Do you say that when a Muslim makes supplication and asks Allah the Mighty and Majestic, saying for example, “O Allah, forgive me by the status of our master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him),” is this…
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The questioner : Do you say that when a Muslim makes supplication and asks Allah the Mighty and Majestic, saying for example, “O Allah, forgive me by the status of our master Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him),” is this forbidden, and will Allah punish the believer for it? With my thanks to the program team and the answering Shaykh.
The Shaykh : It should be known that supplication is a form of worship of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And if supplication is worship, then it is not for us to invent means of supplication that the Shari'ah has not brought. Asking Allah Blessed and Exalted is He, or rather, seeking nearness to Allah Blessed and Exalted is He during supplication, is done through matters:
First: Seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, due to His saying:[Al-A'raf 7:180] For example, a person might say: “O Allah, O Provider, provide for me; O Forgiver, forgive me; O Merciful, have mercy on me” And for example, he might say: “Admit me, by Your mercy, among Your righteous servants” So he seeks nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, and this is what the Shari'ah has brought.
The second means: That one seeks nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in Him and obedience to Him, as Allah the Exalted mentioned regarding those of understanding who say:[Ali 'Imran 3:193] The “fa” (so/then) here indicates causality, showing that what follows is derived from what precedes it, meaning: so because of our faith in this caller, [Ali 'Imran 3:193].
The third means: That a person seeks nearness by his need for Allah the Mighty and Majestic, meaning by mentioning his state and his poverty, as in the saying of Musa (peace be upon him):[Al-Qasas 28:24] This is a statement, but it includes supplication. And seeking nearness to Allah Blessed and Exalted is He by mentioning the state of the supplicant.
Sometimes, seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted is done with all these causes.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As in the supplication that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught Abu Bakr to recite in his prayer:Sahih al-Bukhari 6326 So this is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by mentioning the state of the servant, Sahih al-Bukhari 7387, 7388 and by praising Allah the Exalted with His attributes in His saying: Sahih al-Bukhari 7387, 7388 And this is part of faith in Allah, . These are the correct, lawful means by which a person seeks nearness to Allah the Exalted for the answering of his supplication or for the acceptance of his supplication.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As for seeking nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself, if it is seeking nearness by the supplication of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for the one seeking nearness, then there is nothing wrong with it. But this does not occur except during the lifetime of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as in the saying of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): “O Allah, we used to seek nearness to You by our Prophet, so You gave us rain. And now we seek nearness to You by the uncle of our Prophet, so give us rain” Then he ordered al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib to supplicate to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And as when the Bedouin man entered while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the Friday sermon and said: So this is seeking nearness by the person of the Messenger (peace be upon him) to supplicate to Allah the Mighty and Majestic for the person who sought nearness through him.
And as for seeking nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death, this is not permissible. Among this is seeking nearness by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), for this is a religious innovation. It has not been reported from the Companions that they sought nearness by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). And just as the implication of the evidence is that we do not seek nearness by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) because it has not been reported, so too is the implication of reasoning. For the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is not from our actions, so that we seek nearness to Allah by it, like seeking nearness by our faith and our deeds. Nor is it beneficial to us, so that we seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by it. For the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is only benefited by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) alone, so it is not a means for the answering of supplication.
And if the implication of the evidence and reasoning is that we do not seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then let us seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by what is better than it, which is faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as Allah the Exalted related regarding those of understanding. This is the reported, good, and valuable path, which is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). Why do we not follow it? Why do we follow a path that is forbidden and an innovation, and leave this path?
So as long as Allah the Exalted has opened for us lawful, sound paths, let us be among those who follow them, so that we may be among those about whom Allah the Exalted said:[Az-Zumar 39:18].
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : This is a message we received from al-Qassim. The sender is Muhammad Hasan Yahya al-Yamani from the Hudeidah area in Yemen.
The Shaykh : It should be known that supplication is a form of worship of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And if supplication is worship, then it is not for us to invent means of supplication that the Shari'ah has not brought. Asking Allah Blessed and Exalted is He, or rather, seeking nearness to Allah Blessed and Exalted is He during supplication, is done through matters:
First: Seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, due to His saying:
And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them
وَلِلَّهِ الأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَى فَادْعُوهُ بِهَاThe second means: That one seeks nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in Him and obedience to Him, as Allah the Exalted mentioned regarding those of understanding who say:
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
رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا سَمِعْنَا مُنَادِيًا يُنَادِي لِلإِيمَانِ أَنْ ءامِنُوا بِرَبِّكُمْ فَآمَنَّا رَبَّنَا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَكَفِّرْ عَنَّا سَيِّئَاتِنَاso forgive us our sins and remove from us our misdeeds and cause us to die with the righteous.
فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَكَفِّرْ عَنَّا سَيِّئَاتِنَا وَتَوَفَّنَا مَعَ الأَبْرَارِThe third means: That a person seeks nearness by his need for Allah the Mighty and Majestic, meaning by mentioning his state and his poverty, 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 فَقِيرٌSometimes, seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted is done with all these causes.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As in the supplication that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught Abu Bakr to recite in his prayer:
Allahumma inni zalamtu nafsi zulman kathiran wala yaghfirudhdhunuba illa anta, Faghfirli maghfiratan min indika war-hamni, innaka antalGhafur-Rahim.
اللهم إني ظلمت نفسي ظلماً كثيراً ولا يغفر الذنوب إلا أنت، فاغفر لي مغفرة من عندك، وارحمني إنك أنت الغفور الرحيمO Allah! I have wronged my soul very much
اللهم إني ظلمت نفسي ظلماً كثيراًnone forgives the sins but You
وإنه لا يغفر الذنوب إلا أنتSo forgive me a forgiveness from You, for You are the Forgiving, the Merciful.
فاغفر لي مغفرة من عندك إنك أنت الغفور الرحيمThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As for seeking nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself, if it is seeking nearness by the supplication of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) for the one seeking nearness, then there is nothing wrong with it. But this does not occur except during the lifetime of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as in the saying of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): “O Allah, we used to seek nearness to You by our Prophet, so You gave us rain. And now we seek nearness to You by the uncle of our Prophet, so give us rain” Then he ordered al-'Abbas ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib to supplicate to Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And as when the Bedouin man entered while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was delivering the Friday sermon and said:
O Messenger of Allah, the wealth is ruined, the roads are cut off, and the families are hungry, so call upon Allah to relieve us. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) raised his hands, and the people raised their hands. And he said: “O Allah, relieve us” three times. So he did not descend from the pulpit until the rain was pouring from his beard.
يا رسول الله هلكت الأموال وانقطعت السبل وجاع العيال فادع الله يغيثنا، فرفع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يديه ورفع الناس أيديهم. وقال: اللهم أغثنا ثلاث مرات. فما نزل من المنبر إلا والمطر يتحادر من لحيتهAnd as for seeking nearness to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) after his death, this is not permissible. Among this is seeking nearness by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), for this is a religious innovation. It has not been reported from the Companions that they sought nearness by the status of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). And just as the implication of the evidence is that we do not seek nearness by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) because it has not been reported, so too is the implication of reasoning. For the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is not from our actions, so that we seek nearness to Allah by it, like seeking nearness by our faith and our deeds. Nor is it beneficial to us, so that we seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by it. For the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is only benefited by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) alone, so it is not a means for the answering of supplication.
And if the implication of the evidence and reasoning is that we do not seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by the status of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then let us seek nearness to Allah the Exalted by what is better than it, which is faith in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as Allah the Exalted related regarding those of understanding. This is the reported, good, and valuable path, which is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by faith in His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). Why do we not follow it? Why do we follow a path that is forbidden and an innovation, and leave this path?
So as long as Allah the Exalted has opened for us lawful, sound paths, let us be among those who follow them, so that we may be among those about whom Allah the Exalted said:
Who listen to speech and follow the best of it. Those are the ones Allah has guided, and those are people of understanding.
الَّذِينَ يَسْتَمِعُونَ الْقَوْلَ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ أَحْسَنَهُ أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ هَدَاهُمُ اللَّهُ وَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ أُوْلُوا الأَلْبَابِThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : This is a message we received from al-Qassim. The sender is Muhammad Hasan Yahya al-Yamani from the Hudeidah area in Yemen.