What is your guidance regarding al-Dhahabi’s words in *al-Sirah* concerning the biographies of some of the righteous, where he reported regarding the state of their graves that people seek nearness to Allah through them and that they are an antidote, and he did not refute this?

The questioner : May Allah reward you. Our Shaykh says:The questioner : What is your guidance regarding the words of al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) in *Siyar A'lam al-Nubala* when he biographed some of the righteous, where he reported regarding the state of their graves that people seek nearness to Allah through them and that they are an antidote, and he did not refute this?

The Shaykh : Perhaps this was before he matured in the knowledge of creed and the oneness of Allah. It is possible that the matter was so, and it is possible that due to the speed of writing and authorship, he did not notice the prohibited matter that results from narrating the reality. And the answer is also, as we said regarding Ahmad, we also say regarding Imam al-Dhahabi.