by His righteous deeds or by the supplication of the righteous man, especially if he is from the People of the House, like al-Abbas, the uncle of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
The Shaykh : This is a long topic, and I do not think you will be patient with it, not because you dislike knowledge, but because you are eager to hear the answer to what can be answered from the remaining questions. Therefore, I will summarize the answer to this question as much as I can. If I am lengthy, there is no blame. And beforehand, I refer those who are keen on reading and perusal, if they have not yet looked into it, to a book of mine which I titled: *Tawassul: Its Types and Rulings*. It is a book that has been printed repeatedly.
Tawassul is of two types:
Prescribed and not prescribed, worship and not worship:
As for the prescribed tawassul, it is: the servant seeking nearness to Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) by one of His names or by one of His attributes (Blessed and Exalted is He), or by His righteous deeds, or by the supplication of his Muslim brother, as came in this last category: seeking rain through the righteous, as 'Umar ibn al-Khattab did when they were struck by famine in the Year of the Dust. He went out to seek rain and said: