My question is: if a righteous person who is a wali (close friend of Allah) dies, does he benefit or harm people after his death? I mean, does the death of this person benefit them? I am asking whether this wali, if he passes away, benefits people or harms them, or what happens after his death?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : My question is: if a righteous person who is a wali (close friend of Allah) dies, does he benefit or harm people after his death? I mean, does the death of this person benefit them? I am asking whether this wali, if he passes away, benefits people or harms them, or what happens after his death?
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah. There is no doubt that the most deserving of the status of being a close friend of Allah, and the greatest in this status, is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Allah commanded him to inform the community that he does not possess the power to benefit or harm himself except what Allah wills. So He said, Blessed and Exalted is He:[Al-A'raf 7:188] He also commanded him to tell people that he does not possess such power for them either, so he said: [Al-Jinn 72:21] If this is the case with the greatest of people in the status of being a close friend of Allah, and the closest to Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, namely Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), then what can be said of those below him among the awliya (close friends of Allah)? Every wali, prophet, or angel does not possess the power to benefit or harm anyone except what Allah wills. The One who possesses that power and manages creation is Allah (Mighty and Majestic). If the wali does not possess the power to cause harm or benefit in his lifetime, then a fortiori, he does not possess the power to benefit or cause harm after his death. Therefore, the awliya have no right in managing the universe, nor in benefiting creation, nor in harming creation. It is obligatory for a person to attribute that to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) alone, because He is the One who owns it. Then I say to this brother and others: it is necessary to verify that the description of being a wali applies to the one who is described with it. It may be said that this is a wali, while he is an enemy. It may be said that this is a wali of Allah, while he is an enemy of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), because he misguides people and prevents them from the true religion of Allah, and incites them to superstitions, sorcery, and other such things.
The standard for the status of being a wali is what Allah the Exalted mentioned in His saying:[Yunus 10:62-63] So whoever is a believer and pious is a close friend of Allah. If it is said about a person that he is a wali, we look at his faith and his piety towards Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and whether he is upright upon the Shari'ah of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), eager to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and implementing the legislation of Allah the Exalted in his speech and action. Otherwise, he is not a close friend of Allah, even if he claims to be one. If he brings in newly invented matters in worship or in creed and claims to be a wali, then he is lying in his claim, because he is not pious. The wali is the believing, pious person.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Well done.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the end of this session in which we reviewed the questions of the esteemed listeners...
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah. There is no doubt that the most deserving of the status of being a close friend of Allah, and the greatest in this status, is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Allah commanded him to inform the community that he does not possess the power to benefit or harm himself except what Allah wills. So He said, Blessed and Exalted is He:
Say, "I hold not for myself [the power of] benefit or harm, except what Allah has willed. And if I knew the unseen, I could have acquired much wealth, and no harm would have touched me.
قُلْ لَا أَمْلِكُ لِنَفْسِي نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ وَلَوْ كُنْتُ أَعْلَمُ الْغَيْبَ لَاسْتَكْثَرْتُ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ وَمَا مَسَّنِيَ السُّوءُSay, "Indeed, I do not possess for you [the power of] harm or right direction."
قل إني لا أملك لكم ضرا ولا رشداThe standard for the status of being a wali is what Allah the Exalted mentioned in His saying:
(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
ألا إن أولياء الله لا خوف عليهم ولا هم يحزنون الذين ءامنوا وكانوا يتقونThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Well done.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the end of this session in which we reviewed the questions of the esteemed listeners...