What is the criterion for the prescribed tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means), and what is the ruling on those who seek blessing from the righteous on the pretext that the Companions sought blessing from the hair of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)?
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The questioner : What is the criterion for the prescribed tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means), O Shaykh Muhammad, and what is the ruling on those who seek blessing from the righteous on the pretext that the Companions sought blessing from the hair of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)?
The Shaykh : The prescribed tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) has types. One of them is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, saying, "O Forgiver, forgive me," or "O Possessor of forgiveness and mercy, forgive me," or "O Allah, I seek aid by Your mercy," or the like. Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions, such as what came in the tashahhud (the testification recited while sitting in prayer): "O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon Ibrahim and upon the family of Ibrahim". This is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions by which He bestowed favor upon whomever He willed of His servants in the past.
Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith and righteous deeds, such as the saying of those of understanding:[Ali 'Imran 3:193].
Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah by mentioning one's need and one's poverty before his Lord, such as the saying of Musa (peace be upon him):[Al-Qasas 28:24].
Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by the supplication of a righteous man whose response is hoped for, as the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) did when they came to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked him to supplicate to Allah for them. In the two Sahihs, from the hadith of Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), a man entered on Friday while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the khutbah (the sermon) and said, "O Messenger of Allah, the wealth has perished and the roads have been cut off, so call upon Allah to relieve us." He raised his hands to the sky and said:Sahih Muslim 897a. The sky rained, and the rain continued to fall for a full week. Then the man, or another man, entered and said, "O Messenger of Allah, the wealth has been drowned and the buildings have collapsed, so call upon Allah to hold it back from us." He raised his hands and said: Sahih al-Bukhari 1020.
It is not tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) to seek blessing from a person by his clothing, hair, sweat, or the like, except in the case of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Companions used to seek blessing from his traces (peace and blessings be upon him), but none of them sought blessing from another. They did not seek blessing from Abu Bakr, or 'Umar, or Uthman, or Ali in this manner of seeking blessing. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : The prescribed tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) has types. One of them is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, saying, "O Forgiver, forgive me," or "O Possessor of forgiveness and mercy, forgive me," or "O Allah, I seek aid by Your mercy," or the like. Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions, such as what came in the tashahhud (the testification recited while sitting in prayer): "O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the family of Muhammad, as You sent blessings upon Ibrahim and upon the family of Ibrahim". This is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His actions by which He bestowed favor upon whomever He willed of His servants in the past.
Another type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith and righteous deeds, such as the saying of those of understanding:
Our 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.
رَبَّنا إِنَّنا سَمِعنا مُنادِيًا يُنادي لِلإيمانِ أَن ءامِنوا بِرَبِّكُم فَآمَنّا رَبَّنا فَاغفِر لَنا ذُنوبَنا وَكَفِّر عَنّا سَيِّئَاتِنا وَتَوَفَّنا مَعَ الأَبرارِAnother type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah by mentioning one's need and one's poverty before his Lord, such as 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 إِنّي لِما أَنزَلتَ إِلَيَّ مِن خَيرٍ فَقيرٌAnother type of prescribed tawassul is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by the supplication of a righteous man whose response is hoped for, as the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) did when they came to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked him to supplicate to Allah for them. In the two Sahihs, from the hadith of Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), a man entered on Friday while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the khutbah (the sermon) and said, "O Messenger of Allah, the wealth has perished and the roads have been cut off, so call upon Allah to relieve us." He raised his hands to the sky and said:
O Allah, send down rain upon us; O Allah, send dowp rain upon us; O Allah, send down rain upon us
اللهم أغثنا اللهم أغثنا اللهم أغثناNarrated Masruq: One day I went to Ibn Mas`ud who said, "When Quraish delayed in embracing Islam, the Prophet (ﷺ) I invoked Allah to curse them, so they were afflicted with a (famine) year because of which many of them died and they ate the carcasses and Abu Sufyan came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said, 'O Muhammad! You came to order people to keep good relation with kith and kin and your nation is being destroyed, so invoke Allah I ? So the Prophet (ﷺ) I recited the Holy verses of Sirat-Ad-Dukhan: 'Then watch you For the day that The sky will Bring forth a kind Of smoke Plainly visible.' (44.10) When the famine was taken off, the people renegade once again as nonbelievers. The statement of Allah, (in Sura "Ad- Dukhan"-44) refers to that: 'On the day when We shall seize You with a mighty grasp.' (44.16) And that was what happened on the day of the battle of Badr." Asbath added on the authority of Mansur, "Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) prayed for them and it rained heavily for seven days. So the people complained of the excessive rain. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'O Allah! (Let it rain) around us and not on us.' So the clouds dispersed over his head and it rained over the surroundings."
اللهم حوالينا ولا عليناIt is not tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) to seek blessing from a person by his clothing, hair, sweat, or the like, except in the case of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Companions used to seek blessing from his traces (peace and blessings be upon him), but none of them sought blessing from another. They did not seek blessing from Abu Bakr, or 'Umar, or Uthman, or Ali in this manner of seeking blessing. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh.