Is supplication by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Noble Qur'an permissible?
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The questioner : Supplication by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Noble Qur'an?
The Shaykh : These are two issues:
The first issue is supplication by the Noble Qur'an. Supplication by the Noble Qur'an means that a person asks his Lord by His speech. This is permissible according to the well-known principle among scholars, because this falls under the category of seeking nearness to Allah through the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Seeking nearness to Allah through His attributes is permissible, as it has been established by the Shari'ah. The Qur'an is one of the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for it is the speech of Allah, and He spoke it truly in terms of wording and intended it in terms of meaning. Thus, it is His speech (Mighty and Majestic) in both wording and meaning; it is not the speech of Allah in wording without meaning, nor meaning without wording. Since it is one of His attributes, seeking nearness to Allah through it is permissible.
As for seeking nearness to Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), which is the second issue, the stronger opinion among scholars is that this is not permissible, and that seeking nearness to Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is forbidden. It is not permissible for a person to say: "O Allah, I ask You by the status of Your Prophet so-and-so." This is because a means of seeking nearness is not a means unless it has an effect in achieving the intended goal. The status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has no effect for the supplicant in achieving the intended goal. If it has no effect, it is not a valid cause. And Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is not supplicated to except by what is a valid cause that has an effect in achieving what is sought.
The status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is something specific to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) alone, and it is a virtue belonging to him alone. As for us, we do not benefit from it; rather, we benefit from having faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and loving him. How easy the matter is for the supplicant if he says: "O Allah, I ask You by my faith in You and in Your Messenger so-and-so," instead of saying: "I ask You by the status of Your Prophet." And among the blessings of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) upon us and His mercy toward us is that no door of the forbidden is closed except that there are many doors of the permissible open before the person.
Therefore, the caller to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) should, when he mentions a door that is closed in the Shari'ah, clarify for people the open door that the Shari'ah has brought, so that he does not block the paths for people and leave them in confusion and bewilderment. Allah the Exalted has guided to this in His Book, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has guided to it in his Sunnah. Allah the Exalted said in the Noble Qur'an:[Al-Baqarah 2:104] Thus, He forbade them from saying one thing and opened for them the door to saying another: "Do not say 'Ra'ina' (watch over us), but say 'Unzurina' (look at us)." And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the man who came to him with good dates and told him that he was buying this good date for two sa' (a dry measure of about 3 kg) and two sa' for three: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: Thus, he forbade him from buying a sa' of good dates for two sa' of bad dates. He forbade him from that because this is riba (usury or interest). And he said to him: meaning, then buy good dates with dirhams. So when he (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade him from the forbidden, he clarified the lawful for him. And so it should be for every caller who calls people to something and warns them from an action or statement, that he should mention for them permissible actions and statements as an alternative.
In summary, asking Allah the Exalted by His speech, such as the Qur'an for example, is permissible, and asking Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is not permissible, as we have explained regarding the wisdom and reasoning.
The Shaykh : These are two issues:
The first issue is supplication by the Noble Qur'an. Supplication by the Noble Qur'an means that a person asks his Lord by His speech. This is permissible according to the well-known principle among scholars, because this falls under the category of seeking nearness to Allah through the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Seeking nearness to Allah through His attributes is permissible, as it has been established by the Shari'ah. The Qur'an is one of the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for it is the speech of Allah, and He spoke it truly in terms of wording and intended it in terms of meaning. Thus, it is His speech (Mighty and Majestic) in both wording and meaning; it is not the speech of Allah in wording without meaning, nor meaning without wording. Since it is one of His attributes, seeking nearness to Allah through it is permissible.
As for seeking nearness to Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), which is the second issue, the stronger opinion among scholars is that this is not permissible, and that seeking nearness to Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is forbidden. It is not permissible for a person to say: "O Allah, I ask You by the status of Your Prophet so-and-so." This is because a means of seeking nearness is not a means unless it has an effect in achieving the intended goal. The status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has no effect for the supplicant in achieving the intended goal. If it has no effect, it is not a valid cause. And Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is not supplicated to except by what is a valid cause that has an effect in achieving what is sought.
The status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is something specific to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) alone, and it is a virtue belonging to him alone. As for us, we do not benefit from it; rather, we benefit from having faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and loving him. How easy the matter is for the supplicant if he says: "O Allah, I ask You by my faith in You and in Your Messenger so-and-so," instead of saying: "I ask You by the status of Your Prophet." And among the blessings of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) upon us and His mercy toward us is that no door of the forbidden is closed except that there are many doors of the permissible open before the person.
Therefore, the caller to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) should, when he mentions a door that is closed in the Shari'ah, clarify for people the open door that the Shari'ah has brought, so that he does not block the paths for people and leave them in confusion and bewilderment. Allah the Exalted has guided to this in His Book, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has guided to it in his Sunnah. Allah the Exalted said in the Noble Qur'an:
O you who have believed, say not [to Allah 's Messenger], "Ra'ina" but say, "Unthurna"
يا أيها الذين آمنوا لا تقولوا راعنا وقولوا انظرناDo not do that
لا تفعلSell the bad ones for dirhams, then buy with them
بع الجمع _ يعني الرديء _ بالدراهم ثم اشتر بهIn summary, asking Allah the Exalted by His speech, such as the Qur'an for example, is permissible, and asking Allah by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is not permissible, as we have explained regarding the wisdom and reasoning.