The Ruling on Supplicating to the Dead and Seeking Their Aid
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The Shaykh : Beware of saying what Allah does not approve of or doing what Allah does not approve of. Beware of going to a grave and saying, "O my master, O my lord, O friend of Allah, give me, provide for me, help me, I am in need." Beware of this, for it will not fulfill your need, and it will only increase your distance from Allah. If it is decreed that your need is fulfilled at that time, meaning at the time of supplicating to the occupant of the grave, do you think that the occupant of the grave is the one who answered you?
The student: No.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah. We say, no, by Allah, but there are some ignorant people whom Satan has deceived, and they say, "This is from the wali (close friend of Allah)." We say that your belief that this is from the wali is part of Satan's misguidance, for Allah the Exalted says in the Noble Qur'an:[Saba 34:22] meaning those whom you claimed to be friends besides Allah. [Saba 34:22] This is one. [Saba 34:22] This is two. [Saba 34:22] Three. [Saba 34:23] This verse has severed the ties of those who claim that with Allah there is someone who benefits and harms. And Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Ahqaf 46:5] And on the Day of Resurrection, what will happen? [Al-Ahqaf 46:6] Be careful, my brother, no one can benefit you besides Allah. You have a Guardian and a Watcher from Allah, and there will be recompense and reckoning on the Day of Resurrection, so beware.
So if a man came to us and said that he is afflicted and wants to go to the grave of so-and-so to seek his aid and ask for his help, what do we say to him? What do we say to him, my brothers? We say: This is forbidden (haram). Turn to Allah Mighty and Majestic, for Allah says in His Book:[An-Naml 27:62] The answer is no, no god but Allah, no one answers this but Allah, Lord of the worlds. So beware, my brother, for you have a Guardian. [At-Tariq 86:4] The young man might say, "My fathers go to the grave of so-and-so and so-and-so and supplicate to them." We say, you are a young man, you are of sound mind, do you think that this dead person, who has become a corpse, can benefit you or harm you? Address the youth with reason, along with addressing them with the Qur'an and the Sunnah, but address them with reason so that it becomes clear that those who call upon other than Allah are astray in their religion, foolish in their dreams and minds. Even if you find your fathers, grandfathers, mothers, and grandmothers doing this, know that it is an error. And whom do you worship? Worship Allah. Seek aid from Allah. Have you not seen that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Companions at Badr sought aid from Allah? Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Anfal 8:9] If the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), Muhammad the Messenger of Allah, sought aid from Allah, how can you seek aid from someone far below the Messenger? Beware of this. You will find in some Islamic lands people who seek aid from the awliya (close friends of Allah) and rely on the awliya, and perhaps their need is fulfilled, but not by the supplication of these awliya, but when they supplicate. And there is a difference between something happening because of something, or something happening when? At the time of the thing. And Allah the Exalted may test a person by granting him his request when he supplicates to other than Allah, as a trial for him.
The student: No.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah. We say, no, by Allah, but there are some ignorant people whom Satan has deceived, and they say, "This is from the wali (close friend of Allah)." We say that your belief that this is from the wali is part of Satan's misguidance, for Allah the Exalted says in the Noble Qur'an:
Say, [O Muhammad], "Invoke those you claim [as deities] besides Allah."
قل ادعوا الذين زعمتم من دون اللهThey do not possess an atom's weight [of ability] in the heavens or on the earth
لا يملكون مثقال ذرة في السموات ولا في الأرضand they do not have therein any partnership
وما لهم فيهما من شركnor is there for Him from among them any assistant.
وما له منهم من ظهيرAnd intercession does not benefit with Him except for one whom He permits.
ولا تنفع الشفاعة عنده إلا لمن أذن لهAnd who is more astray than he who invokes besides Allah those who will not respond to him until the Day of Resurrection, and they, of their invocation, are unaware.
ومن أضل ممن يدعو من دون الله من لا يستجيب له إلى يوم القيامة وهم عن دعائهم غافلونAnd when the people are gathered [that Day], they [who were invoked] will be enemies to them, and they will be deniers of their worship.
وإذا حشر الناس كانوا لهم أعداءً وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرينSo if a man came to us and said that he is afflicted and wants to go to the grave of so-and-so to seek his aid and ask for his help, what do we say to him? What do we say to him, my brothers? We say: This is forbidden (haram). Turn to Allah Mighty and Majestic, for Allah says in His Book: