What is the ruling on seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when making supplication?
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The questioner : What is the ruling on seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when making supplication?
The Shaykh : Seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when making supplication, if the person seeking nearness intends to seek nearness through faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) or through love for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), then there is nothing wrong with it. But if his intention is to seek nearness through his person, it is not permissible, because seeking nearness through his person does not benefit the one seeking nearness, and he would be calling upon Allah the Exalted with something that is not a cause for the answer. This is a type of mockery. Know that seeking nearness is of several types. One of them is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names, which is prescribed, such as saying: "O Allah, I ask You by Your beautiful names and Your exalted attributes to forgive me". This is prescribed because of the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-A'raf 7:180].
The second is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His attributes, which is also prescribed, as it came in the hadith:Mishkat al-Masabih 2497.
The third is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions, as the one praying says:Sahih al-Bukhari 3370. His saying: is for the purpose of explanation, meaning: just as You bestowed the blessing of prayer upon Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim, so bestow the blessing of prayer upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.
The fourth is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in Him and following His Messenger, as in His saying the Exalted:[Ali 'Imran 3:53], and as in His saying the Exalted: [Ali 'Imran 3:16], and as in His saying the Exalted: [Ali 'Imran 3:193].
The fifth is seeking nearness by righteous deeds, as in the story of the three men who took refuge in a cave, and a rock closed in on them, and they could not move it, so they sought nearness to Allah the Exalted by their righteous deeds, and Allah saved them and the rock split open.
The sixth is seeking nearness to Allah by the state of the supplicant, such as saying: "O Allah, I am poor, so make me rich," or saying: "O Allah, I have wronged myself with much wrongdoing, so forgive me", and as in the saying of Musa (peace be upon him):[Al-Qasas 28:24].
The seventh is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by the supplication of the righteous man, as the Companions used to seek nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) by his supplication for them, as in the story of the man who entered while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon on the pulpit on Friday and said: "O Messenger of Allah! The wealth has been destroyed and the paths have been cut off, so call upon Allah to send us relief." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) supplicated, and Allah responded to him.
These are seven types of permissible seeking nearness. On this occasion, I would like to say: if asking a righteous person for supplication is feared to lead to that man becoming arrogant about himself and saying that he is one of the awliya (close friends of Allah), then there is harm in this, so he should not be asked. Also, it is more appropriate for a person, in general, not to ask anyone to supplicate to Allah for him, but rather to supplicate to Allah the Exalted directly himself.
As for the forbidden seeking nearness: it is seeking nearness through the dead, which may reach the level of major shirk (associating partners with Allah). And so is seeking nearness through the status of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) or any other of the prophets, or seeking nearness through the status of the righteous. All of this is forbidden and does not benefit. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you and bless you. This questioner says.
The Shaykh : Seeking nearness to Allah through the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when making supplication, if the person seeking nearness intends to seek nearness through faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) or through love for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), then there is nothing wrong with it. But if his intention is to seek nearness through his person, it is not permissible, because seeking nearness through his person does not benefit the one seeking nearness, and he would be calling upon Allah the Exalted with something that is not a cause for the answer. This is a type of mockery. Know that seeking nearness is of several types. One of them is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names, which is prescribed, such as saying: "O Allah, I ask You by Your beautiful names and Your exalted attributes to forgive me". This is prescribed because of the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them
وَلِلَّهِ الأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَى فَادْعُوهُ بِهَاThe second is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His attributes, which is also prescribed, as it came in the hadith:
O God, by Thy knowledge of the unseen and Thy power to create, grant me life as long as Thou knowest life to be best for me, and take me when Thou knowest death to be best for me
اللهم بعلمك الغيب، وقدرتك على الخلق، أحيني إذا علمت الحياة خيراً لي، وتوفني إذا علمت الوفاة خيراً ليThe third is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions, as the one praying says:
O Allah! Send Your Mercy on Muhammad and on the family of Muhammad, as You sent Your Mercy on Abraham and on the family of Abraham, for You are the Most Praise-worthy, the Most Glorious.
اللهم صل على محمد، وعلى ءال محمد كما صليت على إبراهيم وعلى ءال إبراهيم إنك حميد مجيدas You sent blessings
كما صليتThe fourth is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in Him and following His Messenger, as in His saying the Exalted:
Our Lord, we have believed in what You revealed and have followed the messenger Jesus, so register us among the witnesses [to truth]."
رَبَّنَا ءامَنَّا بِمَا أَنْزَلْتَ وَاتَّبَعْنَا الرَّسُولَ فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّاهِدِينَThose who say, "Our Lord, indeed we have believed, so forgive us
الَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا ءامَنَّا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَاOur Lord, indeed we have heard a caller calling to faith, [saying], 'Believe in your Lord,' and we have believed. Our Lord, so forgive us our sins and remove from us our misdeeds and cause us to die with the righteous.
رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا سَمِعْنَا مُنَادِيًا يُنَادِي لِلإِيمَانِ أَنْ ءامِنُوا بِرَبِّكُمْ فَآمَنَّا رَبَّنَا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَكَفِّرْ عَنَّا سَيِّئَاتِنَا وَتَوَفَّنَا مَعَ الأَبْرَارِThe fifth is seeking nearness by righteous deeds, as in the story of the three men who took refuge in a cave, and a rock closed in on them, and they could not move it, so they sought nearness to Allah the Exalted by their righteous deeds, and Allah saved them and the rock split open.
The sixth is seeking nearness to Allah by the state of the supplicant, such as saying: "O Allah, I am poor, so make me rich," or saying: "O Allah, I have wronged myself with much wrongdoing, so forgive me", and as in the saying of Musa (peace be upon him):
My Lord, indeed I am, for whatever good You would send down to me, in need."
رَبِّ إِنِّي لِمَا أَنزَلْتَ إِلَيَّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَقِيرٌThe seventh is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by the supplication of the righteous man, as the Companions used to seek nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) by his supplication for them, as in the story of the man who entered while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the sermon on the pulpit on Friday and said: "O Messenger of Allah! The wealth has been destroyed and the paths have been cut off, so call upon Allah to send us relief." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) supplicated, and Allah responded to him.
These are seven types of permissible seeking nearness. On this occasion, I would like to say: if asking a righteous person for supplication is feared to lead to that man becoming arrogant about himself and saying that he is one of the awliya (close friends of Allah), then there is harm in this, so he should not be asked. Also, it is more appropriate for a person, in general, not to ask anyone to supplicate to Allah for him, but rather to supplicate to Allah the Exalted directly himself.
As for the forbidden seeking nearness: it is seeking nearness through the dead, which may reach the level of major shirk (associating partners with Allah). And so is seeking nearness through the status of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) or any other of the prophets, or seeking nearness through the status of the righteous. All of this is forbidden and does not benefit. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you and bless you. This questioner says.